Before the Dust-Up

Since several folks mentioned in news pieces suggest the Burroughs' school language program might have served as a starting point for Chris Stewart's (and the Minneapolis School Board's) rage and knee-jerk accusations of racism, perhaps we should look to items before Chris Stewart flew off the handle and pulled out his well-worn Broad Brush of Racism.

Twin Cities Daily Planet:
"Mend, Don’t End" WMEP, say parents; "a vanity project," says MPS
By James Sanna , TC Daily Planet
March 09, 2009

More than 100 parents and students in the West Metro Education Program descended on Minneapolis Public Schools’ headquarters March 5 to give a piece of their mind to the Minneapolis Board of Education. The meeting followed last week’s vote to accept Superintendent Bill Green’s recommendation that MPS pull out of WMEP, effective June 30, 2009. Green says WMEP did not fulfill its desegregation mission, and failed to address the achievement gap between poor students and students of color, and white students.

“Pulling out is a step backwards,” said Leah Lynch of Minneapolis, the aunt of two WMEP students. Lynch and her brother are black.

The reporter considered it important to mention that a relative of two black students of the West Metro Education Program disapproves Superintendent Bill Green's recommendation and the Minneapolis School Board's decision to pull out of WMEP.

Hey, Chris Stewart! (Hey, Rahelio Soleil!) Do you think that element of the story is important or unimportant?

According to the reporter, another black person wants the program to continue.

“You don’t chop down a good tree,” said Adrian Kemp, a black IDDS parent, “you use it as a model for success.”

One can only assume what Minneapolis School Board member Rahelio Soleil (also known as Chris Stewart) thinks of Adrian Kemp.

What does Superintendent Green (and probably the Minneapolis School Board) dislike?

...Green pointed to WMEP’s failure to provide school environments that reflected the metro area’s demographics...

Because, as we all know, a school in one city must AT ALL COSTS precisely reflect the percentages of the area at large.

Why such a high priority? Shouldn't a school's first concern be teaching?

“Several member districts are using the program as a vanity project,” said Chris Stewart, a member of the MPS school board.

Stewart said WMEP was not trying to spread knowledge of their successes among member districts, many of whom have seen a dramatic increase in the number of immigrant families, poor families, and families of color over the last few years. School-by-school racial and economic segregation is getting worse, not better, Stewart said. “It’s getting to a point where we can only afford to work with those districts who are serious about addressing this,” he said.

Hopefully, more parents and folks from the neighborhoods have additional information... and hopefully, we'll see that information.

Independence Party Payback

In politics, as in many other instances, folks say that payback is a bitch. I prefer to say that turnabout is fair play.

According to a press release, the Independence Party plans to investigate memoranda regarding Christ Stewart and the Burroughs school. The press release specifically recalls his questionable judgment around the time of his 2006election to the Minneapolis school board, referring to it as his Jekyll and Hyde act.

Folks will say this is sour grapes… however, this is also just the sort of thing that folks on the left side of political philosophy do to those who oppose THEM. So called progressives enjoy the hands-off approach and unquestioning loyalty from like-minded and self-described progressives.

This might go no where. Even if it goes somewhere, the public at large might poo-poo the results.

However, maybe Chris Stewart might feel encouraged to actually do something the right way, without vindictiveness, and drop the childish accusations of “racism” to anyone who disagrees with his methods, policies, or statements.

Letters to the Strib: Chris Stewart

From the Letters to the Editor section of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune:

~~~~~

April 27th

CHRIS STEWART
Outrageous, and board colleagues are complicit

Minneapolis School Board Member Chris Stewart has demonstrated his destructive character to the public once again ("Principal on leave after words with Minneapolis board member," April 21). Unfortunately, resignation or expiration of term are the only remedies available to voters when an elected official turns rogue.

However, it would be very difficult to create a situation like this one if other board members and administrators were not enabling Stewart by either encouraging him or ignoring him. In either case, Stewart's defective character has already been shown publicly. His unfitness for office is obvious. If his colleagues tolerate his behavior and do not seek his resignation, they are as disgraceful as Stewart himself.

This is an outrageous episode in an already terrible and costly story of ongoing incompetence and self-righteousness. The school board and the senior administrative leadership need to go. Now.

ANN BERGET, MINNEAPOLIS
FORMER MEMBER OF THE MINNEAPOLIS SCHOOL BOARD

~~~~~

April 25th

CLASH AT BURROUGHS
Cadotte deserves respect and an apology

I was shocked to read that Tim Cadotte, the principal of Burroughs Community School, had been placed on an involuntary administrative leave for allegedly having a confrontation with a school board member.

