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Mike Miles wants investigation into trustee Bernadette Nutall, former Dallas ISD administrator says

Superintendent Mike Miles, left, and trustee Bernadette Nutall

A former Dallas ISD executive says Superintendent Mike Miles asked her to testify in a possible investigation into trustee Bernadette Nutall’s removal from Dade Middle School.

Former school leadership chief Sylvia Reyna said Miles asked her two weeks ago about whether she would tell investigators about an incident she had with Nutall two years ago. She said Miles said he planned to call for an investigation into Nutall’s behavior and, specifically, his decision to have police physically remove her from Dade last month.

“He called me to give me a heads up that he wanted me to be deposed,” said Reyna, who retired in July. “He said, ‘I want you to be able to talk about an incident that occurred two years ago when trustee Nutall was yelling.’”

Reyna said she recalled the incident but not the details of it. Nutall got upset with Reyna at Dallas ISD headquarters and raised her voice, Reyna said. She said she told Miles last month that she would tell the truth to investigators, including that Nutall didn’t bully her.

“I didn’t feel threatened,” Reyna said about the incident. “My job was to work and resolve issues and problems, and sometimes you have tempers at the end of the day. But I never felt threatened by any board member.”

Miles didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday. Requests for comment were also left with spokesman Jon Dahlander.

Nutall declined to discuss the specific incident between her and Reyna two years ago. “I’m very passionate about education and our children getting the best education,” she said. “Women who are direct and pointed are deemed emotional. We get put in that box.”

The push by Miles for an investigation isn’t the first time he has wanted to put pressure on one of his nine bosses on the school board. More than a year ago, Miles used a top administrator’s resignation letter, which harshly criticized trustee Elizabeth Jones, “to generate positive publicity for himself and negative publicity for the board,” an independent investigation found.

Sylvia Reyna, Dallas ISD's former school leadership chief. (Dallas ISD )

After that investigation, the board put Miles on an improvement plan and amended his contract to make it a fireable offense if he fails to maintain “an effective working relationship” with trustees.

Dallas ISD trustees could approve an investigation at a called board meeting Thursday. They are scheduled to vote on a proposal to “employ a legal firm to conduct a fact-finding investigation of events leading up to and occurring” at Dade between Miles and Nutall. The board could also take action against Nutall and Miles over the incident.

Board president Miguel Solis said Wednesday he hopes the trustees put the Dade incident behind them. ”I’m focused on one thing, to come to a conclusion on this issue,” Solis said. “I want to put the focus of the board back on the students.”

Miles and Nutall have been at odds with each other since the superintendent came to Dallas in July 2012. Their ongoing disputes escalated last month, when Miles ordered three district police officers to remove her from Dade. Nutall said teachers invited her to go to Dade the Monday after Miles replaced 10 teachers, the principal and two assistant principals in a attempt to improve the struggling campus.

When Miles saw Nutall at Dade, he told her to leave the campus before he was about to lead a staff meeting about the personnel changes, Nutall said. When Nutall refused and told him she had the right to be at Dade, which is in her district, Miles called Dallas ISD police to remove her.

Neither Miles or Nutall have offered to dial down the tensions between them. A few days after Miles had Nutall removed, he declined to apologize to her at a community meeting in South Dallas and said that she should apologize to him. Last week, Nutall filed a complaint with the Dallas County district attorney’s office over her removal and accused him of “official oppression.”

Matthew Haag writes about the Dallas Independent School District. Follow @matthewhaag.

Dallas ISD trustees to make decisions concerning fellow member’s removal from Dade Middle School

 

Dallas ISD trustees will meet Thursday to decide whether to seek outside investigations concerning trustee Bernadette Nutall’s removal from Dade Middle School at the request of Superintendent Mike Miles.

Trustees also will decide whether any action should be taken against Nutall or Miles over the incident. Nutall was forcibly removed from the campus by DISD police on Oct. 13.

Board President Miguel Solis said it was input from attorneys and trustees that led to Thursday’s called meeting.

“It is my hope that any action the board chooses to take will lead to a better definition of governance and management and to ensure that events leading up to and occurring on October 13th do not repeat themselves,” Solis said in a statement. “It is time to shift the focus back to the education of over 160,000 students in this city and their ability to reach their dreams of success in this world.”

Trustees will hold the called meeting at 5:30 p.m. after the regular board briefings. They will consider the following items in open session:

*Whether to employ a legal firm to conduct a “fact-finding investigation” of events leading up to and occurring on Oct. 13 at Dade between Nutall and Miles.

