"The Freedom Of Information Act sets up a little game journalists and Government play," said FEN Publisher Pete Gonigam. "The rules are if we keep playing 20 questions long enough before quitting for a decent-paying job, Government has to finally give us the information we ask for. Only I'm not sure D158 is playing by the rules."
Kalkirtz was the latest of five special education directors or top administrators who have departed D158 in the past year. When the Daily Herald newspaper first reported Kalkirtz' departure Feb. 2 Superintendent John Burkey at first declined even to say whether she had resigned or been fired citing an exemption for "personnel" issues. Area media filed FOIA requests and all appear to have received a letter of resignation dated Feb. 1 reading in its entirety, "I, Cheryl Kalkirtz, resign from CSD158 effective immediately."
However, Thursday McHenry County Blog Publisher Cal Skinner revealed a two-page Kalkirtz letter of resignation dated Jan. 11, almost a month earlier, laying out a litany of complaints about heavy-handed D158 conduct of its Special Education program. That same day the Daily Herald reported Kalkirtz had "authenticated" the earlier letter and said Kalkirtz' attorney had charged Burkey directed Assistant Superintendant Terry Awrey to destroy it.
FEN was unable Friday to contact Chicago resident Kalkirtz and her attorney didn't respond to inquiry. Burkey didn't reply to a request for interview. All other apparent avenues exhausted, FEN instructed its attorney to prepare the request for FOIA Review over the weekend.
Under the previous version of Illinois' Freedom of Information Act, an appeal from response to a FOIA request would have been decided by the chief executive officer of a government entity, in D158's case, Burkey. However since Jan. 1, appeals now go straight to the Illinois Attorney General's Office.
FEN's FOIA request asked for "letters of resignation or dismissal" not just for Kalkirtz but for all five Special Ed admininstrators who've left D158 in the past year. FOIA Officer, Lori Woods, Burkey's Administrative Assistant, said there was "no written document" for Assistant Director Renee Erickson who left last year. Resignation letters from former Director Meg Schnoor and Early Learning Coordinator Susan Kondrat provided no clues about why they left at the end of the last school year. Neither did a letter of resignation from Assistant Director Perry Yates just before Christmas and less than a month before Kalkirtz apparently resigned. However, it did say his decision came "after a great deal of reflection and deliberation." FEN has been unable to contact Yates, either.
Special Ed parents have periodically packed D158 Board and special meetings to complain that programs aren't as good as those in nearby districts.
In the pic: These two supposed Kalkirtz signatures don't look a lot alike. Top is from the letter of resignation D158 provided to media FOIA requests. Bottom is from the earlier "complaint" letter of resignation allegedly destroyed.
3 comments:
Good job, FEN
I think the signatures look similar in the details, e.g. the upward slant of the crossing of the T, the bulge at the bottom of the L in the first name, etc. Remember, if both documents are indeed authentic, the signature shown on top, your diagram, was made under duress.
Please help the special needs kids at District 158 by continuing your inquiries and spreading awareness.
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