For immediate release
Contact Reverend Randolph Staten, 612-521-2444
Black Church Coalition/African American Leadership Summit:
Black Community Outraged by Selection of David Jennings as School
Superintendent
We are outraged and insulted by the Minneapolis School Board appointment of
David Jennings as Superintendent. We strenuously object to the improper
appointment process. Further, David Jennings� selection is inappropriate.
Jennings is not qualified to head the Minneapolis Public Schools District, a
district that has 73.8% students of color.
We believe the district should be led by a credentialed educator with a
proven track record in a diverse, multicultural education environment. The
Jennings appointment makes no sense in light of the pre-Dr. Carol Johnson
debacle of "privatizing" the administration of the school district by
contracting the duties of superintendent to a private, for-profit company
headed by businessman Peter Hutchinson. Minneapolis children should not be
the subject of business experimentation.
We demand that the Minneapolis School Board rescind the appointment and
withdraw the offer it has made.
We are seeking a court injunction against the School Board�s implementation
of contract negotiations with David Jennings. We have formally requested
that Minnesota Attorney General investigate and correct any illegalities
that may have occurred in this selection process.
The Board improperly bypassed any process that might have given the District
other options or public input. The Board accepted no public discussion on
how to replace Superintendent Carol Johnson. The public body unanimously
selected Jennings at a non-public or nominally public retreat. At the
retreat, the Board voted to authorize board Chairwoman Sharon Henry Blythe
to meet with Jennings to negotiate a contract.
Board members previously said the retreat would discuss ways to guarantee
citizen involvement in the selection process. They then announced the
selection of Jennings, without input from the community.
The Board�s action may violate, if not the letter, the spirit of the state�s
Open Meeting Law.
The Board�s decision to forgo a public search for the best candidate to
administer Minneapolis Public Schools offends principle and common sense.
The decision smells like a political coup done under the cover of darkness.
It reflects a callous contempt for the principles of democracy, and of
parental and citizen involvement.
Jennings� inappropriateness to lead Minneapolis Public Schools should be
evident upon examination of his public positions on issues of concern to
communities of color and progressive people.
As a member of the Minnesota Legislature, Jennings opposed the establishment
of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday in Minnesota.
Jennings opposed divestiture of investments in companies whose business
operations propped up the White supremacist apartheid regime in South
Africa.
Jennings has been an advocate for the school vouchers movement, a policy
detrimental to public education and that circumvents public accountability
for education.
The School Board, parents and community, and the press must ask and answer
these questions:
Without a search process, how can anyone know whether Jennings is the best
choice for the superintendent position?
Should parents and community have an opportunity to voice opinion on the
selection process and on the choice for superintendent?
Was the public notified about or invited to or participate in the retreat?
Did this school board meeting comply with the letter and spirit of
Minnesota�s Open Meeting Law?
Does Jennings represent the values of cultural awareness and sensitivity
needed to lead a major urban school district?
Batala-Ra
Old Highland
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