THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, February 17, 1996 TAG: 9602170305
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ALETA PAYNE, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: Medium: 95 lines
Apparently, Timothy R. Jenney doesn't scare easily.
Since he agreed in December to become the school district's next superintendent, the division's financial picture has worsened, one board member has quit and the rumor mill here has been churning, grinding out an image of him as a ruthless hatchet man.
And at his first board meeting Tuesday, also his first day on the job, administrators will present the district's proposed 1996-97 budget, requesting a whopping $34 million more than last year. The lion's share of that money will go to fund programs and positions that were not properly budgeted in previous years.
Jenney, who is arriving from Greenville, S.C., where he headed the state's largest school system, said this week that he'd been kept informed of developments in the district.
``I think it would be premature to say I have concerns,'' he said. ``I've been watching and listening and talking to a lot of people. I will evaluate it when I get there.''
Board chairwoman June T. Kernutt said she believes Jenney is ready for the job.
``I'm in contact with him and he has been aware of what's going on in the school division,'' she said. ``Although I don't think he can be fully prepared, I think he will be up to the challenge.''
When Jenney was hired, district officials knew they had to regain the public's trust in light of a $12.1 million budget shortfall from the 1994-95 fiscal year. They knew they faced an ongoing special grand jury investigation into the school system's finances and the challenge of trimming almost $6 million in expenditures from the current year's budget.
Since then, however, the revenue picture has worsened, leaving the district in need of up to $4.4 million to finish out this school year. The City Council has indicated that it will provide half of that money.
Meanwhile, the School Board's controversial 7-4 vote earlier this month to reinstate Mordecai L. Smith as the district's director of budget development on a probationary basis drew criticism from as far away as Richmond. It also prompted Susan L. Creamer to resign as the board's representative from the Blackwater borough.
Smith was the district's chief financial officer and director of budget development in the year leading up to discovery of the deficit and during the development of this year's budget. He had been on paid administrative leave since September.
As for the 1996-97 budget, Jenney said he has been kept informed of some of the numbers. While the board will receive the budget on Tuesday, most of the discussion will take place at a later workshop, after he has had time to study the document with school staff, Jenney said.
At $392.4 million, next year's proposed budget is $34 million more than this year's, likely the largest single-year increase ever. Of that additional money, $23 million will cover programs, people and services insufficiently budgeted in the two previous years; $8.2 million represents a step increase in pay for employees; $1.4 million is for hiring additional personnel to deal with enrollment growth; and $1.4 million is for new purchases, and new or expanded programs, according to Donald A. Peccia, associate superintendent for administrative services.
Jenney, who will be renting a home in the Beach with his wife, Becki, is also aware of the rumors that have circulated about his work in Greenville and his plans for the Beach. His 19-month tenure in South Carolina was rocky, due largely to a bitterly divided board.
Locally, word has spread that Jenney demanded that all Greenville district administrators and principals resign and reapply for their jobs. Board members, principals and administrators in Greenville say that is untrue.
Jenney flattened administration staffing at the board's direction, but everyone whose job was done away with was offered another position in the district, Greenville officials said. The only principals who had to reapply worked at the district's six magnet schools where all staff members reapplied to ensure that they wanted to be a part of the new program.
Jenney, who said he has not made any decisions about possible administrative changes here, realizes that he faces some challenges. But he's not put off by that.
``I'm used to controversy,'' he said. ``I hate to say that, but it's a fact of life.'' ILLUSTRATION: Color photo
Dr. Timothy Jenney
A CONVERSATION WITH DR. TIMOTHY JENNEY - He'll discuss his
background, philosophy and goals as he prepares to guide the city's
public schools. The schedule, on Virginia Beach access channel 48:
Monday: 8:30 a.m., 1:30 p.m. and 10 p.m.
Wednesday: noon.
Thursday: 7:30 p.m.
Saturday: 2 and 10:30 p.m.
Sunday: 11 a.m.
KEYWORDS: VIRGINIA BEACH SCHOOLS VIRGINIA BEACH SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENT by CNB