Ministry of Education fields 13 complaints about Katikati College in a year

Katikati College has a limited statutory manager in place. Photo / File

The Ministry of Education has received 13 complaints in relation to Katikati College in the past year, four of which were about the principal.

Those about the principal allegedly included concerns for the wellbeing and welfare of staff due to interactions with and treatment from them.

The Bay of Plenty Times can also reveal the school principal, Carolyn Pentecost, is on leave for health and personal reasons and will not be returning to the school this term.

Pentecost had already been on leave for two weeks and had been due to return on Monday, March 15.

Pentecost confirmed to the Bay of Plenty Times the reasons for her leave and that she would not be returning until the end of the school term.

In November 2019, the Ministry of Education appointed a limited statutory manager to the school to help the college's board of trustees to manage "a range of issues".

At that time, the ministry said Pentecost continued to have full management responsibilities for all day-to-day operations of the school.

The Bay of Plenty Times sought confirmation of Pentecost's absence from the Ministry of Education but was told questions about employment matters should be directed to Limited Statutory Manager Shawn Gielen. However, when approached, Gielen said he could not comment on employment matters.

When asked about the reason for Pentecost's absence, Gielen could not answer citing privacy reasons.

He provided the Bay of Plenty Times Weekend with an emailed copy of a notice sent to parents.

Katikati College principal Carolyn Pentecost. Photo / File

"Our principal, Carolyn Pentecost will continue to be on leave until the end of this school term. Louise Buckley will continue in the acting principal role for the duration of this time," it read.

"Our collective focus continues to be centred on our students receiving quality educational opportunities as well as our hard-working, dedicated staff being provided with a learning-centred environment to operate in."

The news of her leave came days after Ministry of Education documents obtained by the Bay of Plenty Times Weekend through an official information request revealed 13 complaints were made in relation to Katikati College last year. The information provided by the ministry indicates four of those were about the principal.

The ministry declined to reveal the full complaints to protect information that had been supplied subject to any obligation of confidence, however, in the "spirit of being transparent" the complaints were summarised, ministry documents suggest.

Three of the complaints related to employment matters and a "letter sent to LSM from senior leadership team at Katikati College" so were unclear who they were in relation to.

According to the ministry documents, three complaints were from Pentecost raising concerns about the LSM intervention process and concerns about the minutes and culture of Board of Trustees meetings.

The ministry's summaries show between September 30 and October 4 Pentecost exchanged emails with the ministry about a board member. The summary notes the ministry responded saying the ministry was present at the meeting and believed the questions were appropriate.

In addition to those, the summaries also show a parent had sent four email complaints between January and November with concerns including the "impact of the principal on school and community" and a number of students leaving to attend other schools.

Last year, the school roll was at a six-year low of 820 students. The provisional roll for 2021 estimated 742 students were enrolled.

Another complaint on November 25 from a community member raised concerns about the principal's management of staff and the following day a senior staff member raised concerns about the principal, the ministry summaries show.

They also show the ministry responded, stating it was aware of the issues the school was facing and providing support "where required".

The Bay of Plenty Times Weekend has also obtained a November 27 email sent by New Zealand Post Primary Teachers' Association field officer Jason Smythe to the Ministry of Education Bay of Plenty Waiariki director Ezra Schuster saying he had become "increasingly concerned" about the college.

The letter breaks down three alleged reasons for the field officer's concerns.

"There is genuine concern for the wellbeing and welfare of our members, teachers, at Katikati College," he claimed in the letter.

"This concern derives from the interactions, with and treatment from, the principal as reported to me."

Some members had felt too vulnerable in the "current workplace climate" to raise the issues and had anecdotally reported the work environment had deteriorated, he said.

The field officer then wrote the PPTA branch representative was allegedly being subjected to duress by the principal.

"I have explicitly requested that the principal ensures she is not subjecting our branch chair to duress, However, I am concerned this has continued."

He continued in his third concern about alleged obfuscation, delays and avoidance behaviours exhibited by Pentecost around being responsive and communicative.

"Most recently, this has been experienced with the association seeking information and clarity pertaining to the surplus staffing situation at the college."

In response to the complaints against her, including the PPTA letter, Pentecost told the Bay of Plenty Times Weekend she had always put the student's interests at the heart of all of the decisions she had made as a school leader.

"Their continued achievement, wellbeing and care has always been my main priority and continues to be so. Our school is making huge progress in these areas.

"Our data around staff and student retention is also encouraging. I have always encouraged open dialogue with the community about any concerns they have had, and have responded appropriately."

When asked if she had considered quitting, she said her plan was to return to the school to continue working on behalf of the students and school community.

The college's 2019 board of trustees chairman, John Schnackenberg, said in a statement in November of that year, it had sought Ministry of Education governance support for "some complex employment matters".

When asked about the state of the intervention now, Ministry of Education sector enablement and support deputy secretary Katrina Casey said Gielen was appointed as the LSM with the powers to manage board finances and employment matters.

"The school board kept responsibility for the remaining areas of governance.

"The aim of any intervention is always to return the school to full self-management as soon as the recommendations of the intervention have been met. We monitor all school interventions closely as we have been doing with Katikati College.

"Once the statutory intervention ends we will continue to monitor progress and maintain an informal level of support for whatever period is necessary to sustain the positive change."