The duties for which he was paid AP funds were also included in his base pay. Substantial concerns about Burgesss conduct with regard to a $10,000 payment to the Chiles High School football coach, Kevin Pettis. This data is used to update the school profile, recognition at convocation and the honors senior page published in the Tallahassee Democrat. The article is a series of sentences stating facts of the situation, including quotes from the accused and his legal counsel. She then walked off the dais and hugged Burgess, who was sitting in the audience, before leaving the building. LOG IN. The investigation mentions several other staff members whose names are redacted from documents. Welcome to the Chiles High School Website. The policies in place require each school district to allocate at least 80 percent of the funds for advanced placement instruction. Where are those records? Please click HERE to read the ListServ Email. For those with a memory, when Rocky was promoted out of Leon high School he cried foul, now he promoted Billy Eptene from principal to a director. VOTE OUT HANNA! I am a parent of three former Chiles students and worked closely with Principal Burgess as the SAC Chairperson and various other volunteer positions. And for some teachers, the investigation found that their extra work and pay was not outside of their regular duties and therefore was in violation of the collective bargaining agreement. "We hired an external council to look at this matter and bring back a review of exactly what took place," Hanna said. He will have more than a few senior administrators/principals quietly rooting for him. TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) -- Joe Burgess, principal of Chiles High School, says there are "teachable moments" from recent incidents involving students at the school. This is especially true, since Mr. Burgess is not the first principal in Leon county to manage these same funds previously used at Chiles and other schools in the county. "If we want to see policies, were going to have to bring them ourselves.". TALLAHASSEE, Fla. The decision to suspend Chiles Principal Joe Burgess for two weeks without pay was upheld Tuesday night by the Leon County School Board. She held up a thick binder, full of colorful tabs and highlights. Its sad that a seemingly good person like Joe Burgess got involved in this. Im proud to be able to call him a friend. Independent investigators hired by Leon County Schools recommended disciplinary action for Chiles High School principal Joe Burgess after finding evidence they say proves he paid employees in a way that was, quote, "grossly improper.". "After atwo day hearing, Judge Chisenhall upheld the two week suspension without pay and ruled (that the)evidence showed both misconduct in office and a willful neglect of duty. Copyright 2022 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. Chiles High School principal appealing suspension over misusing funds, his lawyer says, How football lifted Chiles' Josef Marlow beyond living with autism. Out of all the misspent funds by local elected officials past and present and some of the top administrators, etc this is a joke. "The Leon County School District does not discriminate against any person on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, national origin, religion, age, sex (including transgender, gender nonconforming, and gender identity), marital status, disability, pregnancy, sexual orientation, or genetic information., Second Chance at Ghazvini Learning Center, Success Academy at Ghazvini Learning Center, Blackboard Web Community Manager Privacy Policy (Updated). Whoever said that Burgess misdirects funds from school sports is truly a heinous liar. Chiles High School recently appointed new head coaches for both the boys and girls varsity basketball teams. "Im going to have a lot to say about this beyond the limitations from this proceeding today," she said. No commentary included. Because some of the approved time was paid without documentation, the judge agreed with the district and said Burgess approved payroll information that he knew was inaccurate. Hanna has denied he violated district payroll policywhen he was a principal at Leon High School. Bourgade Catholic High School is a diocesan, co-educational Roman Catholic high school in Phoenix, Arizona, United States. TALLAHASSEE, Fla. The decision to suspend Chiles Principal Joe Burgess for two weeks without pay was upheld Tuesday night by the Leon County School Board. Instead, contact the District or individual employee by phone or in writing." It is refreshing to see an actual investigation into something at Chiles instead of the usual brushing under the rug that normally goes on. Leon County Schools board members early Monday morning rejected Chiles High School principal Joe Burgess' objections to a suspension that was upheld by Judge G.W. This document, shown below, outlined every exception and explained why it was being rejected. Any previous district wide audit, that the superintendent should have conducted prior to this attack on Mr. Burgess, would have found any wrongdoing prior to this investigation. Lets move forward and stop this pettiness, our kids need Mr. Burgess back at Chiles High School now getting the current administration ready for this next school year. Note: While demographic information must be collected in compliance with federal requirements, individual responses are confidential. If something was being done wrong, why wasnt anything ever brought up about the way these funds were spent before this supposed issue at Chiles? I pray that is not what is going on here a vendetta by Rocky. Street Address 7200 Lawton Chiles Lane Street Address Line 2 - City Tallahassee State Florida Zip Code 32312 District Leon FNS Region Southeast Regional Office School Phone (850) 488-1756 Total Enrollment 542 School Website - Grade Level Grade Levels Grade 12 School Type School Type High Staff Contact Information Team Nutrition Leader Name Please answer all the questions that apply and be honest. At this stage the Rocky Hanna playbook calls for anonymous accusations, innuendo and smear tactics. Chisenhall issued a recommended order, concurring with Burgess' two-week unpaid suspension, after Burgess contested the suspension. To send in photos, please use this link: SENIOR VIDEO SUBMISSIONS, Please email Mrs. Christie with any questions. REALLY!? If anyone should be suspended it should be Rocky. These related videos and comments expressed on them do not reflect the opinions and position of Leon County Schools or its employees." Instead, contact the District or individual employee by phone or in writing." Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ron DeSantis, Hanna has denied he violated district payroll policy, Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. But Chisenhall said the case "is an example of how the ends do not always justify the means Burgess had a system enabling him to dole out unauthorized supplements without any oversight.". The two-week suspension for Burgess would stand. Chiles High School received $449,238 in AP funds in 2020-21 and evidence shows that approximately $107,777 of this money was used to fund extra duty hourly positions unrelated to AP activities. A battle is brewing within the LCS District, stemming from allegations that Chiles High School's principal had misused funds meant to help AP students. From the previous article contained in a link in this story, LCS has no procedure to vet this type of case, and really has no choice but to refer the case to DOAH for adjudication. I hope people in this town know that retribution retaliation and improper direction of resources are also aimed at innocent people who tell the truth and dont want to go along. Should HAVE known. Principal Burgess has served ourschools with distinction, as historically evidenced by the unparalleled rankings Chiles High School has achieved, as well as a proven track record under his leadership as principal at Swift Creek Middle School and Springwood Elementary. The report found there was insufficient evidence to conclude that the Chiles High School principal, Joe Burgess, violated any law, policy, or rule. View Map. None of this work is, but we're going to get the job done.". Superintendent"Rocky Hanna did the same exact thing when he was the principal of Leon High School," Webster said in a phone interview. It is important to note that Chiles High School sits on the northern side of Tallahassee and serves as the public high school for a number of tony neighborhoods filled with many of the "Who's Who" among Tallahassee's patrician business and civic leaders. If you do not want your e-mail address released in response to a public records request, do not send electronic mail regarding official business to the District or any of its employees. An employee "performing extra-duty, hourly work should be keeping track of his or her time. School board member Alva Striplin recused herself from the vote as soon as chair Darryl Jones called the meeting to order. Check your students grades and attendance from your smart phone! That for nearlyallemployees authorizedtoengagein hourly work utilizing AP project funds, [Principal] Burgess falsified District records by approving, signing, andsubmitting payrolldocuments he knew (or should have known) wereinaccurate. Rasmussen apologized to Burgess, who sat in the last row of chairs, holding the hand of his wife. Theres an awful lot of unlikely, would have, could have, should have, insufficient evidence and apparently, bad math involved in this witch hunt. Bowen, who said she has known Burgess since he was 17, said "difficult" was an understatement. Burgess should have been the target of several investigations years ago. Did this jog your memory? At issue was Burgess' way of paying teachers for extra work. Chiles Principal Joseph Burgess confirmed to WCTV that boy's basketball coach Rick Davis and girl's basketball coach De'Ja Jeffery have been removed from their positions as head coaches of . Please make it stop! Webster asked in a phone call with the Tallahassee Democrat. Having known Joe Burgess for over 10 years I cant imagine anyone questioning this mans integrity. Independent investigators hired by Leon County schools recently recommended disciplinary action for Chiles High School principal Joe Burgess after finding evidence they say proves he paid employees in a way that was, quote, "grossly improper.". Anyone who has worked with either Rocky Hanna or Joe Burgess knows that both these gentlemen are fine, upstanding leaders. The recommended order upheld by the DOAH judgeagreed withLeon County Schools' decision to briefly suspend Burgess for two weeks for "misconduct in officeand/or willful neglect of duty.". I will say having observed Joe Burgess as a Chiles parent for the last 7 years, I have never seen a principal so actively involved in all areas of a high school. Through his attorney, Mr. Burgess exercised his right to due process and asked that the matter be turned over to an administrative law judge for review. Please click. The report found there was insufficient evidence to conclude that the Chiles High School principal, Joe Burgess, violated any law, policy, or rule. Important Information Outsidelookingin, you need glasses or memory medicine. To start with Id like someone (TR) to ask School Board Members to produce the properly and publicly advertised, voted on, and codified documentation and/or policy that authorizes the Superintendent to utilize taxpayer funds to contract with private investigators to spy on and otherwise investigate employees of the publicly-funded Leon County School System and under what circumstances this authorization can be utilized. Chiles High School Principal Joe Burgess says the allegations are not becoming of employees. This is not easy. It is a 27-acre campus located at 4602 N. 31st Avenue, just west of Interstate 17, and several miles from downtown Phoenix. They reluctantly moved to reject each of Burgess' objections. Any parent of a Chiles student athlete who has ever dealt with this arrogant windbag (Burgess) with respect booster finances knows full well he treats the booster budget as his own slush fund and targets the kids of those who dare question his authority. 1:04 A state administrative law judge this week agreed with the Leon County School District's decision to briefly suspend Chiles High School Principal Joe Burgess. "It is my sincere hope that we can now put this issue behind us and refocus on the mission at hand. He went above and beyond in every way. It will be interesting to see what the Administrative Law Judge issues as a Recommended Order once all the facts are on the table. He says he told Meyer he was not welcome back on campus. TPD investigating shooting at Lake Bradford Road and Lake Avenue, Florida man guilty in 2017 serial killings of 4 people, Disabled veteran confronts past at Vietnam Memorial Wall. Tallahassee resident Calvin Troxell said . Your email address will not be published. Still, the judge noted that "Principal Burgess otherwise has an outstanding record as a district employee.". 