Would You Let Your Kid Go to Cranfills Gap School?Part 3: Nepotism, Favoritism & Discrimination

What if other children were favored over your child at the school he or she attended because of who those children were kin to? What if your child was treated differently from other children because you and your family did not support the actions of a former school adminstrator, but the other children's families did?  What if this treatment was detrimental and damaging to your child? Would you leave your child in such a school? Most parents would not.

No student in an educational setting should suffer from favoritism, discrimination, or nepotism. Favoritism and discrimination are against the law; however, just because it is against the law doesn't mean it won't happen. Just because the law is against nepotism--favoritism shown to relatives in employment issues--doesn't mean it doesn't happen, too.

Many instances--some extemely shameful-- of nepotism, favoritism, and discrimination against both children and adults occured under the tenure of former 2006/2007 Cranfills Gap School Superintendent Carla Sigler. Students left in droves when parents chose not to tolerate such treatment of their kids or other children. Some parents felt if adults were treated that way, kids might be, too.

Carla Sigler went back to Alaska in 2007. Now that she is gone, many parents would love to send their kids to the Cranfills Gap School, but will not do so for several reasons. Carla Sigler still has strong ties to Cranfills Gap and visits occasionally. Her influence is still widespread. The school board and the school itself is full of those---administrators, staff, teachers, and even students-- who still rabidly defend her every action, even when it has been proven how detrimental those actions were to the school and the town. 

These concerned parents feel their children might be discriminated against and other children favored because of Carla Sigler or who they might not be kin to or friends with. These concerned parents are not willing to take the chance that nepotism, favoritism, and discrimination might hurt their children. And who can blame them?   

Would You Let Your Kid Go to Cranfills Gap School? PART TWO: Uncertified Teachers

What if you found out your Special Education child had been taught by an uncertified teacher for the last few years? Under the laws of the State of Texas, a school district must notify parents of students in classrooms that have an uncertified teacher for a period of thirty days, telling the parent that the teacher is uncertified and that the parent has the option of obtaining a certified teacher for their child.  

Certification of a teacher by the State Board of Education--SBEC----means that the teacher has been trained, is knowledgable about, and is qualified to teach the subjects he or she plan to teach. Some teacher-applicants take the teacher certification test many times before they pass it.

 Other teacher-applicants take the certification test repeatedly, but are unable to ever pass it. With all the heavy emphasis on testing required by the state and federal governments, it is essential to have a teacher who is certified teaching your child.

But if your child had the misfortune to have been a student at Cranfills Gap ISD in 2007, your Special Education child would have been taught by an uncertified teacher, and none of your Special Education ARDS required by law would count. Your child would have been done a great disservice, and the school district and the teacher would be breaking the law.

This is exactly what happened in 2007 when Cranfills Gap ISD Special Education teacher Laura Rose had been teaching Special Education for several years without being certified to teach Special Education. One day, another Cranfills Gap ISD teacher, Science teacher Michelle Dubay, inadvertently discovered that Special Education teacher Laura Rose was not certified to teach Special Education. 

When Dubay tried to bring the matter to Superintendent Carla Sigler's attention, a series of unexpected events developed. All Carla Sigler had to do was contact the Texas Education Agency (TEA) and get an emergency update for uncertified teacher Laura Rose.

 Incredibly, rather than simply fix Laura Rose's illegal non-certification, Carla Sigler chose to suspend certified Science teacher Michelle Dubay with pay. Sigler then falsely accused, ostracized, and persecuted Michelle Dubay, and even went so far as to leave a threatening message on Dubay's answering machine. 

After a school board meeting where Sigler had refused to discuss Dubay's contract, Sigler sent Dubay a letter stating that the school board had decided not to renew Dubay's contract. However, Michelle Dubay had been at that particular board meeting and knew no action had been taken on her contract, so she knew that was a lie. Subsequently, Michelle Dubay won a big settlement against Cranfills Gap ISD for the way it was all handled by Carla Sigler. 

