The Pleasant Valley school community has been going through a rough patch, and none of it involves the education of its children.

It’s the adults making the eye-popping news.

It was bad enough that mold caused a delay in the start of the school year. The mold cleanup could cost up to $1.2 million, the amount that the board of education allocated for the unexpected expenses.

Last week, a Monroe County grand jury recommended the indictment of former Pleasant Valley Superintendent Carole Geary, former superintendent assistant Christopher Fisher and director of support services Joshua Krebs.

Krebs is on paid administrative leave while charges against him move forward in Monroe County Court. He has been charged with wiretap infractions and perjury.

The grand jury recommended that Geary be charged with four counts of official oppression, threats in official and political matters, retaliation for past official action and conspiracy. Three counts of the same charges were recommended against Fisher and two counts of each against Krebs.

A grand jury is made up of 23 county residents and is responsible for hearing testimony concerning major public issues. It cannot initiate the charges against the three; that will be up to county District Attorney David Christine, who is expected to move forward with the prosecution. And unlike a petit jury (usually made up of 12 members), it does not make a determination of a person’s guilt or innocence.

The grand jury’s action is a culmination of eight years of alleged harassment, reprisals, intimidation and other unethical behavior on the part of previous administrative officials.

The sordid issue came to a head with the discovery of a video camera in the employees’ break room. John Gesiskie, a physical education teacher at Pleasant Valley Elementary School and president of the district’s teachers’ association, explained that a colleague discovered the camera and brought it to his attention. He went to the state police and the board president.

An investigation found that Krebs was responsible for installation of the camera to spy on a custodian whom he suspected of taking unauthorized long breaks. This resulted in the charges of violation of the Pennsylvania Wiretap Act, which requires both parties to be aware of being recorded unless a judge approves a surveillance wiretap.

Geary retired from the superintendent’s job last year and left the district to do consulting work with Step By Step Learning. Fisher retired in 2015.

The grand jury disclosure comes days after a contentious school board meeting where a board member was called out by one of her colleagues for posting allegations of inaction on the administration and board’s part concerning the hot topic of bullying.

In the process, board member Laura Jecker was accused of bullying the district’s administrators and fellow board members by the content and tone of the message posted on her Facebook page.

Jecker tied her message to “World Day of Bullying Prevention” on Sept. 20, writing that the district should be supporting this initiative but adding “… bullying is not important enough to them.” She went on to say that a district committee formed to discuss the issue cares but that the administration is “holding back” and has put the topic on the “back burner.”

She urged readers of her post to send her their concerns and narratives about bullying in the district and promised to, with their help, “take bullying head on.”

As you might imagine, this did not go over well with other board members, especially Dan Wunder, who said he took Jecker’s message personally.

A former teacher and administrator, Wunder recounted some of the initiatives he undertook to address bullying in his classroom and the school where he worked and maintains that his anti-bullying efforts continue as a board member.

Wunder implied that Jecker herself was using a form of bullying by accusing administrators who are not in a position to defend themselves because of their delicate relationship with board members.

The fractured board needs to come together for the good of the district. It’s fine for board members to have strong opinions about important issues, but there is also a protocol which should be followed in airing these opinions. Facebook and other social media sites have a place in public discussion, but they should not be used by elected officials to hurl accusations at their colleagues or employees.

Jecker needs to express her opinions on bullying and any other subjects of concern at open board meetings so her colleagues can agree or rebut her views. It also would give the public an opportunity to hear the back-and-forth views and discussions, and, if residents choose to do so, enter the conversation under established board rules of decorum.

By Bruce Frassinelli | tneditor@tnonline.com