As posted in the Pioneer Press 5 minutes ago!
St. Paul Public Schools Superintendent Joe Gothard has fired his finance chief,
Marie Schrul, whose transparency about the districtâs missteps made her popular
with district watchdogs but less so among fellow administrators.
Schrul, 49, started working for the district in 1998 as an accountant, rising
to controller and then chief financial officer in 2014. Her most recent title
was chief of finance and business affairs, one of five positions on Gothardâs
senior executive leadership team.
The district on Aug. 24 listed an opening for a new position, executive chief
of financial services, and Gothard told Schrul on Monday she was not chosen.
Gothard told employees on Wednesday the new job â which was open for just five
days â went to Tom Sager, business services director for Mankato Area Public
Schools.
Sager, along with a new human resources director, âwill be instrumental in
propelling our district forward and streamlining internal processes to center
equitable teaching and learning as our primary focus,â Gothard said in the
announcement. âIâd like to thank Marie Schrul for her years of service as CFO.â
In response to an interview request Wednesday, district spokeswoman Erica
Wacker said Gothard was ânot available to discuss personnel matters.â
Schrul said in a brief interview Wednesday that her dismissal was âpretty
traumatic,â adding that it was not for âperformance reasons.â She declined
further comment after speaking with an attorney.
STAFF âIN MOURNINGâ
Business office management assistant Laurie Niblick called Schrul one of the
best bosses sheâs worked for.
âThis was an absolute slap in the face to us in the business office,â she said
Wednesday morning. âThere are just a lot of people in mourning.â
Niblick said Schrul has raised concerns about overspending on construction
projects and questionable spending by the nutrition department, but district
leaders never seemed to prioritize doing anything about it.
Arleen Schilling, a Schrul ally who recently retired as controller, said
Gothard didnât like Schrulâs insistence that the district follow state and
federal regulations when spending public money.
âThe reason Marie is gone is because sheâs insisted on compliance,â Schilling
said. âShe upheld the highest ethical standards, and it is a complete shock
that she has been removed.â
Joe Nathan, who served with Schrul on a now-defunct budget advisory committee,
called her âa model of transparency, clarity and integrity.â
âThere were some things that some administrators were not eager to share, and
she made sure that members of the committee ⌠had the information,â he said.
âThat did not always make her popular at 360,â Nathan said, referring to the
address of the districtâs central office on Colborne Street.
SPENDING QUESTIONED
About the time Gothard was hired as superintendent in 2017, Schrul and others
working in district finance were clashing with then-Facilities Director Tom
Parent over some high-cost school construction projects he was moving forward,
without the necessary financing in place.
A consultantâs subsequent review found a pervasive lack of coordination and
communication between the facilities and finance departments. While Schrul now
is out of a job, Parent recently was promoted to executive director of
operations and administration.
Schrulâs finance office also closely watched how the nutrition services
department spent federal funds during the coronavirus pandemic.
Last year, due in part to a special forensic accounting review initiated by the
finance office, the district was forced to transfer $1.9 million from its
general fund to the food service fund to cover improper spending. Some of that
was for continuing to pay salaries and benefits for hundreds of employees who
stopped working once the schools closed in 2020.
More recently, Schrul has warned that Gothardâs school construction campaign â
inherited from predecessor Valeria Silva â is rapidly racking up debt. She told
the school board in May that by 2026, the districtâs total outstanding debt is
projected to reach $860 million, up from $393 million a decade prior, which
will mean higher taxes on property owners.
Schilling said Gothard picked a bad time to replace his finance chief. The
annual audit is underway, and the district must certify next yearâs property
tax levy by Sept. 30.
Under Schrul, the St. Paul district routinely has been recognized by the
Minnesota Department of Education for timely and accurate financial reporting.
Schilling isnât convinced that will happen this year.
âYou donât fix something that isnât broken,â she said. âRight now in the
district, thereâs a whole lot that needs to be fixed. Finance wasnât one of
those things.â
Where is Al Ortwig or Tom Conlon when we need them! Corruption at it's finest!
We need some Republicans to hold these Democrats accountable! Shameful
government!
John Krenik
St. Paul, Minnesota