Wow! Delaware Governor Carney came out with a press release regarding the recent decision to kill Regulation 225. In his statement, he actually praises Delaware Secretary of Education Dr. Susan Bunting for her hard work during this public process. But her hard work in letting Patrick Miller steal money and insult parents in her own district is okay to ignore judging by Carney’s non-responsiveness on the issue. Warning- the following contains wording that is NOT SAFE FOR WORK!
Project Veritas released a video on May 2nd about a teacher union president that clearly shows him admitting the union will lie and manipulate to protect a teacher in a student abuse situation. The responses from the union president are shocking. Even more shocking are the responses from the Delaware State Education Association and the National Education Association to help members deal with this video. I am putting the video up which you can see below.
Last night, parents of Providence Creek Academy students attended an open house at the Clayton charter school. Many were wondering where all the teachers from last year went. Many teachers quit due to the shenanigans involving management at the school. One parent said it looks like 90% of their former teaching staff is gone now. Many parents have wondered what is going on with the school since I wrote some pretty damaging articles last month. It has been very quiet, as if some type of gag order went out. It has become more than obvious that former teachers no longer wanted to put up with what is going on there and opted for better employment elsewhere. As for all these new teachers it is only a matter of time before they realize what they signed up for.
How the state of Delaware can turn a blind eye to this school is beyond me. Once again, I have nothing against the school but rather the leadership, the rubberstamp board, and those that follow the administration with their undying loyalty and subservience. There is something rotten in the foundation of this school but nobody wants to call Chuck and Audrey out on the carpet in full public view. Why? If you quit there is absolutely no reason not to go public. I want to believe former teachers feel PCA was a toxic work environment. That is NOT good for kids. Speak out. Let folks know what is really going on there. This is a school that has seen more turnovers than a Pepperidge Farm store. Parents want consistency at schools, not this. The former “We’re Worried” group appears to be defunct since most of them most likely said screw it and found jobs elsewhere. That doesn’t change the situation on the ground at PCA.
As for all the financial fraud and the cover-up that went on with it, I sincerely hope the State is looking into that. Cause the Delaware Department of Education certainly isn’t. Chuck is obviously good at covering his tracks but there are always bread crumbs. There has still be no formal announcement of formal charges against ex-employee Shanna Simmens. There has to be a reason for that. If it is a case where Chuck and Audrey have that much influence that they are just waiting for the statute of limitations to run out, that is a crying shame. That shows corruption unheard of in this state. I can’t for the life of me figure out why parents would willingly send their children to a school run by such devious and corrupt people.
For those who have reached out to me wanting to know more, I sincerely wish I had more to tell you. I wish our State would do more. But Delaware is proving to be as crooked as they come when it comes to protecting leaders who are in it more for themselves than for the benefit of children. Disgusting…
PCA is having a board meeting next Tuesday evening, August 29th, in their library at 7pm. If I were PCA parents, I would go and demand answers from this Board of Directors, especially Board President Amy Santos. Enough is enough.
A pungent stench is coming from Delaware Attorney General Matt Denn’s office when it comes to the Freedom of Information Act. When the Delaware Attorney General’s office gets the facts wrong on a response to a FOIA complaint, the only way for a Delaware citizen to correct those errors is to file with the Superior Court. Which costs money and fills the state coffers. Can someone please remind me why I pay taxes for a state where our Governor feels “sunshine is the best disinfectant“?
The response I received two days ago from Matt Denn’s office stems from my FOIA complaint and the Delaware Dept. of Justice’s response to that FOIA which came out on October 28th. The Delaware Pathways Steering Committee did not publish their first meeting anywhere and I filed a complaint. Considering the DOJ is still working on a FOIA complaint I submitted last March, it seems there was a rush to put the matter concerning Governor Markell’s Executive Ordered Delaware Pathways Steering Committee to bed.
When I emailed Denn’s office to reevaluate the FOIA response the same day, I didn’t hear back from anyone. On Tuesday I sent an email to Matt Denn asking for any type of response to my October 28th request. On Wednesday, I received the below email from Kim Siegel, Denn’s FOIA Coordinator. I did edit out part of the email which covered a separate matter I am working on with Denn’s office.
