Longtime educator tells Petersburg board personnel practices are driving teachers away

A contracted Petersburg City Public Schools educator used three minutes of the public-comment period on June 17 to criticize district personnel practices and warn that mismanagement is prompting educators to leave.

"My name is Vanita Giddings... In a two-year span, I was forced to reapply at least three times for my job as science specialist," Giddings told the board. She described being reassigned to Walnut Hill Elementary as an instructional coach — a placement she said did not match her secondary credentials — and said she was recently informed that her contract would not be renewed and that a transfer had been granted without her consent.

"I did not ask for a transfer, nor do I desire to go back in the classroom," Giddings said. "I was told that if I didn't sign the contract, it meant I resigned. I did not sign." She said the conditions have prompted staff departures and urged board members to review human-resources practices and staff treatment.

Board members responded with expressions of appreciation for her service and asked staff to include a copy of her prepared comments in the meeting record. Superintendent Brown and several board members acknowledged Giddings' remarks and thanked her for raising concerns.

Giddings' comments were part of a broader agenda that included audits, budgets, grants and policy reviews; no board action was taken on the personnel matters she raised during the meeting. The board did agree to an amendment to the personnel agenda later in the meeting to re-add a previously removed item, but the amendment did not address Giddings' specific allegations.