CMS Board

The FBI and U.S. Attorney’s Office confirmed Monday that they’re investigating Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, joining state agencies probing the district’s finances.

The fallout over the firing of CMS Superintendent Crystal Hill continues with dissension on the board and another CMS executive staff resignation; Charlotte City Council passes a new 10 p.m. curfew for teens under 18; Mooresville Mayor Chris Carney is out, and, with Election Day a month away, U.S. Senate races in both Carolinas are in the spotlight.

The North Carolina Department of Public Instruction and state Board of Education on Thursday announced a review into Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools amid the district’s ongoing turmoil.

Former Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Superintendent Crystal Hill said in a leaked memo that former board Chair Stephanie Sneed secured a $30,000-a-month consulting subcontract for political ally Raki McGregor without Hill's knowledge. The deal came after Mecklenburg County cut ties with his wife's consulting business, and former County Manager Dena Diorio told WFAE that McGregor threatened to sue her over it.

Was fired superintendent Crystal Hill a whistleblower? You can make a strong case that she was. The state's whistleblower statute prohibits an employer from firing employees for reporting misconduct and bars “other retaliation against state employees who report violations of law, fraud, misappropriation, danger, or gross mismanagement, waste, or abuse of authority. “

Charlotte-Mecklenburg school board Vice Chair Liz Monterrey Duvall offered to step down from her leadership position after she said she received multiple threats following this week's controversial firing of Superintendent Crystal Hill.

A week of ins and outs. The Charlotte Regional Transportation Planning Organization reverses their initial rejection of NCDOT’s I-77 toll lanes so, they’re in. CMS Superintendent Crystal Hill, though, is out. The school board fired her and Stephanie Sneed stepped down as chair with some board members saying the board is broken. Those stories and more with our roundtable of reporters.

State Auditor Dave Boliek made an unannounced visit to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools headquarters on Wednesday amid ongoing turmoil at the district, after the board took a 5-4 vote to fire Superintendent Crystal Hill the night before.

The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools board fired Superintendent Crystal Hill on Tuesday night, with a 5-4 vote.Hill was not present at the dais. The board offered no detailed explanation, but said the motion to fire Hill was for convenience, not cause. Hill was reinstated last month after a two-month investigation and suspension.

The long-awaited report on the investigation into CMS Superintendent Crystal Hill is not on the agenda for Tuesday night's school board meeting. But board member Charlitta Hatch says she plans to make a motion at the start of the meeting to add it.