In evaluating superintendent Risha VanderWey, the Montezuma-Cortez School District RE-1 Board of Education acted like a kangaroo court, ignoring due process and coming to a predetermined conclusion.
The three new board members, who have been on the board for only a month and a half were allowed to participate in VanderWey’s evaluation, which is highly improper. It is fundamentally unfair for employees to be evaluated by someone who only worked with them for a brief period.
VanderWey was here less than six months. She was not given a chance to succeed. If the board had concerns about her performance, they should have informed her about their concerns. Only a few violations of law or policy warrant immediate termination. Such was not the case here.
One category of VanderWey’s evaluation was student growth and achievement. School was in session for less than a semester during her term of office. There was no opportunity to measure student growth in that short period. During my almost 12 years on the RE-1 board, there have been five superintendents. No board during that time treated the superintendents like this one has treated VanderWey.
Instead of supporting VanderWey, the school board was 1) busy voting down a proposal to follow health guidelines that recommended students and staff wear masks indoors, 2) trying to eliminate Wit and Wisdom, a highly respected reading program approved and recommended by the Colorado Department of Education, 3) wasting time and money attempting to purge curriculum they incorrectly perceived as containing critical race theory and 4) eliminating the ability of the Rainbow Club to meet during lunch to discuss issues of bullying.
This has been a difficult year for everyone, especially for students, staff and parents. There have been extraordinary problems for a superintendent coming into a new environment with the pandemic. VanderWey also had the challenge of having several new senior staff members, hired before she came. Because they were still learning their new jobs, they could not provide the kind of support a new superintendent normally would receive. I believe she did an excellent job under extremely difficult conditions with no apparent support from the board.
A school board needs to focus on providing a quality school system, which is an asset to the community. It helps prepare our children to be successful in life. It also helps a community attract and retain quality employees.
I am greatly concerned about the ability of this school district to attract a superintendent who will make students the top priority.
Cortez resident John H. Schuenemeyer, president of Southwest Statistical Consulting, was a member of the Montezuma-Cortez School District RE-1 school board for almost 12 years.
