Press enter after choosing selection

McPherson Explains Controversial Trip

McPherson Explains Controversial Trip image
Parent Issue
Day
5
Month
June
Year
1972
Copyright
Copyright Protected
Rights Held By
Donated by the Ann Arbor News. © The Ann Arbor News.
OCR Text

School Supt. . R. Bruce McPherson repeated to the Arm Arbor Board of Education today during a special afternoon meeting that he had "no prior knowledge of the falsified records submitted by Ms. (Mildred) Bautista." McPherson also gave the trustees three reasons for asking former Assistant to the Superintendent Bautista and Deputy Superintendent for Planning Philip Mcllany to accompañy him to California in late May to investígate Miss Bautista's credentials. First, he said he "presumed Ms. Bautista's innoeence." Second, he wanted to give her the "opportunity to prove her innoeence duYing my on-the-spot contact with officials and documents in California." Third, he wanted Mellnay to help him in collecting information. (Miss Bautista was fired last week for j falsifying her credentials for fier $20,000 a-year position with the school i system). McPherson expressed his "deep regret at the anguish which has surrounded this incident in both the school system and the community" during the reading of his four-page report. McPherson also told the board that Mellnay "consistently . . . has denied prior knowledge of the discrepancies in Ms. Bautista's resume . . ." Mcllany himself was scheduled to appear before the board this afternoon to answer allegations that he may have been aware of Miss Bautista's falsified credentials. McPherson's entire report to the board follows. It had been requested by School Board President Cecil W. Warner: "I investigated the credentials of the Assistant to the Superintendent personally from May 23-25, 1972. "Mildred Bautista attended Armijo High School in Fairfield, California, graduating in 1964. I personally reviewed Ms. Bautista's high school transcript and discussed her performance with Torn Guigni, Superintendent of the FairfieldSuison Unified School District, and members of his staff. Ms. Bautista ranked llth in her graduating class of 402 students and was co-valedictorian of the class. This information was confirmed by the Armijo High School graduation program for 1964. Her high school performance earned her a state scholarship, _according to the transcript. J "According to the registrar at the I Davis campus of the University of I fornia, Ms. Bautista enrolled there in the I autumn of 1964. Her transcript indicates I attendance for four semesters at Davis: f all, 1964; spring, 1965; f all, 1965; and spring, 1966. According to the registrar at the University's Berkeley campus, Ms. Bautista was enrolled there during the summer of 1965. This session is listed accurately on her resume. "Ms. Bautista did not, however, receiye a BA degree in January, 1966, as claimed on her resume. According to University records, she was dismissed I for poor academie performance in the spring of that year. Additionally, I could find no evidence to support Ms. Bautista's claimed membership in Phi Beta Kappa. "Investigation of the gradúate programs detailed on Ms. Bautista's resume produeed further inaccuracies. To my knowledge, no MA degree was pursued. According to Dr. Paul Zinner of the Political Science Department at Davis, Ms. Bautista had selected political science as her undergraduate major. Records shown to me, in Dr. Zinner's office showed three semesters of work and recommendation of dismissal for inadequate academie performance. Although Dr. Zinner is listed on the resume as chairman of her reviewing committee, he reported no personal contact with Ms. Bautista, either as an undergraduate or gradúate student. There is no record of a doctoral program at either Berkeley or Davis. No reviewing committee or dissertation topic area was established as claimed in the resume. Also, I found no evidence of a Zellerbach grant to Ms. Bautista, although a number of departments on the Berkeley campus give Zellerbach awards. L "An evening search in the Berkeley I brary produeed no evidence supporting I the resume claims of articles published I by Ms. Bautista. The publications searehed included the American Journal of Political Scientists (which does not exist), publicatons of the American Academy of Social and Political Science International Law Quarterly, Transaction Magazine, and The Atlantic Monthly. The International Law Quarterly L ished f rom 1947-1951 only; it did not I lish in 1968 when Ms. Bautista claims I I Pubhcation oí her articJe. This publlca■ tion merged with the Journal of ComI parative Legislation to become the InterI national and Comparative Law Quarterly, according to the Berkeley library I The hbrary contained no listings for ■ three magazines: Extensions, The Far I Pointe, and Northwest Quarterly Ms I Bautista claimed publication of poems in I these magazines. "According to the assistant registrar I at Davis, Ms. Bautista did participate in I Project Involvement and the Summer I Advismg Program as claimed in her reIsurne. According to the registrar and asI sistant registrar at Davis, however Ms Bautista could not have taught the History 199 course at the school! Only tenured faculty could be ássignetf to this course I 1 was told. "Due to time constrainfe, I was unable to pursue claims related to resume claims involving Ms. Bauíista's activities at UCLA or Philadelphia} Pennsylvania I ,my ujudgment. nothing substantial I would have been gained from further I mvestigation. It is evident in my I ion that Ms. Bautista did not have the I academie qualifications claimed and I which I deemed necessary for the role I and accompanying salary accorded. "I admit error in not personally I inf Bautista's credentials. Neither I did I personally check credentials of I er staff who moved with me from I delphia. I assumed that credentials of all I such persons had been checked routinely I by the Personnel Department of the I School District of Philadelphia. I quently, I had no prior knowledge of the I lalsified records submitted by Ms Bautista. I "Travel expenses incurred during this mvestigation have been reported to the I Board by separate memorandum of M-y I 30, 1972. This report contains only I penses of the Superintendent, totaling I 1420.42. The balance of a sa.nno advance I has been redeposited with the school trict, effective May 30, 1972. "No claims are to be made against I school district funds for travel of the I Deputy Superintendent for Planning or I the Assistant to the Superintendent. "It may be of parenthetical interest to I observe that in our two most recent a I bitration cases with the Ann Arbor I catión Association costs to the school I district taxpayer were $308.10 and (n'ext page j.lease)