I met Mr. Cadotte one time when I was a legislator. I, too, made an unannounced visit to Burroughs.

It was on a Sunday, after church. The school was open, and Mr. Cadotte was there. He took at least 30 minutes to show my wife and me around the campus and to tell us about the school's successes and challenges. While I gave him my name, I never told him I was a legislator nor did I tell him I served on Education Finance Committee. Perhaps he already knew.

The point is that he went out of his way, on a Sunday, to accommodate our curiosity. I think it would have taken a bizarre effort on my part to make him mad.

I don't claim to have been a saint when it came to dealing with other public officials and administrators. Candidly, I had plenty of heated arguments with them. But I never thought they should be punished just because they disagreed with me.

This error should be corrected immediately; Principal Cadotte should be reinstated now. He is a leader dedicated to children who gives parents confidence in our system. His removal does the opposite.

One other thing -- he deserves an apology.

WES SKOGLUND, MINNEAPOLIS;
RETIRED STATE SENATOR

~~~~~

Now we learn that the unpleasantness at Burroughs Community School began over a poster. So Minneapolis School Board Member Chris Stewart not only throws charges of racism around -- ironic, coming from him -- but apparently wishes to suppress students' freedom of speech.

PETER REED, MINNEAPOLIS

~~~~~

The April 24 article about the Stewart-Cadotte clash should serve as a wake-up call for other school boards. As details of the conflict are sorted out privately, all school boards might do some self evaluation or seek training from the Minnesota Association of School Boards.

Many principals or superintendents I know have witnessed the damage done to reputations and performance when just one erratic school board member views his or her role as a license to become every employee's boss.

One person's unprofessional behavior can cast a cloud on the whole board. It's fair to ask why school boards don't educate their members about duties under district governance policies and Minnesota law and remind them that an elected school board member has no official authority outside of official school board meetings.

MARY ANN NELSON, MINNEAPOLIS;
RETIRED ASSISTANT COMMISSIONER, MINNESOTA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

~~~~~

April 23rd


MINNEAPOLIS SCHOOLS
Burroughs flap speaks to leadership failure

The real story in the current dispute at Burroughs School is not the school itself, nor is it the school's principal, Tim Cadotte. Neither needs any more defense than a visit to the school to see the educational excellence of the program and the staunch parental and community support.

The real story is the abysmal state of Minneapolis School District leadership. Chris Stewart's credentials as an educational "leader" are themselves suspect, and his own flair for racial melodrama is well documented. But Stewart alone is not empowered to suspend a principal. A name-calling bully has disrupted an entire school and now a school district. (Don't we work to discourage this type of behavior among 10-year-olds?)

How can such behavior cause so much havoc in an esteemed profession in the 21st century? The answer to that question lies with the school board and the central administration headed by Dr. William Green, both of which have apparently abdicated all responsibility in this sad affair.

MARC BURGETT, MINNEAPOLIS

~~~~~

(Emphasis mine)

Update: Burroughs Community School

Still no word from Rahelio Soleil (or his public persona, Chris Stewart)... the man who has a history of accussing others of being racist. However, parents from the Burroughs Community School showed public support for the school's principal, the man suspended after Stewart allegedly called him and others racists.

At least 200 parents rallied Monday night in a park across the street from Burroughs Community School on behalf of their embattled principal, Tim Cadotte.

The parents who organized the event in Lynnhurst Park told KARE they invited Cadotte but he declined. They said district administrators ordered Cadotte, who has headed Burroughs since 1999, to avoid contact with parents even off school grounds.

KARE 11 has the backstory, too.

...parents say the damage has been done because students are asking why. "When I had to explain to my daughter today why Cadotte is not there, and what the allegations are, that's a hard conversation to have," parent Faith McGown said.

Kids were sent home with a letter on Monday to inform parents of principal Cadotte's absence.

