Dr. Heatley Withdraws Orleans Job Application
[Updated: Board to meet with Dr. Heatley]
Bermuda’s Commissioner of Education Dr. Edmond Heatley has withdrawn his application for the Orleans Parish schools superintendent job in the United States, according to a U.S. news report.
Lousiana’s Times Picayune reports that, “Edmond Heatley, education commissioner of Bermuda, has decided he doesn’t want to be Orleans Parish schools superintendent after all.
“School Board President Nolan Marshall Jr. said he received word of the decision Monday. Marshall said the superintendent search firm did not give Heatley’s reasons for withdrawing.”
Dr. Heatley, an American, took up the post in Bermuda in September 2013 and last month it was revealed that he applied for a job as the Orleans Parish schools superintendent in the United States. He is reported to have attended the job interview in Louisiana earlier last month.
Further controversy arose when it appeared that on his application for the job he claimed to have “increased public education approval rates from 23% to 93%” while employed at Bermuda’s Ministry of Education.
Shadow Education Minister Walton Brown has called upon Dr. Heatley to resign, while Independent MP Terry Lister previously said that Dr. Heatley should be told to “get cracking”.
In response to our queries this weekend after Dr. Heatley’s job application was released, the Ministry of Education said that Dr. Heatley applied for the position without the Ministry’s knowledge, therefore they cannot “comment on, nor defend, the information contained in his application…”
“We can confirm that Dr Heatley began his employment with the Department of Education in September 2013. Dr Heatley is currently abroad on leave.
“The Ministry will meet with him on his return to Bermuda to discuss his application and the now publicly available information contained therein.
“The Ministry shares the concerns of the public and is resolved to address these matters in the best interests of Bermuda’s students.”
Update 4.09pm: A spokesperson from the Bermuda Ministry of Education said, “The Permanent Secretary has met with the Commissioner of Education. The Board of Education will also meet with Commissioner today.
“The matter is under active consideration. It is prudent to carefully assess the next steps for the benefit of the education system as a whole.”
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- Principals Vote “No Confidence” On Dr. Heatley | Bernews.com | April 3, 2014
So did he withdraw his application before or after he was told he was unsuccessful at interview?
Its a shame, I was really hoping he got the job and left Bermuda relatively unscathed. Now we may have to put up with his incompetence for some time to come.
I agree with you Bermewjan. I don’t believe he withdrew his application. I believe he was told he didn’t get the job so now he’s saying he withdrew his application. How you can anyone believe this many? He’s told so many lies.
@ LaVerne and Bermewjan…I agree with both! Either he failed to get the job or he did not realise his applying for other positions was made public!! He still must go!! Can’t handle the heat, stay out of the kitchen!!
SOMETIMES THEY WILL HAVE TO DECIEVE YOU LAVERNE
Just getting the update….late but still good…..
Well said @ Bermewjan and Mrs. Furbert.
He still needs to go, as his creditably is at an all time low. Why is Bermuda allowing such a man like this with little or no real honest level of commitment for our children to remain here? He does not have a serious invested interest in our children, but he sure does have it for the earning power he gaining. REALLY… If this is what the government thinks about our children, Well it is not good.
Duhhh lets see.. earn taxed US Dollars or a higher equivalent tax free….
American citizens are taxed on their worldwide income regardless of residence (i.e., he pays US federal income tax)
Yea, so life aint all that grand here for USA expats. We arent doing them any favors so we need to stop acting like they owe us. They can easily leave and take the companies they run with them. Oh wait, some already have.
They can all Get Cracken
Economic ignorance is bliss, eh kat? What’s the matter… did an American marry your cousin before you could?
Dont be so naive. Many that work here negotiate and build into their compensation a true up for that..
US citizens actually only get the first $100k tax free if they reside outside of the country for more than six months per year. Everything else they must pay taxes on. The offset is that Bermuda is twice as expensive to live in. It’s the corporations and shareholders that operate in Bermuda primarily for the tax benefits.
@ not quite…. that is not true. The first $90K – $100K ( not sure of the exact amount) is not taxed but any amount over and above is.
He had to be careful, he could have lost both jobs.
exactly. darn it. i was hoping to send him a farewell card.
bermewjan, what evidence is there of this ‘incompetence’?
I’ll guess none, but feel free to let us know.
Your joking right? His PR performance alone in such a high profile position is evidence of his incompetence. You have been keeping up on this story as it has unfolded right? If you do not consider his PR performance during his employment, i.e. his and the Ministry’s reputation being put at risk then you and I differ greatly in our views on values, morals and ethics.
