Untitled 2Paula Crew sat down with the New Carlisle News last week to talk candidly about how the district is coping with the pending termination of former Superintendent Brad Martin, with whom she worked for a decade.  Crew explained the catalyst of the investigation into Martin’s actions, as well as the district’s plan for recovery after such a breach of trust, which she said has left “so many victims” in its wake.

Is Brad Martin a man with an addiction, or is Brad Martin a villain?

“I can recognize gambling as an addiction,” Crew said of Martin’s hundreds of visits to casinos during school hours. “We called him our leader, our friend, but once we discovered the depth of deception taking place by Mr. Martin, we needed to act with integrity and report the discoveries. But I can’t understand all of the victims he left in the process,” she concluded.

Crew said faculty and staff members at Tecumseh are still grieving amid the sudden investigation and pending termination of their leader, many coming to her in tears.  “I feel betrayed, and many other staff members have said that too,” said Crew. “We all felt like victims throughout the district…that he took advantage of us for financial gain,” she said.

The catalyst into the investigation.

Crew explained that the missing iPads were the catalyst in Martin’s investigation, stressing that the district’s “checks and balances,” which have been called into question amid this scandal, were responsible for detecting the problem.  “He did not provide the receipts after multiple verbal and written requests from the treasurer.  After an extended period of time of various excuses for why he could not provide the receipts prompted the treasurer by law to take action.”

Crew said once the missing iPads were investigated, the situation quickly escalated as more thefts and Martin’s casino visits were discovered.

Crew said Martin requested a check from the district Treasurer last summer for the purchase of several iPads that were to be used by students.  She said when Martin was asked to produce the receipts for the purchase of the tablets but did not provide them, the incident was reported and an internal investigation was launched, which led to the discovery of more thefts.

Addressing the tougher comments…

Crew addressed the comments by some in the community who called for the termination of all the School Board members and by those claiming the Board should have been help responsible for Martin’s actions.  She explained that the Board had “absolutely no knowledge” of Martin’s misconduct until the December 16th Board of Education meeting, and that they acted appropriately upon learning of Martin’s alleged thefts.

She also noted the unique composition of the Board of Education, saying each member has a personal interest in the welfare of the district.  Crew said each school board member is a graduate of Tecumseh High School and that each member has a child or children who have either graduated from the district or who are enrolled currently.  

“They all have a very deep-rooted, vested interest how this district runs,” said Crew of the School Board members.  “They want the children here to have the same education and extracurricular opportunities they had,” she explained.

Crew likened Martin’s deception to that of a cheating spouse—saying no one who worked closely with him had reason to question his whereabouts—as they had all developed a strong working relationship with him during his many years with the district.  She said there were always plenty of reasons why the Superintendent would be called away from school grounds on a daily basis for meetings, conferences, and other events, and that his mileage was not cause for alarm.  “It’s my boss—it’s Brad—if he tells me he’s going to a meeting with the county Superintendents and he’ll be gone the rest of the afternoon—I’m not going to check and make sure he’s really there,” Crew explained.  She added that Martin, as Superintendent, had unlimited mileage, but that the documentation will be scrutinized more closely in the future.

On the district’s recovery…

Crew, along with all TLSD Board members, has been spending time in each of the district’s buildings, meeting with teachers and other staff to establish an open line of communication as they reel from the deception and likely termination of their leader.  

She said it is important for the community to remember that the entire district cannot be defined by Martin’s poor decisions, and to consider the sacrifices made by Board members as they work with several different entities during the investigation.  Crew explained that she, the Treasurer and other Board members spent much of their Christmas Break away from friends and family while they worked with agents and investigators instead.

“Tecumseh is not defined by one individual,” Crew asserted. “The district should not be defined by one person—it shouldn’t be punished by the actions of one individual while we have people here busting their tails and going above and beyond,” she maintained, praising the abilities of the district’s staff.

“I was in the middle school today and I saw a teacher stop in the hallway to help a young man fix his tie,” she said. “That teacher didn’t have to stop and put all of their things down to help—those are the kind of people we have here.”

Crew said she does not know if the Board will vote to appoint her as Martin’s replacement as Superintendent, saying she is “honored to lead the district” through this trial while graciously acknowledging that her promotion to Interim Superintendent was not through the most pleasant of terms.  She stated that operations in the district would be “business as usual” while the investigation is conducted.  Though she said she has no idea how long the investigation process will last, she confessed that she is anxious for it to be all over so that everyone can get back to devoting undivided attention to the students.

“The taxpayers have charged us with having their kids graduate and work to their maximum potential,” said Crew. “That will continue to be the philosophy of the Board and staff…student learning and growth is still the number one priority.”

The students…

The district has not formally addressed its students concerning Martin’s behaviors in a collective assembly, but students who ask are reminded that poor decisions come with great consequences, Crew said, adding that she hopes they’re able to learn the immediate repercussions of bad choices.  Crew, whose 12-year-old daughter attends Tecumseh Middle School, said Martin’s children also go to school in the district and that they aren’t being treated any differently in the wake of the situation.  “They’re still Arrows just like the rest of us and we still love them all the same.”

What comes next?

Martin requested a pre-termination hearing with an attorney from the Ohio Department of Education, where the state will determine whether or not the district has enough grounds for proceeding with Martin’s termination.  Crew said she is confident that more than enough evidence exists to finalize his termination, given the numerous casino visits as well as missing cash, iPads, and unaccounted checks.  

That hearing is scheduled for February 11, 2015 at 9:00am.  

The next Board meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, January 27.

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