A divided Boward School Board has decided against giving Superintendent Robert Runcie an extra performance review this year.
Runcie’s five strongest supporters voiced opposition to conducting a midyear evaluation this year in addition to the annual review he receives every fall. Several said one evaluation a year is plenty, while others said they didn’t see a need this year but they’re open to one in the future. The discussion was a follow-up to a 6 to 3 vote on March 5 vote against firing Runcie.
Several of Runcie’s supporters say they felt a second evaluation was another way to try to find a reason to fire the superintendent.
“This is another attempt to try to backdoor overturn a decision to keep Mr. Runcie as superintendent,” Board member Rosalind Osgood said. “When we make a decision as a board and I don’t get my way, does that mean we keep trying through different processes?”
Board member Laurie Rich Levinson spoke in a loud and sharp tone in opposition, saying, “We need to stop litigating this over and over again!”
Donna Korn, who spoke in favor of a midyear evaluation last month, clarified her stance Tuesday, saying she supports it for future years but doesn’t see a need this year. Midyear reviews are typically done in March so she said the time had passed for this year.
The proposal for an interim evaluation came from Board chairwoman Heather Brinkworth, who voted against firing Runcie last month.
She said at the meeting there were many concerns she felt needed to be addressed and asked for a midyear review.
“I don’t see willful neglect. I do see issues and things that need to be addressed,” Brinkworth said, including lackluster student achievement in a number of areas.
She said too much of the discussion on Runcie has been focused on issues related to the massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High in Parkland which left 17 people dead.
“I am looking forward to a conversation that does not focus on a single incident,” she said last month.
Board members say they regularly voice concerns and criticism to Runcie during one-on-one meetings, but those discussions rarely become public.
No formal vote was taken Tuesday, but the interim evaluation also had support from Lori Alhadeff, Nora Rupert and Robin Bartleman, who all voted in favor of firing Runcie for cause last month. Alhadeff made the request, saying he had failed in areas such as school safety, execution of an $800 million bond program and services to special needs students.
Runcie, who was hired in 2011, used to receive two evaluations a year, but that requirement was dropped when his contract was last renewed in 2017.
This is a developing story. Check back for more information.
stravis@sunsentinel.com, 561-243-6637 or Twitter @smtravis