The new director of a troubled Woodbury charter school took a payout to leave his last administrative job and moonlights as a psychic.

Bert Strassburg has been named interim director of Woodbury Leadership Academy by the school board. Strassburg is also part of 2 Guys In The Know, a psychic, medium and spiritual healing service located in Garrison, Minn.

Strassburg’s hiring is the latest move in a tumultuous year for the school, where many board and staff members have resigned and parents and the state have pressured the school to improve its governance.

Strassburg said Friday that he decided to come to Woodbury Leadership Academy because the board, staff and families were so committed to providing students with a well-rounded education in a school where all students feel safe and valued.

“I’ve spent my career in traditional public education, and I wanted to be in a more progressive and inclusive environment,” he said. “I believe fully in the mission and vision of the school.”

Strassburg added that no one from the charter school has expressed concerns to him over his departure from his last job or his work as a psychic.

Barbara Young, school board chair, said board members were aware of Strassburg’s past when they voted to hire him on Aug.16.

“Separation agreements between districts and superintendents are not uncommon,” Young said. As for his work as a psychic, Young said Strassburg’s outside business “does not interfere with his roles and responsibilities with the school.”

Young added that Strassburg was the most qualified of more than 20 candidates who applied for the job. She noted his numerous past administrative and teaching jobs.

“He had excellent references from all past employment,” she said.

Strassburg held administrative positions in the Inver Grove Heights district before taking a superintendent job in 2014 in the Onamia district near Lake Mille Lacs. Related Articles Woodbury charter school told to clean up its act, or else

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PAYOUT

In July, Strassburg agreed to leave his leadership post in Onamia through a separation agreement worth $75,697 that required him to abandon any legal claims against the district. Eric Earll, a human resources consultant for the district, was also included in the agreement.

The document stipulates Strassburg received $45,032 and Earll $500, with the remainder going to attorneys’ fees. It’s unclear what led to the separation agreement, but the payout satisfied all salary and benefit obligations the district had with the two employees.

Strassburg and Earll also work together at 2 Guys In The Know, which state business records show Earll founded in 2013. A voicemail message left at the business was not returned, but its website says the company offers psychic readings, spiritual healing and classes where attendees can learn about their past lives.

Onamia district banking records show Earll worked as a human resources consultant for the district between February 2015 and April 2016 and earned nearly $24,000. Onamia district leaders said they could not discuss the separation agreement and were not aware of Strassburg’s other business when they hired him.

Strassburg said Earll was a contract employee for Onamia schools and he was not involved in his hiring. “I did not engage his services and was not involved in the selection process,” he said.

ONGOING PROBLEMS

Strassburg will be the third director to lead Woodbury Leadership Academy in 10 months. Dan Hurley quit the school in November and was replaced by Darlah Krug, who left this summer.

The charter has also seen turnover on its school board, with at least two former members saying school leaders wanted to make decisions in private before voting on them in public meetings. Charter schools are publicly funded and must follow state open meetings and public records laws.

Transparency problems and staff turmoil have frustrated parents of the roughly 300 students who attend the school. Many have packed board meetings and written board members about their concerns.

Page Laska, who had two children at the school, said recent uncertainty about leadership and teaching staff was a breaking point for her family and she withdrew her children.

“I believe the school started out as strong as any new charter school,” Laska said. “Since last January, we’ve seen a steady downward spiral.”

Laska’s biggest concern was several teaching positions that were vacant less than three weeks before school begins. State records show the school has 19 full-time licensed staff positions.

Young said school leaders were working to fill three vacant positions and new teacher contracts would be approved by the board on Tuesday.

INCREASED OVERSIGHT

Since December, leaders of Woodbury Leadership Academy have been monitored closely by Volunteers of America-Minnesota, or VOA-MN, which oversees the school for the state as its authorizer.

State and VOA-MN officials have repeatedly reprimanded school leaders for failing to follow state laws governing open meetings and public records. The school was recently put under VOA-MN’s intervention level three, and further problems could lead to the organization revoking the academy’s charter.

Jeff Smith, a spokesman for VOA-MN, declined to comment about the school’s recent hiring decisions. “From everything we can determine, it looks like Woodbury Leadership Academy will open in the fall,” he said.