By Shirley Demus Tarpley
After months of community discussions and rumors within the Black community in Carrollton, Texas about the only Black administrator serving as Assistant Director of Student Services at the Community Learning Complex (CLC), 1820 Pearl Street in Carrollton; the question raised was if she would become the new Executive Director of Student Services or if the position would be given to a White employee.
The former Executive Director of Student Services had resigned his position to move out of state with his family in order to take on a new job. Lewis confronted the Superintendent and was told that the rumors were false regarding replacing the open Executive Director of Student Services position. He said that the administrative staff was reorganizing and no decision would be made in the near future about the open position of Executive Director of Student Services.
Lewis was not completely satisfied with his answer but she decided to take a “wait and see attitude” about the matter. However, a few months later, the rumors were proven to be true. The Superintendent announced that the Executive Director of Career & Technology and Counselors would be over Student Services.
After researching the how’s and why’s of the situation, Lewis requested from the Open Meeting Act, qualification of each position and qualifications and certification of all parties involved, Lewis armed with all facts and information, had enough of the seeming false statements and mistruths from the Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD Superintendent, she decided to take a stand and speak in the Public Forum at the November 3, 2011 Board Meeting. She also challenged the Superintendent, School Board president and members to take a stand with her. Lewis also requested that the Superintendent defend his method for his decision in not naming the Assistant Director of Student Services as the Interim Executive Director of Student Services, which is the normal practice in the business world, especially in these tough economic times in our economy. Following is a copy of her 3.5 minute speech.
Board President, members and Superintendent, I stand before you tonight because my heart is deeply sadden. . .
Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD (C-FB) professes to value diversity. However, C-FB does not do much to support this claim. A prime example of a recent C-FB decision that is very questionable was when the Executive Director of Student Services left two months ago and instead of promoting a Black woman C-FB chose to elect a White woman to take over the division. I guess this is because you got away with this behavior last year when you put the same White woman over all the counselors within the district and promoted her to Executive Director of Career & Technology Education and Counselors when she has never been a school counselor. The current Executive Director of Career & Technology Education and Counselors has zero administrative experience and she does not have administrative certification. Yet, she is over the division that advises and works with administrators on a daily basis. The current Assistant Director of Student Services was already doing the job and she has been an administrator in C-FB for over 15 years and an administrator that has an earned doctorate degree.
This is clearly a case of racial discrimination, which by the way is against the law. This is unacceptable, unfair and unjust treatment of a highly qualified individual. It is also clear that this is a case of favoritism of a White employee, who is not qualified to hold the position. This is by no means an attack on the White employee, this is an attack on racial discrimination; but she is in a position that should rightly have gone to the current Assistant Director of Student Services.
This wrong and injustice should be corrected with all haste and diligence. This is very upsetting to the Black community and it should be upsetting to the C-FB community as well. In the words of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. “A right delayed is a right denied.” This is the worse case of poor judgment and management of C-FB Personnel I have heard of to date, and it is solely based on race. C-FB needs to live up to its claim of valuing diversity by making personnel decisions that reflect Blacks and other minorities in High Central Office Leadership positions.
“Discrimination is a disease,” this was said by Roger Staubach. C-FB is sick with the disease and we need a cure. Diversity in Central Office is critical. We need Central Office Administrators who understand what discrimination feels like and if you have never been a minority then you really don’t get it! We need Central Office administrators in Student Services who understand what inequality feels like, who understand the subtleties of unfair treatment and who are willing to help make the system work for all people!
Racial discrimination still exists. It is alive and real in C-FB, and we should not take this lightly or for granted. Ending racial discrimination and favoritism in C-FB employee selection can be accomplished only by taking a stand; tonight I take the stand and challenge each of you to take that stand with me.
For as long as the posture of C-FB’s diversity is diminished by acts of racial discrimination against people just because they are Black, or any other minority for that matter, C-FB still has a long way to go. We are still waiting for the day when in C-FB—people will not be judged by the color or their skin, but by the content of their character, for if that day had arrived in C-FB let me point out to you, the Black woman who was and still is serving as Assistant Director of Student Services would be the Executive Director of Student Services today.
And lastly, when you can look at the highest levels of Central Office administration and not see people of color then you still have major racial issues in C-FB, especially when 81% of students educated in this district are minorities. The C-FB community and administrators respect the Assistant Director of Student and believe that she should have been the person chosen to replace the Executive Director of Student Service, which by the way is the normal practice in the business world.
Never forget that everything Hitler did in Germany was legal. You may not see anything wrong with the way you have handled this matter, just as Hitler did, and you may even feel you have done nothing wrong, but I am here to tell you that it was wrong, and I will continue saying it until you make it right. The time is always right to do the right thing! This is the time! So do the right thing!
As of the December 1, 2011 Board Meeting, Lewis had not heard a word from the Superintendent and on December 6th, she, along with Sister Tarpley, Religious Editor of North Dallas Gazette, scheduled a meeting with the board president and six of the members of the board; and the superintendent along with two of his administrative team members. They started the meetings at 8:30 a.m. and ended at 8:30 p.m.
Lewis and Sister Tarpley were not satisfied with the responsive they were given regarding the matter and therefore have decided to go to Austin, Texas to file a Racial Discrimination Lawsuit with the Texas Education Agency (TEA) which over sees all Independent School Districts (ISD) in the State of Texas. They will report the results of that meeting when they return to Carrollton.
This is neither surprising nor shocking. Of course racism is alive and kicking in C-FB. Do you not remember the anti-immigrant city ordinance of Farmers Branch a few years ago? This is the south and no matter how much white people try to deny it, racism is still here. Just ask anyone who moves here from the north, it’s noticeable. People just like to think that it’s a thing of the past, while still locking their doors any time they see a black man walking by.