At the school, Sigler left uncertified teacher Laura Rose in the classroom teaching illegally. Sigler had removed certified and highly qualified teacher Michelle Dubay. Sigler had new uncertified teacher Sue Wernecke teaching Dubay's classes for the several months left in the school year--again, with no notice--as required by law--to parents that an uncertified teacher was teaching the class. Sue Wernecke then taught the entire 2007/2008 school year --this past year---teaching Michelle Dubay's classes under an emergency certificate but has never been certified to teach those classes.

During the 2006/2007 school year, my sister, Sue Lee, a longtime Cranfills Gap school board member, fought constantly but unsuccessfully to convince Carla Sigler and the Cranfills Gap School Board that teacher Doug Holmes by law had to have a Local Permit to teach Technology. Carla Sigler accused Sue Lee of bringing this up over and over for the sole purpose of harassing her, Carla Sigler. 

After Sigler left the district in 2007, Cranfills Gap School Board President Kenny Wiese announced that by law DOUG HOLMES DOES NEED A PERMIT, just as Sue Lee had repeatedly told them. However, as recently as just a month ago, Doug Holmes still had no permit to teach Technology.  

After talking to the school attorney a few weeks ago, current 2007/2008 Cranfills Gap ISD School Superintendent  James Scott accepted Doug Holmes resignation, and then turned right around and hired Doug Holmes back as an at-will employee with the same pay, the same benefits, and the same teacher retirement eligibilty.  

Now that's a great deal for Doug Holmes, but here's the kicker, Folks: All those Cranfills Gap students who took Doug Holmes' classes may not get credit for those classes unless they can pass an examination...all due to Doug Holmes not having the required local permit!

And that's a shame! It isn't the fault of the students, but rather the failure of Carla Sigler and the Cranfills Gap School Board members to care enough to make sure they are following the law. For one full year, it was repeatedly brought to their attention, but rather than check with the school attorney, they chose to ostracize Sue Lee, who knew the law when they did not. For another year, they knew for certain that Doug Holmes had to have a Local Permit, but allowed him to teach without one anyway. Apparently they did not care whether it would affect students or not.  

So, tell me, would you let your kid go to Cranfills Gap School, where they don't know the law, don't care enough to find out the law, and then won't comply with the law?

Would You let Your Kid Go to Cranfills Gap School? A Vicious Teacher--PART ONE

What if your little child came home from school one day and told you his teacher had gotten mad at him, hit him with a book, and twisted his little arm? What if MANY little children came home from school and told their parents this very same teacher had gotten mad at them, hit them with a book, and twisted their little arms?

 What if it was a known fact that this teacher really did hit the students and viciously twist their little arms, that what the kids were saying was true? You would expect that you, as a concerned parent, could go to an authority figure--the principal or the superintendent--and report the incidents, and that abusive teacher would be out of a job and nowhere near little kids.

 But if your little child had the misfortune to be attending  Cranfills Gap ISD, that vicious teacher would still be in place TWO YEARS LATER!  Yes, that teacher would still be in place--- still mistreating the little kids--her students-- whenever she was angry with them.  

That is exactly what happened when former 2006/2007 Cranfills Gap Superintendent Carla Sigler was notified by many concerned parents that this teacher was mistreating their children.    

One board member, whose own child had been exposed to this vicious teacher, voted against renewing her contract, but apparently failed to tell other board members about it.  Superintendent Sigler repeatedly told worried parents that it was being handled, but in reality it wasn't! 

Another board member-- to whom parents had complained when Superintendent Sigler repeatedly failed to take care of the issue-- also voted against renewing this abusive teacher's contract for another year. But the five remaining board members apparently agreed with Carla Sigler that this teacher was not a problem.

 When Carla Sigler left Cranfills Gap ISD in June of 2007, she arranged   that this same vicious teacher would still be in place.  And guess what? Before the year was out, that same teacher was once again mistreating her students-- the little kids. 

Only after an outcry from enraged parents was this teacher forced to resign. But, again, guess what?  This vicious teacher is currently still in place until the end of the 2007/2008 school year.  This is the shameful way the Cranfills Gap ISD chose to handle the vicious teacher issue.

