Consultant lauds Coatesville schools for reform efforts

Matthew Haverstick has led internal reviews for private and public groups across the state. They usually go one of two ways.

The leaders can choose to make meaningful changes so the crises that brought on the scrutiny do not happen again. Or they can look at the results, shrug, and go back to business as usual.

How closely the public is watching is usually crucial in determining in which direction an organization will go, Haverstick, a lawyer, said. And the Coatesville Area School District has had plenty of public scrutiny.

"They have a very caring and committed community of parents, of taxpayers who want things to turn out well but are going to keep an eye on things and keep people on their toes in the district," Haverstick said.

That, along with a change in leadership, is why the district is one of the success stories, he said. The district hired Haverstick in October 2013 to investigate its management.

"The school has made remarkable progress considering what we saw when we got there," said Haverstick, chair of the public corruption team of the Philadelphia-based Conrad O'Brien law firm.

What Haverstick saw was pretty bad.

According to the results of an 18-month investigation by the Chester County District Attorney's Office released last month, two former school administrators are accused of stealing tens of thousands of dollars from students and taxpayers, violating state ethics laws, and practicing general mismanagement.

The former superintendent, Richard Como, and former athletic director, James Donato, were arrested Dec. 15.

Unlike other promises people make to themselves around the start of a new year, the targeted changes the school district has promised in light of the grand jury's findings will stick, officials have said.

Within the next few weeks, the district plans to release the findings of its taxpayer-funded internal investigation in an effort to be more transparent.

It has strengthened its hiring process and is reviewing the certifications of all teachers and administrators, said Superintendent Cathy Taschner.

The district now requires at least two people to verify money collected from school activities and no longer accepts cash in many instances.

Newly hired auditors are reviewing several district departments.

But some residents said true healing cannot come until the three school board members who were on the board while the former officials carried out their alleged misdeeds are gone.

"As long as they're up there," said Alphonso Newsuan, a Coatesville resident and community activist, "there will be an underlying feeling of mistrust and anger."

Thomas Hogan, Chester County's district attorney, who battled school officials for more than a year during his office's investigation, recommended that the district also run credit checks on any employee who deals with money and renew criminal background checks every other year.

Despite the work it needs to do, Hogan said the district, which has a new solicitor, superintendent, and school board members, has turned a corner.

"They have taken some good first steps, and they've put the right people in place so those steps will continue going forward," Hogan said. "Like I told Dr. Taschner, you can't turn an aircraft carrier on a dime."