Former Pembina Hills Supt. Egbert Stang received a six-figure severance payment after being terminated from the school division without cause.
Documents obtained by the Westlock News Thursday via a request under the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy (FOIP) Act state that Stang was fired Dec. 4 through a letter sent by past board chair Doug Fleming.
“While a decision such as this is never easy to receive, or frankly to communicate, we do wish to take this opportunity to wish you the best in your future endeavours,” wrote Fleming in the letter dated Dec. 5, 2011.
The document further details Stang’s $119,250 severance payment “less the required deductions and withholdings,” which equates to nine months salary.
Neither acting Supt. Colleen Symyrozum-Watt or board vice-chair Sharon Volorney responded to requests for an interview.
Information requested in the FOIP application include notes taken at the Dec. 3 special meeting, correspondence with legal consultants, Stang’s annual evaluation, severance pay information and correspondence regarding Stang’s dismissal.
Due to the confidential nature of some of these requests, the school division said it was unable to provide the documents under Section 17 (1) of the FOIP Act, which states “the head of a public body must refuse to disclose personal information to an applicant if the disclosure would be an unreasonable invasion of a third party’s personal privacy.”
Copies of the correspondence the News received back from Pembina Hills can be viewed online at our Photo Gallery on the main page of the site, Click Here or www.facebook.com/pages/Westlock-News/130628693670762.
In a press release, Pembina Hills said it understood the role of local media in putting forward these requests, however, some information “may potentially be personal information that cannot be disclosed as it may be a breach of Pembina Hills’ statutory obligations.”
The release, which can be viewed in its entirety on Page 8 of this week’s paper, goes on to discuss two FOIP requests filed by the News — one relating to Stang and the other relating to former Supt. Richard Harvey — saying both have been carefully reviewed.
Harvey was “concluded” on Oct. 23, 2010 and no severance payment was made. There was also no mention of whether he was fired with or without cause.
“We trust that everyone will respect the fact that no further information will or can be disclosed,” the release states.
The News is still awaiting an inquiry held by Alberta’s Information and Privacy Commissioner, Frank Work, in regards to the application to have fees waived by the division.
The initial request for information requesting any information relating to Harvey’s termination, was estimated to cost roughly $4,000.
As the matter is in the public interest, a formal request had been sent requesting the fees be waived. The News expects a letter detailing a specific timeline for the inquiry in the near future.
