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| Former Employees Say Politics Hurts Florida Prison for Juveniles |
| By Associated Press/ Asheville Citizen-Times |
| Published: 01/03/2003 |
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Political patronage has hurt the state's largest juvenile prison, as new governors have fired five directors and forced others to resign, according to former employees of the center. As a result, the Swannanoa Valley Youth Development Center has had 13 directors over the past 41 years. And now the job is vacant again. Political considerations won't play a part in the selection of the next director, Secretary George Sweat of the Department of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention said. The job opened up after Phil Lytle was fired in March 2002. He accused the department of racial discrimination and has filed a complaint. Buncombe County Commissioner Bill Stanley, a former Swannanoa director, is acting director while the state conducts a national search. Historically, governors have appointed directors who hired local supporters of the political party in power. Former Swannanoa leaders and staff members say the constant change in leadership has hurt the school's ability to rehabilitate some of North Carolina's toughest juvenile offenders. Swannanoa, the largest of the state's five juvenile prisons, has been targeted for reform since three former students filed a civil claim in April. They allege former cottage technician Brian Harkins, who is facing criminal charges, repeatedly sexually assaulted them. A fourth student filed a similar civil claim last month. The students allege there was a lack of qualified staff and that top leaders ignored abuse allegations and failed to conduct a thorough investigation. Bettie Albright, who was appointed director in 1984 by Gov. Jim Hunt and fired by the administration of Gov. Jim Martin the next year, said local Democrats tried to force her to hire fellow Democrats. Her successor, Toby Ives, said he was also told by local party leaders who to hire. 'It's a disservice to the staff and the kids,' Ives said. As the residents of the center began to become more violent, the type of directors hired by the state also began to change, said David R. 'Fox' Watson, who taught at the school from 1976-1999. 'The governor's office decided we needed a more serious, police-like director, more correctional. It began to snowball. They began to hire staff that thought like that: correctional, not treatment. It became increasingly more punitive in how they viewed the children, and you began to have staff who were openly antagonistic to the kids.' Robert Wiseman, now county manager in Avery, directed the center in 1992-1993 before being replaced. He said he believes the director's job at Swannanoa shouldn't be one of the 515 filled by gubernatorial appointment. 'At least in the past, if you track it and do it with an open mind and from a historical perspective, there's been no continuity of leadership, no solidarity of organizational hierarchy,' he said. 'I think it's a discredit to the solid, hardworking employees (at Swannanoa) who are there to do a job.' The biggest problem with turnover has been the lack of direction for employees and the school, Wiseman said. He said directors don't have time to fully implement their plans before being fired or forced out. The director is hired based on qualifications, but serves at the pleasure of the governor and is not protected by the State Personnel Act. Rep. Wilma Sherrill, R-Buncombe, who has helped push for reforms at Swannanoa, supports the rights of governors to appoint people to certain posts. Sherrill was director of boards and commissions and personnel appointments under Martin. 'There's really nothing wrong in the governor hiring people who believe in his or her goals and policies. What is wrong is if the people who are hired aren't qualified,' she said. |
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