*Whether to request a “limited” investigation by the Texas Education Agency regarding the incident, with a focus on rights and duties set by Texas Education Code.

*Whether to take possible action against Nutall as a result of the events that occurred at Dade.

*Whether to take possible action against Miles as a result of the events that occurred at Dade.

The agenda doesn’t list possible actions that could be taken against Nutall and Miles. But for a trustee, admonishment could include censure. For a superintendent, punishment could include a reprimand up to termination.

Nutall has said that she went to Dade at the request of some staff members to see what was going on after Miles replaced the principal, two assistant principals and 10 teachers.

Miles has said changes had to be made immediately because very little teaching was occurring. He had planned a 6:30 a.m. staff meeting the day Nutall went to Dade. He has said that it was the first meeting for the new group and not the time for a trustee to be present.

Nutall has said that she decided not to attend the meeting when she learned Miles would be leading it. She said she was leaving Dade when she met Miles in the main entrance. She said he asked her to leave and accused her of trespassing. When she refused to leave, he had three officers put her out, she said.

A video of the incident shows two police officers, each holding one of Nutall’s arms, physically remove her from the school as Miles looks on.

Some Dallas residents have demanded that Miles resign over the Dade incident.

Also, Nutall filed a criminal complaint last week with the Dallas County District Attorney’s office regarding the incident. She contends that Miles committed “official oppression” when he had DISD police officers remove her from the school.

Under the Texas penal code, official oppression by a public servant can include one who “intentionally subjects another to mistreatment or to arrest, detention, search, seizure, dispossession, assessment, or lien that he knows is unlawful.”

A spokeswoman for the District Attorney’s office said Friday that the complaint was being reviewed.

Dallas ISD trustee Bernadette Nutall files complaint with District Attorney’s office, accuses superintendent of “official oppression”

Dallas ISD trustee Bernadette Nutall

Updated at 2:24 p.m.: DISD spokesman Andre Riley emailed this comment: “The board and superintendent are continuing to have the important discussion about where to draw the line between governance and management. Those discussions will not distract us from the important work that we are charged to do: continue to prepare all students for college and their careers.”

Riley said district administrators had not seen a copy of Nutall’s complaint.

The DA’s Office did receive the complaint, spokeswoman Debbie Denmon said Friday afternoon. “We are in the process of reviewing it,” she said.

Original post: Dallas ISD trustee Bernadette Nutall has filed a criminal complaint with the Dallas County District Attorney’s office over being forcibly removed from Dade Middle School earlier this month.

Nutall contends that Superintendent Mike Miles committed “official oppression” when he had DISD police officers remove her from the South Dallas school on Oct. 13.

Under the Texas penal code, official oppression by a public servant can include one who “intentionally subjects another to mistreatment or to arrest, detention, search, seizure, dispossession, assessment, or lien that he knows is unlawful.”

It is not known whether the District Attorney’s office will accept the case and forward it to a grand jury for review.

Nutall confirmed the filing with the DA’s office. She had no additional comment.

Nutall said she went to Dade to see what was going on after Miles replaced the principal, two assistant principals and 10 teachers. The school has had four principals in two years – three of them placed there by Miles.

Miles has said changes had to be made immediately because very little teaching was occurring. He had planned a 6:30 a.m. staff meeting the day Nutall went to Dade. He has said that it was the first meeting for the new group and not the time for a trustee to be present.

Nutall has said that she decided not to attend the meeting when she learned Miles would be leading it. She said she was leaving Dade when she met Miles in the main entrance. She said he asked her to leave and accused her of trespassing. When she refused to leave, he had three officers put her out, she said.

A video of the incident shows two police officers, each holding one of Nutall’s arms, physcially remove her from the school. Another officer appears to be holding the door as she’s taken through it. Miles can be seen looking on.

The issue has caused unrest among some in the Dallas community. Some residents showed up at a DISD school board meeting last week and demanded that Miles resign. Their continuous chants for his resignation prompted Board President Miguel Solis to recess the meeting for several minutes to gain control.

Dallas ISD trustees have met in closed session to discuss roles and duties in response to the incident. Solis said the board would continue having discussions to determine the lines of governance and management and to prevent such an incident from happening again. He said the next discussion will be in open session.

Staff writer Holly K. Hacker contributed to this post.

Deputy chief internal auditor Don Smith, who oversaw Dallas ISD investigations, is fired

Don Smith

Deputy chief internal auditor Don Smith, who helped start the Dallas ISD’s first investigative unit and cleaned up the district’s federal E-Rate program, was fired Thursday.