So you think it’s unethical to apply for another job?
You think that if your employer finds out you applied for another job, that’s grounds for dismissal?
What has his ‘PR performance’, (i.e. the public lynching) got to do with his competence as an educational administrator?
Stop trying to protect and defend this nonsense by the OBAubp government and Ministers of Education, They made a bad choice, and that is the bottom line. Now trying to cover it up with silly excuse to suggest everyone can apply for a job. That is not the bigger issues here, it is larger than that. Stop with the foolish twist of an excuse, it will not work, and it sounds real foolish.
Thanks again @Bermewjan for outlining the real significance behind this situation. The real honest transparent government would let him go as Mr Lister has so clearly articulated.
You were on a better tact yesterday when you were less political Betty – but perhaps you are different today.
Interesting….better to withdraw after an unsuccessful interview and return to your lucrative Bermuda position relatively unscathed as opposed to formally being denied the job and then returning to Bermuda.
In this way, he can state the reason for his withdrawal is his immense dedication and commitment to Bermuda.
I have nothing personal against the man, but don’t we have an education system based on a British model?
Shouldn’t we hire someone who has direct experience with our system of education (i.e. someone who has worked in a British based school system)
@flikel. I totally agree. I do not understand why we are still getting people from the US when we have gone to the Cambridge system.
I dont think it is rocket science so why hasnt the Board of Directors been looking at the UK all this time?
Ok then. So any Bermudians working in education that were educated in the US should be fired and replaced with people who were trained in the UK system. Got it.
@ Suzie Quattro…..you have missed the point completely.
It seems she does so regularly and on purpose… just an observation.
I followed the “logic” in the two posts I answered.
“Exactly” said: “I do not understand why we are still getting people from the US when we have gone to the Cambridge system”. And the other guy said “don’t we have an education system based on a British model?Shouldn’t we hire someone who has direct experience with our system of education (i.e. someone who has worked in a British based school system)”
How exactly did I ‘miss the point’? I just took the point to a place that is inconvenient for you.
Not really.
@ Suzie,
You totally missed the point. We were talking about the commissioner, not the teachers. The Cambridge system is new and the education system is in trouble. Common sense says to bring in someone with experience in the Cambrige system to head it up.
This way they do not have to learn the system and they will have the experience to oversee that it is being tought and presented correctly.
Heatley, get cracking ! Bermuda we must keep this indecisive, imposter away from our children! This is certainly worth marching on parliament for!
This is too late. His credibility to lead the Department of Education is gone.
Those Officers at the Ministry need to get up off their butts and speak out as well. Stop sitting back and waiting for everyone else to fight their battle. Do they think they are safe, this issue has some long-term ramifications, and I think it will open up sooner rather than later. Why has the UNIONS been silent on such an important issue. Do they represent the workers or NOT. WHOSE interest do they represent? This is a matter that requires all to speak out loud on.
23% to 93% approval rating?
Well, that’s just an outright lie, isn’t it?
LOOOOOL
Poor us.
This is outrageous!
How can he expect to have the confidence of the Minister, PS, MOE staff, teachers and parents now?
If he has any integrity left after playing us for fools, he would resign forthwith!
He withdrew from the wrong job.
The key words are ” increased public education ‘approval’ rates.
This person needs to be told to get back on the next plane smoking when he returns by the Ministry of Education.
He should never have been given the job in the first place.
As`we all know,we don’t have an American Education system,the job should have gone to a Bermudian of which we have more than enough qualified people here.
should have hired a scandinavian
http://www.oecd.org/pisa/keyfindings/pisa-2012-results-overview.pdf (see pg.5)
Why are we looking at the U.S. or the U.K. models? Asian, Scandinavian, selected European…..or Canada if you prefer something closer.
Sven’s long gone and he’s not coming back.
“the job should have gone to a Bermudian of which we have more than enough qualified people here.”
As long as we want to carry on with the mediocre top-heavy system we have, we’re fine. If we want to change it for the benefit of our kids, we have to do something else.
putting this guy in the position didnt change it for the benefit of our kids!
but I agree with you,we have to change it,start with him first…out de door!..(please note the use of the word ‘de’).
No, you don’t agree with me. You want a Bermudian running it. I want the best person we can find.
Do you even live here lady ?!!
I do. Do you? If you do, how can you think all is well at the MOE?
@SUZIE, stop with your defending the government. They were wrong in hiring this man in the first place. Please do not give me that OBAubp excuse it was the board, and not the government, because his post is more of a Consultant position, the government/Minister did have a say.
