Questions Surface On Resignation of Lakewood City Schools Treasurer

Clarification: The interview between board member Ed Favre and Lakewood Patch took place in mid-October.

Questions arose about details of the resignation of Treasurer Rick Berdine at Monday’s board of education meeting at .

During the public comment section of the meeting, Lakewood resident  asked if Berdine had been asked to resign.

“No comment,” Berdine replied.

Calleri, who unsuccessfully ran for a board seat earlier this month, proceeded to ask if Berdine had a “gag order” that prevented him from disclosing any details about his resignation.

“No comment,” Berdine replied.

Calleri extended his question to the rest of the board.

“Does anyone on the board have an answer other than ‘no comment,’” he asked. “Is there something that has happened that the public doesn’t know about?”

Six seconds of silence were followed by President Matt Markling defending Berdine’s work.

“It is what it is,” Markling, who is retiring at the end of this year, said. “I do think it’s unfair to talk about personnel matters in public, but that doesn’t mean it’s negative or positive.”

Calleri wasn’t satisfied.

“On one hand you’re telling the community of Lakewood he’s done a phenomenal job, and on the other hand you’re saying he negotiated a forced resignation," Calleri said.

"That's not what I said,” Markling replied. “Your time is up.”

Since Berdine to the board in June, it has been unclear if he’s resigning of his own accord.

Despite several phone and email requests, the board and various school officials declined to comment, ignored requests for comment or offered little information on the matter.

In mid-October in a phone interview, Board member Ed Favre did indicate there was a shared interest between the board and Berdine for him to resign. He also said the treasurer sat in on discussions with school officials to determine the conditions of his resignation.

Lakewood Patch obtained Berdine’s employee evaluations, resignation letter and renegotiated contract through open-records requests in September after requests for comment were denied, but the documents failed to indicate an explanation for Berdine’s retirement.

“Mr. Berdine is highly respected both inside and outside the District as an outstanding Treasurer,” said his December 2010 evaluation, the most recent available.

The only areas Berdine could improve upon, according to the evaluation, were overall communication with the board, oversight of the and Athletic Department, and some unresolved issues with Phase II construction project.

“The Board desires to be more involved, with the Treasurer, in the process of financial planning for the District,” it said.

The board has identified Dec. 31, 2011 as its target date to sign a contract with a . Berdine's resignation takes effect on Dec. 31, 2012.

Markling declined to comment further on Monday’s exchange.

“I think you’ve got it all,” he said.

John Deike contributed to this story.