The firing of Langley superintendent of schools Cheryle Beaumont cost taxpayers more than $300,000.
In the school district’s amended 2012 budget, which was approved at last Tuesday’s Board of Education meeting, it showed that severance of $440,533 was paid out to Beaumont and the former assistant secretary-treasurer, Tally Bains.
“We are trying to be as transparent and open about this as possible,” said board chair Wendy Johnson.
She expects that the board will be able to make public exactly how much of the $440,000 went to Beaumont.
The former superintendent made $198,503 per year, plus benefits.
On top of her severance, the 2012 budget included $62,000 for Beaumont’s “departure costs.”
That $62,000 is a combination of paying the legal expenses for Beaumont’s departure and hiring a head hunting company to find a new superintendent, said Johnson.
The board hired B.C. Public School Employees Association to find a replacement.
“They have been very successful in finding the right people for this job and charge less than head hunters,” said Johnson. “In the end it will cost us around $30,000 to find a new superintendent.”
Trustees were expected to meet with BCPSEA on Monday to talk about what they are looking for and the search will begin next week, she said.
In a press release from the board in January, it announced Beaumont’s departure, saying she was leaving “to pursue other ventures.”
But veteran trustee Alison McVeigh revealed to The Times that Beaumont was in fact fired in a 5-2 vote by the trustees. McVeigh and trustee Rod Ross have been vocal in their opposition to letting Beaumont go.
McVeigh has been censured by the board for releasing in-camera information about Beaumont’s departure.
