Common sense would indicate that whenever the District Attorney’s office investigates allegations of wrongdoing, it’s a big deal. The DA’s inquiry into the Franklin School District’s actions during the recent referendum campaign is serious business.
Some citizens were so taken aback at some of the strategies utilized by the school district that they took the time to file a complaint with the District Attorney. The sheer margin of the defeat of the two questions demonstrates that the community at large was not only unconvinced by the school district’s case, but found it to be very troubling, to say the least.
There’s a larger, more important issue at play here. Yes, the election is past history. But what happened can’t be swept under the rug and forgotten. Not when there was unethical behavior. When officials, including elected ones, are given the public trust, and that trust is subsequently shattered, those officials need to be held accountable. When a process or series of actions leaves the public with a host of questions, they must be answered. Otherwise, the faith that has been broken between education leaders and the public can never be restored.
The Milwaukee County District Attorney’s office has many, pointed questions it wants answered. The Franklin community deserves to know the answers because this is a very serious matter. The public’s trust in the officials leading our schools is in jeopardy of being lost. That is a very big deal.
The DA’s office wrote a letter to outgoing Franklin Superintendent Bill Szakacs requesting answers to specific questions. The letter is an open record. Here is the text of the letter:
April 30, 2007
Via Telefax & U.S. MailDr. William Szakacs
District Administrator
Franklin Public Schools
8255 West Forest Hill Avenue
Franklin, Wisconsin 53132
Re: DA Case No. 2007EL025-C
Dear Mr. Szakacs:
I am an Assistant District Attorney assigned to the Public Integrity Unit of the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office. This office has received a complaint alleging that School District resources were used to promote a vote in favor of two public referenda on April 3, 2007 concerning school finance. My inquiry is a civil, not a criminal, inquiry and its focus is the use of public resources to promote a YES vote on one or both of the referenda. I am at the fact-gathering stage of this inquiry. In this connection, I would respectfully request your response to the following questions and requests for information and documentation.
A. VOTE YES Flyer1. Please refer to the attachment labeled as Exhibit A. Is this an accurate reproduction of the School District’s policy on the distribution of printed materials through the schools?
2. Please refer to the attachment labeled as Exhibit B. When, if ever, did you first see this flyer (hereinafter “the flyer”)?
3. Who showed the flyer to you and under what circumstances did you see the flyer?
4. Did you see the flyer before it was mass-produced by the group headed by Mr. Todd Ahrens, the Franklin Citizens for Better Schools?
5. Who would you identify as the person from the Franklin School District who has the most contact with Mr. Ahrens concerning either (a) the contents of the flyer, (b) the placement of the words at the foot of the page, i.e., “This was prepared by the Franklin Citizens for Better Schools…,” or (c) the distribution of the flyer through the Franklin Public Schools?
Dr. William Szakacs
April 30, 2007
Page 2
6. Was the flyer, or one substantially like it, distributed to the Franklin School District students for those students to take home to their parents?
7. Please identify the person who received the flyers on behalf of the School District in anticipation of distribution to the students.
8. Please identify the schools where the flyers were distributed to the students.
9. Please identify the means by which the flyers were distributed from the central office of the school district to the schools you identified above.
10. For each of the schools identified as a point of distribution, who was the school district employee responsible for the distribution of the flyers at that particular school?
11. What was the means of distribution of the flyers at the individual schools?
12. How many flyers were distributed in all to students?
13. In how many classrooms were the flyers distributed?
14. I have read e-mails attributed to you wherein you wrote to parents that “this particular flyer was approved by our legal counsel.” Is this true?
15. If true, how much did you pay School District attorneys for review and approval of the “VOTE YES” flyer to be distributed to the students?
16. Were flyers distributed to the students that set forth a “VOTE NO” position as respects the April 3 referenda?
B. High School Assembly
I am advised that an assembly was held at the high school during which time students were given a presentation on issues relating to the referenda. With respect to that assembly:
1. Who determined to hold an assembly on issues relating to the April 3 referenda?
2. Who were the persons responsible for organizing the assembly?
3. Who were the presenters at this assembly as relates to the “VOTE YES” position?
4. Who were the presenters at this assembly as relates to the “VOTE NO” position?
5. Kindly identify all citizens or groups solicited to present a “VOTE YES” position?
6. Kindly identify all citizens or groups solicited to present a “VOTE NO” position?
7. Did the assembly presenter(s) utilize a PowerPoint presentation similar to that which the district published on its web site? (As requested below, please provide me with a copy of the presentation materials.)
Dr. William Szakacs
April 30, 2007
Page 3
8. Did the presentation to the students include a slide like this one I saw on the Internet consisting of the words, “EVERYONE WILL BENEFIT”?
9. What was the date and time of the assembly?
10. How long did the assembly last?
11. I am informed the assembly was for seniors only. Is this true? If not true, please advise as to the dates and times of the other assemblies for other classes.
12. How many students are in the 2007 Senior Class at the high school and, of these, how many were 18 years or older as of April 3, 2007.
C. Other Publications
1. Please refer to the attachment labeled as Exhibit C. Is this an accurate reproduction of a School District publication concerning the two April 3 referenda?
2. Please note the language from Exhibit C, “The District asks that if you approve the question on building the facility, that you also approve the additional operating funds.” Is that language not reasonably read as advocacy for a YES vote on one of the two referenda?
3. Please provide me with copies of all of the School District publications, presentations and documents which were funded by the School District and which concerned the two April 3 referenda. In this regard, I would prefer electronic copy in PDF format. As to any PowerPoint presentations, I will happily accept the PPT format.
4. Please describe how each publication was used. I would ask that you identify what means were used to publish each of the publications. I would also ask that you specifically identify the publications that were utilized at the high school assembly for the seniors.
Thank you for your anticipated cooperation. If you have questions concerning this correspondence, you may contact me at (414) 278-2178.
Very truly yours,
Bruce J. Landgraf
Assistant District Attorney
BJL/bl Enclosure
