The story
Zanna Blaney is back from the dead.
Huh?
After being on paid administrative leave since last August, she filed a lawsuit against the school district demanding money and her job back.
Back up.
You remember the counselor issue? Oui? No? It better be yes because it may be the most newsworthy thing to ever hit Bedford. We don’t have to ramble on about turf anymore! Essentially, a former Bedford guidance counselor, Kristie Torbick, sexually assaulted a student at Exeter High School. Zanna Blaney, the BHS dean of student services at the time, testified－in person－about Torbick’s work performance at BHS.
As a result…
Former superintendent Chip McGee resigned, Blaney was put on paid leave, and the two counselors involved (who provided character reference letters) went through some Bedford parent hell, but were eventually “pardoned.” At the end of September, the board decided to not renew Blaney’s contract. Her appeal of this decision (in January and February), was also denied. And, exactly a week ago today, she filed the lawsuit.
Any merit to her case?
Mehhhh. Errrr. We don’t know. The other two counselors were excused because they were deemed to have acted as private citizens. So, Blaney’s case seems to hinge on one thing: whether or not she was representing the school district. If Blaney wasn’t testifying on behalf of the school district, then she’s plainly exercising her freedom of speech, and the board better be prepared to shell out some money. And right now, that’s what she’s claiming.
What do you mean “right now”?
Last summer, the story was a little bit different. Blaney was supposedly representing the school district, and got “permission” from McGee to testify. But, as we look back on the issue, and all of the documents found, even that seems a bit hazy.
Umm what?
All anyone seemed to focus on last year was just what the documents proved: McGee was fully aware of Blaney’s actions. But, when looking closely, there are a lot of these details up for interpretation. The main one: did Blaney really ask McGee for permission, or was she simply “covering her ass?” If she didn’t ask for permission, it’s likely she wasn’t representing the school district, and the board’s in trouble.
Hit me with it
In text messages between the two, she called it “support.” In McGee’s email to the board, he really only said that she asked for his “advice.” Yet, she invited him to edit her character witness statement, and advised him on his statement to the public. Also, in McGee’s letter to parents, he made it seem like it was BHS providing the testimony, not Blaney as a private citizen.
Except…
Let’s say she really did ask McGee for permission. He could’ve stopped her from going, but he permitted the testimony, so her ass = covered?
So…a winnable case?
We’re not lawyers; we’re merely speculating. However, we do know for a fact that a professor, who was in the same boat as Blaney, won $350,000 from the NH university system.
The Runaway
The school board may be in for another rough summer, and RBD received the gift of interesting news to report on!
What to say…
When you’re wondering what the school board is doing now that budget season is over…
Intersession! They’re now finding meaning through intersession. It was very interestingly the subject of the school board meeting for 20 minutes. We can’t say we really care because it’s more interesting than how much they’re going to spend on science textbooks. But we did learn something: the intersession grade is no longer put on transcripts, only in Powerschool. You know what that means? Well, you already know. We’re not going to openly support it. There was one more controversy to arise. And, we’re saying controversy, but it’s intersession－no one really cares. So it was more of a general wondering. Bill Kassler “slightly pondered” why family trips during intersession days were not viewed as equally educational to the school’s extended trips, which is a WONDERFUL observation. When we Instagram polled students on how educational their intersession was (regardless of type), 66% replied “hahaha that’s funny.” We’re spotting a direct correlation between this and why intersession is the majority of students’ “favorite time of the year.” But, it’s intersession. We think we’ve wasted way to much space on it already.
When you’re a go-getter and already trying to think about which clubs to join next year…
DECA. Join DECA. We can’t think of another team that gets to travel somewhere warm for their international competition. We mean, robotics actually got to internationals this year as well, but it’s in Detroit. Orlando…Detroit…you feel us? The competition apparently hit a record of 22,000 competitors－50 states, and 15 other countries. Four teams/individuals finished in the top 20 for their events: Emerson Cilley and Jules Poirier; Emmet Baker; Dan Dong and Amanda Xie; and Jess Lin. Will Theodore won North Atlantic Regional Vice President. Damn. We’re good. If the turf is deemed unfit then we’re giving up on football and are going to just Eat. Sleep. DECA.
When now you’re looking for a way to draw people away from DECA to your club…
Umm…tie is optional. The robotics team went to internationals for the first time EVER over April break, and placed…in the top 50 in the world. The team didn’t dominate like they have been due to some robot malfunctioning. For those who have a little bit of common knowledge, they had issues with the drivetrain. For everyone else, we’re just going to leave it at “robot no function.” This season was unprecedented, and they’re hopeful that, with the influx of talented underclassmen, they’ll continue to be successful for the next few years. Apparently, the workers, who are typically the underclassmen, are more important to the success of the robot than the leaders. It’s so nice when people have good things to say about freshmen.
When a good 57% of you and your friends’ conversations are about how stressed you are…
Damn fake friends! They’re lying to you, because Mr. Fournier’s family engagement surveys show that the BHS stress level right now is at 3.19 out of 5.0, which is less than last year’s 3.32. And yes, it’s somewhat on the high side, but a lot lower than expected. At least everyone talks like they’re at a 5. We’re also a little concerned that memorial is at 2.18, and even the other two are at 1.86. Who knew the toll of trying to get a swing at recess.
Things to Know
Graduation Pathways
Mr. Jozokos has released the pathways to graduation survey! It takes five minutes.