School board ax grinding

If a tree falls in the forest and no one sees it, is Martha Newman responsible? Dan Tremble and his wife were put in the position of having to choose who was to resign his or her position, since state law would not allow both to serve.

When Mr. Tremble accepted a position with the Bangor School Department, he knew as a former city councilor that there was a conflict of interest, so, according to Renee Ordway, he sought a legal opinion from the city solicitor, “Bangor committee tactics fishy” (BDN, Nov. 24). Allegedly, the city solicitor gave Mr. Tremble the wrong advice. Although Mrs. Newman is not a lawyer, some say she is responsible for Mr. Tremble receiving an inaccurate legal opinion.

If Mrs. Newman knew of this conflict, why didn’t she point it out when at his first meeting, Mr. Tremble tried to unseat her? Why didn’t she call for a point of order on the basis that Mr. Tremble was an illegal member and halt the proceedings.

What of those 17 previous school committees that chose Mrs. Newman as chairman? Could they have chosen her because her priority was academic excellence for students and she worked toward the goals they all shared? Was it because under her leadership the committee, teachers and school department worked together to make Bangor the pre-eminent public school in Maine and ranked nationally in many areas?

In 1986, City Councilor Hall Wheeler wanted to cut the school budget – the citizens of Bangor objected, Judy Guay was chairman, and Mrs. Newman was a relatively new member of the school committee. Surely someone can devise a scenario where Mrs. Newman is responsible. If you have an ax, start grinding, go out and take a whack at that tree. If no one’s looking, we can always hold Mrs. Newman responsible if it falls down.

Heidi Godsoe

Bangor