From staff reports
Dr. Craig Witherspoon, who has been Superintendent of Birmingham City Schools for four and a half years, resigned last week during a Board of Education meeting, effective December 1. This makes him the sixth Superintendent in 15 years.
In 2012, members of that school board tried to fire him but Witherspoon was reinstated. That’s also the year the state took over the school system to bring them in line with state laws concerning finances.
The resignation was announced following the discovery of a claim of misuse of funds and the resignation of two former employees – Tisha Nyguen and Vanessa Patterson.
The Birmingham City Board of Education released the following statement:
“The Birmingham City School System has recently conducted an audit of its finances. The audit revealed an unauthorized financial transaction in the amount of $64,105 made in association with the copying of instructional materials. This expenditure was not done in accordance with Alabama Bid Law, nor in accordance with established Birmingham City Schools’ policies, financial procedures, and business practices.
My office is taking the necessary steps to review processes and procedures to ensure that this type of unauthorized expenditure does not occur again.
The Birmingham City School System is accountable to the community, and because we take this responsibility seriously, we will work diligently to continue being good financial stewards. Also, this is why this unauthorized expenditure is being self-reported.
We will remain proactive in monitoring this and other procedures and practices as we conduct the business of the school system.”
Are there other underlying reasons for Dr. Witherspoon’s sudden resignation?
The Birmingham Times requested an interview with Dr. Witherspoon, unfortunately, as of press time he was unavailable for comment.