Some of the parents have been so concerned they have come and sat in the room to keep an eye on this teacher.  And folks wonder why so many students have left the Cranfills Gap School District! Who could blame them?

Scholarship Clarification

Scholarship Clarification:        

At the Cranfills Gap Academic Achievement Awards Banquet in 2007, former Cranfills Gap School Superintendent Carla Sigler awarded the Highest Academic Achievement Award to fourth-ranked student Justin Witte.

Carla Sigler purposely did not make any mention of the academic accomplishments of the three students ranked higher academically than Justin Witte.  Carla Sigler thus deprived Valedictorian Kaitlan Head, Salutatorian Sarah Sellers, and Honor Student Ashley Crye of the honor and recognition they had earned, worked hard for, and deserved. 

If Carla Sigler had mentioned that these young ladies were all three academically ranked higher than Justin Witte, how would she explain the fact that she gave the Highest Academic Achievement Award to a student who ranked  FOURTH in his class? Ah, there is no way to explain it, so she made no mention of their achievements and didn't even mention them at all.   

Everything Carla Sigler did was for a reason.

 In my opinion, the reason Carla Sigler made no mention of the three students ranked higher than Justin Witte and awarded him-- the fourth-ranked student-- the Highest Academic Achievement Award that night was to be able to divert scholarship funds to Justin Witte for his college education.

Documentation obtained under the Texas Open Records Act shows that Justin Witte used $4,250 in scholarship funds for his college education at TSTC in Waco.  My clarification is that this $4,250 amount did not include the several hundred more dollars that Justin Witte received as the recipient of a scholarship from the Cranfills Gap Volunteer Fire Department, of which Justin Witte's father, David Witte, is the Fire Chief.  

So just how does a student academically ranked fourth in their class get the honor and recognition of the Highest Academic Achievement Award as well as lots of free money for a college education? It all depends on who you know, and what they are willing to do-- in this case, illegally and unethically--to help you, obviously their favorite student.  

And it helps to have supposedly moral and ethical Christian parents who are upstanding citizens of the town. Your mother, Kathie Witte, is a shaker and mover in the town, involved in civic events as well as being a Cranfills Gap school board member.  Your father is David Witte, the Mayor of Cranfills Gap and the Chief of the Cranfills Gap Volunteer Fire Department, also a mover and shaker and civic leader.  

 Yes, your parents are both good citizens who are willing to go along with the deception, even though it harms other people's children. Why?Because that's a lot of money,  it's there for the taking, and-- with the help of dear friend Carla-- you can take it. Besides, there will be nothing anyone can do about it, and who will ever know?

Well, God knows. And now a lot of other folks know, too. Along with the many other things that have happened, this is just another shameful chapter in the tragedy that is Life in Cranfills Gap after Carla Sigler.  

 

Complaint Against Carla Sigler

Complaint to SBEC: 

Copy to Robert Scott, Commissioner of Education

      My complaint, dated May 1st, 2008, is against former 2006/2007 Cranfills Gap ISD Superintendent Carla Sue Sigler. Carla Sigler illegally and unethically committed fraud and conspired with others to commit fraud to obtain scholarship funds based on academic achievement by misrepresentation of a student academically ranked fourth in his class.

Sigler committed fraud on May 8th, 2007, at the Cranfills Gap High School Academic Awards Banquet--a public ceremony--by misrepresenting fourth-ranked male student Justin Witte as first-ranked student in his class,  awarding Justin Witte the award for Highest Academic Achievement , and making no mention of the three female students academically ranked above him--namely: First-ranked Valedictorian Kaitlan Head;   Second-ranked Salutatorian:  Sarah Sellers;  and Third-ranked:  Ashley Crye.

To commit this fraud, Carla Sigler conspired with three individuals:  The mother of Justin Witte, namely Kathie Witte, a Cranfills Gap School Board trustee;  the father of Justin Witte, namely David Witte, Mayor of Cranfills Gap; and Justin Witte, graduating senior ranked fourth in his class.