The Minneapolis Star-Tribune also carried the story of the parent/student rally in support of the Burroughs principal... however, they did cover a little more than KARE 11. The alleged arguement between Minneapolis school board member Chris Stewart ("All I have is a hammer, and all I see are racist nails") and principal Tim Cadotte apparently stems back to a letter... this letter has been mentioned in most of the recent news stories regarding Burroughs.

In any event, the story from the Strib mentions visitors to the rally.

Members of the Coalition of Black Churches/African-American Leadership Summit showed up at Monday's rally to say that Burroughs parents should consider how the letter might be offensive to some people.

One line of the letter referring to the Spanish-language program said, "Keeping these students and the staff who serve them is preferable to replacing these students with nother group of students to address the identical issues of diversity and chievement."

It looks like the Coalition of Black Churches has a history of defending Chris Stewart. Look to a piece written at Anti-Strib.com.

I'd be curious to see if Chris Stewart has any more connections, direct or indirect, to the Coalition of Black Churches and/or the African-American Leadership Summit.

If I were a betting man, I'd put down a little wager.

Comments from the Public on Rahelio

With comments from the Twin Cities Daily Planet site, there may (may) be an interesting line here:

School boardmember Dr. Marianne Norris might have a hand in this thing, too. It looks like she and Christ Stewart (Chris "Rahelio Soleil" Stewart) might be on the same page when it comes to knee-jerk reactions that leasd them to call people racists.

http://www.tcdailyplanet.net/article/2009/04/20/minneapolis-school-board-member-vs-school-principal.html

Alleged Racism
Submitted by Michael Schwartz (not verified) on Tue, 04/21/2009 - 19:12.
I was at a meeting at Burroughs with school board members and families. I was among several parents who suggested that uprooting an existing minority population from the school in order to simply replace it with a different minority population from across the city made little or no sense. The disruption caused would be harmful not only to the evicted students, but to the rest of us who consider these children part of our extended family.

Guess what? I was accused of being a racist.

I don’t know the name of the woman from the school board who was running the meeting, but she said to me “Are you saying you prefer hispanic children to black children?”. My response was a vigorous “no” – and I tried to explain to her that we “prefer” not to completely disrupt childrens’ lives, and tear apart the fabric of our school. That we don’t “prefer” any race or color children – we “prefer” to try and keep our school community together.

I guess the writing was on the wall that crying racist was going to be part of the school board’s strategy for screwing up one of the best functioning schools in the district.
Amazing.

Alleged Racism part II
Submitted by Anon (not verified) on Wed, 04/22/2009 - 13:59.
Michael-I too was at the meeting you described and distinctly remember the exchange between you and other long time Burroughs parents and Dr. Marianne Norris, who was the district representative present. Dr. Norris had been constructively paraphrasing dialogue and questions throughout the meeting, to ensure she understood the questions and that she was interpreting the comments appropriately to bring the feedback BACK to the district. That was the entire objective of the meeting.

I was following along with her, and was feeling better that at least voices were being heard – even if it was benign subject matter and painfully detailed comments around endless ‘what if’ boundary scenarios. That was until the subject moved to a thoughtful and logical request to reinstate the NLL program. I vividly remember her first response to the request as ‘so you’re telling me you prefer hispanic children to black children?” What?. I was jarred. Where was this coming from?

The shockwaves reverberated around the room – the comment was so out of left field and seemingly uncharacteristic from a district official I dont think people knew how to react other than, ‘No!” The awkwardness forced a quick change to another subject so I dont believe the insenuations were further probed.

At that time, I dismissed the comment as an isolated off the cuff reaction from Dr. Norris with no further implications. Now you cant help but start seeing these as seeds of these larger allegations. Very troubling.

P.S. Michael thank you for bringing this experience to light. I had my name on this response but after evidence of witchhunts by MPS on school principals and staff – feared vocal parents could be next on the list.

