Dear Senator Domenici

There is an ethics scandal in the Albuquerque Public Schools. The leadership of the APS; the board, administration and Modrall, has abandoned their commitment to the Pillars of Character Counts. Although the pillars remain the higher standard of ethical conduct for students, APS Leaders refuse to hold themselves accountable to the same standard.

In your role as a United States Senator, the scandal in your hometown school district may be inconsequential. But as a founding father of Character Counts, surely you must be appalled by the egregious betrayal of the principles of character which you helped to articulate. I wonder why you have not spoken up in defense of the necessity of ethical leadership, particularly in education

My hope is that you are unaware of the depth and breadth of the scandal. The effort to cover it up is monumental.

In my effort to contact Albuquerque’s Character Counts Leadership Council, high ranking APS Administrators, Toby Herrera, Dee Dee Stroud, and Carole Smith, all members of the Character Counts Leadership Council, have apparently done nothing to inform their fellow council members of the scandal. What other reason could there be for the failure of the Leadership Council to intervene? Carole Smith, Director of the APS Character Counts Leadership Cooperative, not only refuses to respect the stakeholder rights of fellow members by sharing the truth, but refuses to furnish contact information for members in order that I may.

Lisa Breeden, Communications Director in your Senate Office, is aware of the scandal. As you know, she sits on the Character Counts Leadership Council herself. She has repeatedly refused to establish contact between the council and me. Perhaps she, the APS senior administration, and others like them, have kept the scandal secret from you as well.

I have received two letters over your name indicating that you had contacted both the APS and State Boards of Education asking for a response my allegations. The APS Board claims to have received no letter. I prefer to believe the assurance sent to me over your name. I have heard nothing from the State Board either.

I cannot suppose that you would have heard about the scandal in the news media because it has not been reported. You, like your constituents have been kept in the dark; deliberately. Perhaps it is because Paula Maes, School Board President, in her capacity as President of the New Mexico Broadcasters, is able to manipulate the media. What other reason could explain their failure to inform voters even through two elections, and most probably, through a third?

She is in fact the President of the Character Counts Leadership Council; yet that group is not on the record in response to their betrayal.

I am supposing that given the number of people who will read this post and can actually get face time with you, that I can be assured that you will be finally informed, that I will have broken the circle of those who are apparently denying you your opportunity to speak up.

The specific allegations of the APS’ culture of corruption and incompetence are fully covered in by blog and are substantiated by public records. As yet, not one allegation has been refuted with evidence or sworn testimony. In fact, none has been refuted at all

I would like to know the truth. Are you aware of the truth surrounding the APS Ethics Scandal?

A comment in response to this post will suffice. In that manner it will be public record. It will be posted on NowPublic and on my blog; Diogenes’six

Respectfully,
Ched MacQuigg