It's been a shocking experience

Shocking.

That is the word the school board legal counsel used Monday night to describe the alleged scheme used by the former superintendent to defraud our schools of money.

It was a shocking announcement on July 28 when the board voted to put the superintendent on paid leave. It was shocking to read through the Laudermill letter detailing invoices and payments made to a reportedly fictitious company.

The stacks of e-mails and assorted semi-naked photographs received by a school computer and through a school server were just as shocking.

It is shocking to think someone with whom people placed their trust and confidence could "allegedly" do this to our community.

When the investigation is complete and should their be a conviction, we hope that the sentence handed down will be so shocking that no one in Ohio considers pulling a similar fraud again - especially not in our town.