Note: Prescott School Missoula has decided to publish this document titled, "Naomi Kimbell: From MCPS Trusee to Executive Director of Missoula International School" which was written in approximately 2009. The document was written during the discussions of the FIRST extension of the lease of Prescott School to Missoula International School.
This information is important to understanding why Missoula International School is located in Prescott School and why Naomi Kimbell could have been the most important MCPS Trustee in the 2004 closure of three northeast schools. Did Naomi Kimbell have prior knowledge of her future employment with Missoula International School before her votes on the school closures and on the lease of Prescott School to Missoula International School? Although many citizens have concluded in their own minds that the answer is yes, this subject has never been legally addressed.
Part One
Naomi Kimbell: From MCPS Trustee to Executive Director of Missoula International School
Preview: The following dates and information reveal the relationship between former Missoula County Public School Trustee Naomi Kimbell (2002-2004) and the Missoula International School. As the district has now obtained an appraisal of Prescott School and is in the process of extending the lease to Missoula International School, the information in this document becomes more relevant. The public expects trustees to use sound reasoning skills, common sense, and professional demographic information to help guide them in their decision-making regarding school closures. Was this the case in the process of closing Prescott Elementary School along with two other northeast Missoula schools and the subsequent leasing of Prescott in 2004? Or, did other less honorable factors and perhaps illegal actions take precedence in the outcome of this closure/lease scenario? Since there are questions regarding past and present trustee actions, there needs to be a moratorium on any property decisions regarding Prescott School including the extension of the lease or selling the school.
Beginning Summary: While serving on the Missoula County Public School Board, Trustee Naomi Kimbell voted to close three schools on March 24, 2004: Rattlesnake Middle School, Prescott Elementary School in the Rattlesnake Valley, and Mount Jumbo Elementary School in East Missoula (vote was 4-3). At the June 8, 2004, School Board meeting Trustee Kimbell voted to lease Prescott School to the private Spanish-immersion school, Missoula International School (vote was 4-1 with 2 abstaining).
The closure issue
was repeated at the July 13th Board meeting, complying with an Open
Meeting Law lawsuit filed a month after the March school
closures, with the addition of three new board members. Once again, Kimbell
voted to close the three schools, this time with a 6-1 outcome favoring
closure. Subsequently, as reported in a Missoulian article August 3, 2004, she became employed as executive director of
Missoula International School, ultimately taking
advantage of her 3 votes on this issue. A quote from the article states,
"While on the board, Kimbell was part
of the decision-making process to close Prescott School and also to
rent it to the Missoula International School."
2. March 24, 2004 - Trustee Naomi DeMarinis (later Naomi Kimbell) voted to close Rattlesnake Middle School, Prescott Elementary School, and Mt. Jumbo Elementary School at 1:30 a.m. (vote was 4-3). North side residents reeled in disbelief as the
decision was made after only 48 days of deliberation. Many people thought the small cost savings, if any, did not justify the major disruption the decision would cause.
3. March 25, 2004 - Missoulian article by Jane Rider - "Jumbo, Prescott schools closed" - A statement regarding Naomi Kimbell's [DeMarinis] comments - "Trustees then bogged down in nearly two hours in what was DeMarinis [Kimbell] called "stream-of-consciousness budgeting" in which they attempted to find various places to trim to produce a balanced budget." Trustee Suzette Dussault states in the article. "The decision tonight is enormously harmful to our kids. It's not in the long-term interest of the district."
Note: The meeting to close the three schools began at 7:00 p.m. and ended at 1:00 a.m., a six hour meeting! Many citizens think that three hours is the maximum time limit on meetings to allow for good decision-making.
4. April 21, 2004 - Missoula International School sent a letter to the district requesting to lease school space. Sentences in the letter read, "MIS understands that some educational space may be available in the Missoula County School District. Specifically, MIS is interested in leasing Prescott Elementary School for a minimum of two years. MIS would welcome the opportunity to discuss the terms and conditions of leasing Prescott Elementary with the Finance and Operations committee and /or the MCPS Board of Trustees. We look forward to reaching an agreement that benefits MCPS, MIS, and the Missoula community." The letter also states, "MIS owns a building at 518 South Avenue West where the preschool and kindergarten classes are currently held. In addition MIS leases space from the University Congregational Church on University Avenue where the first, second, and third grades are taught."
Time Line:
1. 2002-2003 - In May 2002 Naomi DeMarinis (later Naomi
Kimbell) was elected to the Missoula County Public School Board. In 2003
the Prescott School closure issue went before the school board with Kimbell voting for the closure
prior to the May School
Board election; however, after the election she joined other pro-Prescott trustees, along with a new trustee, and changed her mind voting to re-open the school (vote was 5-2).
Board election; however, after the election she joined other pro-Prescott trustees, along with a new trustee, and changed her mind voting to re-open the school (vote was 5-2).
2. March 24, 2004 - Trustee Naomi DeMarinis (later Naomi Kimbell) voted to close Rattlesnake Middle School, Prescott Elementary School, and Mt. Jumbo Elementary School at 1:30 a.m. (vote was 4-3). North side residents reeled in disbelief as the
decision was made after only 48 days of deliberation. Many people thought the small cost savings, if any, did not justify the major disruption the decision would cause.