Chief internal auditor Mike Singleton informed him this morning that there was going to be a change in leadership in Office of Internal Audit Investigations and that Smith would be let go, according to three people with knowledge of it. Smith has to leave district property by noon Thursday.

“I did nothing wrong. I was told I did nothing wrong. I was presented with no documentation. I was told nothing,” Smith told The News. “I was doing my job and never told I did anything wrong.”

Singleton said, “My response is no comment right now.”

Dallas ISD spokesman André Riley said, “We appreciate Don Smith’s service to the district over the years and wish him nothing but the best.”

Smith, a former investigator with the Internal Revenue Service, started the district’s Office of Professional Responsibility under former Superintendent Michael Hinojosa. Before that unit, district investigations were often conducted verbally and without documentation. The OPR department uncovered fraud, waste, abuse and cheating and brought it to administration’s attention.

While Smith was praised by Hinojosa and then interim Superintendent Alan King, he clashed with Superintendent Mike Miles. Miles criticized his handling of OPR, and, according to Smith, said his unit bullied administrators. Smith led the investigation into Miles more than a year ago that eventually went to attorney Paul Coggins.

After the Miles investigation, the DISD school board tried to protect Smith by moving OPR under Internal Audit, which reports to trustees. Smith applied for the chief internal auditor position but lost it to Singleton, a former administrator in Rockwall ISD. Smith was named deputy chief internal auditor and oversaw the investigations.

Smith’s unit uncovered questions about the district’s graduation rate, found that a former trustee helped a real estate agent land a lucrative broker deal and, recently, was looking into the handling of a technology contract.

Smith, perhaps, received the most praise for cleaning up the district’s once troubled E-Rate federal technology program. E-Rate is a federal program that supplies money to districts for technology programs.

The district was locked out of E-Rate money following the scandal a decade ago that sent former chief technology officer Ruben Bohuchot to federal prison. Smith became the chief compliance officer and trained staff on handling E-Rate contracts. Under Smith’s guidance, the federal government reached a compliance agreement with the district and reimbursed the district for some technology expenses.

Smith is the second top investigator to be fired in Dallas ISD in recent months. Jeremy Liebbe, who ran the Professional Standards Office, was let go in September. Smith’s department looked into waste, fraud and abuse, while Liebbe’s unit reviewed personnel issues.

Matthew Haag writes about the Dallas Independent School District. Follow @matthewhaag.

Petition by Dallas ISD student: Mike Miles, you have ruined teaching

A Dallas ISD student has started an online petition urging Superintendent Mike Miles to give teachers a raise and to reverse the teaching requirements that have zapped classrooms of creativity.

The petition by Lara Andree, a junior at Irma Lerma Rangel Young Women’s Leadership School, wrote that Miles’ policies make classroom no longer “a creative and mentally stimulating environment.” Andree criticizes the new weekly lesson plans DISD teachers are supposed to put together.

“Instead of allowing our teachers to be creative, and build hands-on lessons that encourage all level of students to feel included and inspired to learn, the lesson plans have become a burden to teachers and force them to stick to certain content and timelines to ensure all material is covered,” she wrote.

She wrote that, over the years, class sizes have gotten bigger, there’s less one-on-one time with teachers and her mentors in DISD have left the district. Andree said that teachers deserve a raise and shouldn’t have their salaries determine by the new performance-pay plan called the Teacher Excellence Initiative.

The petition had 223 signatures as of noon Wednesday.

Julius Mwangi, who signed the petition, wrote: “The fact that DISD student can see that something is wrong and are willing to advance for a change that DISD adults have ignored is incredible. These children can see anxiety in the teachers, who besides teaching also have a life and bills to pay.”

Matthew Haag writes about the Dallas Independent School District. Follow @matthewhaag.

Former Dallas ISD administrator fired in sports recruiting scandal files lawsuit

A former Dallas ISD administrator fired in a sports recruiting scandal has filed a lawsuit against the school district.

Anita Connally, DISD’s former University Interscholastic League compliance officer, filed the lawsuit in Dallas County District Court on Wednesday. She is one of 15 former athletics employees fired in June after an investigation found student residency documents were falsified to enable athletes to play on high school teams.

Connally and two other former employees had their firings upheld in a hearing by a DISD school board panel last week. Firings for two other employees were also upheld last month.

For seven of the fired employees, DISD changed course and allowed them to resign and have their personnel records expunged in relation to the investigation under settlement agreements.

Daniel Ortiz, an attorney for Connally, has said that his client provided information on the recruiting problems and did nothing wrong.

