Carenne double-crosser exposed

Carenne Gate has received evidence showing the games being played by a member of the Carenne Special School executive who has been supplying information to both disgruntled ex-employees and members of the Carenne KLAN. The information was obtained by an employee at the school after Assistant Principal Ros Luther left her laptop and internet stick laying around while logged into Hotmail.

Mrs Luther's roslyn.luther@hotmail.com account showed a number of emails sent between herself and two Carenne Saviours which are no longer employed at the school. She had also sent emails to members of the Carenne KLAN including Nadine Dwyer, Angie Cranston, Michael Auld, Mary Housler, Geoff Salmon and Christine Porter.

The emails, dating back to 2010 provide an insight into the activities of Carenne's newest Assistant Principal who has been accused of physically abusing students, locking them in a torture room, locking them in a pig pen and lying to departmental investigators. For at least the last two years, Ros Luther has been playing all sides off against each other in an attempt to further her own career. These games have paid off well, given that Mrs Luther went from a casual classroom teacher in 2009 to a permanent Assistant Principal in 2011.

The emails show Mrs Luther's complete lack of respect and contempt for Carenne Principal Neil Moon. In many of her emails, Mrs Luther promises rewards for favours she asks others to do "when she takes over as principal from Neil Moon".

In her emails to the two Carenne Saviours, Luther asks them to report certain issues at the school, claiming that she is unable due to "her position as Assistant Principal and her future career prospects."

In her emails, Mrs Luther has leaked confidential information to people outside the school including:

• Personal information about students and parents
• Issues amongst staff at the school
• Details of incidents at the school
• Complaints made about staff and those working under the Assisted School Travel Program

A common theme in Luther's emails is to encourage people to make complaints about staff at the school - particularly Janelle Kemp, Karina Mollenkamp, Margaret Rowe and Neil Moon.

In other emails, Luther has openly slagged students, calling some of them cunts, arseholes, fuckwits, sluts, whores and drama queens. Luther has also made threats against a number of people, with the most serious being "I will have that Brian Carter taken out if I lose my job over Jamie Hussey, I don't care, I know people who will kill him" in an email to Christine Porter.

It is now up to the department's Employee Performance and Conduct directorate to take action against Luther for serious breaches of the departmental Code of Conduct after I emailed the evidence to them. Carenne Gate will keep a close watch on what they do next. Carenne Gate calls for the immediate suspension of Ros Luther until such investigations are completed.

Auld under investigation

Michael Auld, the Labor party stooge who is no stranger to being in hot water is once again being investigated by the department's EPAC branch according to senior document officials.

The officials claim to have received reports from Auld's former aide Melinda Gavin that he has leaked confidential school information, misappropriated school funds and property, sexually harassed staff and assaulted students.

Gavin gave an interview to EPAC officers at the beginning of term claiming that -

• Auld had accessed confidential information on school computers in 2009 and 2010 and had leaked it,
• Auld planted evidence on staff computers to implicate staff,
• Destroyed documents implicating Lee Churches, Margaret Rowe, Simone Russell and himself,
  
• Diverted funds to RDA,
• Stolen school property,
• Had inappropriate conversations of a sexual nature with make students,
• Gave students pornography,
• Showed pornography in class,
• Inappropriately touched female students,
• Made unwanted sexual advanced towards her, including exposing himself

These allegations come as no surprise given Auld's bizarre behavior. Auld's conduct places students at serious risk of harm. Despite being covered up by the school, Mr Auld had a checkered history with the department, having a number of issues recorded on his file for misconduct.

Leis shafted by KLAN

Coleen Leis has been the latest victim of the Carenne Special School KLAN, following a finding by EPAC that she engaged in misconduct. As a result of the finding, Mrs Leis has been forcibly transferred to Denison College - Kelso High Campus.

The investigation, carried out by Malcolm Barnett was initiated after a complaint by Angie Cranston, an aide at the school known for her constant bullying and the making of complaints to serve her own interest.

In Term 3, Cranston made a complaint to Barnett who was relieving as manager of EPAC's serious misconduct team alleging that Leis had leaked information about the school, was incompetent, had bullied her and was abusive towards her and other staff. Cranston's complaint came after an incident where Leis observed Cranston dragging a student by his hair along a corridor.

Leis intervened and took the student to Neil Moon's office to report the incident, only to see nothing happen and face departmental charges herself. Cranston's claims were backed up by statements from Neil Moon, Margaret Rowe, Michael Auld and Melinda Gavin.

Leis was informed of the investigation result in November and told that she either had to accept a transfer to Kelso High or resign.

Carenne Gate can reveal that the investigation, carried out under the guidance of Malcolm Barnett was not carried out properly and failed to consider Cranston's short but checkered history at Carenne. Staff at Bathurst SEA informed EPAC that Cranston had been the subject of a number of workers compensation claims and OH&S reports due to her relentless threats, intimidation and harassment.

EPAC was aware that Cranston was part of the reason Barbara Woolfe retired, when Cranston told staff she would expose Woolfe for not reporting therapy not being done on a student which ADHC had paid for, despite also being the aide in the class. They were also aware of Cranston being the cause of a nervous breakdown suffered by Kelly Thompson, a promising special educator who had to be relocated to Bathurst West Public and the refusal of all staff except Terry Neal to work with her last year.

