UPDATE: I received an email from David Fleishman tonight saying the information in the Globe was incorrect and that the “the report will be released after our attorney is finished redacting the parts that are considered confidential because they are a part of an employee’s personnel record. (Please note that this is standard practice.) This information was in the TAB article and it is important that residents receive consistent information.” — Greg Reibman
Here’s the original text that appeared on this thread:
The Newton Public Schools will not be releasing report looking into the handling of hate graffiti at Day Middle School, the Globe’s Ellen Ishkanian reports today.
An outside investigator was hired by the School Department to review how the graffiti incidents were handled. That report is now complete, and the Globe has requested a copy under the state’s public records law. School Superintendent David Fleishman said he has been advised by the department’s lawyer that the report is not public because it deals with personnel.
The cover up is always worse than the crime. The Newton TAB should make a Freedom of Information request.
An incredibly stupid decision from a generally smart guy listening to a bad legal opinion. The report is a public document. It will be released. And the Superintendent’s attempt to cover it up is only going to make matters worse, and damage the reputation he’s been working to rebuild since his plagiarism scandal.
After the plagiarism incident, you would think that the superintendant would recognize that he needs to be a leader, not a bureaucrat. “Personnel” is a favorite smokescreen for every corporation and agency embarrassment. Why did the city even hire this guy?
If the City hired an Investigator the Report needs to be released. I believe it probably makes the Principal look bad for not taking a pro-active stand. Setti Warren needs to step up to the plate and release the Report. When he ran for Mayor in 2009 he campaigned on a platform of total transparency. Another bad decision from Donnalyn Kahn.
This doesn’t make Mr. Fleishman look good. . . . . it is a public document, that needs to be released. And with the Freedom of Information Act I am confident that it will be released, however we know there will be egg on the principal’s face. . . . . now I am thinking there is more egg to go around. The citizens of Newton have not forgotten the plagiarism incident and now this won’t be forgotten. It is too bad that the report won’t be released until the press files a Freedom of Information act.
Very sad.
@Doug: The Globe said it filed a public records request for the report, there’s no reason to believe the TAB doing the same would yield different results.
As we reported last week, David Fleishman told us the report would be released once redacted. We will follow up on that this week and a FOIA request is always a possibility if we are not satisfied.
There would have to be some powerful evidence contained in that report to make Brian Turner look much worse than he does now, which is terrible.
Just to clarify, I used the term “FOIA” loosely above. We have, however, formally requested the report. We will have to see in the coming days if the superintendent has changed his mind about the release since we talked to him last.
The release of the emails showed that they were trying to cover things up from the beginning. Where are the “coachable” parents coming to his defense?
New Cit, not sure who you mean by “they” in regards to a coverup. To me, Turner seems to be the one on the hook for this…and it is a large hook indeed.
I expect we will have the report soon.
Here’s a new story from Wicked Local.
“They” would be Turner and Fleishman, and anyone else that was involved in what talking points someone should say so that this would all spin the right way. Fleishman is quoted in the tab saying, “the investigation — which focused on who knew what, when — uncovered nothing unexpected.” Why is a report that “uncovered nothing unexpected” being held from the public and the media? Maybe because they aren’t “coachable.” When this topic came up before on Village14, there were defenders left and right for Turner, because it was all based on a narrative that was being painted by the NPS administration. Now that real facts have an opportunity to come out, not one of those defenders is saying let the report out. They should be the first to call out Fleishman for holding things back.
I’ve posted this on the top of this thread but am including it here as well:
UPDATE: I received an email from David Fleishman tonight saying the information in the Globe was incorrect and that the “the report will be released after our attorney is finished redacting the parts that are considered confidential because they are a part of an employee’s personnel record. (Please note that this is standard practice.) This information was in the TAB article and it is important that residents receive consistent information.” — Greg Reibman
Fleishman’s email confirms what the TAB reported last week and Andy Levin’s comments today. I sent an email to Ellen Ishkanian asking for her take on this.
I’m sure some conspiracy theorists will have a field day with this. But at this time I recommend taking this at face value.
Can someone tell me what could be in this report that would be part of an employee’s personnel record?
Names.
Anything beyond names Jane Frantz? If it is just names, they should get that report out by the end of the week.
I’m not sure. It could also include information that might identify an individual respondent, but I’m not sure of that. All personnel information is strictly confidential. I’d assume the law department would have to go through it with a fine tooth comb to ensure staff confidentiality is maintained.
Andy Levin, do you think that the release of the report will change anything for Fleishman or Turner? Did the release of the emails do anything to tarnish these men?
New Cit, do you have an agenda? Are you a member of APT or PENS?
Just curious.
Brian Turner made a huge mistake and it is fair to call into question his leadership and judgment.
David Fleishman, for his part, has been very cooperative with us on this investigation, to date.
