School Committee – Everett Leader Herald

The Everett Political Merry Go Round is a Cash Cow for the Mayor; This Must Stop

By Stephen Pinto

Too bad School Committeeman Mike McLaughlin wasn’t as aggressive as a councillor as he tries to appear to be as a school committee member.

But he grew increasingly afraid of Carlo and now Carlo owns him. He was so afraid that he refused to vote on the mayor’s longevity bonus while still a councilor.

Jeannie Cristiano is out to make things as tough as possible for Superintendent of Schools Priya Tahiliani.

If she and McLaughlin wore a DeMaria mask you’d swear it was his words they were speak- ing.

They all need schooling and legal directives on how to be a school committee member.

Especially when it comes to what the rules and policies are and what their obligations legally are.

When Frederick F. Foresteire was superintendent, McLaughlin had nothing but praise for the Everett Public Schools. He wouldn’t say boo to FFF. He always supported FFF and the committee. Now he’s clearly on a mission to tear it completely down.

He has become, to my dismay, and to the dismay of many others, just another tool for the mayor in that inner circle who are afraid of a strong independent woman of color like Tahiliani.

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Council Stops Double Dipping by Denying Cristiano and Mangan Second Salaries

Both Can Serve as School Committee Members

By Josh Resnek

A rejuvenated City Council, powered by new members and a changed attitude, made two decisions last week.

First, the city council voted against allowing newly elected School Committee members Jeannie Cristiano and Mike Mangan to collect two salaries.

Cristiano and Mangan are city employees.

The city charter does not allow for city employees to collect two paychecks from the city.

The duo, both elected for the first time last November, will be serving but will not be paid.

How did this come about?

That’s part of the second decision made by the city council to allow all the members of the School Committee to be considered as “special employees.”

The city council approved this last week.

By doing so, the city council carried out the city charter’s imperative.

It allows for city employees to serve on the city council or the school committee with the proviso they cannot be paid for serving.

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Efforts to Designate School Committee Members ‘Special Employees’ Put Off

By Josh Resnek

Two School Committee members employed by the city seeking special employee status so they can be paid two salaries met with stiff opposition to that pleasant notion at Monday night’s city council meeting.

Actually, before they can be paid, it must be determined if they are allowed to serve on the school committee.

An effort is being made by the administration (although it is difficult to determine who exactly is acting for this) to have School Committee members Jeannie Cristiano and Mike Mangan certified as “special employees” in order to receive two salaries.

Cristiano is the city’s Veterans Affairs Director.

Mangan is a clerk of the city council.

The measure to make them “special employees” was offered by city council president John Hanlon.

When City Solicitor Colleen Mejia was asked if such an effort was legal and right, her reply shocked some and satisfied others.

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Bombs Away

This week’s School Committee agenda is the rough equivalent of an effort to place School Superintendent Priya Tahiliani on notice that everything about her job and those who she hired is about to change.

In Everett language, this translates into this: the SC agenda is intended to tie Tahiliani’s arms behind her back and to tie her feet together at the ankles. The agenda also provides for stipulations that act like a thick sock stuffed into her mouth.

The agenda is way overboard. Its creators are aware of this but they don’t care.

Attempting to rig the process of forcing Tahiliani to leave is part of the mayor’s plan to control the School Department and to reorganize it the way he wants, to hire whom he wants, and to fire whomever he wishes.

In the case of Tahiliani, the School Committee is attempting to rid itself of a woman of color.

This should be easy to accomplish.

There are 8 votes pledged against Tahiliani and her appointments.

This means that when the votes are taken, the mayor will not have to vote against Tahiliani. He is likely to vote for her to remain to show how fair the process is.

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Sink the School Committee Agenda

The new school committee is all about doing the mayor’s bidding.

They can tell you this isn’t the case, but it is.

He has wanted Superintendent Priya Tahiliani either removed from her position or to resign for more than a year and half.

The mayor’s ascendancy to a voting seat on the school committee is believed to be a fair accompli about getting rid of Tahiliani.

The effort to remove her from her position is already underway. Everything else is a subterfuge. The process has already begun in private among the mayor and the school committee votes he owns.

The effort is not yet in earnest in public.

This will come shortly. Watch for it.

Ridding the school system of one of its brightest lights during one of the school system’s darkest moments to satisfy the whim of the mayor, well, that’s just all wrong.

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