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Longtime teacher tells board substitutes and staff haven't been paid, urges action
Summary
At the June 17 meeting Patricia Shevitz, a longtime teacher and district resident, said at least 10 people had not been paid for subbing or extra work and criticized district communication and treatment of substitutes; no substantive public response was recorded in open session.
During public comment on June 17 Patricia Shevitz, who identified herself as a lifelong Rome resident and former RFA teacher, urged the board to address payroll problems and better communication with staff.
"I'm here because I have quite a few concerns about payroll. I know personally, absolutely personally, 10 people who haven't been paid for subbing or extra work," Shevitz said. She added that, from what she had heard, the number of unpaid staff could be as high as 20 and that affected employees received no notice that paychecks would be missing.
Shevitz also reported a rumor that a school missed a milk delivery this week because a bill had not been paid and described an incident in which a district representative reprimanded a substitute teacher in front of students. She framed the issues as reputational and operational: "If people aren't being paid... we're not gonna get people to come here," she said, urging the board to treat substitutes and staff with respect and to resolve payroll issues promptly.
Board minutes show no extended public response to the allegations in open session; administration names (Chris Stury and Julie Ramos) were referenced by the speaker as people she hoped would investigate and resolve payroll issues. The meeting later moved into executive session and did not return to public session.
