Mecklenburg County commissioners shocked at Dr. Crystal Hill’s firing

CHARLOTTE — Tuesday night’s CMS meeting shocked all in attendance, including several county commissioners.

Mecklenburg County Commissioner Susan Rodriguez-McDowell was in the crowd at Tuesday night’s CMS meeting and had no idea what was coming

“I was shocked,” the District 6 commissioner said. “I was not expecting what occurred, and I was really sad about it and concerned.”

Like many community members, she has questions for the CMS Board surrounding its contracts and decisions

She’s also worried about the taxpayer now on the hook for a costly severance while being asked to pay for contracts that the superintendent questioned

“How is anybody worth as a consultant $30,000 a month?” She said. “It doesn’t matter who the person is, but to me, that feels concerning.”

Longtime Mecklenburg County Commissioner and former School Board Member Vilma Leake also was at Tuesday’s meeting and actually spoke to Dr. Crystal Hill before she was fired.

“I’ve never seen it this way before in the history that I’ve been here since ’64, and that was in the crucial period of the civil rights movement,” the District 2 commissioner said.

She thinks Dr. Hill and the public were disrespected. She wants voters to remember this next time the Board is up for election.

“People put their trust in us to make the right decisions and to be prepared to serve them; we’re not to serve ourselves,” she said. “And you hear me say repeatedly, all the time, hold elected officials accountable.”

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