Rob Manning OPB Published 7:02 p.m. UTC Jul 11, 2018 The chief information officer at Oregon’s statewide education agency has resigned. Susie Strangfield alleged “intolerable working conditions” at the Oregon Department of Education after spending five months on leave and under investigation. Strangfield was suspended in January but wasn’t interviewed by investigators at ODE until the middle of March. Over that time, she said it wasn’t clear why ODE was investigating her. In the meantime, her supervisors canceled her meetings, appointments and speaking appearances, while instructing her not to speak to her colleagues. Strangfield said in her absence, ODE staff received mixed messages as to when, or whether, she would be returning. “I have dedicated 20 years of my professional life to education,” Strangfield said in a statement to OPB. “I have always maintained the highest level of integrity and professionalism in carrying out my duties, including those as ODE’s CIO. ODE knows that its accusations against me were frivolous and without substance, as demonstrated in my 37-page response to its accusations.” Investigative records obtained by OPB allege wide-ranging but vague concerns with Strangfield, touching on both her interactions with co-workers and her leadership on specific projects. Strangfield and her attorneys argue the criticisms are misrepresentations and don’t rise to the level of policy violations that would justify a suspension, even if they were true. “As we have demonstrated in this response, there is nothing in ODE’s Notice that warrants any disciplinary action whatsoever, much less dismissal,” said Strangfield’s attorneys… [Read full story]
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