Assoc Superintendent Marianne Norris
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Wed, 04/22/2009 - 14:48.
It was Associate Superintenent Marianne Norris who said, “Are you saying you prefer hispanic children to black children?” She is Principal Cadotte’s supervisor and ironically, is now in the position of judging whether he is racist. To my knowledge Associate Superintenent Marianne Norris has not apologized for her comment.

~~~~~~
http://tangletowncommunity.blogspot.com/

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Notes from the Co-Chair of the Site Council at Burroughs regarding Mr. Cadotte
This e-mail contains several parts concerning the situation with Principal Tim Cadotte:

1. The official MPS notice that will go out to the community in three forms: in backpacks, via the Burroughs e-mail blast, and in the forthcoming Burroughs Bulletin.

2. An e-mail response that Bridget McGinnis and I sent to school board members (not including Chris Stewart) and top MPS administrators on Sunday, April 19.

3. Additional information not included in the official MPS notice.

4. My take on responses at this point in time (my personal opinion; i.e., NOT speaking on behalf of the Burroughs Site Council).

In addition, see StarTribune Metro section, Tuesday, April 21, 2009, Principal on leave after words with board member.

http://www.startribune.com/local/43321082.html?elr=KArks:DCiUnP::DE8c7PiUiD3aPc:_Yyc:aUU
***********************************
1. The official MPS notice.

April 21, 2009

Dear Families of Burroughs Community School,
We are committed to keeping you informed and want to make you aware of a recent situation involving your school. Tim Cadotte, principal at Burroughs, has been placed on an administrative leave of absence pending an investigation. Data privacy laws prevent me from sharing further information about this situation.

Marsha Seltz, a retired Minneapolis Public Schools principal formerly of Lake Harriet Community School, has agreed to serve the Burroughs community as interim principal until the matter has been resolved. We thank Mrs. Seltz for her assistance and welcome her to Burroughs.

If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to call me at (612) 668-0140.
Sincerely,

Dr. Marianne Norris
Associate Superintendent
***********************************

2. E-mail response to MPS.

April 19, 2009
Dear Sir or Madam:
It has come to our attention that Tim Cadotte, principal of Burroughs Community School, has been summoned to appear before Deputy Superintendent Bernadeia Johnson on Monday morning, April 20, and may well be served with papers to place him on administrative leave.

It seems that this action is in response to a confrontation between School Board Member Chris Stewart and Mr. Cadotte on the afternoon of Friday, April 17 in the outer office at Burroughs. Mr. Stewart attacked Mr. Cadotte with aggressive language, including the charge of "racist." A heated exchange followed. Several witnesses can testify to the nature of the exchange.

Mr. Stewart's animus seems to be generated by his reaction to a statement the Burroughs Site Council made in response to the MPS initiative "Changing School Options." This public statement was openly arrived at by the Burroughs Site Council. The Site Council didn't see the statement as controversial in the least. It is a simple statement of Site Council priorities for MPS to consider as MPS restructures the district. MPS asked for input and feedback on its plans. This was the Site Council contribution to that effort.

In a survey of Burroughs parents conducted from April 13 - 17, 96.6% of the 465 Burroughs families who responded agreed with the Site Council statement.

For this effort, and the great demonstration of support in favor of it, to be met by charges of racism is dumbfounding. The claim is baseless and without merit. Those who engage in this sort of language engage in a form of intimidation designed to silence those with whom they disagree.

To imagine racist intent or racist content where it does not exist is bad enough. But to attack the Burroughs Site Council effort and Mr. Cadotte personally with this slander is beyond the bounds of civil discourse. Such behavior demeans the MPS reform effort, and it dishonors the offices and institutions of those who traffic in it.

To discipline Mr. Cadotte in any way for his connection to this benign Burroughs Site Council statement, or for his reaction to Mr. Stewart's baseless provocation, would be a travesty of justice.

Please see to it that your colleagues separate fact from fiction in dealing with Mr. Cadotte on Monday. Please encourage them to resolve this dispute amicably, so that we can return to civil discussion and debate about the important issues MPS has at hand.

Sincerely,

Kip Wennerlund
Burroughs Site Council Co-Chair
Bridget McGinnis
Burroughs PTA President

p.s. We have had no contact with Mr. Cadotte regarding this issue, and we are in no way acting at his direction. While the Forum lawyer, or MPS, may demand that he not involve Burroughs parents in this matter in any way, we, as parents, taxpayers, and loyal MPS supporters, do not operate under such constraints.
***********************************

3. Additional information: What else we know, and don't know.

