The Italy School Board of Trustees accepted the resignation of Rebecca Murphy at a called school board meeting Monday evening.

Murphy was the English/language arts instructor for the fifth grade at Stafford Elementary. The resignation was effective as of Sept. 23.

Jimmie Malone, superintendent, said the position will be filled by a certified teacher.

Tommy Morrison, board member, requested a brief executive session to discuss personnel. The board took no action from that discussion.

Cheryl Owen, board president and Larry Eubank, vice president, were not at the meeting. Paul Cockerham, secretary, facilitated the meeting.

Comment by Richard Morton, September 29, 2010, 11:54am

I am wondering what is going on with the school district. I see we are getting rid of teachers in middle of school year. Is that really smart when the school is not even an Acceptable Rating by the state?

I called up to talk to the Stafford Principal yesterday as I have family in the grade this teacher was released from and the principal was not even there. Really, she has more pressing things to do than to get this solved? They have had sub in this class since last Thursday. My family members tell me this is a recurring issue as they do not believe the principal has made a complete week in attendance yet. I have been to the school for a few functions and have yet to see her.

This School District is going down very quickly from where it was in the past. I can remember 5-6 years ago this was a great place to be as a teacher and student. Now it is not even Acceptable.

What is the School Board doing? I notice the School Board President and Vice President were not even there for the vote. You guys hired this lady and you 2 were ones that voted for her and you are not even there to show your support in her decisions. I can tell you I have no faith in this school board at all. In the last 6-7 years there have been 3 Superintendents, 4 High School Principals, 1 Assistant High School Principals and 2 Elementary Principals.

I noticed the school board wants to be Exemplary, they called a special meeting to have someone come in for this. How can you do this with the amount of turnover there is. I hear they had a chance at a Principal this summer that has experience at being Exemplary but voted against her. I hear different things as to why as you always do in a small town but the reccurring reason was Board Members had personal issues with her from the past. It is amazing to me that they choose personal issues over professional issues. If she was the best for the job she should have been hired.

If this School District does not do major changes from the top down and get people in here that know how to do the job correctly by the law and help the teachers educate the kids the state will be running this district soon.

I would have expected better from the Board President on all of these issues since she was an educator in this district at one time. I am holding her and the others personally responsible for all of this.

Thank You,
Richard Morton

Comment by Christie Owen Wittenburg, September 30, 10:33am

My name is Christie Owen Wittenburg and I am responding about Mr. Morton’s comment about the school board and the president.

Yes…I am the daughter of the school board president. Many people know me from Italy and no Mr. Morton I do not have a clue who you are, but I am speaking about my mother and her role on this board. I know her very well.

The “lady” you are speaking of has only one item on her agenda and it is the success of the Italy School district. You have obviously gotten wrong information which happens in small towns. I understand this. I lived in Italy for 20 years and my niece goes to Stafford.

While people like yourself are discussing my mother’s failures with the district, I will tell you what she is doing.

She is talking to members of the community for countless hours on the phone. She has never denied anyone a chance to speak with her. If she is not attending school functions, cheering on teachers and staff, etc. she is praying about making the right choices for this district. The majority of her own time is dealing with the district.

As far as her not attending the meeting on Monday night, she was on vacation with my father. Please check the minutes from previous board meetings and tell me how many meetings she has missed in the last six years. I’m sure you can count them on one hand.

Now…I’m assuming your allegations of her personal issues is with the hiring the current principal at Stafford over Lisa Mott. I do not know Lisa Mott and I would never write anything to hurt her reputation. Did your sources tell you that after my mother voted the way she did she called Mrs. Mott and explained to her why she voted the way she did and that she felt Mrs.Mott would be better at the high school level. NO. They did not. I’m sorry, but that takes guts. That’s what you want on a board. Honesty..integrity. Everything that my mom has done has been with the utmost professionalism possible.

I am not here saying that everything is great with the schools. I am not. But I am here to tell you that my mother is not the superintendent…she is not a principal….What she is is a retired teacher who truly cares about this district and the people who are employed by Italy ISD.

Please Mr. Morton before leaving a comment on a public forum make sure that your information is correct. You can ask 90% of the people in Italy what they really think of her and they will tell you. She is a hard worker, a fantastic teacher, a morally grounded Christian woman and a wonderful leader. Don’t only listen to the 10%. Or better yet….call me.

Sincerely,
Christie Wittenburg