From: OpenGovernment (DOJ) <OpenGovernment@state.de.us>
To: Kevin Ohlandt <kevino3670@yahoo.com>
Sent: Wednesday, December 7, 2016 4:04 PM
Subject: October 28, 2016 determination
Dear Mr. Ohlandt,
Attorney General Denn has asked me to respond to the issues raised in your December 6, 2016 e-mail. Your e-mail makes reference to an October 28, 2016 determination by the Chief Deputy Attorney General in response to a FOIA petition regarding the Pathways to Prosperity Steering Committee. Under the Delaware Code, a petitioner who is dissatisfied with the outcome of a FOIA determination by the Chief Deputy Attorney General may “appeal the matter on the record to Superior Court.” Therefore, if you wish to appeal the determination, that is the mechanism under Delaware law by which to do so.
Sincerely,
Kim Siegel, MPA
Legislative Affairs Manager
FOIA Coordinator
Delaware Department of Justice
So if I am understanding this correctly, when a citizen alleges a public body has violated FOIA, which is the law, the public body can skirt around the law and give false information. But when the citizen calls them out on it, through a request for appeal, suddenly the DOJ decides the law is important. The mechanism for appeal is not fair at all to a citizen looking for transparency.
What is the point of a Freedom of Information Act request if the agency looking at it refuses to look at all the facts from both sides? This is typically how it is done- a party files a complaint with the facts as they know them, the DOJ sends the complaint to the party that had the FOIA complaint filed against them, the defending party sends a response, the DOJ sends the defendant agency’s response to the accuser, and then the DOJ rules on the complaint. I have had FOIA complaints in the past that dragged out because the DOJ wanted more information. Apparently, that was not the case with this complaint. The DOJ Chief Deputy Attorney General came out with this FOIA response in record time without any chance of obtaining more information on the matter.
So if I want to take this matter further, I have to file with the Superior Court. How much would that cost? According to the Superior Court website, it wouldn’t be cheap!
So right off the bat, filing an appeal against a FOIA response from Matt Denn’s office would cost me $350.00 which I would not get back no matter how the Superior Court ruled. I could do this without an attorney and most likely get chewed alive by the DOJ’s attorney. So I would probably have to get my attorney. That would cost well over $1,000.00. And that number would climb once it went to trial.
The transparency racket in Delaware is almost criminal. In essence, it is a money-maker for the state in many situations. I don’t have that kind of money. Most Delawareans don’t. Which is exactly what they count on. When you file a FOIA complaint against a state agency asking for emails, the state agency knows they can say they don’t have the emails. At that point, the state agency responds they don’t have them but the requesting party can file a $250.00 fee with the Department of Technology and Information to do a search for those emails. Most people don’t have $250.00 they can just fork over like that. And then the fees associated with reviewing the information. Depending on what the party is looking for, this can climb into the four figure amount quickly.
Here is the bottom line: people don’t file FOIA requests if they think everything is hunky-dory. They believe something illegal happened or is about to happen. While FOIA responses from the DOJ don’t always rule there was a FOIA violation in a complaint, at times their reasoning is subjective. The DOJ is not going to sue another state agency. So if a citizen wants to take that extra step, they have to pay. Even if the DOJ’s office gets information wrong, they appear to be above the law unless you take them to court.
It is the Department of Justice, not the Department of Covering Other State Agencies Asses. But transparency is a fickle beast depending on who you want it from. I guess us taxpaying citizens are not meant to know the truth about matters in Delaware. It is bad enough Governor Markell can evade transparency by including a member of the General Assembly on an email (no member of the General Assembly is subject to FOIA), but it appears FOIA in and of itself is not freedom of information. It should be called DOIA, the Denial of Information Act.
Last year, Delaware State Rep. Sean Lynn sponsored legislation which would have lifted the FOIA ban on the General Assembly. It went nowhere. Far too many of our legislators hide behind that privilege and are able to operate with no transparency. And our state leaders take full advantage of this when possible. The way Delaware code is set up it makes it impossible for a citizen to find out matters in the public interest. When a citizen files a FOIA complaint with the DOJ, that office makes it impossible for a citizen to appeal that decision unless they pay money to the state. Even if that citizen produces contradictory information which could easily give the matter further merit.
Until our legislators stop playing games with the truth, nothing will change with FOIA in Delaware. We are just the pawns too many of them suck up to when they need our vote. Once again, I say this with the caveat that there are some legislators who are good people. But it rests with the leadership of the House and Senate as well as the committee Chairs. If you have nothing to hide, there shouldn’t be a problem with making FOIA easier. But it is more clear that fraud and cover-up exists at the highest levels of Delaware. And when an education-sucking vampire like the Rodel Foundation gets thrown into the mix, all bets are off.
