Alachua County School Board postpones decision on interim superintendent
Alligator | By Sara-James Ranta | October 22, 2024
The Alachua County School Board held a special meeting to discuss the future of the superintendent position on Monday. Shane Andrew was not present.
ACSB voted to fire Superintendent Shane Andrew at a meeting Oct. 15, which came after evaluations of his position were completed by each board member.
Before and after Andrew’s final day, ACSB discussed whether to have an “acting” superintendent or an “interim” superintendent.
An “acting” superintendent is a temporary authority role taken over by an internal candidate. For example, Deputy Superintendent Cathy Atria, who fills in for Andew at ACSB meetings when he is not present, is an acting superintendent. Andrew retains the responsibility of his position until his final day, but would delegate it to Atria.
An “interim” superintendent, although also temporary, steps in during transitions for longer periods of time. For example, ACSB could work with the Florida School Board Association to hire a seasoned professional. The “interim” person has both the authority and the responsibility of the office.
Board discussions
After opening comments, District 3 Board Member Sarah Rockwell started board discussion. Although she did not agree with appointing an interim superintendent, reviewing internal candidates must be without any appearance of bias, she said.
“We are setting superintendents up for failure if we give the appearance of hiring friends,” she said. “We’ve done it twice. It has not worked out well.”
District 1 Board Member Tina Certain mirrored Rockwell’s comments, stating she did not bring any nominations, and the board shouldn’t appoint anyone so soon.
In contact with the FSBA, District 4 Board Member Leanetta McNealy said the four candidates she asked to fill the position “turned her down.” Each would only fill the position unless there was a contract stating they wouldn’t be susceptible to losing their position with a vote, she said.
“Even if we do the national search, no one is going to want to come in with a 3-2 vote,” she said.
McNealy said she did not recommend Atria for the position because she felt Atria is needed in her current position.
District 5 Board Member Kay Abbitt said an appointed interim should come from an internal candidate to help with the “learning curve.” She nominated current ACPS State Reporting Office Director Kim Neal.
“Kim Neal is a hard-worker,” she said. “She knows a lot about what’s happening in the district.”
Aside from her nomination, Abbitt said she believes a “placeholder” for the position won’t change the current dynamics of the district.
Board Chair Diyonne McGraw said Andrew no longer wished to serve because of the behaviors of the board members and others in the community.
“When you’re criticized for no reason, people can see that,” she said. “People get tired, and they’re ready to go.”
In response to comments about whether Andrew will continue to serve, Rockwell said if the superintendent does not want to do the job anymore, he could resign.
“The appearance that board members may have terminated him in order to allow him to take a severance rather than resigning … is exceptionally concerning,” she said.
Certain motioned to wait until after new board members are sworn in on Nov. 19 to find an interim superintendent. In a 3-2 vote, the motion failed, with McNealy, Abbitt and McGraw in dissent.
Certain recommended Atria serve as acting superintendent for a few weeks after Andrew’s departure to give the board time to decide on a course of action.
Atria said she struggles with the differences between what she read in policy versus what is listed in her job description.
She said her job description states she can stand on behalf of the superintendent if they are absent, while policy states she can stand as acting superintendent if the current one is “incapacitated and unable to serve.”
“I don’t think that’s where we’re at,” she said. “I think I just need a little more time.”
The ACSB will table the decision for another special meeting on Nov. 4 at 6:30 p.m.
Community comments
Many members of the ACPS community spoke in public comment, with over eight in-person and over six phone call-ins.
Dejeon Cain, a 40-year-old Gainesville resident, spoke in public comment. He said he finds the superintendent’s firing “outrageous.”
“Shane Andrews has been a beacon of hope in this community,” he said. “He has kept us strong.”
Growing up in ACPS, Cain said he’s watched Shane work hard to get to his position, and feels the community must now do some “soul searching.”
“Why are we messing with somebody from here that really loves this community?” he said. “We need somebody from home, because they know what we need.”
Anne Rush, a 44-year-old Gainesville resident, said she feels “distressed but hopeful” about Andrew’s termination. She said a superintendent’s position is powerful, even if she feels ACSB “fails to hold them accountable.”
“They [ACSB] need to take more authority for the things that are happening in this district,” she said. “Until they do, the public needs to care a lot about who is selected as the superintendent, because they have a whole lot of power within our education system.”
Juliun Kinsey, a 33-year-old La Crosse resident, found Andrew’s firing a violation of due process and a clear act of unlawful authority, he said.
Kinsey said he was most frustrated by how the discussion of Andrew’s firing on Oct. 15 was not placed on the agenda beforehand.
“The superintendent should not be in a position where one night, they show up to the board meeting, and then when they go home, they no longer have a job,” he said. “Who wants that job? I don’t want that job.”
Brandy Oldman, a 39-year-old Newberry resident and mother of four, said she feels the timing of Andrew’s firing “isn’t coincidental.”
“It’s the biggest political show I’ve ever seen in my life,” she said.
Oldman said she doesn’t think ACSB should spend excessive money to get an interim superintendent, and recommends Atria for the position. She said she felt money could be better spent on a “real good search.”
“A good leader can get that board to come to one conclusion,” she said.
Travis Adair, a 35-year-old Newberry resident, said it was “bizarre” that the people who rated Andrew well also voted to kick him out. He said he found McGraw’s comments on Andrew’s tiredness concerning.
“Either she knew that before, in which case, why was that not brought to the board’s attention that he was looking for a way out?” he said. “Or that’s not what’s happening, and she’s on her way out in a couple weeks and not telling the real story.”
