Quit Stonewalling: Create Austerity Plan, Former Trustee Tells Lincoln-Way 210

"Get off your hands," John Perish, former Trustee of the Village of Frankfort, told Lincoln-Way 210 Board of Education members and Superintendent R. Scott Tingley, in a speech at the May 12 Board of Education meeting at Lincoln-Way Central.

Perish, who served as a Trustee of the Village of Frankfort until 1996, told Board members and Administration that he does not think financial information justifying the closing of Lincoln-Way North High School exists, and challenged Tingley and Dee Molinare, Board President, to prove him wrong.

​Full text:

“My name is John Perish. I believe you know who I am. To date it appears you have chosen to disregard what I have advised. It also appears you have chosen to ignore the advice of numerous other stakeholders.

"Over the last 10 weeks, I've been busy listening. In these meetings and in my travels throughout the District, I've listened to the pleas and advice of students, parents, property-taxpayers, financial experts, local politicians, current and former district teachers, alumni and current and former high school board members.

"On two points they all agree: Immediately implement a preliminary austerity solution which will not require the closing of Lincoln-Way North High School the upcoming fiscal year. Simultaneously take steps to hold those accountable for the decade long financial malfeasance in Lincoln Way High School District 210.

"In light of this input, I ask myself, "Why does the school board choose not to act on these

​two​ points? " Are they afraid? And, if they are, what are they afraid of? Are some of them complicit in the malfeasance? Did some of them not understand the full responsibility of the positions to which they were elected, hired or appointed? Are some of them not qualified to hold the positions they currently occupy? Do some of them continue to be cronies of Dr. Wiley, who, even in his absence, still allow his influence to cloud their judgment ? Or, are they all merely suffering from a chilling effect induced by being named as defendants in a lawsuit? Well, I'll leave the answers to these questions to be elucidated by the media. At this point, frankly, I don't give a damn. HOWEVER what I do give a damn about, what infuriates me, are school board members who, having been granted the duty, honor and authority of their elective positions by their constituency, the citizens of this district, continue to stonewall and sit on their hands. This is inexcusable.

"Get off your hands. If defensible, stand up and defend your action with facts. Detailed, specific, professional financial data supporting your contention that the one and only remedy to the financial disaster we are ALL facing requires the closing of Lincoln-Way North high school this September.

"Scott and Dee, with all due respect, I don't think you can produce the financial justification. I challenge you to make it public. Prove me wrong. If in the next week, you can't, it's time for a course correction. The timing could not be better. Sit down in your first budgeting work session. Include at the top of this first agenda a DELIVERABLE which will read , "Research and author an austerity budget, which does not require the closing of any of the 4 high schools currently serving the district for the next fiscal year."

"Do the right thing by doing what is absolutely required by your job descriptions. Finally and most importantly, if, individually, you are unwilling or incapable of doing your job , get out of the way and resign. Give someone else a chance to fix this travesty.

"Oh, by the way Scott, in a recent article in a local paper it was reported you said it was your exclusive role as Superintendent to fulfill your vision for the district, and your current vision was one of contraction: A 4 school district, shrinking to a 3 school district in September 2016, and then, in all likelihood, a 3 school district shrinking to a 2 school district at some time in the not-too-distant future. You need to know VISIONING is not what you were hired to do. You were hired to FACILITATE and IMPLEMENT the vision of your constituency as understood and conveyed through the auspices of the school board. You don't seem to understand, we all are in this quagmire due to your predecessor, an autocratic superintendent who used a domineering paternalistic management style to manipulate, connive and cajole the Board into believing visioning leadership was the exclusive province of the Superintendent .

"It is not! You would be well served to remember that!

"THANK YOU."