An investigation of the dismissal of Washburn High School principal Carol Markham-Cousins found that:
MPS District leaders, under the supervision of Superintendent Bernadia Johnson, carefully planned the dismissal of Washburn's principal Carol Markham-Cousins. This resulted in the public humiliation of Carol and caused much harm to many people in the community. The chronology of events in the week of Carol's dismissal illuminate and support this finding.
The result of this dismissal was the opposite of the stated goals to "restore an effective learning environment."
The reasons for this action, "multiple distractions," have been found invalid.
The "investigation" that was supposedly conducted about Markham-Cousins conduct, further misled the community.
The consensus in the Washburn community is that the decision to remove Carol as principal of Washburn was a blunder.
In light of these findings, we petition for an apology to the Washburn community and Carol Markham-Cousins from the MPS Board of Education and its CEO. This act would be a positive step to begin the healing process for Carol and the community. It would cost nothing to the district, and would demonstrate a maturity in leadership that the Minneapolis community expects and deserves.