#4 SCHOOL'S FUTURE QUESTIONED: An independent commission has found concern about the future of the N.C. School of Science and Math. The school must make changes to stay in the forefront of specialized education, according to the 19-page report to the school's trustees. The school's executive director intimidates some staff and faculty members who disagree with him, student applications are declining, and minority teachers are turning down job offers, the report said. William Massey, chairman of the school's trustees, said the report doesn't mean that Executive Director John Friedrick should be replaced or major changes made, but that the school has to "come together as a community and rethink some of these issues." For example, the report criticized Friedrick for top-down management, but that method was recommended in a 1989 study that was released a month before he arrived (Robin Reale, DURHAM HERALD-SUN, 3/19). The school, proposed by Gov. Jim Hunt, opened in 1980 as the nation's first public residential high school catering to juniors and seniors. It has served as a model for other states.
The six-member Independent Commission for Fairness and Diversity spent six months examining the Durham school. While the school has lived up to original expectations and parents generally approve of their children's education, the commission heard concerns the school may be losing its appeal. "There is an expression by many that perhaps the school is no longer viewed as `the place' where innovation and the highest level of excellence in teaching and learning in mathematics and science occur in our state," the report said. Friedrick said the criticisms of his performance in the report were those that any administrator faces and he is making changes that some people may disagree with. The commission found no clear definition of Friedrick's responsibilities or evidence of regular evaluations. It also found high turnover among school trustees.