Another 'horrible day' in Pleasantville district

PLEASANTVILLE, N.J. - In this Atlantic County town's beleaguered school district, 13 superintendents have come and gone in the last decade, and allegations of fiscal mismanagement and corruption have been regular items on the school board agenda.

So when two current and three past members of the Pleasantville Board of Education were arrested yesterday as part of an FBI corruption investigation, some in the area were not surprised.

"I'm outraged, but I'm not shocked," Aneekwa James said as she picked up three of her children from their first day of classes at Pleasantville High School. "I've been watching what's been going on and wondering when something was going to happen."

"Now maybe this district can get down to the business of educating these children," said Shay Wallace, picking up her son outside the Davis-Holland Learning Center.

Those arrested in the probe include Board of Education President James A. Pressley, board member Rafael Velez, and former members Jayson G. Adams, James T. McCormick and Maurice "Pete" Callaway.

Atlantic County Prosecutor Ted Housel's office was conducting its own probe in Pleasantville when it crossed paths with the FBI's separate investigation. The county assigned one of its investigators to work with the FBI during the last 18 months, Housel said yesterday.

"This is just a horrible day for Pleasantville," said John J. Deserable, a state monitor appointed in the spring by the state Department of Education after financial audits of the district found a number of discrepancies.

Pleasantville, five miles west of Atlantic City, receives $65 million a year in school aid from the state, and is one of the state's special-needs - or Abbott - districts.

Deserable was sent to the Pleasantville schools after audits found improper handling of bank accounts and general ledgers; inadequate recordkeeping; expenditures not made according to state requirements; and purchasing systems that were inadequate and lacked controls. Auditors also found that budget transfers were being made without proper authorization, and that the treasurer and the board secretary had failed to present proper fiscal reports to the rest of the board.

Deserable's placement in the district was sharply criticized by board members, including Pressley.

An anonymous flyer distributed to school employees and parents likened the involvement of Deserable, who is white, to being the "worst thing that ever happened to Pleasantville since slavery," and accused him of "trying to rid the district of black administrators."

About 66 percent of Pleasantville's 3,600 students are African American, 31 percent are Latino, and the rest are white, Asian or others, according to officials.

"There are some issues with employees feeling intimidated that if they speak to board members, their jobs would be in jeopardy," Pressley told the Press of Atlantic City last month. Deserable "has also recommended hiring key administrative staff without interviews."

Last month, a county grand jury indicted board member David Thomas on charges of official misconduct involving his job as assistant director of public works in Atlantic City.

Thomas, 30, allegedly removed construction debris - on city time and driving a city truck - from an Atlantic City home owned by Atlantic City public works director David Callaway.

David Callaway and Maurice "Pete" Callaway are brothers.

A law firm's investigation in the last year over a disputed bill accused several past and present school board members - including Adams, a former president - of violating the federal Racketeer Influenced Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act with what appeared to be "pay-to-play" deals involving campaign contributions and contracts for insurance and roofing.

The law firm, DeCotiis, Fitzpatrick, Cole & Wisler of Teaneck, N.J., said the actions had involved more than 20 individuals and businesses, including officials aligned with another Callaway brother, Craig, a former Atlantic City Council president who was sent to federal prison this year on bribery charges.

In the meantime, students in Pleasantville have fallen behind other districts, according to the state's annual School Report Card.

The average high school graduation rate in the state was 93.4 percent in 2006, while in Pleasantville it was 81.4 percent. The district's dropout rate, 3 percent, was higher than the 1.8 percent average the same year.

High school proficiency assessments by the state also showed Pleasantville trailing.

In language-arts literacy in 2006, 44 percent of Pleasantville students were proficient, while the state average was 79 percent.

In mathematics, 35 percent of Pleasantville students were proficient; the statewide figure was 64 percent.

The percentage of classes at Pleasantville High School not taught by "highly qualified teachers," according to the state report card, was 11 percent, while at high schools statewide it was 3.5 percent.

"The children of this district are in dire need of good advocates," said Marge Johnson, 63, of Pleasantville, who retired as a teacher from the district five years ago.

"I have watched as administration after administration has come in and basically done nothing for these children, who hold just as much promise as children from any other district in this state. Maybe now something will be done to right the wrongs that have been done here," said Johnson, whose two grandchildren attend the middle school.