Turnaround operator MGT Consulting received a unanimous endorsement Thursday from the state Distressed Unit Appeal Board to continue managing the Gary Community School Corp. as the General Assembly draws up plans for a new governance system next year.

The DUAB met for nearly three hours in Indianapolis hearing opposition from Gary residents who held red and white “MGT Must Go” signs.

In the end, the DUAB agreed to authorize its chairman, Justin McAdam, to negotiate a third contract with Florida-based MGT.

The meeting was often contentious.

State Rep. Vernon Smith, D-Gary, a non-voting DUAB member, blistered district manager Paige McNulty with questions on graduation, achievement, and enrollment.

“People think we’re all dummies. We know our students are not achieving… Your effort to deceive the community is part of the distrust, it’s not transparent,” Smith said.

McNulty said she disagreed with Smith’s assessment and DUAB member Rebecca Kubacki defended MGT’s progress.

“You’re telling me nothing good has happened in the Gary schools? They’ve improved, you see new parents coming back… I’ve heard every negative thing. You don’t acknowledge all the of the good things that have happened,” said Kubacki.

McAdam credited MGT for the passage of the $72.1 million operating referendum in 2020.

“I do think that’s telling and a pretty robust endorsement of what they’ve done,” he said.

He said MGT also halted the steady enrollment decline. “It’s clear parents are choosing to keep their children in Gary schools over other options.”

McAdam said there’s still work for MGT to complete on the academic front.

“I see a tremendous push forward and tremendous amount of progress made across the spectrum,” he said. “That gives me confidence they’re capable of continuing to push that forward.”

MGT hired two new educators who will focus on an academic plan called “The Gary Way,” that’s built around a culture of high expectations and positive student experiences.

Andre Wright, who will serve as the transformation director, joined MGT’s Denver office last year as a senior vice president. Most recently, he was chief academic officer for the Aurora Public Schools in Colorado.

Rajeev Bajaj is project director with authority over the turnaround effort.

He said expectations need to be defined as a way to hold officials responsible for outcomes.

Non-voting DUAB member state Sen. Liz Brown, R-Fort Wayne, said the reason DUAB is overseeing the district is because the community lost trust in its system.

She cited two failed referendum attempts, led by the previous school board, while the district owed local business vendors $4 million and racked up $100 million in long-term debt.

“What happens in Gary matters to everybody in the state of Indiana,” Brown said. “We’d be bad stewards if we handed it back to the community without ensuring a structure was in place that will make sure this never can happen again.”

Carole Carlson is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.