Harford County Public Schools announced today the sudden death of Board of Education President Dr. Leonard D. Wheeler. Teri Kranefeld, manager of communications for HCPS, made the announcement in the following email sent to employees Wednesday morning, less than 36 hours after Wheeler presided over a school board meeting held Monday night.
“HCPS Family –
It is with deep and sorrowful regret that I share with you the passing of our Board of Education President Dr. Leonard D. Wheeler. At this time, the arrangements have not yet been confirmed. As soon as that information becomes available I will certainly share it with you.
In this time of sorrow, we remember that Dr. Wheeler was a kind and caring man who dedicated his life’s work to education and the betterment of his community. His passion for education and his desire to serve was evident in his leadership. In his honor, we will continue our mission of preparing our students for a bright and successful future.
At the end of each day, go home and hug your loved ones. Life is a precious gift.
Teresa D. Kranefeld
Manager of Communications”
Further details were not immediately available, but Kranefeld said more information from HCPS would be forthcoming.
Speaking on his own behalf, School Board Vice-President Rick Grambo mourned the loss of a man he said he got to know well during their service together on the school board. “Dr. Wheeler and I had become good friends,” Grambo said, “I am really going to miss him.” Wheeler
and Grambo met regularly on Wednesday afternoons, Grambo said, with one such meeting scheduled for later today. “He was a very good man, very knowledgeable, very wise,” Grambo said, “ I learned a lot from him, he was a good mentor.” Grambo said he spoke to Wheeler after the school board meeting Monday night, but Wheeler showed no signs of poor health.
Harford County Council Vice-President Dick Slutzky said he was “deeply saddened” by news of Wheeler’s passing and expressed sympathy for the family. Slutzky, who serves as the council’s education liaison, said he first got to know Wheeler during the 2006 campaign for the District E (Aberdeen) seat that Slutzky still holds. Wheeler, a Democrat, ran against Slutzky, a Republican, but Slutzky said the relationship that developed between them was respectful, and more friendly than adversarial. “I considered him a friend. I’m going to miss him as a person and as an advocate in the education community.”
Following the news of Wheeler’s death, Harford County Executive David Craig issued the following statement:
“Harford County Executive David R. Craig issued the following statement regarding the unexpected passing of Dr. Leonard D. Wheeler, President of the Board of Education of Harford County:
“I am deeply saddened by the news of the unfortunate passing of Dr. Leonard D. Wheeler. Dr. Wheeler had a distinguished career as an educator and served with distinction and integrity as a member of the Board of Education. Dr. Wheeler worked tirelessly to help make Harford County Public Schools one of the finest school systems in our state.
Melinda and I extend our sincere condolences on behalf of the citizens of Harford County to Dr. Wheeler’s family, fellow Board members and the faculty and staff of Harford County Public Schools. Dr. Wheeler’s service to our school system will surely be missed.”
Below is the bio of Dr. Wheeler from the HCPS Web site:
“Leonard D. Wheeler, Ed.D.
President, Appointed Member-at-Large, 2008
Dr. Leonard D. Wheeler is a retired Baltimore City Public School teacher, curriculum specialist, principal, and assistant superintendent. He is also a retired associate professor in the department of education at the College of Notre Dame of Maryland. Dr. Wheeler is married to former Harford County Public School central office administrator Dr. A. Barbara Wheeler. The couple has a son, Christopher Wheeler, who was educated in the Harford County Public Schools, is currently attending Harford Community College. Dr. Leonard Wheeler earned his BS degree from Coppin State University, his master’s from Morgan State University, and his Ed.D. from Temple University. A member of the Ames United Methodist Church, he is also serving on the Judicial Nominating Committee for the county and the Harford Land Trust, in addition to being an active member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). He is a past Trustee with the Woodbourne Board, the HJOPE Academy, the Harford County Partnership for Families, the Harford County CORE Service Agency, and the Harford County Board of Elections. The Harford Board of Education member has been honored with many civic, community, and professional awards and citations.”
I think it’s extremely unprofessional to take an email meant for HCPS employees and try to pass it on as news. There is a reason why the email was addressed to “HCPS family” and not to the general public, and that is because it was intended for those who work with and know Dr. Wheeler. When a statement is ready to be made to the public, it will be.
I certainly can understand that many will be saddened and hurt by the passing of Dr. Wheeler and I do not minimize the impact this will have on his family, friends, and the operations of the school system. But we must remember that the work has go on even with his loss. That said, there was more to this published story than the inclusion of an internal email to all HCPS employees. Did you expect the email to remain secret or think that the public had no right to see it? The fact that it was sent to over four thousand HCPS employees makes it a public document. The statement from the County Executive was released to the general public. Comments by Mr. Grambo were certainly made with the knowledge that they were for public consumption. Dr. Wheeler’s sudden passing is unfortunate in many respects. However, despite your personal misgivings about the sharing of the email, the passing of Dr. Wheeler is a noteworthy news event in Harford County considering the many controversial issues currently facing the school system. There was nothing unprofessional about including the email in this article. Reporters and news organizations have a responsibility to report the news by using reliable and available resources to keep the public informed.
If you notice the UPDATED next to the headline, it’s because originally this post consisted ONLY of the email sent specifically to staff. A personal email intended for its listed recipients is not a news source.It’s not about keeping things a secret, it’s about respecting the fact that a private email was not anyone’s right to publish without permission.
“email sent to employees”
Sorry, there, ME.
HCPS “family” are employees of the taxpayer. And news is news. Wheeler was serving the taxpayers as the President of the Board of Ed.
I don’t understand your logic on this.
Any email sent to thousands of recipients is not private and unless there is a disclaimer at the bottom which states it is only for those recipients and cannot be disseminated to other parties there is no prohibition against sharing information in the email with outside persons. This particular email was not personal. It was an organization wide notification of Dr. Wheeler’s death. We are not talking national security secrets or any possibility of prosecution for disclosure. As for what constitutes a news source, any information, written, verbal, video, photographs, etc. related to a newsworthy event, of which this certainly qualifies, is a viable source for information.
Did I miss something here? It looked like a well-written, and kindly worded message. I’m sure Ms. Kranefeld knew it would be forwarded when she sent it to the entire HCPS staff. This is far from a confidential memo.
Both Ms. Kranefeld and Mr. Wheeler should be proud of its contents. RIP Mr. Wheeler, and thank you for everything you’ve done for our community.
Wow. The school board president suddenly passes away and you people are squabbling over whether it was ok to share the e-mail the school system sent out about it. I swear that some of you people will argue over anything just for the sake of arguing. Grow up.
Leonard Wheeler was a caring and kind person, who dedicated his professional life to delivering and improving education. He had a positive impact on Harford County, and he will be truly missed.
I AGREE WITH CONCERNED TEACHER, STOP ACTING LIKE CHILDREN AND GROW UP.
i am deeply saddened by Dr. wheeler’s passing. having spoken with him on a handful of occasions, i can testify that he was a man of deep compassion and integrity. The entire county will miss him.
thank you, Dr. Wheeler, for all that you have done to make HCPS a better place for our children.
Jeff