REIDSVILLE, N.C. — Questions remain more than two weeks after a Triad school board fired its superintendent.
Some want answers from the Rockingham County Schools Board of Education, others want Superintendent Dr. Rodney Shotwell reinstated.
"The pandemic has everybody at wits end already and so to throw this on top of everything else is really creating stress for the kids. For the teachers, its devastating and for the families we feel like this is a ship without a rudder now," Mary Ryan said.
Ryan is the mother of a Rockingham County Schools student and one of the leaders of a parent group called 'Supporting Dr. Shotwell'.
The group made their goals clear at a press conference Wednesday afternoon. A banner behind speakers read, 'Bring back Dr. S'.
It's been 16 days since school board members in Rockingham County gave their superintendent 90 days to leave the post he held for nearly 15 years.
Shotwell took on the role of superintendent in 2006 and was named North Carolina Superintendent of the Year in 2015.
"(They) fired him before Christmas during a holiday season in the middle of a pandemic and to top this off, without a reason," Bill Sinclair said.
WFMY News 2 has reached out repeatedly to school board members since that decision seeking an answer to why Shotwell was fired.
There are also questions about the cost of firing the superintendent.
Board Chair, Kimberly McMichael, sent WFMY News 2's Grace Holland this statement via email Wednesday:
"I am still unable to give you any further clarification to the “WHY?” that everyone wants. I have not been given that information. Again, this was a 4-3 vote. As the incoming Chair, this motion was a surprise to me, as well as the other two who voted no. The District will have to buy out Dr. Shotwell’s contract. Our attorney will have to give those specific dollar amounts you are requesting. I am sure as we move forward, additional information will be provided about a committee and how we will proceed," McMichael said.
The four board members who voted in favor of the decision--Vicky Alston, Brent Huss, Doug Isley and Bob Wyatt--did not return requests for comments Wednesday.
Parents and other groups like the Rockingham County chapter of the NAACP intend to keep the pressure on school board members with more press conferences.
The next Board of Education meeting is scheduled for January 11.