Mr. Cadotte has been placed on paid administrative leave. This means he can't set foot in the building. He can't access his e-mail account. He can't talk to anyone about the situation until the process has run its course. From what I've been told, the process could last anywhere from days, to weeks, even months. Given that MPS has already placed an interim principal, it's probably going to take some time.

We don't know what if any "charges" have been made against Mr. Cadotte. We don't know when this information will become available. We don't know if MPS will be investigating only the incident with Mr. Stewart, or something else. I've heard a rumor (hopefully just a rumor) that there may be a "list" of issues. But clearly, the precipitating incident was the confrontation provoked by Mr. Stewart, and Mr. Cadotte would not be in his present predicament but for the reckless behavior of Mr. Stewart. Yet it is Mr. Cadotte who is now in professional limbo, and Mr. Stewart returns to the School Board to continue making important decisions for the district, free to toss around incendiary and slanderous language as he sees fit.

I have word that Tim is holding up OK under the circumstances. He understands that he has overwhelming support in the Burroughs community, and that a great many people are eager to do whatever they can to help him. He is under express instructions to do nothing to direct anybody regarding this matter. I am not acting at his direction. I have not communicated with him.

***********************************

4. My take on responses at this point in time (my personal opinion; i.e., NOT speaking on behalf of the Burroughs Site Council).

A great many people have been contacting me by phone and e-mail looking for ways to assist Mr. Cadotte. I apologize for no longer being able to respond to everyone individually. For what it's worth, here's my take on responding at this point in time.

First, as with the Hippocratic Oath, Do No Harm. We have already contacted the school board and MPS administrators on behalf of the Burroughs community (the e-mail included above). This lets them know that we are watching and paying attention to how this unfolds. Inundating them with more of the same likely won't improve the situation for Mr. Cadotte. I'm not trying to discourage anyone from making their own contacts. But please, first, realize that the top MPS administrators are the ones who are overseeing the present investigation and that they are the ones who will be recommending what, if any, course of action to take. The board of education would vote on any punishment that MPS might recommend. Therefore, I don't think it makes a lot of sense to fire off angry e-mails and phone calls to the very people who will be deciding Mr. Cadotte's fate.

Each individual has their own call to make on this. But in any contact, please consider whether you think the contact, and the tone of the contact, will help or hinder Mr. Cadotte's cause. Communicating with respect, and without making threats, will be more persuasive, in my view. Expect the generic response that this is a personnel matter under investigation, and therefore, they are unable to comment.

Second, there will be no coordinated response coming from the PTA or the Site Council at this time. Site Council, by nature of its makeup of parents, teachers, and administrators is limited in what it can do in terms of advocacy, particularly when it comes to something that would be seen as insubordination. There may come a time for a coordinated response outside of these school-connected institutions. That time may arrive sooner rather than later.

But for now, we need to get more information about the "charges," and the process. We have made clear to MPS that we are deeply concerned about this incident. The media is pursuing the story. Mr. Cadotte knows that the overwhelming majority of parents are in his corner.
.

Kip
--
Kip Wennerlund
5257 Irving Ave S
Minneapolis, MN 55419-1127
phone: 612.285.1380
e-mail: kwennerlund@usiwireless.com

Who Is Chris Stewart?

According to his bio:

Chris Stewart
Board of Education, Director/Clerk
[Phone number redacted]
Chris.Stewart@mpls.k12.mn.us
Term: 2007-2011

Chris Stewart is the founder of Work For People, a faith-based job assistance collaborative. As a business specialist with the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development, Stewart works with business leaders to develop the future workforce in key industries. Through previous experience in social services, Stewart learned how social service delivery problems and home life issues detract from educating disadvantaged students.

Stewart also serves as a workforce development professional, working in partnership with the City of Minneapolis, the State of Minnesota, MNSCU, and the Minneapolis business community to create pathways for students. A native of New Orleans, LA, Stewart is a certified career development facilitator with special training in case management of clients with dual diagnoses of domestic abuse and chemical dependency.

Chris Stewart, no stranger to how the Internet works, has another website.