This fraud was committed by Carla Sigler to enable her to recommend that Justin Witte, based on his being awarded the Highest Academic Achievement Award, receive scholarship funds in the amount of $4,250 for his college education.

According to documentation acquired under the Texas Open Records Act, scholarship funds of $4,250 were used in 2007/2008 by Justin Witte at Texas State Technical College for his college education.

This complaint is filed in a timely manner as this fraud had to occur over the course of almost one year before the fraud could be known.

For the 2006/2007 school year, Justin Witte attended Cranfills Gap High School, was in a Work Program and attended school for one class a few hours a day, and was ranked fourth-highest academically in his class on May 8th, 2007, when this fraud occured.

Carla Sigler, Kathie Witte, David Witte, and Justin Witte--by fraud--deprived three students of the honor and recognition they deserved and had worked hard for, and--also by fraud--deprived three students of possible college scholarship funds of $4,250 that should have been awarded to students who had earned and deserved such funds.

Justin Witte was a favorite of Superintendent Sigler who gave him $100 for his birthday. Carla Sigler's best friend is Kathie Witte, a Cranfills Gap School Board Trustee and Justin Witte's mother. In my opinion, Carla Sigler favors male students over female students.

My opinion is based on the fact that when I attended the 2007 Cranfills Gap High School Graduation, I observed Carla Sigler giving male students full-frontal hugs and kissing male students on the neck--like a lover, not like an authority figure at all.

Appalled, I considered these many full-frontal hugs and kisses on the necks of male students as very inappropriate and very unprofessional. In my opinion, these were lewd acts on "captive" students who were children. If Carla Sigler had been a male authority figure giving frontal hugs and kissing female students on the neck, the outcry would be tremendous. Perhaps it was not thought that a sexual predator can be a woman as well as a man.

In 2007, I told TEA employee Dr. Jo Frazier about these inappropriate, unprofessional displays of affection by Carla Sigler to male students under her authority; however, Dr. Frazier told me a parent must complain before TEA could take any action. Sigler's inappropriate actions toward these young male students bothered me so much I considered contacting Child Protective Services.

Documentation that Carla Sigler fraudulently awarded Justin Witte the Highest Academic Achievement Award would be the certificate of such award inscribed with the name of Justin Witte and the photographs of the happy occasion taken at the Awards Banquet by Kathie and David Witte, Justin Witte's parents.

At least thirty witnesses were present at this public Awards Banquet, including all of the Cranfills Gap ISD teachers, as well as students, parents, and interested parties.

Thank you for your assistance in this matter.

Sincerely,

Dorothy Powell                                           

 

The Old Family Bible

A few years ago, my sister Sue passed on to me the old family Bible that our mother, Marie Ellison Head, had bought on January 10th, 1944, the year her husband ( and my daddy), Ralston Cecil Head, was fighting the Germans in Italy.

After the Japanese bombed America at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii on December 7th, 1941, the country was plunged into World War II.  Ralston went overseas as an Army Medic in the North Africa campaign, fighting Mussolini of Italy and Hitler of Germany. Ralston was with the Yanks in June, 1944, when American forces captured Rome, Italy.

 After the war, Ralston and Marie became the proud parents of three children....Dorothy Marie Head (ME), Sue Ellen Head, and Charles Lee Head. Our family grew over the years, as grandchildren dearly beloved by Ralston and Marie were born.

After Daddy died in 1989 and Mama died in 1994, Sue and I kept many things that had belonged to them. It was in this old Bible that Mama had recorded Daddy's service in World War II and-- until her death-- all the family information----the births, the marriages, and the deaths....literally life itself. Then the recording of our family ancestral history fell to me.

I had kept the huge old Bible---first copyrighted in 1923, actually a School and Library Reference Edition, bound with black leather and gold lettering, and weighing almost twenty pounds--stored away.

Yesterday I decided to put the Bible on a tall square table--somewhat like a podium-- in the living room. As I placed the Bible on the little table, it fell open --quite fittingly--to the 94th Psalm.