The principal of Kilkenny City Vocational School has told the High Court she believes Kilkenny Vocational Education Committee (VEC) may attempt to remove her from her duties as principal on the basis of a consultant's "unfair" and "one-sided" report.
Ms Catherine McSorley secured interim orders from Mr Justice Butler preventing a special meeting of the VEC taking place yesterday to consider the consultant's report on the school, and restraining Kilkenny VEC from suspending or removing her from her duties.
The injunctions continue to Monday, but the VEC has liberty to apply to the court before then if it chooses.
Earlier Mr Ercus Stewart SC, for Ms McSorley, said the meeting due to take place yesterday was to have gone ahead without Ms McSorley receiving any of the allegations being made against her. She was principal of three colleges within the Kilkenny City Vocational School, and had an excellent record in education and with the VEC.
In an affidavit, Ms McSorley, of Annamult, Bennettsbridge, Co Kilkenny, said the report was entitled A School in Crisis: a report on Kilkenny Vocational School.
She said she was appointed principal in September 1999. She was aware the former principal had resistance from a small number of post-holding teachers, members of the Teachers Union of Ireland, when that principal had attempted to put middle-management structures in place.
She said after speaking to a teacher about his frequent absences, that teacher began a campaign to undermine her authority.
Due to increased pressure she had had to take extended leave twice. A motion to expel her from the TUI for unworthy conduct was passed at a branch meeting on May 16th this year.
The consultant, Mr John Dowling, who investigated matters at the Kilkenny school, met her and other staff, and wrote his report. Ms McSorley said the report was fundamentally flawed and contained one-sided, unfair and damning "findings".
Mr Dowling had told her her position was untenable, and that she should step down.
Ms McSorley said she was never, prior to Mr Dowling concluding the report, afforded an opportunity to consider and respond to the matters raised in that report. In May the school's board of management expressed concerns about Mr Dowling's alleged lack of consultation, and said he had been told Ms McSorley had the full support of the school board. She believed the VEC would suspend her or take action to remove her on the basis of Mr Dowling's report.