‘The Joe Squad’ wishes a Happy New Year to everyone who loves Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy.
We have learned a lot about what really happened with our true school leader and the self-appointed board of directors. We are uncovering more.
We know that Mr. Maimone was suspended by the board on July 2nd. No other ‘employee’ was suspended at that time. How could he be expected to continue leading and working with a group after such an action? The board has been particularly stubborn in refusing to release emails between themselves and Joe in the months leading up to this drastic move. What are they hiding? The motion was made and seconded by Elizabeth Sabolovic and Steve Herndon, two individuals known to dislike Joe and the classical curriculum. The membership of these two was in violation of their own bylaws, so in all right and validity this drastic action should be null and void!
Our attempts to pursue Justice through state-level oversight and litigation has been very frustrating and not born much of any fruit. There is simply no precedent for this situation! We parents are expected to ‘vote with our feet’ as it were and withdraw our students from the school if we don't like what the board is doing. We don't want to do that. We love this school. This seems to be the primary reason for our Headmaster’s continued silence. He seems to have put up with a lot in silence for a long time in the hope of not causing damage to our school. He didn't cause the damage. This board did, in my opinion.
So what do we do now? There are many students who want to stand up for what is right. Many adults have expressed the same but are afraid of retaliation in one form or another. Should we give up and risk an exodus of the most dedicated spirits come summertime? What message would that send to our aspiring thoughtful articulate young adults? We must continue the pressure. We must continue the vigilance. If you are unable to attend a board meeting or committee meeting, call and write to these board members and express your concerns and your disappointment. We can only hope, as Mr. Maimone apparently does, that they will do the right thing and step aside for others who are committed to what has made the school great.
THE NEXT BOARD MEETING IS TUESDAY, January 8th at 5:45 pm with Committee meetings preceding this.
Also, let's get a hashtag going:
#Joe4TJBoardChair
Go Gryphons! Let's make 2019 the year that we rally for the school that we love.