A South Burlingon High School counselor who is losing his job due to budget cuts was shut down from speaking at a school board meeting as he tried to confront the superintendent about a complaint he’d filed against her.
Aquilas Lokossou was one of about 70 district educators and staff members who attended Wednesday’s meeting to discuss concerns about school district leadership. The board wouldn’t allow many of the educators to describe specific issues, citing union contract negotiations that have recently begun and public comment guidelines.
Many School Districts Are Cutting Staff Ahead of Budget Votes
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By Alison Novak
Education
No other employee who is losing their job was asked whether they had influenced students’ advocacy on their behalf, Lokossou said in a complaint he lodged earlier this month. He believes he was singled out because of his race.
“There have been attempts to send letters with no response, so I’d be very curious where’s the appropriate platform to speak,” one educator in the room said during the recess.
Tillinghast reconvened the meeting and Lokossou continued to speak about his complaint. The chair again called a five-minute recess, during which she called the board’s legal counsel Joe McNeil.
When the meeting reconvened, McNeil addressed the crowd, saying the board had hired an independent attorney to conduct a confidential inquiry into Lokossou’s complain. Therefore, he said, it was inappropriate and unlawful to discuss the situation publicly.
Other staff also shared concerns. Gary Russell, one of just several Black teachers in the district, told board members that he was concerned that the number of teachers of color in the district is decreasing at a time when the number of students of color is increasing. He asked the board if they were aware of the situation and, if so, what they were doing to rectify it.
A high school counselor, Lindsey Hudson, said she had filed a complaint in the fall related to “conduct and questionable decision-making from a district leader” that she felt was not taken seriously.
“Where is the accountability around supervision and evaluation of performance?” Hudson asked. “How are employees supposed to be able to provide feedback?”
“I want to be very clear that I strongly support and uphold our DEI and anti-racism efforts,” Nichols said. “If folks want to connect, central office staff and I are going to be coming to schools, and we’re happy to hear from you at any time.”
But the dozens of educators that had gathered didn’t hear Nichols’ offer. They had walked out of the room while the superintendent was speaking.
After the meeting, Nichols sent Seven Days a statement refuting Lokossou’s complaint. “To suggest that there was any racial motivation or component to this inquiry is absolutely absurd and unfounded,” she wrote.
Nichols said that she launched an investigation about the support for Lokossou after receiving “a large number of very similar messages from students within a very short period of time.
“Given the uniformity and timing of these messages, it was my responsibility to determine whether students may have been unduly influenced or pressured by a District employee—something that would be both inappropriate and concerning,” she wrote. “As Superintendent, it is my duty to look into such matters, which I did.”
Disclosure: The author’s spouse is an employee of the South Burlington School District.