Local Teacher Wars

Now that two of the six original finalists for WCSD superintendent have withdrawn, it might be helpful to find out about the remaining candidates. And one of those yours truly thought might be good turns out to be very questionable, indeed.

Here is a page with some articles for locals and the curious to read.

It sounds like Montenegro is bad news.

But he didn't seek out the job, apparently:

“It was an invitation and I thought about it and I decided to just submit my application,” Montenegro said Saturday. “To my surprise, I was in the mix of the final six.”

Washoe County schools is similar in size to Arlington. Both districts have about 63,000 students.

Montenegro said the invitation to apply came from Jim Huge, a search consultant hired by Washoe County. He said he hasn’t been hunting for a new superintendent job.
Montenegro resigned in July after serving about six months as Arlington’s superintendent. District trustees had questioned his relationships with educational nonprofits that did business with the district.

He ain't the only one of the "Fab Four" with problems:

Mrs. Olson left the Air Force after she was accused of using her position to benefit a private security firm she helped operate.

Mrs. Olson, of Weatherford, declined to comment until after her contract with DISD is finalized in a few weeks. Her supporters have said the charges stemmed from overzealous regulators nitpicking the work of people in a chaotic war zone.

Mrs. Olson will come to a district that is dealing with a federal corruption investigation and accusations of conflicts of interest among administrators.

Michael Hinojosa, superintendent of the Dallas Independent School District, said Tuesday that he found Mrs. Olson honest when she was asked about the charges.

"She was extremely forthright with us, and we've done our due diligence on this," he said. "I'm satisfied that there are no integrity issues. She explained it all to my satisfaction."

Mrs. Olson spent a year fighting the charges but ultimately pleaded guilty in 2005 to less serious offenses, including creating the appearance of a conflict of interest, according to an article published in the Los Angeles Times. She was reprimanded, ordered to pay $3,500 and allowed to resign from the Air Force with an honorable discharge and no reduction in rank, according to media reports.

_____