It has come to my attention that the two candidates Vicksburg Warren School District Superintendent Dr. Elizabeth Swinford recommended to the school board to be considered for the position of assistant superintendent and were rejected by the board are now being vetted by the Superintendent for two new positions as administrative assistants.

I have written to all of the school board members this week expressing my concern. To date only Joe Loviza and Jim Stirgus have bothered to contact me and give me their view.

Let me see if I truly understand this. The board didn’t want to hire either Dr. Michael Winters or Lum Wright Jr. for the assistant superintendent position. So let’s rename the job and hire them both as administrative assistants? Even more egregious is the fact that each of these positions would pay the same as the assistant superintendent position, effectively more than doubling the cost to the district?

With this type of thinking and leadership, it’s no wonder our teachers are retiring en masse, our students are struggling and our test scores are dropping.

Does Dr. Swinford really think that the school board and the citizens of Vicksburg and Warren County are this stupid? If the board goes along with this they truly are fools and idiots and need to be tossed out next time they are up for election.

Dr. Gary L. Cheslek

Vicksburg