Good morning….
The timing is curious.
The Ontario School District had been working for two years to fend off claims by Superintendent Nikki Albisu.
Lawyers repeatedly made court filings that said there was nothing to Albisu’s claims she had faced discrimination.
Then, on Feb. 21, the Ontario School Board met in closed session to evaluate Albisu’s performance. Nearly perfect, it said.
They made that finding public on Feb. 26.
Two days later, Albisu agreed to settle her lawsuit – for a $50,000 check.
The news team at the Enterprise has run into obstacles over Albisu’s evaluation.
District officials wouldn’t release even basic documents until two weeks after the evaluation.
The newspaper asked for records of the school board members.
The district first told the Enterprise Board members “that any notes were discarded after the meeting.”
When we called out the possible destruction of public records, the district changed its tune.
“The district did not dispose of or destroy any public records,” the district insisted. “The only documents the district collected and discarded were extra copies of the Superintendent’s evidences.”
That was puzzling. “Notes” turned into “extra copies.”
We asked the district to explain, but none has been forthcoming.
In our judgment, this represents the continuing practice of Nikki Albisu’s administration and the Ontario School Board to treat public accountability as a nuisance.
We’ll keep digging until we get answers that you deserve.
But the Ontario school system isn’t the only source of controversy in Malheur County.
The Nyssa School Board is catching flak for how it decided on a new superintendent. The board split 4-3 on the choice, pretty unusual in such a hiring decision. A local parent subsequently launched an effort to recall three board members, as reporter Steven Mitchell shared in an exclusive story.
And that’s not the only news that only Malheur Enterprise readers are getting. No other media reported on Albisu’s legal payday, or the county spelling bee champion.
Mitchell had another exclusive with word of major funding for Lifeways to build a new medical center in Ontario. That’s huge, and represents steady progress at Lifeways since Steven Jensen took over as CEO.
And there was more good news. Treasure Valley Community College has shown remarkable success in rounding up funding for a new nurse teaching center. One of Oregon’s major foundations just chipped in a six-figure check to help out.
On the criminal justice front, the man who killed Joseph “JJ” Johnson, the reserve corporal in the Nyssa Police Department, admitted his guilt last week. Reporter Pat Caldwell was in the courtroom when the plea deal was announced.
On Saturday, the volunteers out in Adrian pulled off another Owyhee Off-Road Challenge with a variety of runs. We have plenty of photos, thanks to the always-good work of Angie Sillonis. Below is a peek at a couple of photos.
This is where the Enterprise focuses its efforts – covering Malheur County. We don’t pad our content with press releases from the other side of the state, with comics or canned material with no connection to Malheur County. Local news is the most important to readers like you, and that’s where we’ll continue to focus.
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