Months after placing her on paid leave, the Stillwater school board has fired finance and operations manager Kristen Hoheisel, saying in its termination letter that she no longer had the board's trust.
The school board met in closed session on Sept. 3 before voting 4-1 to remove Hoheisel. Her last day of work was Sept. 4, a spokesperson confirmed.
The split was preceded by months of tension — a period when some faulted Hoheisel for a $5 million land deal that faltered on her watch, and when Hoheisel herself filed a lawsuit against the district and board chairwoman alleging whistleblower, open meetings act and data practices act violations.
A Washington County judge recently heard the district's arguments to dismiss Hoheisel's lawsuit and has taken the suit under advisement for 90 days, said her attorney, Rolf Fiebiger.
The lone dissenting vote was cast by Board Member Jennifer Pelletier, who said Thursday that the majority's issues with Hoheisel stem from their unhappiness with a controversial 2016 district reorganization called BOLD (Building Opportunities to Learn and Discover) that aimed to accommodate enrollment growth in the southern part of the district.
"From a practical standpoint I can't think of anything worse than firing someone in the middle of an active lawsuit that claims retaliation and whistleblower," Pelletier said in a statement.
She added that she was "sick and tired of this board majority's obsession with the dismantling of the administration due to past decisions that they don't like."
Board Chairwoman Sarah Stivland defended Hoheisel's firing, saying the relationship had broken down. "It has nothing to do with BOLD," Stivland said. "I don't see the logic of that whatsoever."
