ST. LOUIS — In a special closed session Monday, the Saint Louis Public Schools Board of Education voted 6-0 to begin the process to terminate Superintendent Keisha Scarlett "for cause."
Scarlett said in a written response Tuesday evening that she was "deeply disappointed" in the board's actions and plans to challenge the decision.
The vote came more than a month after Scarlett was placed on leave as the district became embroiled in transportation and budget concerns.
Per her contract, Scarlett has the right to request a hearing before the education board to contest the decision. Upon doing so, Scarlett would remain on administrative leave until the hearing, which would likely take place before the end of October, the board said.
"Now I think the only logical step is that we should see some resignations because you can't hold her accountable and then give yourself a pass for enabling and supporting the errors that she made," said Chester Asher, the founder of Coalition with STL Kids, an organization that has called for district accountability.
The district started the year with a surplus of $17 million in its general operations budget, but now is in a projected $35 million deficit. Mayor Tishaura Jones and other leaders have called into question pricey contracts issued in the past year overseen by Scarlett.
A state audit of the school's finances began in August.
"I did nothing wrong," Scarlett wrote in a response released Tuesday night through her attorney. "My leadership decisions were always made to benefit our students and community. When I arrived, the administration was in crisis with significant operational problems, student service deficiencies, and staff compensation disparities. After several external studies and audits, I focused on redistributing resources to support our mission more equitably. I communicated regularly with the Board about these needed changes."
Saint Louis Public Schools has also been operating under an emergency transportation plan since the beginning of the school year after its main transportation vendor canceled its district contract over the summer.
The district has been transporting students to school using limited school buses, Metro Bus, MetroLink and rideshare services, with some parents complaining more than a month into classes that their children still don't have rides to school.
"They only time they spoke out, up against it is when they were kind of caught with their hands in the cookie jar and it was reported to the public that there were some things awry in SLPS. Now they did an investigation of her and they fired her. Now there has to be resignations," Asher said.
The board appointed Deputy Superintendent Millicent Borishade, who has been acting as superintendent since July 25, to continue as interim superintendent through the remainder of the school year, pending the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education's approval certification.
Borishade does not currently have superintendent certification in Missouri, which is required for a district to have full accreditation.