3. March 25, 2004 - Missoulian article by Jane Rider - "Jumbo, Prescott schools closed" - A statement regarding Naomi Kimbell's [DeMarinis] comments - "Trustees then bogged down in nearly two hours in what was DeMarinis [Kimbell] called "stream-of-consciousness budgeting" in which they attempted to find various places to trim to produce a balanced budget." Trustee Suzette Dussault states in the article. "The decision tonight is enormously harmful to our kids. It's not in the long-term interest of the district."
Note: The meeting to close the three schools began at 7:00 p.m. and ended at 1:00 a.m., a six hour meeting! Many citizens think that three hours is the maximum time limit on meetings to allow for good decision-making.
4. April 21, 2004 - Missoula International School sent a letter to the district requesting to lease school space. Sentences in the letter read, "MIS understands that some educational space may be available in the Missoula County School District. Specifically, MIS is interested in leasing Prescott Elementary School for a minimum of two years. MIS would welcome the opportunity to discuss the terms and conditions of leasing Prescott Elementary with the Finance and Operations committee and /or the MCPS Board of Trustees. We look forward to reaching an agreement that benefits MCPS, MIS, and the Missoula community." The letter also states, "MIS owns a building at 518 South Avenue West where the preschool and kindergarten classes are currently held. In addition MIS leases space from the University Congregational Church on University Avenue where the first, second, and third grades are taught."
Note #1: There
is a discrepancy between the MIS letter and district records as to the length
of time requested for a lease. As listed
above in #4 the Missoula International School sent a letter on April 21st
to the MCPS offices expressing interest in leasing Prescott School for a minimum of two years.
The
district records as stated above state that the private school requested a
lease for the 2004-2005 school year. This discrepancy would have not been noticed
by citizens that did not receive a packet for the meeting. In fact, a citizen asking the district for a
copy of the MIS letter a few years later and was surprised at this discrepancy
as she had printed a flyer with erroneous information because of it. This discrepancy was perhaps unintentional;
however it conveys that the private school wanted a longer term lease than
described in district records.
Note #2: Leasing public school space to a private school does NOT benefit the public school system as private schools are in direct competition with public schools. Additionally, a long-term lease without an opt-out provision harms the Missoula community as it diminishes classroom capacity throughout the school district making the school unavailable when needed for public school children or other district needs. A lease definitely benefits MIS, however, as they have use of a valuable school, which the private school could NEVER have obtained in the private sector. Moreover, the huge upgrade in MIS facilities has undoubtedly contributed to the doubling of MIS enrollment (from 70 to 140 students, benefiting MIS), however, diminishing district monies due to per-student state funding.
5. April 24. 2004 - A lawsuit was filed against Missoula County Public Schools due to Open Meeting Law violations during the budgeting process for the closures by plaintiffs Molly Moody and Allan Oines (filed 30 days after the March 24, 2004 closure decision).
Just thinking.... (in 2012)
Doesn't it seem a little odd that Missoula International School swooped in to write a letter expressing interest in Prescott School so soon after it closed. The MIS letter and request was addressed at the first possible (given that the issue had to be placed on an agenda) Finance and Operations Committee Meeting after the closures. Doesn't it also seem odd that they were the only entity to inquire about the school in writing? (Perhaps there were other entities interested in the Prescott space of which the public is unaware.) The above circumstances and others tend to make one think about the possibility that the closure was a set up for the future lease of Prescott School to MIS. Moreover, was the closure of Roosevelt a set up for the future lease of Missoula Catholic Schools? Roosevelt was leased to the Catholic Schools shortly after it's closure. Additionally, both of these schools leased the perfect school to fit their needs. With disloyal Trustees on the MCPS School Board willing to lease a public school to a private school this scenario seems a possiblility. Again, just thinking.....
Note #2: Leasing public school space to a private school does NOT benefit the public school system as private schools are in direct competition with public schools. Additionally, a long-term lease without an opt-out provision harms the Missoula community as it diminishes classroom capacity throughout the school district making the school unavailable when needed for public school children or other district needs. A lease definitely benefits MIS, however, as they have use of a valuable school, which the private school could NEVER have obtained in the private sector. Moreover, the huge upgrade in MIS facilities has undoubtedly contributed to the doubling of MIS enrollment (from 70 to 140 students, benefiting MIS), however, diminishing district monies due to per-student state funding.
5. April 24. 2004 - A lawsuit was filed against Missoula County Public Schools due to Open Meeting Law violations during the budgeting process for the closures by plaintiffs Molly Moody and Allan Oines (filed 30 days after the March 24, 2004 closure decision).
End of Part 1
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Note: As this is quite a long document in an attempt to provide a more detailed account of the closure/lease issue in 2004, psm has decided to divide the document into six parts.
Just thinking.... (in 2012)
Doesn't it seem a little odd that Missoula International School swooped in to write a letter expressing interest in Prescott School so soon after it closed. The MIS letter and request was addressed at the first possible (given that the issue had to be placed on an agenda) Finance and Operations Committee Meeting after the closures. Doesn't it also seem odd that they were the only entity to inquire about the school in writing? (Perhaps there were other entities interested in the Prescott space of which the public is unaware.) The above circumstances and others tend to make one think about the possibility that the closure was a set up for the future lease of Prescott School to MIS. Moreover, was the closure of Roosevelt a set up for the future lease of Missoula Catholic Schools? Roosevelt was leased to the Catholic Schools shortly after it's closure. Additionally, both of these schools leased the perfect school to fit their needs. With disloyal Trustees on the MCPS School Board willing to lease a public school to a private school this scenario seems a possiblility. Again, just thinking.....
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