Richard Schwartz has been looking into allegations that Superintendent Pat Russo asked a principal and an assistant superintendent to alter or destroy documents relating to the sources of money used to reward North Moore High School students.
Russo has denied any wrongdoing, saying the changes to the documents were “for accuracy.”
The documents showed that the money used to pay college-bound North Moore students to improve their SAT scores came from state funds designated to provide remediation for struggling students and not from the school’s discretionary funds. Russo told the school board in an Aug. 7 letter that it had been his understanding from then-Assistant Superintendent Donna Peters that the money had come from the school’s discretionary funds, not state funds.
But Peters, now the superintendent in Rutherford County, said in an interview that she informed Russo in May that the reward money came from state funds.
The school system reimbursed the state $2,206 on Aug. 19. The school paid rewards to students for improved SAT scores during the 2000-2001 and 2001-2002 school years, when Keith Kremer was principal. That practice has since been discontinued.
After the money was returned to the state, North Moore Principal Mike Tylavsky and Assistant Superintendent Brian Phillips said Russo asked Tylavsky Aug. 21 to destroy one document and white out references on certain documents showing that the payments came from state funds.
Russo has said the checks paid to the students actually came from the school’s discretionary accounts. The school was then reimbursed by the central office from the state funds intended to help at-risk students.
School board Chairman Wiley Barrett said he wants a thorough investigation.
“I told Richard, “don’t leave any stone unturned,’” Barrett said. “Go wherever it takes you, then bring it to the board. I want to get to the bottom of this. We certainly don’t want to be doing anything that is illegal or unethical.
“This all started because of SAT scores. I just want to make sure we haven’t missed something or left anything out.”
Barrett said he has not been given any information on what Schwartz might report.
“We’ll (school board members) get it at the same time,” Barrett said, “then we’ll decide what to do.”
