There's disarray. There's utter disarray. And then there's the situation at St. HOPE Public Schools, the nonprofit founded in 2001 by Kevin Johnson.
Its executive director has been on leave for almost a month. The chairman and other key board members have resigned. It has had no chief financial officer since September of last year.
Instead of taking steps to resolve problems, the organization has regrouped around Johnson loyalists and hunkered down.
Last year, Johnson stepped down as a board member and CEO of St. HOPE Public Schools to run for mayor. It seemed a sign that the organization was moving beyond its founding era. But Johnson is still involved and now is at the center of the current collapse.
Executive Director Rick Maya, who is one of the board members who resigned, has made serious allegations that should be investigated. Among Maya's charges:
• Board members deleted Johnson e-mails during the federal investigation of St. HOPE Academy's use of AmeriCorps funding. The inspector general in the federal investigation wants the U.S. attorney to "appoint a special prosecutor who would, with the assistance of the FBI, convene a grand jury to investigate and determine whether there was an obstruction of justice." The U.S. attorney should do so.
• St. HOPE used federal and state public funds to support its Triumph preschool, a private program. The California Department of Education and U.S. Department of Education will have to look into this.
• The bylaws are a mess. One section says that the nominating committee "shall consist of Kevin M. Johnson and two directors" who "shall be designated by Kevin M. Johnson." It is highly unusual for bylaws to name an individual. Further, Maya notes that under Corporations Code Section 5212, only board members may serve on a board committee. The bylaws also have no provision for amendment.
The board needs to ask the Sacramento County Office of Education or the state attorney general to review the bylaws and then revise them.
• Kevin Hiestand, John- son's longtime friend, business partner and personal attorney, remains legal counsel for St. HOPE Public Schools. He also is legal counsel for St. HOPE Academy, which runs Hood Corps and the 40 Acres Art Gallery, and serves on its board. The St. HOPE Public Schools board needs to end this conflict of interest and hire a new legal counsel.
To show some semblance of independence, the board also needs to reverse blunders going back to mid-March. It needs to bring in competent financial and managerial leadership and should bring in a neutral review team to look at governance and financial issues.
As for Johnson, he needs to publicly sever himself from the ongoing operations of St. HOPE Public Schools. No dodging. No spokesperson. He needs to let go, so the St. HOPE organization can grow and mature – and dig itself out of the current mess.
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