In the lawsuit, Ortiz says that Connally was retaliated against as a result of reports she made concerning at least four instances of fraud and/or forgery by coaches and other athletics officials to obtain eligibility for players.

The lawsuit seeks monetary relief for actual and compensatory damages of over $200,000. It also asks that Connally be reinstated to her former position or an equivalent one.

Carlos Lopez, an attorney for DISD, said during last week’s board panel that Connally did not act quickly enough. He said that Connally wasn’t part of the problem, but she did not act with the fervor that the administration thinks is needed for that position.

DISD has been called for comment. The district does not typically comment on pending litigation.

DISD launched the investigation into recruiting after the March beating death of Wilmer-Hutchins High School student Troy Causey, who lived in a southeast Dallas home with top Madison High School player Johnathan Turner. Neither athlete was living with his family in the home. Turner has been indicted on a manslaughter charge in Causey’s death.

Connally Lawsuit

Audience members at Dallas ISD board meeting demand that Superintendent Mike Miles resign; meeting recessed as crowd chants

Dallas ISD trustees take a recess at Wednesday's board meeting after some audience members continued to chant their desire to have Superintendent Mike Miles resign. They are upset that Miles had DISD police remove trustee Bernadette Nutall from Dade Middle School last week. (Tawnell Hobbs/Dallas Morning News)

Several dozen people upset with Dallas ISD Superintendent Mike Miles demanded his resignation at a board meeting Wednesday, creating enough commotion that board President Miguel Solis recessed the meeting for several minutes to restore order.

The audience members, who chanted “no apology, resignation,” are outraged that Miles had DISD police remove trustee Bernadette Nutall from Dade Middle School last week.

“I could not stand by any longer and not speak out against the cruelty that one of our board members, Ms. Nutall, received,” Dallas resident Shirley Daniels said during the public comment portion of the meeting. “Over 40 years involved with the Dallas Independent School District, I just couldn’t believe the treatment that was given to a board member.”

The issue has riled some residents, some of whom last week demanded Miles apologize at a community meeting for having Nutall thrown out of Dade. But now, they say, it’s too late to say sorry.

“We do not want an apology; we want a resignation,” said Juanita Wallace, president of the Dallas NAACP.

Nutall has said that she was removed from the South Dallas school by DISD police on Oct. 13. She said that she was at the campus to see what was going on after Miles replaced the principal, two assistant principals and 10 teachers.

The school has had four principals in two years – three of them placed there by Miles.

Miles has said he made the recent changes because “there was very little teaching going on.”

Miles had planned a 6:30 a.m. staff meeting the day Nutall went to the school. He has said that it was the first meeting for the new group and not the time for a trustee to be at a staff meeting.

Nutall has said that she decided not to attend the meeting when she learned Miles was going to lead it. She said she was leaving Dade when she met up with Miles in the main entrance. She said that he asked her to leave and accused her of trespassing. When she refused to leave the building, he got three officers to toss her out, she said.

Miles has said that he was in his authority to have Nutall removed.

Nutall has said she was humiliated by being removed from the school by police officers. A video shows two of the officers, each with one of her arms, physically remove her from the building.

Dallas ISD trustees met Monday in closed session to discuss roles and duties in response to the incident. Solis said the board would continue having discussions to determine the lines of governance and management and to prevent such an incident from happening again.

Meanwhile, community members plan to continue their push to have Miles removed.

“He’s never going to apologize,” one speaker told Nutall during the public comment session. “It’s up to your colleagues now. It’s up to them to make the right decision.”

Tutoring firm owners plead guilty to defrauding Dallas and Fort Worth ISDs

In 2012, Dallas ISD officials alleged some companies were not tutoring their students as required, like at this Apostolic Assembly church on Hume Drive. Two tutor firm owners pleaded guilty Tuesday to defrauding DISD and FWISD. (DMN file photo)

Florine Mati and David Mbugua used to run tutoring companies in the Dallas area.

On Tuesday, they pleaded guilty to defrauding the Dallas and Fort Worth school districts out of about $3 million worth of tutoring. U.S. Magistrate Judge Paul D. Stickney accepted their pleas: guilty to one count each of conspiracy to make false, fictitious or fraudulent claims. Mati and Mbugua each face up to five years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine, and they’ll have to pay restitution. They’ll be sentenced in February.

Mati, a former DISD teacher, and Mbugua formed four tutoring companies a few years ago: Diverse Learning, Wise Links (also known as Champions Mind), Boost Academy and Avenue Academy. They received state approval to tutor low-income students at schools that had failed to meet federal academic standards. The outside tutoring was required by the federal No Child Left Behind law.

