St. Louis County residents, students and city officials are demanding answers as to why Superintendent Art McCoy Jr. of the Ferguson-Florissant School District was removed from his position last week.
On Nov. 6, six of the seven school board members voted to place McCoy on administrative leave because of “differences in focus and philosophy between the board and the superintendent.”
Larry Larrew, chief accountability officer, is now serving as acting superintendent.
On Friday, the Citizens’ Taskforce for Excellence in Education – a coalition of citizens, clergy and community leaders – called the school board’s explanation “weak” and “irresponsible” at a press conference at Shalom Church (City of Peace) in Berkeley.
Rev. Freddy J. Clark, pastor of Shalom Church, said McCoy is an important and beloved leader in the community, and the board cannot expect to “tamper” with McCoy without a fight from the community.
“Anything short of Dr. McCoy being reinstated, then I, personally, will be asking for the resignation of every board member in Ferguson-Florissant,” Clark said.
Students have also shown they are ready to fight back against the decision. On Wednesday morning, about 30 students at Cross Keys Middle School staged a sit-in for three class periods to support McCoy. Hundreds of McCluer North High School students also protested McCoy’s removal through a sit-in.
Faith Hudson, a Cross Keys eighth grader who participated in the action, said school administrators responded by asking students to talk about their feelings.
“They were proud that we stood up for what we believed in and did it in a respectful way,” she said.
Her father, Redditt Hudson, NAACP Region 4 field organizer, spoke at the Friday press conference and said he is angry and disgusted by the board’s action.
“If you look at the mission statement of the board of education, there is nothing that Art McCoy has done that is inconsistent with the stated philosophy,” Hudson said.
“They owe us – the parents of the district – a real explanation as to why a community resource like Art McCoy has been relieved of his duty and put all of our children at risk of not receiving the quality public education that they deserve.”
St. Louis County Executive Charlie A. Dooley also demanded an answer.
“I do not know what the difference in philosophy could have been with the board. It seems to me that he is doing exactly what he should be doing and that is making sure that every child is receiving a quality education,” Dooley said.
“I cannot understand their motivation. If Dr. McCoy’s philosophy is different than the board’s, then what is the board’s philosophy?”
School board president Paul Morris sent out a letter on Tuesday night, stating that the board attempted to “resolve issues” with McCoy over the past several months. Morris stated that he could provide no further explanation.
Inspiration to students
At the Friday press conference, several students spoke in support of McCoy. Caro Brown, a senior at McCluer North High School, said McCoy has set the bar high for students and shows he has faith in them.
“He stands behind us and supports us fully,” she said. “We believe he should be reinstated as soon as possible.”
McCluer North senior Camaren Belton said McCoy has been an inspirational person. McCoy often spoke to the students about the importance of self-acceptance and aiming for their dreams, he said. Being a majority African-American school district, Belton said many students saw McCoy’s leadership role as symbolic.
Belton said, “If people are trying to bring him down – why bring him down if that’s going to bring all of us down?”
Lack of trust
Former school board member Charles Henson, who had been the lone African American on the board, said he was not surprised by the board’s move because many board members have been pushing for McCoy’s ouster for some time.
“I can assure you unequivocally that is it not a philosophical difference that put him on administrative leave,” Henson said. “We had a number of opportunities to talk about the lack of trust and the lack of respect that Dr. McCoy got as an administrator among that board.”
Ted Hoskins, mayor of the City of Berkeley, said his entire city falls within the school district. He is concerned that the disruption will have long-lasting effects on the students.
“It will not be accepted,” Hoskins said.
The Missouri NAACP plans to file a Title 6 discrimination complaint against the Ferguson-Florissant School District with U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights.
One part of the complaint deals with race, said Adolphus Pruitt, first vice president of the Missouri NAACP.
“The board is predominately white,” Pruitt said. “The school district is predominately African-American. And the superintendent is African-American. We want the justice department to take a look and make sure there aren’t any racial undercurrents in the decision made by the board.”
