Two principals have been suspended without pay from Traverse City West Senior High School after they used construction equipment to bury the school’s spirit rock and lied about the incident to district officials, according to a Traverse City Area Public Schools (TCAPS) internal investigation.

Traverse City West Senior High School Principal Joe Esper has received a five-day suspension without pay and Assistant Principal Charles Kolbusz has received a two-day suspension without pay for burying West’s spirit rock and attempting to cover up its disappearance – an incident that violated state law and district policies, jeopardized staff safety, and had the potential to damage district property, the report states.

The disciplinary action follows an August 31 investigation of Esper and Kolbusz ordered by TCAPS Superintendent Paul Soma, who questioned the disappearance from campus of the prominent large boulder frequently painted – sometimes obscenely or controversially – by students.

“It came to my attention the spirit rock was missing, and I asked Joe Esper what happened to it,” Soma says. “He flat-out told me he didn’t know what happened to it. That didn’t seem right to me.”

Soma says “it later came to (his) attention” that Esper had instructed Kolbusz to bury the rock, seeking to get rid of what had become “a disruption and headache for the administration,” according to the superintendent. Kolbusz brought a backhoe to the high school during off-hours, dug a hole on the school grounds, and buried the rock. Those actions violated state law – Act 174 of Public Act 2013 – which requires “anyone who engages in any type of excavation to provide advance notice to MISS DIG,” Michigan’s utility safety notification system, according to Soma.

“It could have jeopardized staff working in the building and had the potential to harm our physical structure,” says Soma. “They could have hit a pipe in the ground. Someone could have gotten hurt. On top of breaking the law, they’re violating our maintenance codes and policies. And the greater aspect is (Esper) mislead our organization upon direct questioning by me.”

According to the investigative report written by Associate Superintendent Chris Parker and Executive Director of Human Resources Cindy Berck – a copy of which was obtained by The Ticker through a Freedom of Information Act request – both Esper and Kolbusz denied knowing about the rock’s disappearance before eventually acknowledging they had buried the boulder. “Both Joe Esper and Charles Kolbusz indicated there was no formal plan or directive as to how they were going to respond if questioned about the spirit rock,” the report states. “However, both responded the same way – that they did not know what happened to the spirit rock and that it was time to move on.” Those responses, particularly Esper’s direct denial to Soma of knowing anything about the rock’s disappearance, jeopardized “the trust between central office staff and the WHSH administrative team,” according to the report.

Soma followed investigators’ recommendation to suspend Esper for five days without pay for misconduct and insubordination and Kolbusz for three days without pay for failing to follow proper facilities and maintenance protocols. At an appeal hearing Wednesday, however, Soma agreed to reduce Kolbusz’s suspension to two days. “He owned his role in this and accepted responsibility for his error in judgment, and he didn’t have knowledge of the misinformation presented to me by (Esper),” Soma says of the reduction. “(Esper’s) understanding of his responsibility was not on the same level, so I didn’t offer to reduce his penalty.” Both Esper and Kolbusz can have the suspension erased from their files in two years if they maintain a good performance record, according to Soma.

Esper and Kolbusz did not return phone and email requests for comment Friday. But in a letter to TCAPS board members Wednesday, Esper blasted Soma’s decision, saying he could not “remain silent in the midst of such injustice.” He requested an appearance before the board to plead his case and asked for an “immediate injunction so that any penalties against me are held in abeyance” until such a meeting could occur.

“This suspension is the second harshest penalty imposed on a TCAPS principal in the past decade (and possibly longer),” Esper wrote. “I will absolutely own and apologize for my mistake. However, I can provide evidence that this penalty has not been applied in accordance with board policy 1339 and stands to erode the morale, trust and collegiality that we have worked (so) hard to establish in this district.”

The policy referenced by Esper regulates discipline of school principals and assistant principals. It states such employees must have an investigation before disciplinary measures are implemented and be provided with an opportunity to respond to allegations, among other steps that must be taken prior to the meting of punishment. Soma says he followed the policy in handling Esper and Kolbusz’s cases, and that the policy empowers him to make disciplinary decisions without board input. “The superintendent (or his/her designee) is delegated the authority under this policy to impose all administrator discipline,” the document states.

According to TCAPS Spokesperson Christine Guitar, Esper’s request for a meeting was “still under consideration” by the board as of Friday. Soma says the date on which Esper and Kolbusz will begin serving their suspensions has not yet been set, with the district working on a “mutually agreeable timetable” with the administrators.  Soma also sent an email to board members Friday challenging Esper’s claims, saying the principal had been offered “multiple paths forward and opportunities to own his mistake in order to reduce but not completely remove disciplinary consequences,” but that Esper had instead “chosen to continue to fight for little or no accountability for himself in this matter.”

“I take (disciplinary) responsibility seriously, set high expectations for staff, and will hold administrators accountable for their actions when necessary,” Soma concluded his email.