The Social Development Commission was once again thrown into disarray Tuesday after a disagreement over whether Dessie Levy could participate as a board member.
Levy was appointed to serve on the SDC board by the Greater Milwaukee Committee last year.
But Jorge Franco, interim CEO and board chair of SDC, said Levy had been removed from the board and is unable to participate.
The anti-poverty agency has been embroiled in an escalating pattern of disagreements among the board.
Franco cut Levy off as she announced herself as a board commissioner during a roll-call portion of the meeting.
“I’ll address that in a minute in terms of you no longer being a commissioner, but I won’t get into that now,” Franco said.
Franco had notified Levy in May that she was removed from the board for exceeding the board’s policy for unexcused absences and said he was following a legal interpretation of SDC’s bylaws.
Levy and four other commissioners voiced their disagreement over that and other decisions and filed a request on May 28 for guidance from Milwaukee City Attorney Evan Goyke regarding questions over the Social Development Commission’s governance compliance.
These commissioners also emailed a letter requesting guidance from Milwaukee County Corporation Counsel Scott Brown on June 1.
Commissioner Pam Fendt, who was among the commissioners who sent the letters, said she disagreed with Franco that Levy was no longer a member of the board and wanted that reflected on the record.
When Levy again tried to voice her disapproval, Franco informed her there was no public comment period in the meeting.
“I’m not public,” she responded.
Ongoing challenges for SDC
For decades, the anti-poverty agency provided services that included tax assistance, weatherization, child care and job training before closing two years ago. Since then, the board has continued to meet to address SDC’s loss of funding, lawsuits and debts.
In March, Franco said SDC had $2.4 million in outstanding debt.
Among those in attendance for Tuesday’s meeting was Amy Rowell, executive director of COA Youth and Family Centers. Rowell testified in a board meeting last July that SDC owed more than $153,800 in reimbursements related to the Workforce Innovation Grant.
Technical issues and more disagreements
Once things settled down and it was determined quorum was met, Franco attempted to move the meeting into closed session.
But, Commissioner Walter Lanier, who has clashed with Franco several times since being appointed to the board in January 2025, communicated through Fendt that he was stuck in the Zoom waiting room and unable to join.
Lanier was briefly in the meeting when it started. Franco attempted several times to call Lanier and add him back to the Zoom call but was unsuccessful.
Lanier eventually sent an email to commissioners, which was read aloud by Franco during the meeting, that stated he had been in the waiting room for 15 minutes and was moving on to other business.
“I look forward to the minutes. I am, though, disappointed. This is Milwaukee, not Washington D.C.,” Lanier wrote.
As Franco again discussed moving the meeting into closed session, Fendt reiterated her objection to Levy not being allowed to participate. She also questioned whether SDC was following governance laws, including those related to keeping meeting minutes.
Fendt said she hasn’t received meeting minutes in all of 2026.
Franco replied: “Dr. Levy is no longer a commissioner. We all have access to the bylaws. Minutes are always taken, including this time now.”
Levy again attempted to speak.
“I have to defend myself,” she said before being removed from the meeting by Franco.
The board then had a brief discussion over a document that was shared previously with all members.
Franco then excused all non-board members and moved the meeting to closed session.
The board will meet again on Thursday, June 18 at 5:30 p.m. and will share the agenda on its website.
Meredith Melland contributed to this report.
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