The Wiscasset School Committee made a decision to terminate Principal Gina Stevens of Wiscasset Middle-High School following a two-day public hearing, which ended on Thursday. This decision came after weeks of intense discussions and debates in the midcoast community regarding her future.
Before the vote, committee members sat through over 12 hours of testimonies by witnesses summoned by both the school district’s attorneys and Stevens, who fought to keep her job. The atmosphere at times resembled a courtroom more than a school board meeting.
The hearings, held in the gymnasium of the district’s elementary school, marked the culmination of a series of tense events. Stevens had been placed on administrative leave at the end of October, and two weeks later, Superintendent Kim Andersson recommended her termination.
Based on an investigation conducted by the district’s attorney, Andersson claimed that Stevens had installed a hidden camera in a food pantry closet at Wiscasset Middle-High School without authorization. She also accused students of vaping without evidence, among other violations.
During the initial night of hearings, the school district presented its case for termination. An attorney called witnesses, including Andersson and staff members familiar with the camera incident. Special education teacher Lindsay Larrabbee testified that Stevens had yelled at her during a conversation, causing her to cry. Larrabbee was shocked to discover the camera, as two students had changed clothes in the closet while it was installed.
Stevens denied these allegations and her attorney, Gregg Frame of Portland, cross-examined the school district’s witnesses and presented some of his own. His witnesses included Jonathan Barnes, the school resource officer, Shari Templeton, a high school teacher, and Tanya Robinson, the former supervisor of the food pantry before the camera was placed there.
After the hearings concluded, the school committee voted to approve Stevens’ termination, much like a jury in a trial. School committee chair Jason Putnam stated, “Gina Stevens’ conduct has led to a loss of confidence by the superintendent and the school committee, and demonstrates a lack of fitness and ability to serve as an administrator for the Wiscasset School Department.”
Typically, such hearings happen behind closed doors, but Stevens chose to have her termination proceedings take place in public, providing an unusual look into the handling of the matter. About 70 people attended the hearings, with the majority being adults. The proceedings were also viewable online. Unlike previous meetings about Stevens, no one displayed signs during these hearings.
Throughout the controversy, Stevens garnered substantial support from teachers and parents who praised her for boosting morale and maintaining accountability in the school. Some school employees have threatened to resign if she is terminated, and in November, around a dozen students walked out of class in protest of her firing.
Reimagined By Digi Girl
DISCLAIMER: Author is under many pen names. This article was rewritten based on these links: Wiscasset school board votes to fire principal after public hearings (bangordailynews.com)
