R.D. Parker Collegiate principal Ryan Land received a public apology from School District of Mystery Lake trustees Sept. 28, nearly five months to the day after the same trustees gave him a "public rebuke" on April 27.
"At the public board meeting of April 27, 2010, the board found itself in the unusual position of dealing with a personnel matter in the public domain, and made a motion, as agreed to by the parties, regarding the contract status of an employee - Mr. Ryan Land, principal of R.D. Parker," said board chair Cheryl Davies at the beginning of the meeting. "All motions of a board require a vote of all trustees present, and may only occur if a quorum exists. Fundamental to the requirement to vote is the right and responsibility to discuss the matter before the board. However, discussion of a personnel matter in the public domain is inappropriate, and the board wishes to resolve any ill will arriving therefrom."
The floor was then ceded to vice-chair Rob Pellizzaro, who had been the main face behind the "public rebuke". "I want to apologize to Mr. Ryan Land for my comments made during the April board meeting," said Pellizzaro. "A public rebuke of a member of our staff is not appropriate at any time, and I sincerely apologize to Mr. Land and his family for any embarrassment I may have caused."
"The board recognizes again that the discussion of personnel issues in a public forum is inappropriate, and apologizes to Mr. Ryan Land, principal of R.D. Parker Collegiate for any embarrassment it may have caused him and his family," added Davies. "I also want to acknowledge that the board did not seek or have the concurrence of the Manitoba Teachers Society, or the Thompson Teachers Association to engage in a public discussion about a personnel matter regarding Mr. Land. On behalf of this board, we wish Mr. Land well as we move ahead into this school year."
On April 27, the board voted unanimously in favour of extending the probationary status of Land - who was hired in April 2009, coming to Thompson from Ghana, his latest among many stops in Canada and around the world - for a second year, a move the board acknowledged as unusual. At the time, the reason given for dealing with the matter in public was that it had been the source of constant public speculation, with citizens contacting Mayor Tim Johnston and asking him to take action against the school board.
Having been advised not to attend the Sept. 28 meeting, Land was not in the audience as the apology was delivered.
