BRYANT - Bryant School District Superintendent Randy Rutherford has been suspended for “at least the next 30 days,” a district spokesman said in a news release Tuesday.
Rutherford’s suspension, which was effective immediately, followed a School Board meeting Monday. According to a draft of the meeting’s minutes, the board recommended Rutherford’s termination.
There was no word from district’s School Board on why Rutherford was placed on “paid leave.” The board refused to provide documentation requested Tuesday by the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette under the state’s Freedom of Information Act - which states that “all employee evaluation or job performance records … shall be open to public inspection only upon final administrative resolution of any suspension or termination proceeding” - saying it was “confidential” because it was a personnel matter.
Efforts to reach Rutherford by telephone were unsuccessful Tuesday. Landline and cellphone numbers listed under his name were either disconnected or out of service.
During a follow-up School Board meeting Tuesday, members went into executive session for nearly two hours before publicly approving Fred Dawson to serve as the interim superintendent starting today. Six board members voted for his approval, and member Michael Ferguson was not present.
“This is a good school district,” Dawson, 70, said after the meeting. “We hope to keep it moving in a positive direction.”
Dawson, who is retired, has served as a superintendent in Yellville, Mountain Home and Ardmore, Okla., he said. He worked as the state Department of Education’s director of personnel for six years before becoming the superintendent for the Bauxite School District.
He worked there for 11 years, moved on to be the interim superintendent for Benton School District before serving as an interim superintendent for Bauxite’s district, he said.
The School Board did not specify how long Dawson would serve in the post, but board President Rhonda Sanders said after the meeting that they planned to write up his contract today.
Rutherford has 30 days to appeal the suspension. As of Tuesday evening, he had not contacted Sanders to do so, she said. Rutherford has been the district’s superintendent since 2010, district spokesman Devin Sherrill said.
Arkansas, Pages 10 on 03/12/2014