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Magdalena School board voted not to renew Superintendent Dr. Glenn Haven’s contract on January 20. In a 3-2 vote, Board President Lynn Major, board members Rachel Montoya and Sharon Harris were against the renewal, with Kelby Stephens and Brett Bruton in favor.
Before the decision, board members went into executive session to discuss the status of a Title IX investigation, New Mexico Schools Superintendents v. Public Education department litigation, an evaluation of the superintendent’s performance, and a review of the superintendent’s contract.
“We attended executive session with our attorney, and number one was the investigation. It was outside. The investigation has been completed, and all necessary actions have been taken,” Major said.
Major confirmed later in an email that the investigation was formally listed on the agenda as an investigation between a coach and a student that began in September.
The parents of a student-athlete spoke up during public comment at the September 16 Magdalena School Board meeting. They alleged that football coach Carlett “Danny “Daniels made inappropriate sexual remarks about their son.
A public record request made by the EDC regarding the investigation was confirmed by the school district with a deadline of February 11.
“The third one on there (in executive session) is to review the renew the superintendent contract. And we need to take a vote on that. It’s action item. We’ll do individual votes.” Major said.
There was no discussion or comments made by board members about the vote not to renew Haven’s contract.
Financial audit report
De’Aun Willoughby, a certified public accountant, gave the board a 2023-2024 financial audit presentation.
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She reported that the district had a very strong financial position, with $4.6 million in the bank and $9.5 million in capital assets.
“Your change in net position which is like your net income for this district is 4.4 million. Did you realize three years ago it was negative? That’s how incredibly good you guys are doing,” Willoughby said, “This is the first time you have a positive net position, positive equity in your district. So, you just had an incredible year.”
She recommended the district secure additional bank deposit pledges and ensure purchase orders were in place before any purchases. Willoughby also addressed issues with non-exempt employee stipends and suggested a method to keep track of work hours.
“If you have a non-exempt employee who becomes a coach, it becomes a real problem because I don’t know if you know it but coaches put in a lot of time," Willoughby said, “Whenever they work more than 40 hours a week and you run a real high risk when you allow a non-exempt employee a stipend."
The next school board meeting was scheduled at 6 p.m. on February 24 due to February 17 being a holiday.
