Cleveland ISD superintendent retains position amidst heated board meeting

The Cleveland ISD special-called board meeting on July 30 was marked by intense debate as four trustees sought to terminate Superintendent Stephen McCanless. Opting to have the discussion in open session rather than executive session, as was his right, McCanless, who has been with the District for 11 years, the last three as superintendent, allowed the large crowd in attendance to hear the complaints against him directly from the four board members.

Leading the push against McCanless was Wendy McNair, who criticized him for allegedly allowing his wife’s company to be hired by the district and for his text communications with board members. McNair admitted to violating the Open Meetings Act through discussing matters in joint text messages with other board members.

“I’ll take responsibility for what I did in my ignorance, not understanding about electronic communication. I can take responsibility for that. But you, as superintendent, who is much better trained than me, should have known better,” she said.

She also raised concerns about disparities in rules for allowing students at Cleveland High School and Douglass Alternative Education School to walk during graduation. She also denied her sister’s employment and lack of promotion within the District as being the impetus for her actions, addressing criticism against her that was raised during the public comments mentioned below in this article.

Jennifer Pena and Bethany Porter cited “district performance” as their primary concern, while Shaq Sampson added that his dissatisfaction was due to frequent complaints and what he sees as the superintendent’s failure to maintain relationships. Pena, Porter and Sampson are new to the board, having only been elected in the May 2024 election. McNair is serving her first term after having been elected in May 2023.

Financial Burden of Termination

Terminating Superintendent McCanless would involve several significant expenses:

• Three years of salary at $265,000 per year: $795,000
• Health, dental, and vision insurance at $13,127 annually: $39,381
• CISD attorney fees: $100,000
• Potential reimbursement of the superintendent’s attorney fees: $100,000
• Search for a new superintendent: $40,000
• Interim superintendent payment at $15,000 per month ($45,000 for three months during appeal)
• Potential loss of state funding during the contested termination: $556,254
• Total potential loss to the District: $1,645,635

The meeting on Tuesday kicked off with public comments, the first being from Chris Trittico, the attorney representing McCanless. He warned the board that if they chose to terminate McCanless without cause and without due process, it would be appealed and McCanless would prevail.

“I am going to start my remarks by suggesting to you, ladies and gentlemen, that what you are doing is wrong and unlawful. The Texas Education Code sets up a procedure whereby the employment of a professional employee can be called into question, and you have not done that. If you proceed with this tonight and proceed in a fashion that I believe you are about to do, the Commissioner of Education will reverse this,” Trittico said. “Our system is based on due process, notice, a right to be heard, all of which is rooted in the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and Article 1, Section 10 of the Texas Constitution. Those very things that you expect your teachers to be teaching to our youth, you are violating tonight with this action,” Trittico said.

Trittico detailed McCanless’s achievements, including successfully addressing a $9 million budget deficit, increasing teacher salaries, and managing the fastest-growing school district in the state. He also highlighted McCanless’s involvement with various boards and committees, emphasizing his dedication to the district.

The school district’s attorney explained that the board had four options: taking no action, buying out the superintendent’s contract, reaching a settlement, or proposing termination for good cause. However, making a decision to exit the superintendent was not on the agenda that night.

“There has to be good cause because we are in the middle of a contract. Second, the board has to take steps to propose termination for good cause,” the attorney said, laying out the process of an independent hearing examiner being appointed by the Texas Education Agency should the superintendent choose to appeal his termination.

“That independent hearing examiner would hold a mini trial. The school district has to show there was good cause to terminate the employment of a superintendent,” she explained adding that an appeal would take approximately three months, during which time the District would have to continue paying the superintendent his salary while also paying an interim superintendent.

Board President Willie Carter criticized the process that led to Tuesday’s meeting, stating, “First of all, our process of being here tonight, in my own opinion, did not happen in the right, correct, professional manner. The first thing that I believe should have happened, and it’s been alluded to, is that there should have been a conversation with Mr. McCanless as to what he is or isn’t doing to move this district in a forward direction.”

Rev. Travis Hulett, pastor of New Bethel Baptist Church in Cleveland, expressed his concern about personal agendas driving the termination.