The reality is the TOP-Heavy Ministry you talk about was made even more TOP-Heavy under the leadership of the current Dr. Heatley. He has developed a new Organizational Structure at the Department which includes bringing back into play several new post as well as former post that existed before. He has gone against the Hopkins report which indicated that the Ministry was too large to begin with.
Mediocre Top-Heavy Ministry is the work of your beloved Dr. Heatley. He failed to take the advice of some very qualified in the know Bermudians Educators, many whom have more experience in various areas of education than he does. I suggest you get some real information before writing nonsense.
The monies he spent on WAGES, which is the biggest area in which funding is used in Education, could have been put into direct delivery of services to schools and teachers and children to improve teaching, learning and student performance. ON the ground services directly to students should have been the key focus, not a Department that is so top-heavy and not required for Bermuda’s small size education system. Well I guess he had to say he did something in 6 months aha?
For years the moe has had hundreds more civil servants than teachers. It’s absurd. It’s an employment machine for incompetents.
Next he will take up a position with the COH. Seems well qualified & would fit in perfectly with them.
To Susie Quatto
If Mr. Heatley did in fact claim that he improved the public approval rating from 23 percent to 93 percent without being able to back that claim. I would say that is very good reason to question his competence.
On the other post from Susie. I can’t understand her the issue of mediocre top-heavy system unless she is suggesting that Mr. Heatley is the hatchet man that many originally feared.
If he claimed that increase in approval rating, I’d like to see an explanation. It does sound ridiculous. But, on the other hand, it looks like he made the claim on a private form for a job he is not interested in. It’s not something that particularly bothers me, honestly.
If you don’t understand the point about a mediocre top-heavy system, maybe you have no contact with the frikkin awful public education system in this country. It’s absolutely ridiculously awful. Incompetent and mediocre teachers and administrators are protected and their shortcomings are never addressed. That’s why most kids leave school are pretty much illiterate, and few of them can pass basic exams. They need a kick up the ass.
If he wasn’t interested why did he go on his shortlist interview just the other day?
Also, what proof do you have by saying “most kids leave school are pretty illiterate, and few of them can pass basic exams”? There are many public school students who go on to receive scholarships and successfully get university degrees. I would agree the system has some incompetent and mediocre teachers and administrators but there are just as many dedicated teachers and administrators.
Please don’t ask others for evidence and then post about administrators, teachers and students without evidence. Where is your evidence?
http://www.moed.bm/Educational%20Review/Hopkins%20Report%20-%20Education-Review%20of%20Public%20Education%20in%20Bermuda.pdf
2012 examination results.
In IGCSE’s :
Only 38% got grade C or higher in English.
8% got Grade C or higher in Math.
25% got Grade C or higher in Science.
Business & Technology – 8%.
It’s a disgrace.
The questions is: Is Dr. Heatley throwing that report in the water to sink. As he has gone against some of recommendations in the report to make things better with in our system. We continue to have reports done, ignore than and start over every-time a new person comes on board.
For starters:
1. He has made the Ministry TOP-HEAVY again.
2. He has failed to put into place: Direct services to students and schools
3. He has removed key persons from placements in schools..etcs….read on…
Hopkins report watch closely what Heatley is doing…we are going backwards, not forward.
While I am no fan or foe of Dr. Heatley, let’s report correctly. He hasn’t made the ministry top heavy again, as the top heavy infra-structure was already there before he came. The additions to the ministry occurred prior to his tenure.
Secondly, he has been the first in quite some time to have a decisive plan and start to put it into action. Just in case you are about to ask “what” . . .he has reorganized the ministry; identified administrators in need of professional development; begun the process of revamping special education; introduced audits to schools; begun the process of a parent university . . . to name a few.
Thirdly, there has been no removal of key persons from schools . . .the recommended professional development of ineffective principals has not occurred, as was planned!!
Albeit that there may be a great deal of doubt in our minds as a people regarding his commitment and what may be an exaggeration of accomplishments, give credit where it is due, and let’s not fall in the trap of making statements that are not accurate!!!
@Ms. Scott…You have it twisted.
1. Maybe you should look at the new post created under Dr. Heatley and it will reveal an increase in the number of staff at the Ministry. A little key bird informed me of the additional positions created, they even provided numbers. So I suggest you get your facts correct first. There is an increase. He has done nothing that improves the administration of our Education system. His only objective was to create a new organizational chart, which is chaos, and persons put under various job titles that even lack the experiences in the particular areas. Guess he had to say he did something in 6 months for his assessment period aha?
