Mount Vernon Superintendent Abruptly Reassigned, Replacement Sworn In

MOUNT VERNON, NY — The public portion of Monday's Special Mount Vernon City School District Board of Education meeting was just under five minutes long before being adjourned, but a lot happened in those five minutes.

Decisions made in executive session were put in motion as soon as the board members returned.

Motion for 4.1 "Authorization to Re-assign Superintendent of School" was approved within minutes. Soon after, Motion for 4.2 "Authorization to Appoint Dr. Kim Smith to Serve As the Acting Superintendent of Schools" was also passed.

Despite crowd complaints that there was no warning of the abrupt change in leadership and no input from the community, Smith was sworn into office moments later and the special meeting was adjourned.

Bennett-Conroy will receive full pay and benefits during the period of reassignment, the school board said in a statement provided after the special meeting.

Smith, who was appointed as Acting School Superintendent, has worked with the district since 2001. She previously served as Assistant Superintendent for Pupil Personnel Services since 2021. Prior to that, she was the Associate Superintendent of Student Services and Guidance (2019-21) and worked in the Special Education department of the school district for 18 years, according to district officials.

"We appreciate Dr. Smith’s willingness to accept this role as the district contends with the uncertainties associated with a number of challenges," Mount Vernon City School District Board of Education President Adriane Saunders said. "She is well-known to our community and this board, and we are confident in her knowledge, experience, and commitment to the families of Mount Vernon."

District officials pointed out that under New York State Education Law, a school district must have a permanent, Acting or Interim Superintendent of Schools at all times. Smith will be paid a daily stipend of $166.67 to serve as Acting Superintendent, in addition to her current salary.

There were recent signs that the embattled school system was beginning to lose faith in former-superintendent Waveline Bennett-Conroy.

The school district confirmed late last week that federal prosecutors have asked for documents related to federal grants received by the school system.

See: Mount Vernon School Board Confirms Documents Were Subpoenaed By Feds

In October, the district hired an investigator to look into accusations of corruption made by community groups.

The Save Mount Vernon group drew attention to the school district’s paying $8 million since 2015 to the consulting company Wellcore/Just Inspire and said that a relative of Bennett-Conroy is the owner of Just Inspire, raising serious concerns. At the time, both the school board and Bennett-Conroy said answers were deserved to the questions raised by Save Mount Vernon.

"We have been made aware that the US Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of New York has served a civil investigative demand on the Mount Vernon City School District as well as Superintendent Waveline Bennett-Conroy for records associated with grants that the federal government previously issued to the district," the Mount Vernon City Board of Education said in a statement released on Friday. "The Board of Education is supportive of this civil investigation and will fully cooperate with the US Attorney’s Office. In early November 2022, the Board of Education commenced an audit related to grant services through the hiring of an outside consultant. That process is ongoing and has yet to be completed. We look forward to the results, which will be shared with our community and all outside agencies as appropriate."

In January, the school district was singled out by New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli who designated the Mount Vernon City School District as the only one in the state under "significant financial stress."

See: Mount Vernon Only School District In NY Rated 'Under Significant Financial Stress'

More recently, the school district says that the significant financial stress is due, at least in part, to not ever receiving the tax money it is owed by the City of Mount Vernon. The district contends it is owed $11.7 million in property taxes that should have been set aside for the schools.

See: Mount Vernon Schools Shorted $11.7M Of Desperately Needed Funds

The city did not dispute the school district's claim to the money, but Mount Vernon Comptroller Darren Morton asked for patience and vowed to work with the district.

City and school district officials, however, have since traded accusations of unethical behavior and have called on state officials, including New York Attorney General Letitia James to help resolve the dispute.

In a Feb. 6, letter to AG James and Comptroller DiNapoli, Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard, Mount Vernon Comptroller Darren Morton and City Council President Danielle Browne chided school district officials for mischaracterizing the nature of the tax revenue shortfall.

"We have engaged with the school district privately on how to proceed with these monies unpaid, so it was shocking to see a strongly worded letter sent to your offices and promoted to news outlets while discussions were ongoing," the letter reads. "Nonetheless, we stand ready to work with your offices and the school district to rectify this issue as quickly as possible for the betterment of all Mount Vernon residents. "