Milton Town School District

42 Herrick Avenue, Milton, VT 05468-3097 (802) 893-3210 Fax: (802) 893-3213

Ann Bradshaw, Superintendent www.mtsd-vt.org Donald P. Johnson, Business Manager

June 30, 2017

Dear Mr. Barrino:

I am writing on behalf of the Milton School District Board of Trustees to follow up on the recent
hiring process for the Athletic Director position, our communications to you, and, on a broader
level, the concerns regarding racism in Vermont schools.

Throughout the application process, the Board acknowledges that you received inconsistent
messages regarding the status of your application, and the Board, on behalf of the District, would
like to extend an apology to you for the ambiguity in the communications you received from the
District. While it was not the intention of the Board to be misleading, the result remains that you
reasonably believed that the Board had decided not to proceed with your candidacy. The Board
would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge that your response to this information was
completely reasonable. We regret the frustration this caused, and, on behalf of the District, we
extend our heartfelt apologies to you for this error. We also acknowledge that we have mutually
agreed to not proceed with your candidacy for Athletic Director.

The Board would also like to emphatically state, in response to several requests from community
members, that your race played no role in how the Board handled this matter. Indeed, the Board
members involved in the hiring process were unaware of your race until the outgoing Athletic
Directors resignation letter, which the Board received several days after tabling the Athletic
Director discussion. While we recognize that, as a result of the feedback and frustration we have
heard, there is a need for larger discussions about the impact of racism in our community and
Vermont as a whole, it is important to the Board that you and the community know that your
race played no role in the hiring process.

I also want you to know that the Board very much appreciates the professionalism and dignified
manner in which you carried yourself during this process. The Board acknowledges that, as a
result of poor communication during the hiring process, you were thrust into a public discussion
which you did not seek to join. Through this entire process, you have reflected great patience
and admirable character, for which the Board would like to extend our gratitude.

Please be assured that, as with all prospective hiring matters, the Board will honor your privacy
and will not further discuss or answer questions about you in particular. We will, however,
discuss with the Milton community two major themes that surfaced during this process: the
hiring process at Milton schools, including the verbal and written correspondence received by
candidates, and the broader concerns of the effect of racism on our schools.

Great Schools, Strong Community, Successful People

Again, on behalf of the Milton Town School District, I hope you and your family will accept our
apologies.

Sincerely,

Lori Donna, Chair

Milton School District Board of Trustees

Great Schools, Strong Community, Successful People