Mary Napier - Two Years and $178,462.00 Later

Mary Napier, suspended principal of L. E. Willson Elementary School in Sheffield, Alabama, either epitomizes what is very right with education or what is very, very wrong. Our column yesterday on Wilson High School in Florence incorrectly identified Mrs. Napier as being suspended from that school. Several readers immediately notified us that Mrs. Napier was in fact principal of the Sheffield school until two years ago, at which time the board suspended her with pay. Since then, the citizens of Sheffield have continued to pay Napier over $178,000.00, and there is no end in sight.

Mary Napier was a 25-year veteran of elementary education when she became principal of L. E. Willson Elementary School in 1999. A short time later, the city imported Richard Gardner from Indiana to become the new Superintendent of Education for the small Colbert County town. Initially, Gardner had nothing but accolades for the elementary school principal, but by 2006, he was accusing her of misusing school funds. Napier's supporters retaliated that Gardner had a vendetta against Napier who didn't fit the image the superintendent hoped to cultivate for the Sheffield system.

No one could deny that Napier handled things her own way. After arriving at the school each morning, she personally spoke to the students over the public address system and led them in the Pledge of Allegiance. She also instituted the Principal's Club, an organization that honored the school's top scholars each month. Pictured above is Napier (far left) with students in a limousine, complete with bar.

Rather than live in Sheffield, Napier and her husband Anthony resided in the nearby town of Leighton. The founder of the Muscle Shoals Twirlers, the school principal once requested and received $2,500.00 from Oprah Winfrey to purchase uniforms for her baton twirling students.

Those who knew the principal indicated she relied heavily on her friend and assistant Lisa Berry; however, Berry routinely took extended leaves of absence due to family illnesses. Supporters feel such laxness led to the removal of both women from the Sheffield system.

When Richard Gardner received the routine financial audit for the period extending from October 2003 to September 2006, he discovered that $230.00 in checks and $7,555.00 in soft drink receipts were missing. After calling a board meeting, Gardner dismissed both Napier and Berry on April 14, 2007, turning the financial records over to Alabama Attorney General Troy King's office. Both women denied any wrong-doing, and Napier retained Tuscumbia attorney Tom Heflin, son of former U.S. Senator Howell Heflin, to represent her.

Ultimately, the information from the audit was presented to a Colbert County Grand Jury, who refused to indict either Napier or Berry. While the Sheffield Board officially terminated Lisa Berry, it is still in arbitration with Napier who remained on the payroll at the end of May.

During the two years of Mary Napier's suspension, L. E. Willson Elementary School has been led by two interim principals, and Sheffield Board member Donna Atkins has stated the school has undergone "positive changes and there has been a total turnaround with teachers and parents at the school."

At this point in a war of "he said, she said," only two things are certain: the citizens of cash-strapped Sheffield are paying the wages of two principals at L. E. Willson and the public deserves some answers.

Photo by Jim Hannon


What's up with this: Jury selection continues in the Christy Bray Scott murder trail, and Franklin County District Attorney Joey Rushing is allowing ADA Jim Evans to run the show so far. He's either very sure of his case or is saving himself for one terrific finale.