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"I sense a certain amount of animosity, an unwillingness to get with the program, and that troubles me," Wright said to Kurus.

Wright had spent several years in New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg's schools office, and then crossed the river to serve as chief policy advisor to Newark Mayor Cory Booker. A little under two years ago, he left the mayor's office for a position with the fund. Now that he and the fund's partners had bet serious dollars on Glen Pinder turning around Lady Liberty, his own reputation was on the line.

All heads turned back to Codey, the poker-faced board president, who looked again to Mr. Pinder.

"I stand by my recommendation," said Pinder. "Ms. Kurus should be terminated."

For a moment, the still silence of a looming execution filled the room.

"Wait a minute," came a voice from the far end of the board table, breaking the tension. All eyes then turned to Kaylin Dines, a board member who had breezed in mid-meeting and was rifling through the folder placed before her, looking somewhat perplexed.

"I'm a little uncomfortable making this decision right now," she continued. "I haven't seen anything. I'd like to see Mr. Pinder's written evaluations and recommendation. And I'd like to see what Ms. Kurus brought with her."

Others at the table turned their heads from one to another, while those in the galley sat transfixed on Dines. The second hand clicked loudly on the wall clock.

"Of course," Codey finally jumped in. "We can take some time. Christmas is coming."

And with that, Mr. Codey suspended a verdict until the next meeting and directed Ms. Kurus, and all those gathered in her defense, to come prepared.

Accidental Antagonists

"I became a teacher by accident," Glen Pinder recalled in his office. But he identified with his small charges at Lady Liberty.

From a humble background, Pinder earned a political science degree. But that only sent him bouncing through varied jobs around his native Georgia.

Then, he heard Atlanta had openings for substitute teachers.