Board of Education keeps principal in Utica

UTICA – The North Fork Board of Education voted unanimously Monday night against granting a nearly two-year paid administrative leave for Utica High School Principal Mark Bowman.

The board also voted not to terminate Bowman's contract altogether.

Before deciding on the proposed termination of his contract, the board voted on his proposed administrative leave. That option was recommended by the school board's attorney, Dane Gaschen, said Lori Stradley, board of education president.

Other recommendations from Gaschen included having Bowman work other jobs in the district or terminating his contract altogether, which Stradley said could result in roughly $500,000 in termination and legal fees.

"There's more to the picture and more at stake in this district," Stradley said.

After the board voted against the paid leave, board member Theresa Magers moved that the board terminate Bowman's contract.

"I was going to vote yes on this (first vote), but the people that put me here don't want me to," Magers said. "I don't want to pay him, but I don't want him in the district."

The vote to terminate Bowman's contract failed 3-2.

A large crowd gathered for the meeting Monday night, most arguing the board should not approve the paid leave. Many threatened not to vote for the upcoming 1 percent income tax renewal levy if the board approved the measure.

"There's other things in the district that he could be doing other than sitting at home collecting our money," said Kate Lambert, parent of four in the district.

Initially, Bowman received a letter of reprimand for his file and the board has imposed "performance goals to make sure he doesn't make the same mistake in the future," Stradley said.

In response to an uproar from the crowd over not terminating Bowman's contract, the board discussed bringing Gaschen to the next meeting to discuss the potential financial ramifications of that action. The cost would be $250 per hour, Stradley said.

"It's a gamble," Stradley said. "The attorney is aware of everything that Bowman has done."

The votes came in response to a recommendation that Bowman wrote in September 2013 for Jeffrey Poulton, an employee let go by the district after just one month when discipline he received from Columbus City Schools came to light. Columbus fired Poulton after he used student messengers and school email accounts to carry on a relationship with another teacher.

The recommendation Bowman wrote went to Cheatham County, Tennessee, where Poulton eventually got a job.

Bowman's recommendation stated that he would rehire Poulton and that he was "great to be around - a plus in any system," according to records obtained by The Advocate from the Tennessee school district.

Poulton did not last long at the new position, resigning after he was suspended pending an investigation into an alleged inappropriate conversation with a student.

The next North Fork Board of Education meeting will be May 18.

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