“Portland charter school, ousted founder settle legal dispute.” Maine Sunday Telegram
(ME), 4/10/2013
PORTLAND — Portland’s
first charter school and its founder, who was fired by the board of directors,
have settled their legal disputes, both parties announced Tuesday...
The school
and Jaques voluntarily dismissed the legal dispute with prejudice, which means
both parties agree not to file any further claims associated with the
dispute...
The board
of directors fired Jaques, who was serving as executive director, in March,
citing a pattern of financial mismanagement. Jaques countersued, claiming
defamation, and sought punitive damages.
Jaques said
the board fired him because a donor insisted on it. The donor confirmed that
he wouldn't have made a $250,000 donation if Jaques had remained
as executive director...
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A founder of Baxter Academy defends Jaques, disputes account of
his removal by current board, The Portland
Sun (ME), 3/28/2013
Earlier
this month, Daniel Amory admitted to the Portland Press Herald he and his
organization, the Jebediah Foundation, would not provide any more funding to
the academy as long as Jaques was in charge. Chris Jones — a former member
of Baxter Academy’s advisory board, a group of subject-matter experts lined up
to help the school’s governing board of directors — said in a written statement
submitted to the commission that, “Almost the entire advisory board resigned overnight”
after the dismissal of Jaques. “Looking at Baxter in the present time,
most of the founders are all gone; too ashamed to work with a school that has
become corrupt,” Jones wrote, in part. “The only people left at the school are
the board of directors. The very people who were bought out and told to remove
John Jaques. … The vision that the school has now is shrouded in lies and money.
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“Baxter Academy questioned by Charter School Commission.” WLBZ (ME), 3/25/2013
...Board
members also told the commission that any lawsuits that might come of this
dispute with Jaques will be covered by insurance and should not interfere with
the academic program...
But there
were others who were critical of Baxter's board. The charter commission
received letters from two former members of the school's advisory board, and
heard from a third. All were concerned that Jaques was fired at the wishes of a
donor, not because he was a poor manager. Former advisory board member Carl
Hesselbart said he didn't even realize he was no longer on the advisory board
because he hadn't heard anything from the current board of directors.
Hesselbart said, "because of everything that's happened, we don't believe
that this was the school we were supporting."
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