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Cindy Bohne and Chris Linskey recall, Winchester School Department, Massachusetts (2015)
| Winchester School Department School Committee recall |
|---|
 |
| Officeholders |
Chris Linskey |
| Recall status |
| See also |
| Recall overview Political recall efforts, 2015 Recalls in Massachusetts Massachusetts recall laws School board recalls Recall reports |
An effort to recall two members on the Winchester School Committee in Massachusetts was abandoned in September 2015. Recall supporters had been frustrated at the lack of information surrounding high school principal Sean F. Kiley's paid administrative leave. Once the district offered to continue paying Kiley's salary throughout the 2015-2016 school year, the recall effort was dropped.[1][2]
Recall supporters
On August 12, 2015, Winchester Superintendent Judith Evans sent an email to parents announcing that Kiley had “given notice of his resignation.” On August 13, 2015, Kiley wrote to the Boston Globe, saying he had not resigned. In response to the differing announcements, a number of parents and community members attended the School Committee meeting on August 18, 2015, to defend Kiley and ask for his job back.[1]
Cindy Bohne, chairwoman of the board, said the school committee was unanimously in support of Evans's decision to accept Kiley's resignation, but she did not provide any additional information about the situation. A group organized after the school committee meeting to seek answers. Some of those members suggested recalling Bohne and School Committee Vice Chairman Chris Linskey.[1][3]
Chris Gregory, a resident of the district whose children graduated from the high school where Kiley formerly worked as principal, contacted the town clerk about the possibility of recalling the two members. He said that would be a last resort, as all the group wanted was to "get a very popular principal reinstated.” Gregory said a recall would be a "very aggressive and threatening thing to do."[1]
Gregory and David Errico, another district resident, passed out recall petitions at a town hall meeting on August 26, 2015, though neither expressed enthusiasm at the idea. “My hope is at the end of the day nobody will be recalled,” said Errico. He said the recall effort could be stopped at any time, and it was stopped when Kiley and Evans came to an agreement. Evans offered to keep Kiley on the district's health care plan and to pay him his entire salary for the 2015-2016 school year, which came to $4,951.92 a week, unless he accepted a different job with an equal or higher salary in the interim. It was also revealed that Kiley needed "considerable time off to attend to family concerns.”[2][3]
Recall opponents
The group in support of Kiley keeping his job split into two factions: those who supported a recall effort against school committee members and those who said the recall was a wasted effort as it would not get Kiley his job back. Those against the recall pointed out that school committee members had no authority to hire or fire school principals. They were also unable to legally speak about personnel matters publicly. Those against the recall effort suggested other ways to get answers, such as asking Kiley to waive his confidentiality rights.[3]
Path to the ballot
- See also: Laws governing recall in Massachusetts
The recall supporters would have had to submit 200 registered voters' signatures, with 25 coming from each of the eight precincts in the district to start the process of getting a recall on the ballot. After that, the town clerk would have had to verify them. If verified, the recall group would have been given a petition. They would have had to collect approximately 2,100 signatures and have those verified. If those were verified, the town selectmen would have had to order the recall election.[2][3]
Recent news
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See also
- Winchester School Department, Massachusetts
- Recall campaigns in Massachusetts
- Political recall efforts, 2015
- School board recalls
External links
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