19532022 Killearn Elementary School. I have one Chiles graduate and one currently attending. ABC 27 reached out to Chiles High School Principal Joseph L. Burgess, who said that their assistant athletic director will reach out to address what they are allowed to by district. The FBI found that Pons or the School Board did nothing wrong. I agree this is a Witch Hunt that needs to get reeled back in because it is going nowhere. Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. At issue was. Larry Auguste was named the boys coach and Troy Hartmann was named the girls coach. We appreciate Principal Burgess for being a #champion for students. Billy didnt cry foul. Our thanks to @scottandwallace for sponsoring this award. Read the judge's entire recommended orderhere. Cases in front of DOAH are functionally a bench trial, with parties taking depositions, and rules of evidence and procedure. On Tuesday, the Leon County School Board voted to refer the appeal submitted by Mr. Joseph Burgess of the Superintendents recommended two-week suspension without pay to the Florida Division of Administrative Hearings (DOAH).. "The Leon County School District does not discriminate against any person on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, national origin, religion, age, sex (including transgender, gender nonconforming, and gender identity), marital status, disability, pregnancy, sexual orientation, or genetic information., Second Chance at Ghazvini Learning Center, Success Academy at Ghazvini Learning Center, Blackboard Web Community Manager Privacy Policy (Updated). Instead, the hours Burgess approved and submitted for payment resulted from mathematical calculations that merely divided a pre-determined dollar amountbytheemployees hourly rateand then divided the result again over eight to ten months. Superintendent Hanna suspended Burgess, but the Chiles principal decided to appeal the decision and the matter has been forwarded to the Department of Administrative Hearings by the Leon County School Board. District procedure 1470 statesthat, Administrative staff shall have access to a grievance procedure.The Districts refusal to provide a copy of the procedure, and theDistricts refusal to provide a name-clearing hearing only further his belief that this action is retaliatory. WolfCenter is currently working on the Senior Video and ALL submissions. TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) - A battle is brewing within the Leon County School District, stemming from allegations that Lawton Chiles High School Principal Joe Burgess had misused funds. Leon County Schools board membersearly Monday morningrejected Chiles High School principal Joe Burgess' objections to a suspension that was upheld by JudgeG.W. Joe Burgess is doing the same thing that's been going on for 30 years.". I didnt," she said. For the superintendent to have worked in his position for so long and to not have a good quality assurance system with regular district wide audits, showcases that the district headquarters office are truly the ones at fault for these circumstances. Webster said Burgess plans to appeal again. He is approachable at all events and cares about the success of the students. Are you sure you are not confusing the leadership of Jackie Pons with the now current Superintendent. Leon County Schools sent the following statement via email Monday afternoon: "The Leon County School Board voted unanimously (with one abstention from Board Member Striplin) to reject the exceptions filed by Mr. Joe Burgesss attorney and approve the recommended DOAH Final Order.". Chiles High School Principal Felt Personally Targeted by LCS Investigation added by Steve Stewart on July 14, 2021View all posts by Steve Stewart . The report concluded that although Mr. Burgess could have properly paid employees for extra duty work, he did so in a manner thatwas grossly improper. @Stanley How is this a negative article? To access the English and Spanish versions, please visit https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/ESEParentSurvey.To access the Haitian-Creole version, please visit https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/ESEParentSurvey_HC. Some of them received letters from Superintendent Hannah Wednesday saying they were cleared. Back story:Chiles principal loses challenge of his two-week suspension by Leon County schools. The monies at questions are labeled Advanced Placement (AP) funds. Lets not name some of these crooked principals. The written final order reflecting the Boards actions today will be added to the consent agenda of the April 12 meeting. Eyebrows should be raised about why Rocky Hannah felt it necessary to pay an outside firm when Mr. Burgess was cleared in the initial investigation. More:Chiles principal loses challenge of his two-week suspension by Leon County schools, More:School district continues to pay down debt but Chiles payroll issue raises red flag. Chiles High School principal Joe Burgess says he felt personally targeted when he learned he was being investigated for the second time after he put to rest initial allegations related to the use of school funds. are due byFriday, May 5th. "The Leon County School District does not discriminate against any person on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, national origin, religion, age, sex (including transgender, gender nonconforming, and gender identity), marital status, disability, pregnancy, sexual orientation, or genetic information." Please click HERE for the "Top 10 Chromebook Hacks" video! Perhaps if our local Public Indoctrination System and their Screwperincompetent focused more on Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic instead of reading, writing, and race bating we might avoid such errors in the future. After the offensive incident went viral, the Principal of Lawton Chiles High School, Joe Burgess, told a local news station: "Things are never going to be perfect, as a school we are imperfect.
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