Anyone who watched Monday night’s school board meeting knows that the district administration are stonewalling everyone: teachers, classified staff, parents, the community. Superintendent Steven Phillips and his deputy, Scott Lindenberger, lacked the courage to show up for the meeting,citing sickness (moral malaise, perhaps?), and their silence was deafening, especially after classified union rep Jen Edmonds asked pointed questions about the budget that Phillips wasn’t there to answer. (The Chief Financial Officer, Heather Bixby, wasn’t there either, though no one has told us where she went, another example of unnecessary silence.)
And now, we’ve heard that the communications position, reduced to .5 FTE a month ago, is going to be cut entirely by June 30. This is appalling: at a time when Phillips needs to be communicating clearly and often with school stakeholders, he has decided to cut the one position that is vital to informing parents, teachers, and community members about what will happen in our district, which is in serious crisis.
The roles that should be cut are Phillips’ and Lindenberger’s own, since they caused this mess, then stonewalled their community. And now, they seem to lack the courage and integrity to do the right thing: resign, without demanding any kind of buyout. After all, why should they get ANY compensation for causing a wreck that might take a generation to repair?
In the midst of this silence, it’s time for our voices to be heard.
On Monday, June 10, we are planning a protest ahead of that night’s budget meeting. Please plan to meet at the District Office, at 4:30 p.m,. to protest Phillips (and Lindenberger’s) continued employment by Newberg schools. Bring signs and friends! We need to let Newberg know that they haven’t been told the truth. (They haven’t been told much of anything, to be honest.)
If you cannot attend the rally, please consider signing our petition and sharing it, one other way our voices can be heard.
Newberg Neighbors for a Better Community 