News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
The Cumberland County Board of Education voted not to renew the contract of Director of Schools William Stepp.
The final vote 5-4 against Stepp. Board Member Jon Matthews said Stepp is great at public relations, but within the walls of the school system that perception was not the same. Matthews said he was torn on the decision but ended up voting to not renew the contract.
“Since this contract has come out I’ve been getting more and more and more calls from people within our schools,” Matthews said. “And if we are not listening and representing the people within our schools and what they are asking I feel like we are doing them a disservice.”
Board Member Sheri Nichols said the board has had trouble finding stability in the director position over the past several years. Nichols said the school system has made strides under Stepp’s leadership and that not renewing the contract would be a big mistake.
“In Cumberland County, we have a problem,” Nichols said. “This is called generational curse and here we go again. If we can’t find somebody to buckle up and get through the next couple of years we are never going to overcome this. Who in their right mind wants to work for this place? Honest to god I don’t think there is a human being that wants this job. The fact that he stayed is a miracle. ”
Board Member Scott VanWinkle said he attended several board meetings before he was on the board. VanWinkle said he was not for renewing the contract as he believes Stepp mishandled TISA funding.
“One of those first meetings that I heard about this in I also heard in a couple of meetings later that we got $600,000 something dollars from those outcomes,” VanWinkle said. “Well we didn’t go back and invest any of that money into helping our students not only meet these outcomes, we spent it on a roof. We didn’t go back and try to help these students.”
Board Member Travis Cole said the board not renewing his contract is a change of tune from when he first joined the board.
“The whole time it was Mr. Stepp needs support,” Cole said. “We are making a fool of ourselves by working against each other. We need to work together as a team because if he fails we fail.”
Chairman Chris King said he has not heard negative feedback from staff about Stepp. King said he believes Stepp has done well as the director.
“I take exception to the negatives that I have heard here tonight,” King said. “I think Mr. Stepp’s doing an excellent job. I’m embarrassed for the board tonight.”
Board Member Anita Hale made the motion to not renew the contract and said not renewing would be in the board’s best interest. Stepp’s contract would have extended his tenure for another two years. Several citizens spoke to the board supporting Stepp boasting about his improvement in test scores and his availability to the community.
