An Award, My Foot; a Sharp Kick in the Rear Is More Like It

From La Gaceta:

Former Hillsborough County School Superintendent Earl J. Lennard will receive the Ellsworth G. Simmons Good Government Award from the county commission on Wednesday, April 15, at 9am. He's being honored for 41 years spent improving government through leadership and vision.

To all county commissioners:

I protest the inappropriateness of the award to Dr. Lennard. He did not enhance good government. He degraded it.

Dr. Lennard conducted the savage campagain against former school administrator Erwin in the early 90's after Erwin unearthed graft, rigged bids, substandard school construction rubberstamped by the administration and board, and outright stealing of county money.

Erwin asked Dr. Lennard and the board to do something about the crime.

Dr. Lennard and his cohorts launched into cover-up mode. They tried to shut Mr. Erwin up by calling him crazy and conducting a campaign of savage harassment against him to convince him that he was wrong, that there was no problem with graft, rigged bids, substandard school construction, and stealing of school funds.

After two years of taking this punishment with board and administration in league against him, Mr. Erwin filed a whistleblower law suit.

He won it in a jury trial with the board and administration defended by Thomas Gonzalez, board attorney. His firm has held the board-attorney sinecure for 37 years via good ol' boy collusion. The firm did an inept job of defense. Mr. Erwin's attorney did a thorough job of bringing all the evidence of harassment against the board and administration.

Mr. Erwin got a $165,000 settlement for the school board's and administration's criminal conduct and left the hell hole of the Hillsborough County administration for retirement in Georgia.

The taxpayers funded the criminal behavior of the board and administration. The board and administration closed ranks. After they had crucified Mr. Erwin, they hunkered down and punished nobody involved in the crime, not even the guy named McClelland, head of the grounds department, who bragged he got rich on the taxpayer. The only person the board and administration punished was Mr. Erwin in his crucifixion for exposing the crime.

Dr. Lennard does not deserve an award. He deserves a kick in the pants for disgracing the schools with his collusion and likely profit from graft that he presided over and defended against the man who unearthed it: Mr. Erwin.

Lee Drury De Cesare

15316 Gulf Boulevard 802

Madeira Beach, FL 33708

tdecesar@tampabay.rr.com

Hillsborough County Public Schools, Florida USA

AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER

Oh, sure

Ms. Cobbe: I understand that Dr. Hamilton is paid $96,000 for his job as lobbyist--up from the $65,000 for his first job of lobbyist. I want as public information the ad used to advertise this job; the applicants' applications, the job description, the day Dr. Hamilton was hired for the new job, whether the job was approved by the board in such difficult financial times when its members are furloughing teachers. lee drury de cesare