sclc press conference

Pastor Gregory Bentley, president of the Huntsville Chapter of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference announced in a press conference on Feb. 17, 2017 that his organization wants the Huntsville school board to start over with its superintendent search. (Anna Claire Vollers | avollers@AL.com)

A group of leaders from North Huntsville has called the Huntsville school board's superintendent search a "flawed, compromised and corrupt process" and demands the board start over with a new search.

The Huntsville chapter of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, a group of black community leaders, called a press conference this morning to express its disappointment in the way it said plagiarism allegations and disqualification rumors effectively ruined the chances for one of the superintendent front runners, Dr. Katrise Perera, to be appointed.

"The process was corrupted by an anonymous and erroneous charge of plagiarism against the applicant who happened to be the most qualified," said Gregory Bentley, president of the Huntsville chapter of the SCLC and pastor of Fellowship Presbyterian Church on Meridian Street.

This afternoon, Board President Elisa Ferrell said in a statement that allegations and rumors played no part in the board's decision.

"In my opinion, far from being flawed, compromised and corrupt, the Board's process was deliberate, transparent and inclusive," said Ferrell. In her statement she outlined the superintendent search process, which included online feedback from stakeholders, public interviews that were broadcast and made available on the website, and opportunities to meet each candidate after his or her interview. (Read her full statement below.)

Last month, the board voted 3-2 to name Dr. Matthew Akin of Piedmont, Ala. as its next superintendent.

The other front runner for the spot, Dr. Katrise Perera of Texas, was the subject of allegations of plagiarism and rumors of disqualification - which turned out not to be true - just hours before the board voted.

The disqualification rumors prompted Ferrell to request the state board of education launch an official investigation into board member Pam Hill's conduct. Hill denied she had anything to do with the rumors.

Bentley said the SCLC members believe the plagiarism charges and the leak of untrue information that the charges had disqualified Perera from consideration were purposely made to prevent Perera from being chosen.

"I don't know who to blame," Bentley said. "(The disqualification rumor) had to have come from the board, though."

The Friday before the Monday meeting where the board would vote on its new superintendent, the school board received an anonymously-sent packet of documents purporting to show that Perera had plagiarized a school improvement plan and a letter. Ferrell emailed the board members about the package and contacted the Alabama Association of School Boards - which had conducted the superintendent search - to ask whether the allegations had any merit. Perera later refuted the allegations to AL.com and said she had proof they were untrue.

The day of the vote, two local members of the Huntsville chapter of the SCLC, including Bentley, posted on Facebook around 3:45 p.m. that they had been told one of the top candidates for superintendent had been disqualified due to a plagiarized improvement plan.

A local TV station later reported Perera was disqualified because of allegations of plagiarism. When asked by other media, Ferrell said the rumor that Perera was disqualified was untrue.

That night at the board meeting, when board member Michelle Watkins proposed Perera as superintendent, she was voted down 2-3, with Watkins and Hill voting in favor of Perera. Another board member proposed Akin and he was approved 3-2, with the vote split along the same lines.

Emails between Ferrell, Hill and the state department of education later revealed that Ferrell blamed Hill for the leak about Perera's disqualification, and she asked the state department to launch a formal investigation into Hill's conduct.

Bentley said at the press conference that the investigation did not influence his organization's decision to ask the school board for a do-over on the superintendent search.

Bentley said the SCLC was disappointed that no grading rubric or set of objective standards were used by the board to determine its choice for superintendent.

He also pointed out that they take no issue with Akin himself, just the process by which he was selected.

"This is not about Dr. Akin," he said. "This is not about the individual; this is about the process. He may turn out to be a fabulous superintendent and I hope so, for the sake of our children. I don't want him to fail."

When asked whether he thought Huntsville City Schools had made other flawed decisions using similar tactics, Bentley said he did, but declined to elaborate.

"We're not trying to be pugilistic or adversarial or combative," he said. "Our goal is not just to look for something to fight against. We want to fight for something. We're not here just to oppose the board; we want to work with the board to make Huntsville City Schools the best it can possibly be for everybody."

The school board voted last night to offer Akin a 3-year contract with an annual salary of $179,500 plus benefits. By state law, the board has to have a new superintendent in place by March 15.

Bentley said his organization chose to hold its press conference today, rather than a few weeks ago, because "We don't like to just react. We like to respond. We had to take the time to think through what it is we wanted to say."

Bentley said his organization plans to talk with board members and hopes to meet with the new superintendent.

*Updated at 5:02 p.m. on 2/17/2017 with a statement from Board President Elisa Ferrell.

Ferrell's full statement:

On January 5, 2017, the superintendent search agency, AASB (Alabama Association of School Boards), gave the Huntsville City Board of Education the names of the five finalists for the superintendent position. After receiving those names, the Board encouraged parents, teachers, administrators, staff, and community stakeholders to provide feedback on the candidates. The Board held public interviews that were broadcast, live streamed, and, later, saved on the Board's website. The Board provided stakeholders the opportunity to meet each candidate following each interview. The Board selected Dr. Akin and worked out the details of a contract proposal in public meetings. In my opinion, far from being flawed, compromised and corrupt, the Board's process was deliberate, transparent and inclusive. Allegations and rumors played no role in the Board's decision.