DEAR EDITOR:

As a graduate of Canfield Local Schools and former educator in the district, I am deeply disturbed and saddened that Superintendent Alex Geordan was intentionally deceptive in his communication with the community when the Canfield Village Middle School faced the possibility of a school shooting.

The Canfield Police Department reports that Geordan deliberately misled the community not once, but three separate times about disciplinary and safety procedures implemented after a student made a threat to shoot another sixth-grader during the school day.

The fact that Geordan had no problem with disseminating misinformation is grounds for immediate termination. According to the Ohio Department of Education Superintendent Standards, superintendents are expected to “engender trust through competence, integrity, ethics, and high expectations.”

How can community members trust a district leader when he lacked the ethics to be truthful with parents? How can the school board uphold a leader who has no integrity? What assurance is there that students, faculty members, and support staff employed by Canfield Local Schools will not become victims if future threats are dismissed until they turn into tragedies?

It is time for the school board and community to step up and demand strong leadership.

There have been 45 school shootings this year, and if the Canfield Local School District is to remain safe, district leaders and city officials must report threats to the police, be honest with the community and stop downplaying potential problems. The school board must make changes, or it will be complicit in any future incidents that could bring harm to its community. In America’s pastime, the rule is three strikes and you’re out. Geordan proved his inability to lead when he was at bat during this incident: He struck out, and it’s time for his game to come to an end.

COLLEEN RUGGIERI

Westerville