Regional superintendents caught in the political crossfire

Julie Wollerman has a job to do, and she’s not going to let a little thing like a paycheck get in the way.

She – like all the regional superintendents of schools around the state – hasn’t seen the eagle fly since July 1, yet she is still on the job. And it doesn’t look like anything will be changing soon.

“People ask me why I don’t just quit working,” Wollerman said.

“But I can’t do that to our staff and our teachers. How do I let things go, and not do my job? That wouldn’t be right. I have to keep working.”

Wollerman and the state’s other 43 regional superintendents have been working without pay since Gov. Pat Quinn vetoed about $11 million from the state budget that was earmarked for their salaries.

The regional superintendents filed a lawsuit to force the state to pay, but that suit was dismissed last Friday by Sangamon County Judge John Schmidt, saying that he didn’t have the authority to overrule the governor’s veto.

The next option, Wollerman said, is to take the issue before the state legislature.

“The legislators have been very supportive,” Wollerman said. “They get it. They know that they need us.”

But, she admits, a legislative solution could be several weeks away.

Lawmakers are not scheduled to return to Springfield until the fall veto session in late October. A special session could be called, she said, but that is very expensive.

Meanwhile, the regional superintendents are stuck. Some have even been forced to take out loans to pay taxes and make mortgage payments, Wollerman said.

“By statute, I can’t get another job in my profession while I’m still employed here,” said Wollerman, who had served as assistant regional superintendent since 2004.

She assumed the regional superintendent’s office on July 18, when her former boss, Mark Drone, retired.

“We can’t even file for unemployment, because we are public officials. I would have to resign. So, the best thing for me to do is to stay here and do my job. And pray that the legislators intervene.”

She also holds out some hope that the governor will reverse his veto.

Meanwhile, the governor still insists that the regional superintendents are locally elected officials, and as such they should be paid with local funds rather than state monies.

House minority leader Tom Cross disagrees. He has been quoted as saying that “Eliminating an elected official’s salary from the budget was misguided.”

Wollerman said that the regional offices of education perform valuable and necessary training that isn’t available anywhere else.

“People want their teachers trained,” she said. “They want their bus drivers trained. Theywant their buildings safe.

They want their administrators following the law. And that’s what the ROE is responsible for doing.

“The regional office is a local source of information for administrators and teachers to call for advice.

"Nine times out of 10, we can answer their questions here, without calling the state board. Local is better, because of the relationships we have with our districts.”

Before being chosen by Drone to be his assistant, Wollerman was the administrator for the Safe Schools Program and administrator of the New Approach Alternative High School.

Prior to that, she was an attendance specialist and a teacher at the New Approach Alternative High School.

Though the three counties under Wollerman’s supervision are still functioning, they have undergone some staff reductions as grants and state funds have become harder to come by.

The Fayette County office, which is located on the corner southeast of the county courthouse, houses Wollerman, two secretaries and a truant officer (who also serves as the region’s Health/Life/Safety officer).

The offices in Effingham and Bond counties have only one secretary each.

Meanwhile, Wollerman is committed to staying on the job and fulfilling her duties.

“It’s a mess, but we have to keep in mind that our decisions must be based on what’s best for the students,” said Wollerman, who has three children in the Vandalia district.

“I believe that you just do the right thing. You get the work done and keep moving forward.

"We believe the governor was wrong, but it wouldn’t be right for me to quit. Two wrongs don’t make a right.”