In just four years at Carenne, Cranston has been the subject of many complaints and has been reported on this blog for:

• Making students walk back to the school unsupervised after a teacher fell down a drain,
• Being involved in corrupt excursion arrangements
• Taking a sexual device to a school fundraiser
• Stealing items from the school
• Inappropriately touching a student, and
  
• Not properly supervising students.

Despite objections by Neil Moon, officials at SEA have called for Angie Cranston to be sacked only to be told by EPAC it is not possible. It is apparent that EPAC are relying on unreliable information from a woman with a particular agenda to push.

Student laptops hidden by corrupt teacher

Corrupt teacher at Carenne Special School and member of the group of staff referred to as the KLAN recently came under fire for not giving out laptops under the federal government's program.

Carenne Gate can reveal that six laptops were received for distribution to students, but the Carenne Saviours claim Mr Auld has them packed in a storeroom because he claims they are too difficult to use and look after. Each year 9 student should have received a laptop.

Despite this, Neil Moon has lied to parents and told them that no laptops were received as it is a special scbool.

Concerns have also been voiced about teacher's laptops. Under the program., tachers with students in years 9 to 12 to prepare learning materials. In defiance of this, Margaret Rowe and Janelle Kemp, both infants staff received two of the laptops last year the other two going to Michael Auld and Kym Tattersall.

It shows that Mr Auld is incompetent and can't follow guidelines and that Mr Moon is a liar that's word is worthless.

Is Angie Cranston the aide from hell?

The Carenne Saviours have contacted Carenne Gate concerned about staffing adjustments being made at Carenne Special School due to her relentless bullying and harassment of other staff. Despite a history of incompetence, sexual misconduct, misuse of school equipment and being named in bullying complaints, Neil Moon does nothing about Cranston's misconduct.

"Angie is part of Neil Moon's inner circle" said one Saviour.

The Saviours allege that Angie Cranston, along with Simone Russell, Michael Auld and Margaret Rowe was responsible for spreading rumours throughout the school that Prue Luffman was having an affair with Peter Richards, leading to Mrs Luffman's nervous breakdown and resignation from Carenne. They also claim that along with Lucy Thornton, Angie Cranston hid or destroyed evidence that Carenne Support were not providing therapy to students which they had claimed they were doing therapy on.

The Saviours claim that Barbara Woolfe resigned from Carenne after working with Mrs Cranston, who made several serious allegations about her including claims that Mrs Woolfe was abusing children.

Earlier in the year, Kelly Thompson, a teacher highly regarded by parents was forced on to stress leave after she was bullied and harassed by Mrs Cranston. The department has since relocated her to Bathurst West Public to take her out of the stressful environment at Carenne.

The latest teacher to fall victim to Mrs Cranston is Matt Casey, who now refuses to work in the class despite being offered block work on that class. According to the Saviours, Mr Casey claimed he could not work with a woman like Mrs Cranston who pushed staff around and who neglected the welfare of students.

The failure of Neil Moon and Peter Harvey to take action against Mrs Cranston shows the special treatment members of the so-called Carenne Klan receive from the department.

Staffing under the spotlight

For a while now there has been comments made about staffing practices at the Carenne Special School. A number of staff have raised concern about how family and friends take precedence over more skilled staff.

The current concern is centred around Doug Rowe, husband of teacher's aide Margaret (and member of the Carenne Klan) who has been maneuvering to stop the school's former groundsperson from returning to his position. Mr Rowe was given the position by Lynette Duncan after the groundsman went on sick leave in mid-2009. Staff complained at the time that there were more suitable people for the position and that the decision had only been made to strengthen the influence of the Carenne Klan.

Earlier in the year, Mrs Duncan came under scrutiny when she employed her own husband to relieve for the school's administration manager when she went on sick leave. Staff believed it to be inappropriate for the principal's husband to be employed in such a position.

The problem goes back far further than Mrs Duncan's principalship. In the past, staff claim that they have complained about the employment of casuals who are related to or friends with one and another and promotions based on friendship and loyalty. Many staff have made the charge that the merit selection process at Carenne Special School has been rigged to produce a particular outcome, as with that earlier in 2009.

Staff allege that most casual staffing decisions are made by Simone Russell and Lee Churches, bypassing the principal, despite this being usual procedure.

It is time the Department of Education and Training has a close look at the farce that is staffing at Carenne Special School. It is a key tenet of public employment that appointments are to be based upon merit, staffing at Carenne Special School is instead based on nepocracy.

UPDATE: It has been revealed that Simone Russell, who has been accused on both this site and Sydney Indymedia of dishonest practices will be moving into a Student Learning Support Officer (teacher's aide) position this year after she trains her replacement School Administration Manager. The reasons for such a move are unknown at present.

Carenne Special School staff accuse Peter Harvey and Peter Seligman of OHS breaches

The brave souls who are risking their careers by speaking out about the human rights abuses, corruption and bullying at Carenne Special School have made an allegation that Peter Harvey, Bathurst Schools Director and Peter Seligman, Human Resources have breached OHS principles by allowing the Klan to continue behaving the way it is.

They claim any complaints made to regional director Carole McDiarmid is simply referred back to Mr Harvey.

The saviours claim that both Mr Harvey and Mr Seligman have been well aware of serious bullying issues at the Carenne Special School and have done nothing but support those carrying out the bullying. The saviours have been made to feel as though they are worthless and that only the Klan are worth protecting in the school.

The saviours claim they and students are subjected to almost daily abuse from Lee Churches, Margaret Rowe and Michael Auld.