Citing many of the same reasons that spurred the resignation of her colleague Ann Cotten-DeGrasse, Amelia Lantz today abruptly resigned her position on the Riverhead Board of Education.
In a letter delivered today to school board president Susan Koukounas and superintendent Nancy Carney, Lantz, who is currently serving as vice president of the board, said she “cannot overlook the insidious disregard of the NYSED law and our oath as board members.”
Like Cotten-DeGrasse, see prior story, Lantz complained of lack of communication and the withholding of “critical information” from board members by the board president.
“The micromanagement of the BOE by withholding information is unacceptable, and this behavior has resulted in consequences to our district,” Lantz wrote. “With the majority of the BOE subscribing to this behavior, I cannot be effective in advocating the needs of our children, the needs of this district, and the well-being of the taxpayer.”
In an interview this afternoon at Cotten-DeGrasse’s home, Lantz raised the same complaints as Cotten-DeGrasse of school personnel being granted leaves of absence or changes to their job titles and salaries without formal board votes — and in some cases without board members’ knowledge.
Earlier today, Koukounas denied the allegations, at first leveled by Cotten-DeGrasse.
“I scoured a decade of board minutes,” Lantz said this afternoon. “I am absolutely certain about the accuracy of my statements.”
Without naming names, Lantz pointed to the attempt by the board president and the district administration to shift two employees from administrative positions — to which they’d been appointed without board action, according to Cotten-DeGrasse and Lantz — back to classroom positions. At least one would be moved into a full tenured position at the top of the salary scale, which the two board members say is unlawful.
“I don’t take this lightly,” Lantz said of her objections and resignation. “I came into this post with the purest of intentions, to do good and to pay it forward because of the difference made in my life by a mentor when I was a young girl.”
Lantz says a system of “internal nepotism” favors “preselected appointments” of people chosen in advance by officials.
“A majority of the board feels justified in thinking they are above the law,” Lantz said.
Board members are shut out of access to information that Lantz and Cotten-DeGrassse say they’re entitled to.
“When there was a kid threatening violence in the high school, I had to learn about it at Stop and Shop,” Lantz said. “That is just wrong.”
Cotten-DeGrasse said the same thing happened with the Snapchat video depicting high school students having sexual contact. “Board members were not told about it and had to hear about from others.”
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