@Jane: Not all personnel information of a public employee is shielded from public view. A well known example is the salary of public employees; while it was the position of a past Superintendent to refuse to release the information, it is clear, it is not considered to be exempt from public disclosure.
Additionally, this report does not amount to a personnel file, it is a report paid for by the public. In my mind this is analogous to a police internal affairs investigation; which is typically not considered shielded.
Quoted from the Public Records guide, put out by the Division of Public Records(regarding privacy exemption of Public Record Law):
“The Appeals Court held that officer’s reports, witness interview summaries, and the internal affairs report itself do not fall within the personnel information exemption, as these documents relate to the workings and determinations of the internal affairs process whose quintessential purpose is to inspire public confidence. “
Personnel information is highly confidential.
This is not a police report.
The report will be released when personnel information is redacted.
@Jane: The ruling by the appeals court was regarding an internal affairs investigation regarding the actions of a public employee.Sounds pretty similar to this situation.
Again, not all personnel information is shielded.
This is nonsense. Given the enormous public interest in this subject, the report should have been read, redacted, and released by now. We’ve seen this game many times with public officials in Newton. It disgusts me when public officials try to play the public for fools. If the Superintendent hadn’t been asked by the Globe, he’d he holding this report to release at 5:05pm on Friday of Memorial Day Weekend, when half the city heads out of town. And does anyone think the School Committee had nothing to do with this decision? Just look at their track record. The Charter Commission has set the Gold Standard for transparency in this city. The rest of the government should do their best to learn from that.
Andy Levin, I’m just a member of the public who is curious as to why no real action is being taken in regards to huge failures. Things seem to be moving slowly perhaps on purpose. I think the hope is that things will just disappear if they get to the end of the school year. Newton takes great pride in open communication and transparency, yet things involved around these failures are anything but that.
Take a deep breath people…please.
We asked for the report and were told we would have it once it is redacted. We filed an open records request, as SOP. Followup communication leads me to believe we might have a story on it as soon as next week. FYI: Public records law in Massachusetts differentiates clearly between a police internal affairs investigation and the type of report we are discussing, which involves employees who are not suspected of committing a crime. There are many exemptions and legal limits relative to the type of personnel info that a school district must release, according to state law. Medical info is always off limits; personnel info often is and privacy rights can be an issue.
My hunch is that the emails Jonathan reported on a couple weeks ago told much of the story, but we certainly are eager to review the school department’s report. If we see something in the report that has been redacted and it raises a red flag we will consult with our public records law expert and take it from there.
I didn’t comment on any of the previous threads about the anti-Semitic graffiti or the chanting incident at the basketball game. In all honesty, I thought it was all blown out of proportion, and manipulated by a group of people who have had an axe to grind for a long time with NPS over what they perceive as anti-Jewish, anti-Israel, pro-Muslim bias within the curriculum. I think all of those old accusations are complete nonsense.
But it always gets my attention when people who hold elective or appointed office try to coverup, keep secrets, or otherwise withhold information from the public. And this community, particularly the School Committee has a long history of doing just that. It’s exactly what they did with the plagiarism incident, by trying to hide the facts until the school vacation schedule would mitigate the damage. In my opinion, that’s exactly what they tried to do in this case too. The Globe’s Ellen Ishkanian is an excellent reporter. Read the quote from her article at the top of this thread. I don’t believe she made a mistake.
Great point Mike Striar. I find it hard to believe that The Boston Globe’s Ellen Ishkanian would misinterpret “the report will be released after our attorney is finished redacting” it as Fleishman has been “advised by the department’s lawyer that the report is not public.” Perhaps the reaction from the newest Globe article caused Fleishman to go back into spin mode.
We don’t know which questions Ellen Ishkanian asked. It’s her job to get the facts. I’d very much like to hear her take on this, but she’s under no obligation to answer Greg, and I can see why the journalist doesn’t want to be part of the story. Unfortunately, this reporting follows a pattern of factual but incomplete reporting at the Globe that appears to have a bias against Newton.
@Adam: Without commenting on the specifics here, there are times when a source has made contradictory statements to different reporters. And there are times when a source seeks to explain that by saying there was a misunderstanding.
I read the piece again. It’s ambiguous. While it does lead one to believe that the report is not public (and never will be) it really states only that it’s not public now. It doesn’t say the Globe’s request was denied. More clarity would be welcome.
Maybe I’m an idiot, but what is APT and PENS?
Groups trying to connect the anti-Semitic graffiti with the high schools’ alleged “pro-Arab” history curriculum. They are separate and distinct from those who believe David Fleishman should have been fired for his unattributed use of Deval Patrick comments at a graduation speech two years ago.
I think he should have resigned over that incident. It is an embarrassment that he excused away because his brain has capabilities that allow to remember things but yet not be able to distinguish if they are this own original thoughts or someone else’s.
I think Turner should resign or be fired because he failed to follow protocols that have been in place at least for a year and have been followed by other Newton principals, but then dismisses this by saying he forgot.