The former business partners did not appear to make eye contact or talk to each other Tuesday morning, when they entered their guilty pleas in U.S. District Court. They’re being held in custody.

In a news release this afternoon, the U.S. District Attorney’s Office said:

During the course of their conspiracy, Mati, Mbugua and others submitted false claims to DISD, FWISD and other school districts in Texas, for tutoring services under the SES program that were not provided to students. They billed DISD $2,730,389, and they were paid $1,523,079. They billed FWISD $1,430,687, and they were paid $1,003,318. Approximately 75% of the total amounts billed – approximately $3,120,807 – was for services not provided. Mati and Mbugua wired some of the proceeds they received from these false claims to Kenya, beyond the reach of U.S. authorities.

The lawyers for Mati and Mbugua declined to comment Tuesday.

Dallas ISD trustees discuss roles and duties after fellow member removed from school

Superintendent Mike Miles, left, and trustee Bernadette Nutall

Dallas ISD trustees met Monday to discuss roles and duties after a fellow member was removed from Dade Middle School at the request of Superintendent Mike Miles.

The discussion was held in closed session for nearly three hours. A move by trustee Joyce Foreman to have it in open session was not successful.

No decisions were made after the meeting. Board President Miguel Solis said the board would continue having deliberations about steps to resolve the issue, which has riled some in the community.

“It’s an issue that should not fester,” Solis said. “Where are the lines of governance and management, and how do we prevent something from happening like this again?”

Trustee Bernadette Nutall has said that she was removed from the South Dallas school by DISD police on Oct. 13. She said that she was at the campus to see what was going on after Miles replaced the principal, two assistant principals and 10 teachers.

Miles has said he made the changes because “there was very little teaching going on” at Dade. He said he observed poor instruction and leadership, low expectations for students, and an atmosphere of chaos and inattentiveness by some staff members.

Miles had planned a 6:30 a.m. staff meeting the day Nutall went to the school. He has said that it was the first meeting for the new group and not the time for a trustee to be at a staff meeting.

Nutall has said that she decided not to attend the meeting when she learned Miles was going to lead it. She said she was leaving Dade when she met up with Miles in the main entrance. She said that he asked her to leave and accused her of trespassing. When she refused to leave the building, he got three officers to toss her out, she said.

Miles has said that he was in his authority to have Nutall removed.

The issue has some residents concerned. Miles was harshly criticized during a community meeting Thursday in South Dallas. Some attendees demanded that he apologize for having Nutall thrown out of the school. He did not.

Nutall has said she was humiliated by being removed from the school by police officers. “They proceeded to lift me up and take me out the door,” she said during Thursday’s community meeting hosted by Revitalize South Dallas Coalition.

Some community members also voiced concerns that the school had too many new teachers with no experience and too much administrative turnover. Dade has had four principals in two years – three of them placed there by Miles.

Watch the video of Nutall’s removal here.

Video: Trustee Bernadette Nutall physically removed from school by Dallas ISD police

Security cameras inside a Dallas ISD middle school recorded the removal of a trustee by school district police last week.

The security footage obtained by The Dallas Morning News shows a brief exchange between trustee Bernadette Nutall and Superintendent Mike Miles before she is removed by three district police officers. Nutall said last week that Miles accused her of trespassing and ordered the officers to remove her from Dade Middle School. The video doesn’t include audio.

She was ejected shortly before a staff meeting took place at Dade to discuss the replacement of the top campus administrators and 10 teachers. DISD spokesman Jon Dahlander said last week that the meeting was between school employees and district administrators.

Miles asked Nutall to apologize for the incident at a community meeting Thursday. At the same meeting, Nutall asked him to apologize.

The video shows Miles talking to someone on the cell phone before police arrive. According to a Dallas ISD police incident report, Miles talked to police Chief Craig Miller and assistant chief Gary Hodges before Nutall was removed. Hodges, officer Jose Rodriguez and Sgt. Russell Rojas removed her from Dade.

The video shows Rojas and Rodriguez holding Nutall’s arms as they toss her from the main entrance at Dade.

Dallas ISD police said Nutall faced a criminal trespassing charge if she didn’t leave Dade. The incident has caused people to rally behind both Miles and Nutall. Her supporters assert Miles lacked the authority to eject Nutall and that he shouldn’t have called the police. His supporters believe that Nutall shouldn’t have been at the school and had no right to attend the staff meeting.

Police removed Nutall before the staff meeting started. She said last week she didn’t plan on attending the meeting and only went to Dade to encourage teachers.


Matthew Haag writes about the Dallas Independent School District. Follow @matthewhaag.