By JENNIFER SWANSON
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NORTH KINGSTOWN — School committee members addressed some public concerns and confusion Tuesday night related to a 5-1 vote of no confidence taken in high school principal Gerald Foley at last week’s committee meeting.

The vote of no confidence was followed by a 4-2 decision requesting Foley resign as principal.

The votes came on the heels of an auditor’s report that identified questionable spending practices and procedures within the high school’s activities account, an account managed primarily by Foley and former athletic director Keith Kenyon.

“The committee has not, and to my knowledge will not, be taking any additional action [against Foley]. The superintendent has not recommended any additional action, nor will the committee, to my knowledge, be taking any additional action,” school committee chairman Larry Ceresi said.

In an effort to clarify some “misconceptions” Ceresi said Foley “is not fired, has not been fired” and the school committee does not “intend to even have that discussion.”

School committee attorney Mary Ann Carroll said the committee cannot take any disciplinary action against school department employees without a recommendation from the superintendent.

“At this point the superintendent has no recommendation on the table, therefore, this committee can take no action,” Carroll said.

Carroll said the school committee’s votes last week do not equate to disciplinary action, “ they simply took a stand on the issue.

“Taking a vote of no confidence is not taking disciplinary action,” Carroll said. “Asking somebody for a resignation is not taking disciplinary action.”

Carroll said the committee was well within its rights to take the votes it took.

Committee member Doug Roth, who was absent from last week’s meeting and said he would have voted against the motions, disagreed with Carroll.

Roth said the committee’s no confidence vote and request for Foley’s resignation was a “form of punishment, it’s public humiliation. To say it was not an action taken by the school committee is outrageous.
“The school committee had no right to directly reference the principal in any way,” he said.

Ceresi said the decision to have a hearing before the school committee when faced with a disciplinary action by the superintendent is the choice of the school department employee facing the potential action.

Superintendent Dr. Thornton said prior to last week’s school committee meeting, he met with Foley and informed the principal of his proposed five-day suspension. Thornton said Foley, in accordance with his rights to due process, requested a hearing before the school committee to appeal the superintendent’s intended disciplinary action.

Thornton said similarly, Kenyon - who was placed on paid administrative leave by the superintendent in late August - also could have requested a hearing before the school committee to appeal the superintendent’s action. Kenyon, however, chose to accept the disciplinary action and, days later, freely offered his resignation.

Part of the committee’s decision to allow public comment during Tuesday night’s work session stemmed from a flood of e-mails and calls committee members received following last week’s meeting.

A group Facebook page dubbed “Save Mr. Foley” that started last Thursday by a North Kingstown High School student in support of the principal, had grown to include over 1,600 members by this Tuesday’s meeting.

Many of the site’s participants were high school students who supported their principal and expressed concern that the committee’s vote meant Foley’s resignation was imminent.

Matt Beatty, the school committee’s student liaison, was the only student to address the committee directly Tuesday night.

Beatty, who said he spoke on behalf of much of the student body and received applause from the small crowd in attendance, said “Mr. Foley represents to us what NK is.”

“He has a personal connection with NK,” Beatty said, adding that Foley made a sincere effort to become involved in student activities and their lives.

“I believe that [Foley] is a genuinely nice guy,” said Ceresi in a separate interview, “but we don’t have the option of picking and choosing who we’re going to enforce the rules with.”