“Because someone has an agenda and they whisper in your ear to make you believe what they are saying is true doesn’t make it true. A lost person can also lead another lost person the wrong direction. Don’t let other people think for you. I think the reason why we are here tonight is because one of you has an agenda and you have convinced the other three that you are right. And the other three followed you not knowing the intricacies of how things operate. So now you are caught in a dilemma that you don’t know how to get out of, but that’s all right. The thing I want to say to you is this: When you become a board member, it’s not about you, your feelings or emotions. It’s about the taxpayers. It’s about the kids. It’s about what it’s going to cost for growth and development,” Hulett said.

Suzy Little, a Cleveland ISD employee, praised McCanless for his dedication and contributions to the district.

“I find it off-putting that we can get rid of a superintendent so easily,” she said, advocating for a structured approach to addressing concerns with McCanless’s performance.

Chris Wood, former Cleveland ISD board president, also lauded McCanless’s commitment to the district.

“Mr. McCanless has been a great superintendent of Cleveland. He loves the kids. He loves the staff. He’s passionate about education,” Wood said, highlighting the challenge of finding a suitable replacement given the current shortage of superintendents in Texas.

Rev. Carl Williamson, former pastor of Calvary Baptist Church, shared a personal story to illustrate McCanless’s community involvement. He recounted how McCanless organized a prayer meeting following a student’s tragic death, showing his support and compassion for the community.

“For those of you who said he doesn’t care, his support was given, and his love was expressed,” Williamson said.

Williamson ended his comments by addressing the board directly, “Guys, you’re voting to represent our community. I will remember how you vote tonight.”

Former CISD board trustee Kelly Axton pointed to alleged nepotism and personal vendettas as the driving forces behind the push to terminate McCanless.

“What I’m sharing with you tonight is what I personally know, and none of this is hearsay. I feel quite sure that three of you board members most likely are not aware of what has been going on behind the scenes at Cleveland ISD. I’m no longer a board member so I can say that I can’t imagine you guys would agree to what’s happening right now. The whole dismissing the superintendent began when a board member’s family member did not acquire a position to be promoted in curriculum and instruction. This was even confirmed by the visit of this board member with the president of our school district one evening after a meeting, emotionally expressing Mr. McCanless was not appreciative of her family member’s value to the district,” Axton alleged. “The same CISD employee related to the board member has made it very apparent and quite clear to all of her coworkers that Mr. McCanless would be gone from this district within 30 days. Just when you think the situation with the board member and her family and employee couldn’t get any worse for morale within our district, it was brought to the administration’s attention that principals on campuses are not questioning any advice on curriculum from this employee who is a family member as she has mentioned on many occasions, and I quote, ‘Do you know who my sister is?'”

Axton called the situation between the board member and her family member as “out of control nepotism” that is occurring in the district.

In contrast, a former teacher from Northside Elementary criticized McCanless for a perceived lack of compassion following a tragic shooting that affected the district. She claimed that teachers were instructed not to show their emotions and that student attendance was prioritized over emotional support.

Board Vice President Amanda Brooks asked the four board members behind the call to terminate the superintendent what their plans were if they were successful.

“I think this is a bad decision and I am in support of Mr. McCanless. What is your next step? We have already talked about the financials? If he leaves tomorrow, what’s the plan? New superintendents bring in new people with them and we will be back in the same spot over and over again. People want a stable work environment. Put him on a growth plan. Do an evaluation. Follow it with proper steps before you say see you later,” Brooks said.

Marvin Searles, another trustee, said that he believes the district is in a good place partly because of the desire of employees to want to work for Cleveland ISD, which is a reflection on McCanless’s leadership.

After the trustees all weighed in during the open session, they left for an approximately one-hour-long executive session before returning to vote to take no action on the agenda item to terminate McCanless. Brooks suggested in her motion that the board and the attorneys meet in a future meeting to find the best path forward for everyone involved. Her motion was seconded by Wendy McNair with all board members voting unanimously in favor.

Humbled by the outpouring of support for him, McCanless, who remained quiet throughout the meeting, smiled when a cacophony of applause broke out as the decision was announced.

After the meeting, McCanless told Bluebonnet News, “I understand the board’s statement on miscommunication and I look forward to working with the board in the coming weeks and months to identify what the miscommunication was and how we can work together as a team to remedy those misunderstandings. There is one thing I want the board and the community to understand: My focus has been and will continue to be students. They come first with me and always will.”