MEMPHIS, Tenn — Transparency is important.
Bottom line-- you have a right to know.
At Local 24 News, our job is to get that information for you.
Collierville's parents and teachers have been concerned about coronavirus, but the school district is not making it easy for us to bring those concerns to you.
"We just play by ear because it's a day to day situation," said Martin Truitt, who's child attends Collierville Middle School. "Things could change tomorrow. there is supposedly a vaccine on the horizon, so that could make things better."
"As of right now, cases are continuing on the rise," said Truitt. "You have to just play it by ear. Go day by day. Pray for the best."
Parents like Martin, and many other parents of students who attend Collierville Schools are worried about the COVID-19 pandemic, and our sources within the district have told us teachers and staff are worried about it too.
During the current health crisis, there's probably never been a greater need for transparency in what public agencies such as our school systems are doing to protect the health and well-being of teachers, students, staff, and administrators.
Sources have been busy for months informing Local 24 News about COVID-19 cases and concerns within the school district.
Concerns and potential positive cases, dating back to July of 2020, the district was either slow to confirm or refused to confirm to us.
Local 24 News has an idea about what teachers and staff are saying about COVID-19 to administrators.
We received messages beginning in July, when we first attempted to confirm reports of student athletes contracting the virus.
We also learned about concerns which parents had about a possible spread because the high school football team shares indoor practice facilities with other sports teams at the school.
Many parents reportedly felt out of the loop.
We also learned the district’s teachers were reportedly concerned about sporting events, temperature checks, and what would happen if a teacher is forced to quarantine.
Sources also alerted us that several district leaders tested positive for COVID-19.
When we tried to confirm that with Hogue, he told us the district could not discuss, confirm or deny it.
In order to get a better idea of the concerns between Collierville Middle schools and the high school staff to the school's principals and the superintendent, Local 24 News filed a public records request to obtain emails dating back to July--- just before the school year began.
According to Mario Hogue, a district spokesperson, there were 54,837 hits--- a communication piece (email(s)) that meet requested parameters.
To find out what teachers and staff are saying about COVID-19 to administrators and the superintendent Hogue wrote in an email that it'll cost Local 24 News $3,050.15.
The costs breakdown like this: $1,513.60 for clerical hours, $302.72 for clerical benefits, like fringe benefits such as insurance offered to employees, according to Hogue.
There was also a $1,233.83 estimated charge to redact certain information from the emails, and stationery costs.
This estimate was despite our pleas to waive those fees in the public interest, your interest, to help you better understand what's going on within the district.
Local 24 News also reached out to the Collierville Education Association for a comment about the public records request. Jennifer Conti, the CEA President did would not comment on our public records request story, but she issued this statement:
I can confirm that I met with Dr. Lilly and Mr. Jones on Wednesday, December 2nd. This was in no way an unusual meeting as we meet monthly to discuss teacher and association concerns. We have and do maintain an excellent and respectful working relationship and although we don’t agree on all things, our goals are often the same.
The notes that you received, I assume, were mine but were meant only for our members as they included my personal thoughts and were in no way complete. I did encourage member questions to be sent to me if anything needed clarification, which I did do. Please keep in mind that as I present teacher concerns, often the concerns are not those that impact me personally in my teaching role and are not necessarily presented based upon member consensus. Rather, they are the combined concerns that have been given to me by individuals or groups.
The district was extremely proactive regarding access to PPE and cleaning supplies and I met with the district coordinator the following day so she could directly address those concerns, which I shared with association building representatives.
The Collierville Education Association advocates for public education and educators. During this difficult time, where often there are no great answers, we continue to work to ensure the health and safety of teachers and students, in partnership with Collierville Schools.
Local 24 News will stay on top of this story and bring you updates as this story develops.