School Board Kicks Member Out

The Clayton County school board voted Monday night to unseat one of its members as thousands of residents gathered to call for the entire nine-member board to resign.

Residents packed the performing arts center while the board conducted its business on the stage, the meeting moved there to accommodate the large crowd.

The board passed a resolution 5-3 that declared Norreese Haynes' seat vacant because he doesn't actually live in his Clayton County residence.

"Whereas, each member of the Clayton County Board of Education must be a resident and continue to reside in the education district from which he or she is elected," read board chair Ericka Davis. "And whereas, the Clayton County Board of Education is in receipt of convincing evidence that board member Norreese Haynes of District 8 has not met his residency requirement, and whereas Mr. Haynes has not been domiciled continuously in District 8, I move the seat as declared to be and is vacant."

While Haynes and two other board members tried to make their objections to Davis' declaration, police moved in to make their ejections -- much to the delight of the assembled crowd, who were very vocal in their demands that all the board members resign their seats.

Another board member, the Rev. Rod Johnson, said after the meeting that he will resign but does not know when. He had announced earlier in the day that he would resign by the end of the week but changed his mind.

"There are a few items that I need to stay on the board for. I feel it's incumbent that I continue," he told reporters.

His seat is up for election in July.

About 2,500 people lined up hours in advance of the school board's nearly three-hour meeting ready to hear what the board plans to do to prevent the district from losing accreditation. A scathing Southern Association of Colleges and Schools report on Feb. 15 recommended the district's accreditation be yanked in part because of the school board's behavior.

Many in the crowd of angry parents, students and community members said more of the school board should resign.

"That's a start," said Mount Zion High School junior Amari Clements, high-fiving her friend after hearing Johnson announced he would step down. "One down, eight more to go."

The 50,000-student suburban Atlanta district is set to lose its accreditation Sept. 1 after a scathing report released last month by the regional accrediting agency. The report led to a long list of organizations calling for either some or all members of the school board to quit.

So far, groups ranging from the Clayton County Chamber of Commerce to the Georgia NAACP have joined the chorus of voices calling for resignations.

Security was tight during Monday night's circus-like board meeting.

The capacity crowd at the Clayton County performing arts center booed as the board members entered the room from a secure door. Police lined the 1,700-seat auditorium while outside, a police helicopter circled above the center.

Clayton County police set up a mobile precinct in the parking lot, and those attending the meeting had to pass through metal detectors before entering the auditorium. Hundreds more who could not get into the auditorium stood outside during the meeting.

Fifty speakers lined up at podiums to address the board, each given one minute to speak, a process that took an hour and a half. Board members sat solemnly as speaker after speaker passionately demanded resignations, drawing deafening applause from the crowd.

"Five hundred million dollar budget -- and those kids can't take books home," said one parent. "That's criminal."

"Shame on you," said William Brooks, who has children in the school district. "This is larger than you. You have affected my child's education. This affects businesses coming to this county. This affects whether I can sell my house if I decided to move."

Third grader Deion Cook told the board to "stop being selfish and start thinking about the kids."

"I don't want to leave Clayton County to go to a good school, but I will," said the nine-year-old, who was dwarfed by the podium where he spoke.

"It's time for you to go," said another parent to thunderous applause. "I'm asking you to step down, do what is right. If you don't understand that, we'll tell it to you again -- it's time for you to go."

The allegations detailed in the SACS report include one board member having a football coach fired for not handing over a game film featuring her son, and another spending more than $500 of school money at an Atlanta hotel.

Mark Elgart, the CEO of the Atlanta-based SACS, said last week that the school system is "filled with distrust, misdirection and insecurity" and does not have "the ability to repair itself."

The district has pledged to address the concerns in the SACS report. And the state has agreed to offer any help needed to make the changes necessary to keep accreditation.

Georgia Secretary of State Karen Handel is investigating the election of the school board after allegations that some members don't live in their districts. A Clayton County police investigation showed that Haynes lives in Marietta in Cobb County, where he pleaded guilty Friday to assault on his roommate.

Haynes has said he keeps an apartment in both counties. Before being escorted from Monday's board meeting, he said he's done nothing illegal.

Losing accreditation would jeopardize federal funding, student acceptance into college and eligibility for HOPE scholarship money.

This is the second time in five years the school district has been dinged by SACS. In 2003, it was put on probation for issues similar to those detailed in the Feb. 15 report, but the problems were addressed and the system was cleared.

The issues emerged again last fall when board members began filing grievances against each other with SACS, which launched an investigation just before Christmas.

SACS' national board, which has the final word on accreditation, is scheduled to meet in Chicago on March 15 to adopt the investigative team's report.

SACS has stripped a district of its accreditation only once in the past decade. If it happens to Clayton County, it would be a first for a Georgia school system.

Only two districts - Hartford, Conn., and Duval County, Fla. - have lost accreditation in the last 20 years.

Ironically, minutes before he was kicked off of the board, Haynes filed his affidavit swearing he was a resident in his district. If he lied, he could face criminal charges -- that was all but promised by the board's attorneys.

Two other board members, Lois Baines-Hunter and Sandra Scott, did not have their affidavits in hand on Monday night, as ordered -- the fallout from that is presently unclear.