This is the email I sent to Delaware Attorney General Matt Denn when I submitted a request for appeal on the FOIA response from October 28th:
From: Kevin Ohlandt <kevino3670@yahoo.com>
To: Denn Matthew (DOJ) <matthew.denn@state.de.us>
Cc: Siegel Kim (DOJ) <kim.siegel@state.de.us>; Gibbs Danielle (DOJ) <danielle.gibbs@state.de.us>; OpenGovernment <opengovernment@state.de.us>
Sent: Friday, October 28, 2016 4:47 PM
Subject: This FOIA Complaint legal opinion issued today is just wrong.
I am openly and publicly asking you to respond to this opinion issued from your office today acknowledging ALL the facts I presented in this article as well as the questions posed at the end of the article:
Can someone please tell me what level of incompetence we are dealing with here? It is OBVIOUS Pulaski is fast becoming a potential health crisis. We have sick teachers, it’s raining maggots during IEP meetings, dead mice, and lots and lots of mold. And NOT in the computer lab and the two other rooms. And knowing the issues, why would they replace an air filter BUT NOT CLEAN THE DAMN COVER TO THE UNIT? Look at all that mold on there. Come on. What do we need to do here? THEY ARE COVERING IT UP! I saw brand new fresh tiles and white paint on ceiling tiles. To see the pictures, see below…
“If at any point I thought the numbers I was being advised of by the professionals jeopardized the health of our kids or our staff, we would have relocated the kids.” -Dr. Robert Andrzejewski quote from media brief at Pulaski Elementary School, 10/14/16
I can see your deep and abiding concern for the well-being of students at Pulaski Elementary School in the above picture. Note to readers: this picture is NOT from one of the three classrooms talked about to the press. This is a closet inside another classroom. This wasn’t even talked about in the report. Even though the report said it was cleaned up.
“Our indication from the reports was this was not a building-wide issue, counter to the rumors that are floating around in the community.” -Dr. Robert Andrzejewski quote from media brief at Pulaski Elementary School, 10/14/16
Ah yes, the infamous rumor mill. So easy to pin incompetency on rumors, isn’t it Dr. Andrzejewski. Especially when staff have been threatened with losing their jobs if they talk about it.
“It’s an isolated incident for the kids here and the staff here, but this is something we all need to be aware of.” -Dr. Robert Andrzejewski quote from media brief at Pulaski Elementary School, 10/14/16
Yes Bob A. I can see that “awareness” spreading in other rooms at Pulaski Elementary School. I see full transparency in these pictures. You need to stop. Admit you lied, come clean, and resign. Along with Ed Mayfield and anyone else who is covering this up. You can’t keep hiding mold and other concerns behind threats to staff. You are making it worse.
Over on Kilroy’s Delaware a commenter named M Ryder wrote a reply about who should have files charged against them in connection with Amy’s death at Howard High School of Technology. Many have felt the administration of the school should have better coverage of student hallways in the beginning of the school day. Since they didn’t, I questioned whether they should be charged with gross negligence. I have always maintained that the parties directly involved in Amy’s death are ultimately responsible for her death. M Ryder definitely agreed with that but added some facts that I haven’t seen involving this story:
So kevin, the school should be charged that two students planned to meet in the bathroom to fight over a boy? The school should be charged because the girl who was losing the fight had girlfriends carrying knives? The school should be charged for the girlfriends who then ganged up on the girl who they stabbed and then forced down striking her head on the way down? The school should be charged? Really???
If this really happened, why did the Wilmington Police Department state there were no weapons involved? I asked M Ryder how he/she came about knowing this information but I have yet to receive a response. If there were stab wounds, those would be seen right away by the police. Superintendent Dr. Gehrt empathized Howard was a safe school just hours after the assault. When are we going to get full details about what happened that day and why am I smelling a cover-up? I thought it was ridiculous when someone mentioned there was talk about installing metal detectors at the school but if there were knives used in this crime, it is completely understandable.
I have no idea who “M Ryder” is, but they are usually accurate with their information they post on Kilroy’s Delaware. I can’t verify if the information M Ryder posted is credible, but given everything that went down that day and the actions of those in authority afterwards, I would not be surprised. As if this tragedy wasn’t already horrifying, this new aspect, if true, takes us further down the path of evil that came out that day.
The Season Of Myths 