They show Ellis-Stewart was initially concerned that the budget for Charlotte-Mecklenburg school board travel wouldn't cover the $4,800 bill, but signed up anyway. They show the Charlotte Chamber of Commerce, which sponsored the trip, spent weeks trying to get the money -- and that Ellis-Stewart told them a check was coming, even though CMS staff now say no check was sent.
The emails show chamber new york city travel guide staff urging Ellis-Stewart to consult Eric Davis, her predecessor as chair, on ways to find the money. They show Davis urging newly-hired Superintendent Heath Morrison to attend, and they show Ellis-Stewart new york city travel guide waiting for word on whether Davis would transfer his unspent money to her. At roughly the same time, they show Davis requesting a report on all members' travel spending and informing two colleagues that he denied Ellis-Stewart's request.
I requested the emails on May 21, two days after Ellis-Stewart and about 80 other community leaders boarded a plane that was delayed for hours by mechanical problems, leading the chamber to cancel the trip. CMS provided them Monday new york city travel guide at no charge, after telling me originally it would cost $855 for retrieval .
You can read them here , but there's a lot of repetition and it can be hard to sort out the chronology. The request was only for emails sent and received in May, but they include replies to prior communications, giving a fuller picture of the discussion.
Nothing in the emails provided shows how Ellis-Stewart new york city travel guide resolved that question. But a series of emails in March between Ellis-Stewart and Monson show Monson trying new york city travel guide to get Ellis-Stewart's registration and check, while Ellis-Stewart says she needs an invoice from the chamber to get payment.
On April 20, the day after the school board picked Heath Morrison as its next superintendent, Davis emailed English to ask for information on the London trip. He received an electronic brochure later that day and forwarded it to Morrison.
Whittington new york city travel guide then informed Ellis-Stewart that a board member had requested "an updated travel report" and she wanted to make sure she had the latest information. "Report will be coming to you, as well as other board members, shortly," Whittington added.
That afternoon, the chamber's Monson new york city travel guide emailed Ellis-Stewart to ask about payment: "Hi Ericka, sorry to bother you, but we still have not received your check for the trip to London. Would you please check into this for me?"
When the Observer asked for confirmation this week, CMS spokeswoman Tahira Stalberte replied: "Please contact Ericka about the email she sent to the Chamber. We can confirm that no check was sent to the Chamber from the district." Ellis-Stewart said Tuesday that it was her understanding that CMS had cut a check in late April or early May.
Ellis-Stewart boarded the plane, along with dozens of other participants, that Saturday. Lennon later said Ellis-Stewart called her that morning to ask about transferring travel money. That evening new york city travel guide she emailed Hattabaugh and other CMS staff, seeking more information about the budget and saying she was considering a small transfer to Ellis-Stewart.
I have received this type of request in the past, which I have always declined as I think each board member should be responsible for making good financial decisions regarding their travel new york city travel guide and the use of taxpayer money, Lennon wrote.
While most board members' emails were limited to bare-bones information, Stinson-Wesley, the board's newest member, proved the exception. new york city travel guide After the trip was cancelled and questions about travel spending were being aired, Stinson-Wesley sent her colleagues a 13-paragraph email May 25 sharing thoughts and questions new york city travel guide about allotments of travel money and talking time at school board meetings. She asked what happened new york city travel guide to unspent travel money and how freely board members should share their individual allotments.
"Is it better stewardship to spend fully what we have been allowed, gaining the knowledge that the money is supposed to pay for and sharing that knowledge with one another, or is it better stewardship to save that money and not use it at all?" she asked.
Stinson-Wesley said she didn't mind sharing some of hers but would like to get travel reports in return. She even suggested using closed meetings to share reports -- something that would not pass muster with the N.C. open meetings law, which limits closed meetings to a few confidential purposes.
The only response to Stinson-Wesley included new york city travel guide in the emails provided by CMS is one sentence from Vice Chairman Mary McCray: "Judy (Whittington, new york city travel guide the board clerk) can address your concerns with the allotment of money, so speak with her."
CMS is still the same CMS... Morrison is still the incoming Super... ..and the sun rose this morning. That London trip was and in the future will be, a waste of time and money. We all know anyone can justify anything if need be, so in the end, missing the trip was not detrimental to CMS.
