In redo meeting, Broward County School Board picks 3, not 4, superintendent candidates to interview
The next superintendent of the Broward County School District will be Vickie Cartwright, Michael Gaal or Quintin Shepherd.
The School Board Tuesday agreed it would interview the three candidates Wednesday after again narrowing down the field of 39 candidates.
The decision came one week after the board previously selected four candidates but later agreed to redo the meeting after the way in which members voted for their preferred candidate prompted concern about violating state Sunshine laws. At the Jan. 25 meeting, the board selected Vickie Cartwright, Michael Gaal, Keith Oswald and Peter Licata. (Licata, however, later withdrew his application.)
Cartwright, Gaal or Shepherd will permanently replace former Broward Superintendent Robert Runcie, who was indicted in April on a charge of lying to a statewide grand jury. He pleaded not guilty, and his case is pending. The district’s general counsel, Barbara Myrick, was also indicted.
Cartwright is the district’s interim superintendent, a role she’s held since August. The board chose her for the temporary job in July with a $275,000 annual contract.
Gaal, who is retired from the Air Force as a colonel after 25 years, is the former president of sales at Lakewood, New Jersey, educational technology company Beable Education, from which he resigned Jan. 1. Shepherd is the superintendent of the Victoria Independent School District in Victoria, Texas. The board did not discuss Tuesday why Oswald was no longer a finalist.
Specific experience is key for next superintendent
The kind of experience a candidate should bring to the role came up throughout Tuesday’s discussion. That’s because one candidate, Gaal, has no prior K-12 teaching experience. (Gaal has held various leadership positions in school districts in Detroit, Michigan, Oakland, California, and Washington, D.C.)
While some community and district members believe someone with previous educational experience should be tapped as the district’s next leader, others, such as board member Ann Murray, said, “It’s important [candidates] understand the education process,” but that life experiences also play into one’s ability to lead. (Staff Tuesday clarified that previous teaching experience was preferred though not required.)
Gaal’s extensive military teacher experience was viewed as equivalent, said consultant Michael Collins of Ray and Associates, the firm tasked with supporting the district’s superintendent search.
For community member Michael Rajner, it’s important the next superintendent understands the issues and supports LGBTQ+ rights in the district
Similar to last week’s meeting, whether interim Superintendent Cartwright should be considered also was raised Tuesday, with some community members urging the board to hire someone new to the district. Broward Teachers Union President Anna Fusco, however, defended the interim leader, saying Cartwright hasn’t demonstrated a desire to continue with the status quo, but has proven her ability to lead the district.
The board in October had an opportunity to name Cartwright as the district’s permanent leader, but it declined to do so because the process felt rushed and members said they wanted to ensure community input.
The board is set to interview the semi-finalists
Wednesday’s interviews are to be held in person and individually. However, board members agreed to conduct Shepherd’s interview virtually if he is unable to be present. Shepherd resides in Texas and was given less than 24 hours’ notice to travel to Broward County.
The board plans to again narrow the field to just two finalists by the end of the day, which will advance to a second round of interviews scheduled for Feb. 8. Following the second set of interviews, the public will have an opportunity to ask the candidates questions in a meet-and-greet setting at the school district.
A final vote is set for Feb. 9.
The upcoming vote will come just more than two weeks after the Miami-Dade County School District appointed its new superintendent, José Dotres. The neighboring searches were often compared, as Miami-Dade advertised, interviewed and selected a new leader in just three weeks, whereas Broward County Schools’ process has been ongoing for several months.
Dotres is to succeed Superintendent Alberto Carvalho, who is leaving this month to head the Los Angeles Unified School District.
This story was originally published February 1, 2022 at 3:52 PM.
