The Montrose County School District Board of Education scheduled a work session in place of its regular session last night to determine if Superintendent Carrie Stephenson and Olathe Elementary Principal Jennifer Hesse needed to be placed on leave during a third-party investigation into Hesse’s conduct. According to board members, complaints from employees spurred the investigation.
Given that the complaints were related to personnel, they were not made public. Board members also stated that Hesse has submitted her resignation, but it seems that she plans to stay on until the end of the school year. Ultimately, the board voted unanimously to place Hesse on paid leave through that time.
The board also weighed placing Superintendent Carrie Stephenson on leave during the third-party investigation. This was due to the fact that Stephenson’s response to Hesse’s conduct is part of the investigation, and to help employees to feel comfortable coming forward.
Some board members stated that the allegations Stephenson faced were not severe enough to warrant being placed on leave:
It also became clear that Stephenson herself recommended the third-party investigation to the board.
The board ultimately voted 4-3 to not place Stephenson on leave.
During the meeting, the board also postponed the decision regarding closing Pomona Elementary or Northside Elementary until a clearer financial