Allow me to grant kudos to Rev. Stinson-Wesley, who many thought was selected simply to be a Democrat, sit quietly on the Board and vote with Ericka and Mary. Turns out, behind the scenes, she s asking questions that an outsider like her should ask: namely, How do we do things, Why do we do things this way, and Is the way we do things really in the Board s - and the District s - best interest? Brava, Amelia. More of the same.
Ericka Ellis-Stewart is about as incompetent new york city travel guide as anyone has ever been in any job. The woman is a trainwreck. new york city travel guide Yet, she s EXACTLY what this county wanted... ahh consensus ahh, getting along with each other ahh, how ****ing cute. Instead of electing people with a backbone, or the slightest ability to do simple subtraction, y all elected someone a few slices of bread short of a sandwich. If I was elected and was confronted with this situation, I d publically reprimand this poor excuse for a public servant, AND, if she went to London exceeding new york city travel guide her travel budget, new york city travel guide I would have gone to court to get a judgment against her for the amount owed.
Wiley- It does provide some value in that the Chamber can influence their decision with these vacations. You can see that from the emails as Eric Davis who went on the last trip with Chamber was selling this trip to Ericka. Its that terrible influence caught in the emails with English,Davis,Morgan,Stewart,Hugh that shakes trees. They dont care that it can come out in public either from their tones. A glorified vacation done on the backs of kids is what that is. Terrible conflict of interest that should be stopped. Keith W. Hurley
@12:49pm, Someone is obviously lying. Every one of us knows that you cannot get a plane ticket without SOMEONE having paid for it already. So who s lying? Ericka? The Chamber? Sheila Shirley? Hugh? Eric? I don t know the specifics, but the only way this story works is for someone to have paid for the ticket already. new york city travel guide And now they re in the middle of a beautifully executed cover-up Not that anyone asked, but here are my thoughts: Since Ericka told the Chamber that the check had been cut and Ms. Shirley would be sending it over, my money is on either Ericka and/or Ms. Shirley being in-cahoots over this payment. Either Ericka made up that story to keep stalling the Chamber, or Ms. Shirley made up the story, told it to Ericka, who then passed it along. Another possibility is that the Chamber agreed (off-line) to pay for the trip, expecting CMS to cut the check as reimbursement. This would be how Ericka got the ticket and boarded the plane, without needing the check from Ms. Shirley yet. But again, the ticket WAS paid for, as evidenced by the fact that Ericka was on the plane. Wouldn t it be great if the guilty party (or parties) stood up and took the blame for what they did wrong? It would be such a batch of fresh air for the guilty party(or parties) to own up to their deceitful activities. Maybe then I d extend an olive branch and try to start out with a new slate. Or maybe not. But the ball is in their court. I ll keep holding my breath that someone will do the honorable thing and fess up. Because like I tell my kids... if you ve done something wrong, you re already going to have consequences for it. But if you stack on a lie or two, you ll just end up in even MORE trouble. The one thing this Momma hates more than anything is a LIAR.
Whittington then informed Ellis-Stewart that a board member had requested an updated travel report and she wanted to make sure she had the latest information. Report will be coming to you, as well as other board members, shortly, Whittington added. new york city travel guide Who made the request? Ellis-Stewart asked. Eric asked for updated travel report, Whittington replied. Example # 1 of the complete and utter dysfunction of this Board. Why did Eric not ask Ericka, the Board Chair, to get this report (or at least cc every other Board member, to keep everyone in the loop? Why did Ericka not know about his request for this report? Why aren t they talking to each other, new york city travel guide instead of only to Ms. Whittington?
What kind of ticket was it? Refundable? Non-refundable? I have two non-refundable new york city travel guide tickets outstanding right now, in my name, but my company technically paid for the tickets. I will submit the change fee and whatever the difference in fare is the next time I fly. I pay for them on my credit card and submit the receipt on my weekly new york city travel guide expenses and get reinbursed. So, do we, the taxpayers, technically own that ticket? new york city travel guide If EE-S goes to a conference somewhere in the future, will she pay the change new york city travel guide fee to use it or will we, the taxpayers, have to pay the fee?
All the fees associated with the cnaceled trip were refundable. I agree with Christine its not that point , but the one that she would get on a plane not knowing who covered her expenses. She never thought it would be questioned or become public knowledge. Ann I would demand from Ericka or Sheila Shirley to produce a canceled check or CC bill. Someone covered this expense originally before she got on the tarmac we all know that. Who it was she was going to owe
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