Recent blog posts have shed light on how our School Board orchestrates public comments and brings in activists from outside the community to attend meetings. At our most recent gathering, prominent community activist Barbara Simmons, along with her partner Steve Nolen, made another appearance. The community should be aware that these activities have been ongoing for years, with the most notorious incident occurring on October 18, 2018. Circled in red, one of the audience members that night supporting this mission was current Pennsbury School Board President Joanne Steere.
The Save Gretzula Meeting
As public comments began, there were repeated attacks against the five School Board members who did not support Gretzula’s contract extension, leading to Gretzula hinting at his resignation. The majority of the vitriol was directed at Jacqui Redner. Redner’s personal character was attacked, along with her close relationship with Sherri Morrett, who eventually filed one of the EEOC complaints and received a $250,000 settlement. Perhaps the harshest public comment came from current Pennsbury Field Hockey Coach Traci Curtis, who accused Redner of using the recent suicide of two of her sons for personal gain, suggesting Redner had done so repeatedly and that it was not the appropriate time or place. The video of Curtis’ comments can be viewed below:
Public Comment Gone Wild
As public comments began, there were repeated attacks against the five School Board members who did not support Gretzula’s contract extension, leading to Gretzula hinting at his resignation. The majority of the vitriol was directed at Jacqui Redner. Redner’s personal character was attacked, along with her close relationship with Sherri Morrett, who eventually filed one of the EEOC complaints and received a $250,000 settlement. Perhaps the harshest public comment came from current Pennsbury Field Hockey Coach Traci Curtis, who accused Redner of using the recent suicide of two of her sons for personal gain, suggesting Redner had done so repeatedly and that it was not the appropriate time or place. The video of Curtis’ comments can be viewed below:
Deposition Reveals Another Side To The Story
After TR Kannan changed his vote to extend Gretzula’s contract, chaos erupted within the administration, leading to a series of EEOC lawsuits that Pennsbury eventually settled. Due to legal misconduct by Pennsbury lawyers, who illegally redacted Redner’s deposition from the Morrett case in the Shaffer case, the deposition became publicly available. It revealed disturbing details about that night and the blatant insensitivity of Board Members towards one of their own. Additionally, Redner described her conflict with Curtis, which involved her attempts to prevent Curtis from becoming the Field Hockey coach. A full copy of Redner’s deposition is provided below, where you can learn about her belief that this was a targeted and staged event aimed at her personally due to her firm stance against extending Gretzula’s contract.
The Need For Real Conversation
In her deposition, Redner described the staged actions as vicious attacks aimed at silencing and diminishing certain individuals. Due to FERPA laws, crucial information was withheld from our community, leading to significant misinformation by our school district leaders, seemingly driven by political motivations rather than the best interests of our children. Ms. Redner emphasized her efforts to protect the community from undisclosed information, suggesting that some were aware of Gretzula’s conduct and still encouraged attendance despite the allegations. President Joanne Steere has consistently voiced her support for the LGBTQ+ community, raising questions about her presence at the event to support Gretzula and her apparent joy in the video stream.
