NEW HANOVER COUNTY — The superintendent isn’t the only position change in the New Hanover County Schools district; its chief communications and diversity, equity and inclusion officers also have been dropped from staff.
READ MORE: NHC school board fires Superintendent Foust
ALSO: ‘We accomplished so many great things’: Foust responds post-termination
Spokesperson Christina Beam informed Port City Daily earlier Wednesday that Salvatore Cardella and Malcolm Johnson are no longer employed by the district. Beam said “the district dissolved” the positions, as listed on its personnel report presented last week in the agenda review meeting. The list is shared monthly.
“It shows new hires, resignations, retirements, new assignments, and contracts ending from the preceding month,” Beam said.
It shows roughly 90 resignations took place in May and June, with nine retirements.
When Port City Daily asked if the DEI and COMs positions were related to cuts from the budget shortfall, Beam said it may take longer to get the answer. It had to be directed to the new acting superintendent, Chris Barnes, whose first day was Wednesday morning after the board voted 5-0 to terminate Foust’s contract in their July 2 meeting.
“Given the transition we’re in the midst of, I wouldn’t count on getting an answer back today,” she said.
However, Cardella confirmed with WECT that his position was part of the budget cuts, due to the district’s funding shortfall. Cardella added he learned about on June 23; Beam confirmed his last day was June 28, as was Malcolm’s.
Cardella was hired in August 2023, a replacement for Josh Smith who exited the district to work with New Hanover County government last summer. It was the fifth turnover for NHCS’s chief communications officer in five years.
Malcolm, a Port City Native and 2011 Isaac Bear Early College High School graduate, was hired at the beginning of the 2022 and 2023 school year. He took over from Deputy Superintendent LaChawn Smith who was in the position a few months before retiring.
DEI has been a part of board discussions in the last year. Some board members — particularly Pete Wildeboer, Josie Barnhart and Melissa Mason — have struggled with the term “equity,” debating semantics and saying its meaning is subjective.
The board has had multiple discussion on how the district should promote equity, generally set apart from equality in that it accounts for imbalances in resources and abilities. It hosted a roundabout work session on the topic, questioning the purpose of the equity committee and DEI chief officer position last fall.
The board also voted to dissolve the DEI committee in December.
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