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EPIC teacher raises transparency and pay concerns as board accepts resignation, approves payouts
Summary
A special-education teacher told the EPIC ONE ON ONE CHARTER SCHOOL board she and colleagues feel blindsided by program cuts and pay reductions. The board accepted the resignation of Bart Banfield in a vote and approved pay-through-the-end-of-month for recently let-go staff.
Sarah Kidderman, a special-education 1-to-1 teacher and parent of three EPIC students, told the EPIC ONE ON ONE CHARTER SCHOOL board she and other staff and families have seen “no transparency about what has happened and why it's happening.”
Kidderman said cuts to principals, teachers, response-to-intervention staff, reading sufficiency act staff and programs such as ELA Plus and Meet Math Plus have left educators and families with unanswered questions about how the school will continue serving about 30,000 students. “How does that make us stronger and more able to serve our 30,000 students?” she asked during public comment.
The concerns came before the board went into executive session. Board Chair remarks after the session noted that only board members and Brandon Webb were present and that “only the items on the agenda were discussed. No votes were taken” during the closed session.
After returning to open session, the board voted to accept the resignation of Bart Banfield, with a motion that the compensation for Banfield and “the individuals that were just recently let go will go through the end of the month.” The motion was seconded and carried with the following recorded votes: Miss Berry, Yes; Miss Casper, Yes; Mister Hammonds, Yes; Miss Myers, Yes; and Mister Vela, Yes.
Kidderman told the board that some teachers have seen substantial pay reductions related to changes in OAP (Opportunity/Award/Program) pay, describing “some to the tune of, like, $30,000 salary cut” for teachers who served larger numbers of OAP students. She said the elimination of benefits such as a class-pass wellness benefit has forced some staff to seek second jobs; Kidderman said she was on her way to a shift at Club Pilates after the meeting.
Kidderman also questioned how cutting interventionists and principals but later hiring “managing directors of instruction at a higher pay level” would balance the budget. She said staff and families felt communications claiming “transparency” did not explain the decisions.
The board did not vote on any additional budget items at the meeting. A motion later on the agenda to table the entire consent agenda until a special meeting passed unanimously.
Why this matters: the personnel and program changes cited by staff affect services for a large student population and the working conditions of teachers whose pay and benefits they said have been reduced. Board actions accepting a resignation and approving short-term payouts are formal decisions; other concerns raised by staff remain matters the board will address in future meetings.
