Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, July 8, 1994 TAG: 9407110178
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By JOEL TURNER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Wendy O'Neil says she has no anger or bitterness about being booted off the Roanoke School Board after one term. In fact, she had feared she might be replaced because of her outspoken style.
``It's just the breaks of the game. I understand how politics in Roanoke work,'' she said this week.
Still, it bothers her to think that City Council can oust School Board members for speaking their minds on issues that are not related to schools.
O'Neil believes that she was ousted partly because of her opposition to the controversial 2-for-1 pension system. The plan gave top city administrators and council members two years of credit for retirement for each year they worked for the city.
Because of strong opposition to the plan, council members discontinued it, but they kept the double retirement benefits they had received up to that point.
Some council members have said privately that the pension issue was a factor in O'Neil's ouster. But there were other reasons, they said, including a strong field of five candidates for the two seats.
O'Neil believes that the two new members, Marsha Ellison and John Saunders, were excellent choices and has no complaints about them.
O'Neil, 45, leaves the board with the belief that decisions are not always made in the best interest of the students. For example, she believes school administrators should have talked with students in the city's alternative education program before making decisions about restructuring it.
A former teacher in Maryland and Washington, D.C., O'Neil said board members and school administrators sometimes are more interested in getting a positive media spin on issues than in admitting they have a problem.
She said the constant description of all school programs in Roanoke as "excellent" is not true.
``We have pockets of excellence, but there are also pockets of problems,'' she said. ``We have the potential to be excellent, but it will take a lot of hard work.''
O'Neil, executive director of the YWCA of the Roanoke Valley, believes that more cultural and geographical diversity is needed on the School Board and the schools' Long Range Planning Committee.
Five of the seven members on the School Board live in the Southwest quadrant of the city. O'Neil lives in the Northeast quadrant, an area that rarely has had a member. She fought to get better representation on the planning committee.
She favors the election of School Board members because she believes it would produce more diversity and broader geographical representation. The current system - in which council appoints the members - tends to maintain the status quo, she said.
If Roanoke starts electing School Board members, O'Neil leaves open the possibility that she might run for a seat. Petitions are being circulated to get the issue on the ballot in the November election. Even if the city keeps the current system, she might apply again.
There were rumors that O'Neil was planning to run for City Council this past spring. But she sent a letter to council saying she had no intention of becoming a candidate.
Now, though, she said, "I am keeping my options open and have not ruled out anything."
The expulsion of 10 students in the past year for bringing weapons and drugs to school got a lot of attention in the past year and caused more agony for O'Neil than other decisions.
``It was a gut-wrenching decision on each case,'' she said. ``We did not just rubber-stamp the superintendent's recommendation.''
O'Neil believes that the school system should make provisions to educate the expelled students in the alternative education program or another specialized program.
``We need a solution to help the students. We are only treating the symptoms by expelling them,'' she said. ``We need to deal with the causes.''
School officials are considering restructuring the alternative education program so that it might accommodate the expelled students. A principal/administrator will be hired to oversee the program.
George Franklin, who has been director of the program, did not seek the new post because he does not have a master's degree, a requirement for the job.
Franklin recently was suspended by Superintendent Wayne Harris for failing to comply with administrative and financial regulations. The School Board reversed the suspension, but his status for the upcoming school year is uncertain.
O'Neil said Franklin is important to the alternative education program because he can work with the students and they relate well to him.
O'Neil believes the city's schools sometimes are overlooked and lose out in the competition for tax funds.
``Explore Park and Hotel Roanoke are important, but we need to nurture our children, to ensure that they receive the best education they can,'' she said.
Wendy O'Neil
Former Roanoke School Board member
Age: 45.
Education: Catholic University, Washington, D.C., bachelor of arts, 1972.
Government: Roanoke School Board member, 1991-94; board vice chairwoman; chairwoman of the board's audit committee.
Professional: Executive director of the YWCA of the Roanoke Valley, 1989 to present; director of educational partnerships for Roanoke schools, 1988-89; director of development for Virginia Skyline Girl Scout Council, 1983-88; field executive of the Skyline Girl Scout Council, 1981-83; high school teacher, Saint Anthony High School, Washiongton, D.C., 1974-81; middle school teacher, Saint Matthew's School, Baltimore, Md. 1972-74.
Civic and Community activities: President of the Virginia Council of YWCAs; member of National Association of YWCA Executive Directors; Roanoke Regional Council on Substance Abuse; United Way of the Roanoke Valley Communications Committee; board member of Apple Ridge Farms, a nonprofit center for environmental and outdoor education for youngsters; state and regional judge of Odyssey of the Mind; Roanoke Valley Historical Society.
by CNB