Roy Exum
The Nashville Metro Schools have whittled down an impressive group of three outstanding educators to be the new superintendent of the embattled school district. In an overtly transparent process, they are Jesus Jara, a Venezuelan immigrant who had revived the school system in Key West, Fla.; H. Allen Smith who has starred as the chief of schools for the post-secondary readiness division at the Oakland Unified School District in California; and Shawn Joseph, deputy superintendent for teaching and learning at Prince George’s County Public Schools in Maryland.
All three appear to be an excellent choice when the new leader is chosen at the end of this week, but the teacher’s union – in this case the Metro Nashville Education Association – is throwing its weight around like the union will have some say-so in the school board’s decision. Eric Hutch, the union president, said Smith is “a hatchet man.”
And what kept Jara from getting the super’s job in Key West, this after Florida Governor Rick Scott appointed him as the interim leader, was one school board member who was swayed by the union. John Dick, a school board member in Key West, admitted Jara took over quickly. “Basically he made tough calls – furlough days, getting rid of people. He had to make reductions (due to the financially strained system) and it was rough.”
These are not things the Nashville union members want to hear. When he was in Denver, the mayor there called his greatest ability “his way to build, motivate, and inspire members to be extraordinary.”
But a 2009 article said he turned his school around by letting go 65 percent off the faculty after firing 40 teachers the year before. In Oakland he has produced marvelous results but this after a rocky start.
“I think that there has been growth by Mr. Smith while here,” said Oakland school board member Rosie Torres. She explained the initial reaction wasn’t good, but once communication got better and the community understood what he was doing, the Oakland deputy superintendent was praised by the school board.
Holly Hummell-Gorman, the president of the United Teachers of Monroe (County), had little nice to say about Jara. She described him as “heavy handed” in employee discipline and said he was inexperienced handling contract negotiations. “He has no concept of collaboration,” she said, “He’ll go through the motions of seeming to hear (what you say) but doesn’t follow through.”
Joseph, who has been in Prince George’s County for two years after being the superintendent at the Seaford School District in Delaware, claims his greatest strength is “selecting and developing talent, particularly principals.”
Joseph added, “Every child must have a great teacher … a superintendent’s biggest duty is to give each child a great teacher.”
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Knox County Mayor Tim Burchett has allocated $453.5 million for the Knoxville schools in 2016-2017. That includes $63.7 million to build two new middle schools. He says there will be no tax increase.
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In Alabama, where no teachers have gotten raises since 2008, the Huntsville City Schools are in somewhat shambles. Resignations of tenured teachers have gone up 225 percent since 2009, and now 20 percent of the teachers have a year or less experience.
The beef is that ever since Casey Wardynski became superintendent in 2011, the school system has developed an “authoritarian” culture. “Teachers don't feel supported or trusted" and will not speak out against perceived unfairness because "teachers live in fear of retribution." This just so you’ll know ….
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No wonder a proposed new state motto is: Alabama – since 1819 we have led every other state alphabetically.”
royexum@aol.com