PETITION IGNORED; SUPERINTENDENT SAYS

PATTON -- Tom Parker said he is tired of being ignored by the leadership of Meadow Heights Schools. So at Tuesday's Board of Education meeting he presented a petition calling for the ouster of Superintendent Tom Waller.

The petition, with 302 signatures, was received by board members during the public comment portion of the meeting. Board members didn't comment.

After the meeting, Board President Roy Allen said, "We will discuss it a little later."

He and Waller said they hadn't seen the petition prior to the meeting and didn't want to comment on any of the specific issues.

The petition asserts that Waller should be fired because of things he has and hadn't done.

It claims that he mismanaged school funds when three CDs were transferred from a Bollinger County bank to Cape Girardeau banks and that he has a conflict of interest because his wife is employed by the school district.

It also claims he hasn't implemented the recommendations of a state audit, and that he hasn't kept all board members informed about what's happening in the district.

One of the board members who feels she hasn't been kept informed in Millie Yates, a vocal opponent of Waller for years.

In the petition, Parker states that if the school board doesn't remove Waller as superintendent, he plans to start proceedings to try to topple the entire school board.

"We intend to get serious with this thing," Parker said. "The more we talk, the more we are ignored. I'm tired of being ignored."

The Meadow Heights School District has been experiencing discord and dissension for several years, which has resulted in a state audit, an investigation and now the petition.

Investigators with the Cape Girardeau County Sheriff's Department, the Missouri Highway Patrol and Special Prosecutor Ian Sutherland have all looked at the transfer of school funds from a Bollinger County bank to two Cape Girardeau banks. No criminal charges have been filed.

At Tuesday's meeting and at the May meeting, a uniformed sheriff's deputy was on hand to keep the peace.

A man stormed out of the meeting Tuesday after expressing his unhappiness about the way a student discipline matter was handled.

Pam Grindstaff, a regular at board meetings, suggested that the board hold public hearings on issues, especially financial issues, so people could ask questions and understand what is happening.

"We don't know what you're doing unless you tell us," she said. "The public has got to know so we can start making a move forward."