2. Identified persons for professional training, are those non-Bermudian professional whom are hired, and should not have been put there in the first place. Professional development for Bermudians is not something that ensures that they will move forward, and likely not in the areas that it is most needed.
3.Attempts to shift school principals was in the works. Some fought it, and so were not moved, as the Ministry once again failed to consult key persons. Furthermore, persons could not be shifted in the middle of the term. Yeah..
Lastly, this man does not have our children’s interest at heart. lets stop protecting him, as he will not protect our children in the end. The bottom line is he will not achieve nothing more than what has already been in the works. He will of course act as if he has. I do not mind giving credit where it is due, but lets be real about it first.
Betty, the moe is an employment machine for civil servants. It employs hundreds more civil servants than teachers. We need someone there to sort out the mess.
It’s for kids, Bettty. That’s what matters. Not the teacher’s union.
Yes Sandybottm, for once you and I agree on something, it is about our kids, and I am afraid many have forgotten that fact. Seems to about themselves moving forward first. Children maybe..?
That is 21 % left for basket ball.
The job application is NOT a private form it is a matter of public record and the New Orleans Board didn’t like any of the 4 interviewees and asked for more applicants…. he withdrew cause he knew he wasn’t wanted.
http://www.nola.com/education/index.ssf/2014/03/orleans_parish_schools_superin_1.html
Withdrawn, after he was turned down in the states!
He may be here a lot longer then he originally planned ! Remember , his plans and the plans the education board has for him are definently not the same .
the guy should just leave he is just shopping around for the best deal where ever it may be he should try Alaska maybe sara could get him a job
Wrong Frank – he should stay and get fired then we have to pay him out. What he has just doen is a very sound well thought out decision which may well benefit him well into six figures.
Whatever else you say, he is obviously not a stupid man. He may be the last to laugh – and be yet another man to walk away with our money.
I have said it before and will again.
His U.S. tax accountant probably advised him to keep the Bda job as he will come out ahead with his $98,000 exclusion from Federal tax working abroad.
Being on shore,his full pay package is exposed to U.S. tax.
His decision to remain,I bet is not for the welfare of Bda children,it is for his pocket book.
The Gov should take this opportunity to show him the door and get some one versed on the British educational system.
Just look at the American public system,it is in shambles.
He withdrew his US application because the salary isn’t as high as his salary here. I wouldn’t trust him to give me the time of day.
We forget about his bad reputation in other school systems.The color is slowly coming out of the wash. Our Government needs to wake the Hell up!
Seriously ..how hard is it to provide an education system? Teach English and Mathematics with competent teachers and have a system to make sure no kid falls behind. With English and Mathematics mastered all other subjects can be easily learned or understood.
The trouble arises when we allow kids to fall behind or lower our standard of passing. Those kids that cannot keep up should be given extra help (as much as they need)…and those that refuse to try lose their vacation time…and summer or two missed because of school will straighten them out quickly.
At the moment we have teachers that cannot speak proper English. This is one area I disagree with the push to make everyone Bermudian unless they are qualified to a high standard…we wouldn’t want poorly qualified doctors working on our bodies. So why have poorly qualified, uncaring teachers working on our kids brains???
Has anyone seen Dr. Heatleys Terms of Employment? He arrives in September is off island in December and is again on leave in March/April. All of this for a mere $190,000 per year. He is laughing himself all the way back to Louisiana? What type of leader (commissioner) blatantly lies on a job application? How can subordinates be directed by such an unprofessional individual? We are focussing all of our energies on this situation and once again Bermuda’s public school children are short changed. This type of mismanagement permeates the whole educational system. Will someone please make a decision.
Again, I’ll ask….do we really need an Education Commissioner? Abolish the position. No one can EVER agree on who is fit for the job and it always brings controversy.
You mean to tell me we need a Board of Education, an Education Commissioner, a Minister of Education, a PS, their staff under them, principals, head teachers, a lot of normal teachers, their teachers’ assistants, and God knows who else to run schools in Bermuda?
Grant Gibbons or whomever is the Education Minister of the week (plse lets not go back to Nalton), it’s time to listen to the people and do what we ask. We are ready for this position to be abolished! Let’s get back to the business at hand and focus on the classroom. To hell with Heatley, Mottley, or whatever you want to call him………..” Hit the road Heatley and don’t you come back no more no more no more no more”.
…..and the April Fool Award goes to Bermuda for Hiring this guy in the 1st place!
This to me seems to be a non issue…a distraction…way too much drama for too long…susequently the tenure at issue is becoming a mockery….where is the studio audience ?…and why isn’t anyone chanting “Jerry…Jerry…Jerry…”