School superintendent banned in NJ finds work in FL, brings banned colleagues with him.

[madfloridian]

Ex-Plainfield superintendent banned from N.J. schools finds new work in Florida, report says

Three charter schools in the South Florida counties of Broward, Palm Beach and Miami-Dade hired Steve Gallon III's company, Tri-Star Leadership, in June 2011, five months after Gallon was banned from working in New Jersey, according to a report from the Sun Sentinel.

In May 2010, Gallon and two of his assistants, Angela Kemp, 36, and Lalelei Kelly, 34, were accused of falsifying documents so that their children could attend schools in South Plainfield. Authorities said at the time that Kemp and Kelly provided a sworn statement from Gallon, who falsely indicated that the women and their children lived with him at his home in South Plainfield.

The charges brought against Gallon, Kemp and Kelly were dropped in January 2011 and the three agreed to serve probation and to never work in the New Jersey public school system again, the report said.

Just over a year after Gallon was hired to work with schools in South Florida, he hired Kelly to work as a consultant, at a salary of $60,000 a year, the report said. Months later, he hired Kemp to be the principal at Excel Leadership Academy in Palm Beach County, at a salary of $80,000 a year, according to the report.

Gallon has been paid over $500,000 in taxpayer money by the 3 charter schools according to the Sun Sentinel.

South Florida charter schools hire educator banned in New Jersey

New Jersey authorities banned educator Steve Gallon III from working in their public schools. Five months later, three South Florida charter schools welcomed him.

The struggling schools gave Gallon’s company $500,000 in taxpayer dollars over two years, allowing him to give jobs and double payments to his cronies, a Sun Sentinel investigation found.

Records obtained by the newspaper reveal questionable decisions at the schools as their finances unraveled, providing a rare look into the perils of Florida’s loosely regulated charter-school industry.

....Success Leadership Academy in Fort Lauderdale and Excel Leadership Academy in West Palm Beach closed in the summer of 2013. Stellar Leadership Academy in Miami faced financial struggles but rebounded and continues to employ Gallon’s company.

Edited to add another article about his being charged with theft.

Schools chief Gallon charged with theft

When last we visited Plainfield Schools Superintendent Steve Gallon III he was under fire for providing jobs to the women who accompanied him from Florida where he was a principal. The school board backed him although the women weren’t qualified. He’s back in the news. This time Gallon has been charged along with two top assistants with stealing more than $10,000 worth of education services from neighboring South Plainfield. Gallon, 41, was charged with conspiring to commit theft by deception and as an accomplice and false swearing. Assistant Superintendent Angela Kemp, 36, and Lalelei Kelly, 34, were charged with uttering false statements, theft by deception, conspiracy to commit theft and false swearing. Bail has been set at $25,000 each. An investigation determined that Kemp and Kelly, residents of the Somerset section of Franklin Township, enrolled their children in South Plainfield and provided false documents they lived there. They provided a sworn statement by Superintendent Gallon who falsely indicated the women and their children lived with him in South Plainfield.

I saw a video in which Dr. Gallon was also honored as ICABA Education Professional of the Year 2013.

Just illustrates my favorite true saying....only public school teachers are held accountable. There is no one in charge of overseeing the spending of our taxpayer money.

[lpbk2713]

1. Carpetbaggers

Rick Scott will give them a wink and a nod.

[madfloridian]

2. I am so afraid he might win again.

Crist often says he is running against 100 million dollars.... and he is. Meanwhile the primary is starting to be divisive. As much as I approve of primaries...think they are very important...I am dreading this one a lot.

Just the thought of Scott winning makes me purely ill.

[lpbk2713]

4. What I'm counting on ...

As soon as Scott took office he turned his back on many who supported his campaign. I'm hoping he has run out of useful friends and hoping too that the word has gotten around to others who could potentially help of what a weasel he is.

[madfloridian]

9. Hope you are right.

But I just have a sneaky feeling about all of this. He's putting at least 100 million of his own money into the race. Those attack ads constantly on TV....will get worse before November...really do work.

And I hope I am wrong.

[Algernon Moncrieff]

3. Have you considered applying for a consulting gig, MadFlo?

There seems to be money in it, and you might be able to get 4-5 friends from the DU Education group hired with you.

[madfloridian]

5. Definitely not qualified.

Definitely not interested.

Neither side wants to hear teachers' POV.

[madfloridian]

6. Wow, more about Gallon from 2010. He really got away with stuff.

http://blogs.app.com/politicspatrol/2010/05/05/schools-chief-gallon-charged-with-theft/

When last we visited Plainfield Schools Superintendent Steve Gallon III he was under fire for providing jobs to the women who accompanied him from Florida where he was a principal. The school board backed him although the women weren’t qualified. He’s back in the news. This time Gallon has been charged along with two top assistants with stealing more than $10,000 worth of education services from neighboring South Plainfield. Gallon, 41, was charged with conspiring to commit theft by deception and as an accomplice and false swearing. Assistant Superintendent Angela Kemp, 36, and Lalelei Kelly, 34, were charged with uttering false statements, theft by deception, conspiracy to commit theft and false swearing. Bail has been set at $25,000 each. An investigation determined that Kemp and Kelly, residents of the Somerset section of Franklin Township, enrolled their children in South Plainfield and provided false documents they lived there. They provided a sworn statement by Superintendent Gallon who falsely indicated the women and their children lived with him in South Plainfield.

Earlier this year, Kemp was ordered to forfeit her public office after being convicted of harassment growing out of a staff meeting. Kelly was terminated recently after an investigation revealed she never was qualified for the job she had.

Are they the ones who came with him to Florida? Why, yes, they are. Some sorry hiring going on in South Florida charter schools.

According to Gannett New Jersey’s DataUniverse, Gallon was paid $198,000 in the 2008-09 school year. Gov. Christie is paid $175,000. Education Commissioner Bret Schundler gets $145,000.

That's taxpayer money.

[Generic Other]

7. Madfloridian, are you the only one mad in Florida?

Honestly, I cannot believe the crap you put up with down there. I am surprised the public school teachers don't march into those charters en masse, scavenge the places for wasted resources, and march right back to their own needy classrooms!

[madfloridian]

8. Well, teachers here always passive. BUT they lost job security, due process in 2011.

Now they are afraid to speak up. I am retired, so I try to speak for those who can't....or won't.