Maria Goodloe-Johnson, Broad Superintendents Academy Class of 2003

Maria Goodloe-Johnson’s presence has been removed from the “Featured Alumni” section of the Broad Foundation’s website. For the time being, you can see the page HERE. 

The blog Seattle Education 2010 tracked Goodloe-Johnson's tenure and the associated controversies in detail.

The blog Schools Matter posted the scandal about Broad Resident Brad Bernatek, Goodloe-Johnson’s Director of Research, Evaluation and Assessment for Seattle Public Schools, in “Broad Alum Busted in Seattle Public School Scandal for Lying to Advance Corporate Ed Reform.” (November 23, 2010) 

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GOODLOE-JOHNSON OUSTED AS SEATTLE SCHOOLS CHIEF; March 2, 2011, Seattle PI (WA) 

The Seattle school board voted unanimously Wednesday to fire Superintendent Maria Goodloe-Johnson over a $1.8 million financial scandal involving a district business development program…

Since the board voted to fire Goodloe-Johnson without cause, she is entitled under her contract to severance pay of $264,000, a sum equal to one-year's salary.

Also shown the door Wednesday was Don Kennedy, the district's Chief Financial and Operations Officer. Like Goodloe-Johnson, Kennedy, who came from South Carolina, was fired without cause, meaning he must be paid a severance of $87,000 -- half of his annual salary -- under the terms of his contract.

School board members described the decision as a difficult one, yet necessary to restore the public and the board's trust in the school system and to change a management culture that bred an "atmosphere of fear and intimidation." Board members said it was important to act decisively and to refocus on the mission of serving children.

"What has occurred -- the financial scandal, the cronyism, the obvious lack of transparency -- is an insult to the taxpayers of Seattle. You pay your property taxes, you obey the rules. Others should do the same," board vice president Michael DeBell said…

Last week, the state Auditor's Office released a report saying Seattle Public Schools' small business development program had spent about $1.5 million for services with a "questionable public purpose" and $280,000 for services that were never provided…

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SEATTLE SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENT MARIA GOODLOE-JOHNSON SHOULD RESIGN; February 25, 2011; The Seattle Times (WA) 

The Seattle Times Editorial Board says it is time for the superintendent of the Seattle Public Schools, Maria Goodloe-Johnson, to go.

THE emerging details of the financial scandal at the Seattle Public Schools suggest one conclusion: Superintendent Maria Goodloe-Johnson should resign. If she doesn't, the board should fire her.

She was brought here from South Carolina in 2007 to fix several problems, the first of which was the district's lax control of its money. The latest mess shows the task has not been done.

The gist of the story is that several years ago the district was having trouble getting enough bids on its smaller construction jobs. It set up a program using capital funds to qualify minority- and women-owned contractors to bid. To run the program, the district hired Silas Potter Jr…

Potter's operation, the Regional Small Business Development Program, was run openly. According to the investigator, other district employees were appalled by it; they considered Potter "a con man" who was protected by his boss.

Goodloe-Johnson was higher up the chain and should have stopped it. It took a report from state Auditor Brian Sonntag and effort by the School Board to stop it…

Time for new leadership.

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SEATTLE SCHOOLS TEACHERS OK NEW CONTRACT, VOTE 'NO CONFIDENCE' IN SUPERINTENDENT; September 2, 2010; The Seattle Times (WA) 

Seattle Public Schools teachers approved a new three-year contract Thursday, clearing the way for school to start on time Wednesday and ending rancorous negotiations over the use of test scores in evaluating how well teachers do their jobs.

Seattle's public-school teachers approved a new contract Thursday, clearing the way for school to start on time Wednesday and ending rancorous negotiations over the use of test scores in evaluating how well teachers do their jobs.

Within minutes of that vote, nearly all the teachers and other Seattle School District employees at the meeting approved a no-confidence vote in Superintendent Maria Goodloe-Johnson — a symbolic move that reflects deep dissatisfaction with the superintendent's style and agenda.

In a flier handed out before the meeting, the union listed eight complaints — everything from budget cuts she's recommended, to the addition of new tests for students, to a state audit that found a number of problems with the district's control over its finances.

The vote was another sign that Goodloe-Johnson hasn't developed strong support among teachers in her three years on the job.

"We feel like we're engaged in a battle for our students and against our superintendent," said Aimee Hall, who teaches math at Orca K-8, an alternative school…

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