I look forward to working with you to build bridges that will carry all Minneapolis kids from their neighborhoods into the seat of Minnesota's grand economy.

On this site, Chris Stewart keeps a tamer version of his Rahelio Soleil’s American Hot Sausage blog… the writing style in parts matches his old work, especially the post titles… other than the fact that he stopped calling people with whom he disagrees “coons”.

He may still have a journal on the Daily Kos, but honestly, who can really bother to look there. Last time I checked he was getting railed upon by some Kossacks… they even eat their own, so that’s even more reason to avoid it.


Have you found some comments or posts or other writings from Chris Stewart (or Rahelio Soleil, his online handle)? Please let us and our readers know.

KQRS covers the Chris Stewart story

On the Wednesday, April 22nd edition of the KQ morning show, there was an extended discussion of yesterday's news story regarding Chris Stewart's unannounced visit to Burrough's Elementary, which culminated in the "indefinite leave" of Principal Tim Cadotte.

You can listen to the webcast here - the coverage starts 7 minutes and 10 seconds into the segment.

Cross posted at http://anti-strib.blogspot.com/

Investigation?

According to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Chris Stewart (our knee-jerk race-baiter) said as much as he apparently can about accusations that he calls damn near anyone who looks at him a racist.

"I'm not able to say much legally about this at all because it's considered a personnel matter."

Members of the Minneapolis School Board called a meeting to discuss "personnel issues".

...The meeting was closed. It was not clear whether [Principal] Cadotte was discussed.

Stan Alleyne, a spokesman for the Minneapolis schools, cited data practices laws and said district officials will continue to decline to comment on the details behind "the issue or incident" involving Cadotte until the end of the disciplinary process.

We could wait for a while. With any luck, some more might get revealled.

Letters to the Editor today include this topic. One person tries to bring to light some of Stewart's previous mean-spirited attacks.

Remember that just two years ago, a Star Tribune editorial called for Stewart's resignation for posting a website disparaging Independence Party congressional candidate Tammy Lee with racist and sexist rhetoric.

Surely you remember that story. If you don't, feel free to surf our archives and the links in our posts.

Feel free to submit links to articles and commentary in our Comment section. Anyone who wishes to submit private letters and e-mail or other evidence should use our e-mail addresses... please attempt to provide as much context as possible. If you wish to remain nameless, we will respect your wishes.


Listen to Garage Logic with Joe Soucheray from Tuesday April 21st where he discusses this case.
Three o'clock hour... pretty much right out of the gate.
Four o'clock hour

I'm sure he doesn't discuss this in every hour, but the other hours might be worth checking out.

Return of Chris Stewart and His Call of Racism

People of Minneapolis, parents of Minneapolis school kids, and Twin Cities folks...

...didn't we say something like this would happen?

We know the "I told you so" claim is a little snarky and a bit snide, so we'll leave that aside for now.

Aw, damn. Can't... resist... urge!

We told you so.

We won't rub noses in it, though.

Recently, Chris Stewart threw his name back into the public by calling yet another person a racist. That's hardly news... based on our experience and his own writings, he apparently calls people racists all the time.

According to Kip Wennerlund, the co-chairman of the Burroughs Site Council (a group of teachers, parents, and administrators), he spoke with parents of school children who say they witnessed Minneapolis School Board Member Chris Stewart (known online previously as Rahelio Soleil) call principal Tim Cadotte a racist. It is it Mr. Wennerlund's understanding (again, based on discussions with parents) that Stewart said Burroughs is a racist school and that the Bourroughs Site Council's statement is evidence of racism.

The principal was put on indefinite administrative leave. Do we know why? Not yet. Was it from Stewart's claims of racism? We don't know. What makes Chris Stewart claim the Principal Cadotte is a racist? We don't know... but considering the claim came from Chris Stewart, he probably isn't.

When asked by reporters, Chris Stewart (again, just search online for Rahelio Soleil) dodged the question saying he didn't want to get into details of his visit Burroughs.

So, if Kip Wennerlund's story is correct, if he received the correct information from parents

Check the story in the Minneapolis Star-Tribune:
http://www.startribune.com/local/43321082.html?elr=KArksUUUU

Check the story in the Twin Cities Daily Planet:
http://www.tcdailyplanet.net/article/2009/04/20/minneapolis-school-board-member-vs-school-principal.html

Look at postings from Chris Stewart on his website:
http://betterminneapolis.com/

Invite Chris Stewart to be your friend on Facebook... and ask him if he believes Tim Cadotte is a racist, and why he thinks Tim Cadotte is a racist:
http://www.facebook.com/people/Chris-Stewart/1112381923