OhioMBE Publisher
By Ronda Watson Barber
OhioMBE Publisher
I had a horrible encounter with the Columbus City Schools Capital Improvements Karen recently. I called the office to notify and inquire about an error on a construction document. CI Karen went off. It was reminiscent of the recent US Supreme Court confirmation hearings for Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson. She was yelling and interrupting me. She was rude and unprofessional. CI Karen was not a good ambassador for the district. When I could finally get a word in, I responded, “Who do you think you are talking to? I am a community member calling on behalf of a LEDE vendor.”
I requested to speak with her boss. He was not available. I asked to speak with the demoted COO who still oversees the department. He returned my call. He listened to the issue and told me to contact her immediate supervisor. I penned him a letter and cc’d the entire elected board. The board president did respond back and asked me to keep her in the loop.
I received a note from CI Karen’s supervisor. He attempted to blame me. He only acknowledged my complaint about her actions at the bottom of the email. He indicated this was a learning experience and he would speak with her. I didn’t get an apology or anything. Their actions are entirely unacceptable, mainly when the drawings are incorrect. The error was verified by her boss and the project was rebid. What grown woman needs to be told how to act in 2022, particularly with Black people in an urban school district?
If a Black woman had acted combatively and unprofessionally with a white woman, I wonder if the response would be the same? My life experience says no. Swift and immediate action would be taken. As a professional Black woman, I am accustomed to micro-aggressions from white people. It is not acceptable. I will call you on it.
I have stated to both President Adair and CI Karen’s immediate supervisor that my bad experiences with white CCS staff aren’t uncommon. I find more often than not that many white employees think that because they work for a poor urban school district populated primarily by Black children, they can act, say and do whatever they want. They don’t believe they have to work professionally because of the population and community they serve. There doesn’t appear to be any accountability for their actions. They behave poorly towards the district’s constituents and then take their paychecks and other district riches home to other communities. Poor Black children are subsidizing the education of working and middle-class families in the suburbs. Many district employees live high on the hog at the expense of Black children.
I have never seen a taxpayer-financed organization maltreat the public. There is the staff who won’t pass out their business cards. Some directors won’t meet with LEDE vendors. Many act as those we, the community, should be honored that they are assisting us.
The Columbus Board of Education cannot ask for a tax levy until community relations improve. Black women are Columbus City Schools’ most significant stakeholders. Perhaps CI Karen and her counterparts should be required to take a comprehensive course in diversity and implicit bias. If they treat adults this way, I wonder what is happening with our babies.
Just my thoughts…
