A GROUP of parents of Methodist Ladies College students has pledged up to $250,000 in an extraordinary bid to have sacked principal Rosa Storelli reinstated before next term.
Kostas Siourthas, the chief executive of software solutions firm FMT Worldwide, said almost 30 parents had already pledged money towards paying off the more than $700,000 the board says Ms Storelli received in overpayments over 10 years.
However, a source close to the board said Ms Storelli was sacked because the board lost confidence in her after the overpayments were identified.
‘‘It’s all over. That loss of confidence is not going to be returned by someone returning the money. Even if someone put $700,000 on the front door it doesn’t change the board’s decision,’’ the source said.
Meanwhile, Ms Storelli’s former husband has come out in support of Ms Storelli, saying the financial benefits the board says the former principal was overpaid were agreed to by former chairwomen.
He said the board was seeking more than $68,000 in housekeeping costs over eight years and more than $4000 in private phone calls — expenses he said former chairwoman Margaret Jackson had agreed the school would pick up.
He said the board was also seeking to recover more than $200,000 in rent, gas and electricity and fringe benefits tax associated with those charges, dating back to when he and Ms Storelli lived in a wing of the MLC residence, Tiddeman House, between 1997 and 2004.
This was because the value of the residence, originally estimated at $10,000 a year, was re-valued at the end of 1998.
But, he said, former chairwoman Christine Kilpatrick stated in a letter in 1999, seen by The Age, that the estimated value of the use of the residence would remain at $10,000 a year.
However, a source close to the board said the money in dispute related to after 2002, when Ms Storelli signed a new contract that superseded the agreement with Ms Kilpatrick.
‘‘Why would the school pay for her house to be cleaned? How does that relate to her job, particularly when it wasn’t in her contract? I find that wrong.’’
The source said it was unfair to characterise the board as the corporate big end of town.
‘‘The majority (of members) are parents, two have year 12 daughters, so they did have that perspective.’’
The source said the board expected Ms Storelli to be aghast when the overpayments were identified and to offer to pay the money back.
‘‘At no point whatsoever did she ever make any comments or give any sense she was prepared to pay anything back, apart from (money paid for) the nanny.’’
Mr Siourthas, who has personally pledged $7500, said MLC and Ms Storelli had provided exceptional education to his daughter Artemis, who has a hearing impairment.
He said Artemis had flourished, winning a music scholarship for the cello and learning fluent French.
‘‘The education, help, guidance and support that she has received under Rosa’s leadership have allowed her to lead a life that could have been very different. Most importantly, Rosa is the role model for these girls.’’
Mr Siourthas said the parents were all intelligent people and understood the complexities of salary packaging that were what appeared to have led to the overpayments.
He also said that the board had confirmed there had been no fraudulent activity by Ms Storelli.
He said an email he sent to parents from the MLC swimming club pledging support for Ms Storelli had gone viral and he had been inundated with pledges of money and support.
‘‘The most important currency in this matter is trust. Over the nine years we have been part of the MLC community, Rosa has shown herself to be trustworthy and an inspiration to our daughters and us alike. I have pledged $7500. It’s a lot of money, but for this particular woman, she’s so worth it.’’
Parents Charles and Adamantia Pellegrino had also pledged $7500.
jtopsfield@theage.com.au
