A recently retired administrator and a current Galesburg teacher took aim at the District 205 Board of Education on Tuesday, one citing a lack of support for district special education teachers, and the other calling for the immediate resignation of a board member amid a federal lawsuit she has filed against the district.
The claims were made by Luan Statham, immediate past director of special education for District 205, and Brett Wolfe, a longtime Galesburg High School teacher, during the public comment portion of Tuesday’s meeting.
Statham’s concerns were in response to a presentation made by the executive director of the Champaign-Urbana Autism Network at the October board meeting. Claiming to represent a group of parents with students in the District 205 special education program, Julie Duvall was critical of both teachers and administrators within the district.
Duvall accused administrators of falsifying documents, inaccurate and inconsistent records, and the district not following (Illinois State Board of Education) policies and protocols.
She also claimed, “The neurodivergent students with Individualized Education Plans are routinely being denied adequate supports our children require, both during the creation of IEP’s, as well as repeated failures to fulfill therapeutic support service minutes outlined in existing IEP’s.”
Past special ed director questions origin, disputes validity of complaints
Statham, who worked for District 205 for 30 years before retiring in June, questioned the validity and origin of Duvall’s statements as she addressed the board Tuesday.
“As I was listening to (Duval’s) comments, I realized I had heard them before,” said Statham, who painted a trail where she believes Duvall obtained background that originated from a school board member.
WGIL reported last month that Galesburg school board member Pamella Bess-Tabb filed a federal lawsuit against District 205 and the Illinois State Board of Education, claiming they failed to guarantee her child an appropriate education as required by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
“The district hired an out of town law firm to investigate the allegations, but the complaint was dropped,” Statham said. “Just because parents make OCR (Office of Civil Rights) complaints and file a lawsuit does not mean the district has done anything wrong.
“And while parents are very important members of the IEP team, the law does not state that they get to come in with a laundry list of demands and the district has to abide by them. The law actually states that the district must do what’s reasonable and appropriate.”
Statham went on to say, “Our teachers and paraprofessionals go above and beyond every single day for our students. They do more than what is reasonable and appropriate. There’s also a misconception in the community that people think because their student has a diagnosis of ADHD or autism, that that means they automatically qualify for an IEP (Individualized Education Program). That is not what the law says, and has never been a part of the law.”
She concluded, “I greatly appreciate the comments made at the end of the (October) meeting by Member (Maury) Lyon and Member (Jake) Taylor. I agree with Member Taylor’s comments that there are two sides to every story, and the truth will eventually come out.
“I was disappointed by the silence from the rest of you. It was deafening. Your silence was felt by every employee of this district that goes above and beyond every single day to educate and support our special education students. Your silence will be remembered.”
GHS teacher: ‘This is government gone bad.’
Wolfe, a 29-year District 205 employee as both a teacher and high school administrator and also the current vice president of the Galesburg Education Association, said he was addressing the board Tuesday as a resident and tax payer, and not a district employee.
He said he was “troubled” by the findings of the Oct. 11 WGIL story that disclosed Bess-Tabb had filed a federal lawsuit against District 205.
“Which leads me to my profound concern; is it true our community has a sitting board member who is suing the very government she represents?” Wolfe said. “If all of the above is true, why did member Bess-Tabb not come forth and tell the citizens of Galesburg of her action?
“Why has she and every elected official sitting in front of me right now failed to notify the public? This is government gone bad.”
Wolfe urged board members “to be motivated by transparency.” He also noted the legal fees District 205 has incurred to defend the federal lawsuit.
“As for Member Bess-Tabb, you have betrayed the public trust,” Wolfe said. “You have sown the seeds of chaos, created dissension and embarrassed our school system. I call for your immediate resignation.”
Bess-Tabb respectively declined WGIL’s request to comment on the statements made Tuesday night. She also did not respond to the concerns during closing comments by board members.
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Federal suit now in the hands of a judge
Attorneys representing Bess-Tabb — who is set to complete her first four-year term on the District 205 Board of Education next spring — and her husband filed the suit July 15 in the United States District Court for The Central District of Illinois, Rock Island Division.
John Asplund, District 205 Superintendent of Schools, tells WGIL that attorneys from both parties of the federal lawsuit have made written closing arguments, and they are awaiting a final ruling from the judge.
As of Oct. 11, Asplund said District 205 had spent $58,370.76 in legal fees defending the federal case related to a special education matter. He said Tuesday that cost risen since then, but not substantially.
Board member: ‘Never in my wildest dreams …’
Board President Courtney Rodriguez and members Taylor, Rodney Phelps and Rod Scherpe did address the public comments made by Statham and Wolfe during closing comments by board members on Tuesday. Lyon was not present.
“To the public comment, point taken,” Phelps said. “Some of this stuff, never in my wildest dreams that I thought I’d be immersed in it.”
Scherpe said, “We had some pretty strong comments from the public tonight, and it’s taken to heart. I missed the last meeting, but I would like to stand publicly for our special ed department. I am very proud of the work they do.
“As for some of the other concerns, I don’t like to remain silent on things, but there’s also a time and a place to speak out. With that being said, I think I’ll wait until it’s legally appropriate. Hopefully, the board can speak out with one unified voice about that, but I will eventually speak my mind.”
Rodriguez spoke last, saying, “About the public comment tonight, we hear you. There are things we can and cannot talk about in public.
“Like Member Scherpe said, we will talk about it when the time is right, but time is not right, right now.”
The next meeting of the District 205 Board of Education is Dec. 9.
