The Paradise Valley school board in Phoenix has again taken a final unanimous vote to fire former South Bend Community Schools Superintendent Todd Cummings.
Cummings had appealed the board’s Dec. 2 vote to fire him, prompting a two-day closed hearing Jan. 22 and 23. At a special meeting Tuesday night they voted again, 5-0, after hearing what happened in the hearing from the district’s attorney, Susan Segal.
The South Bend board paid him a settlement to quit amid allegations of grade inflation. Segal said a hearing officer determined Cummings had lied on his application when he said he had not been bought out of his South Bend contract.
“An attempt to, for want of a better word, bamboozle,” Segal said.
As for Cummings’ performance in his three months before being placed on leave, Segal said the hearing officer believed testimony from Paradise Valley staff that he had violated policy and his contract, justifying his firing.
“He initiated a practice and pattern of incompetence, disrespect, disregard, rudeness, being just generally difficult to work with and being counterproductive to what the district’s mission was.”
Cummings did not attend Tuesday night’s meeting.
