South Bend School Board postpones emergency meeting to discuss superintendent

 

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- An emergency meeting of the South Bend School Board was abruptly postponed Friday evening.

The board had called the meeting earlier in the week to decide whether to put Superintendent Todd Cummings on administrative leave, but before anything was actually discussed, there was a motion to recess and reschedule by the school board's attorney, Pete Agostino. He did not give a reason why.

This left members of the public frustrated as they were being ushered out of the meeting.

"I came from clear cross town; I live further south. It's totally the disrespectful attitude we came accustomed to," says Susan Warner, a South Bend resident.

That goes for board members too, namely Bill Sniadecki, who asked why they were even there during the meeting.

The board was supposed to discuss whether Superintendent Todd Cummings should be put on administrative leave while the board brings in investigators to look into why South Bend Schools stayed open through the icy conditions on February 6th.

During those conditions, sources tell ABC57 a student had to go to the hospital after falling on the sidewalk and breaking their wrist.

Some think the punishment is not equivalent to the offense.

"If they feel they're not happy, you do that review and you go through the process and then you hire who you want," Warner says. "Then you stay out of the minutia. Let them do their jobs."

ABC57 tried to speak to board members following the meeting for comment and they said they were not allowed to talk due to legal matters, and same goes for attorney Pete Agostino.

That left members of the public leaving with more questions than answers.

"Ultimately, their personal agendas have to stop, because we should be here for kids," says Warner.

Dr. Cummings and SBCSC were unable to accommodate an on-camera interview or a response to this situation Friday night.

The discussion of whether or not to put Superintendent Todd Cummings on administrative leave will now happen on Wednesday, February 19th.