The Fall River City Council last night issued a vote of no confidence in School Superintendent Matthew Malone, sought his immediate resignation, and asked that a report on the school committee’s investigation into allegations against him be released.
The council voted 8-0 on the matter, with Councilor Brad Kilby voting present. Councilor Kilby’s wife works as a teacher in the Fall River school department.
Councilor Shawn Cadime co-sponsored the no-confidence vote along with Councilor Michelle Dionne. He said despite not having jurisdiction over the school department, the city council has the obligation to represent the residents of Fall River in criticizing the lack of action by the school committee to hold the superintendent responsible for his actions.
Last month the school committee completed an internal investigation of the superintendent on allegations of inappropriate behavior and, as punishment, amended his contract by reducing his salary by $17,000 and inserting language to allow the committee to terminate the superintendent without cause in the future.
Four committee members voted in favor of the move; Mark Costa, Joshua Hetzler, Thomas Khoury and Mimi Larrivee. Committee members Kevin Aguiar and Paul Hart voted against. Mayor Paul Coogan, as chair of the school committee, recused himself from the investigation after seeking an opinion from the State Ethics Commission over a conflict concerning the mayor’s brother who, as director of human resources, is a direct report to the superintendent.
The other councilors shared similar opinions on the need for Superintendent Malone to step down. Councilor Linda Pereira supported the motion but was concerned that no information has come forward on why the school committee decided to retain Malone.
City Council President Cliff Ponte agreed with his colleague and called for the release of the school committee’s investigation.
In a related move the council voted to delay moving forward on two bond issues on behalf of the school department seeking upgrades to the Watson School and the renovation of the baseball field at Durfee High School.
Video courtesy Fall River Government Television
Comments are closed.