A group of citizens have issued a memo to the McComb School District Board Members regarding the case of fired former teacher Willie Jenkins. Copies of the memo were also sent to the EnterpriseJournal and the Mississippi Tribune. Jenkins’ termination from the school district led to a series of long hearings over several months and left some of the district administrators at the center of controversy.

The school board is scheduled to meet this Tuesday after reviewing the transcript from the hearings and decide the fate of Jenkins. We have decided to print the entire memo:

To: McComb School District Board Members (Mr. Maurice Chester, Dr. Kent Kebert, Mrs. Betty Nunnery, Dr. Sherrod Quinn, Mrs. Elise Rayborn), Enterprise Journal, Mississippi Tribune,Citizens of McComb

From: Community Citizens (Amos Bridges, Ronnie Brock, Hilda Casin, Elois Harris, Tenia Powell, Vernell Simmons)

Date: July 30, 2009

Re: Justice for Mr. Willie N. Jenkins

“As concerned members of the community, the above named citizens sat through the hearing regarding the termination of Willie N. Jenkins from the McComb School District. Throughout the testimonies given in the hearing, it was evident that policies and procedures were disregarded and that Mr. Jenkins was not given due process prior to his termination from his role as educator. We see the following facts as evidence of this wrongful termination. On September 17, 2008, the Principal entered Mr. Jenkins’ classroom while he was using his personal cell phone. Without determining the nature of the conversation, the Principal reprimanded Mr. Jenkins in front of his students and accused him, saying “You are talking to a woman on that phone!” As a happily married man of thirty-seven years and an exemplary role model in the community, Mr. Jenkins sought to immediately clarify this misunderstanding as his integrity with his students was now put into question. Mr. Jenkins gave the Principal his cell phone to speak with the school liaison to confirm that he was using his personal phone regarding one of the children whom the liaison had not returned to his room. When Mr. Jenkins asked if the Principal would like to speak with him, she replied, “No! Not now or ever!” Shut Up!” The Principal had just humiliated Mr. Jenkins twice in front of his students. Students will not respect authority if it is not modeled nor if the figure in authority has been demeaned in any fashion in front of students. After the events listed above, Mr. Jenkins had a series of meetings with various District Administrators. During this time, an “Employee Improvement Plan” was given to Mr. Jenkins. Mr. Jenkins refused to sign the plan because he did not see justification for anything that he had done in the above situation that needed improvement. In retaliation for not signing this bogus plan, Mr. Jenkins was dismissed for “insubordination”. This improvement plan was clearly based on the above misunderstanding. In fact, Mr. Jenkins had never had an evaluation by the Principal that year nor had he had any violation that would indicate he needed to be on an improvement plan. Mr. Jenkins had worked with the McComb School District for over four and a half years and worked as an educator in Mississippi for over 35 years with not one blemish on his record until this incident. Of greater concern is the fact that Mr. Jenkins’ employee file had “disappeared” while under lock and key by the Principal. Clearly, any evidence of Mr. Jenkins’ performance – positive or negative - would have been in this file. There is no evidence, then, that Mr. Jenkins did anything to warrant an improvement plan or a termination of his employment. It is our understanding that a Principal cannot fire a teacher, but can only make a recommendation to the school board requesting termination. However, no one saw fit to reinstate Mr. Jenkins to his position until he had had due process. Mr. Jenkins was humiliated by his superior in front of his students, terminated because he wouldn’t sign a bogus improvement plan and misrepresented by the local newspaper, all without a single shred of evidence that he had done anything wrong. He retired from the South Pike School District with impeccable credentials and community record, which made him a worthy candidate for McComb School District to consider. Mr. Jenkins is a respected minister in a local church, an on-going role model for the youth and a hardworking, honest man whose integrity no one has questioned until now. It is apparent that McComb School District Administrators did not follow proper procedures in evaluating Mr. Jenkins for an improvement plan, nor is there any tangible evidence to show Mr. Jenkins had done anything wrong. As very concerned community members, we ask that the McComb School District Board rectify this injustice to Mr. Jenkins. Restore his credibility by restoring his job and his rightful place of dignity in this community.”

When contacted by the Mississippi Tribune about the memo, McComb School District Superintendent Terese Palmertree said, “There are over 1,000 pages of transcript of the official version of the incident that is now in the hands of the School Board Members.”

She pointed out that “From the time of the incident until his dismissal, Mr. Jenkins was provided 3 weeks of due process.” Palmertree also noted that Jenkins never took the stand during the hearing to discount any testimony given by school staff.