A.G. Gancarski
A long-awaited joint meeting between the Duval County School Board and the Jacksonville City Council finally took place.
Another matter entirely is whether the Wednesday morning gathering resolved a single material difference. Both bodies are still far apart on when (or if) a sales tax referendum should happen.
And what it should fund.
The School Board wants the Council to ratify a referendum this year, in caution that the requirements for tax referendums thresholds may be raised on the state level by a reboot of 2019’s HB 5, which contemplated a supermajority requirement at one point.
Many members of the Council agree with Mayor Lenny Curry, finding holes in the district case for a 2019 vote. The city’s general counsel says it’s Council’s call, with an opinion pending from Attorney General Ashley Moody.
Curry floated this week the idea of an elected superintendent and board chair; though it has yet to find traction with Council, it illustrated the politics at hand.
This beef has slow-cooked all summer. By the time these two legislative bodies met to hash out differences, it was falling off the bone.
Board Chair Lori Hershey noted that the plan was an “infrastructure plan,” not for new schools but to address persistent capital needs.
Hershey noted the district is starved of impact fees and other city/county funding that neighboring areas enjoy.
Council members had their say, and the greatest skeptics tend to side with the Mayor.
A major concern in both parties: Not enough money for charter schools. The Jacksonville Civic Council floated a document saying that characterization and charter building standards would cut costs and stretch the budget, a contention resisted by the board and Superintendent Diana Greene.
Republican newcomer Ron Salem wondered why the uniform building code, one employed by charters but historically seen as too shoddy for public schools, wasn’t in play. Salem also quibbled with the district’s enrollment projections, saying they were too optimistic. Finally, the Councilman stressed the importance of giving charters a bigger cut.
“We embrace charter schools,” Greene contended, noting four more are coming in by 2021, and that charters get PECO dollars and are newer anyway.
“The school district through its millage is required to keep them whole,” Greene said about the chance that PECO might plunge.
“Charter schools are the elephant in the room,” asserted Democrat Tommy Hazouri, pushing for a better carveout for the sector.
Republican Councilwoman LeAnna Cumber took issue with deferred maintenance and an elastic timeline for repairs, wanting the programming broken out by fiscal years. Timetable concerns were not unique to the first-term Southside Councilwoman.
Greene noted that the “methodology” of what schools go first would be predicated on “safety and security.”
Democratic Councilwoman Brenda Priestly-Jackson, a former School Board chair, noted that the school inventory was out of whack because of overbuilding when the county resisted school integration.
“If we save Duval County schools, I don’t know how we exclude any providers,” Priestly-Jackson said.
Democratic School Board member Warren Jones echoed her thoughts regarding segregation but saw the solution differently.
“Whether they were built inferior or not maintained, our schools need help,” Jones said. “We are investing dollars in those older neighborhoods for the first time in the city’s history.”
Jones suggested the charter school contention was a smokescreen for racial bias, with inner-city schools providing a “19th-century learning environment.”
Democratic Councilwoman Ju’Coby Pittman called for a “repurposed plan” that addresses urban school issues, including closures of older schools with smaller student populations.
“The more delay, the more decay,” said Republican Councilman Matt Carlucci, a once and future mayoral hopeful, arguing for a 2019 vote against all odds.
Republican Councilman Rory Diamond spotlighted inequities and perennially-failing schools, before calling Dr. Jennifer Brown from the KIPP school for the “charter perspective.”
The crowd groaned.
Councilman Reggie Gaffney, a supporter of a 2019 vote, all but said the two bodies were talking past each other.
“We’re all waiting for somebody else to give in,” said the second-term Democrat.
Council President Scott Wilson questioned school closures in his district that may surprise his constituents, suggesting “community conversations.”
“I don’t see how the School Board and the City Council can pass this in 2019,” Wilson said, wanting “legwork.”
While Democrat Garrett Dennis urged the Council to be “bold” and vote it up, Dennis hasn’t driven consensus on the dais in a while. That said, a remnant of Council members agreed with him, though they don’t have critical mass on the committees of reference.
School Board members chastised the Council for inaction — but to no avail.
“It’s not your job to tell the School Board how to do its work,” said Cheryl Grimes.
5 comments
Frankie M.
August 14, 2019 at 1:47 pm
I wonder if Lenny is placing undue pressure on city hall to stall this vote til his charter donors get their $$? No way he would do something like that, would he?
It sounds like alot of these councilmembers regret not running for school board. They have a whole lot of opinions and no idea what they’re talking about. On the bright side maybe it’s best they’re not on the school board.
As far as timelines go ask Lenny about whether it was a good idea to put a timeline on Liberty Street repairs. Sounds great in theory or a campaign ad attacking your opponent, not so great in practice. Leann Cumber is not an engineer. She just plays one for the cameras.
“Republican Councilwoman LeAnna Cumber took issue with deferred maintenance and an elastic timeline for repairs, wanting the programming broken out by fiscal years. Timetable concerns were not unique to the first-term Southside Councilwoman.”
Meanwhile BPJ is stuck 30-40 years in the past…right where are public schools are now. She might want to borrow a time machine or dig up a time capsule. The train is leaving the station with or without you.
Sonja Fitch
August 14, 2019 at 1:55 pm
Elephant in the room is Looting Lenny taking common good tax dollars for Looting Lenny’s pals. This is just Money bs. Put the tax on the ballot for the common good instead of Looting Lenny and his pals. Where was the charter school that a call a parent at noon yesterday sand said come get your child? No more waste on “bs charter schools.”
Susan
August 14, 2019 at 8:00 pm
I remember being aghast when I read about that law a while back. The current state legislature is giving more money to charter schools. I continually wonder why people don’t vote. It does matter. Ken Organes would have made a much better representative than Jason Fischer.
In response to this part:
“The school district through its millage is required to keep them whole,” Greene said about the chance that PECO might plunge.
Karen
August 15, 2019 at 8:01 am
Thank God for charter schools, churches schools, private schools and homeschooling! At least these kids have a chance!
Jane
August 15, 2019 at 7:58 am
When we came to Jacksonville in 1975 the school system was a disaster and has never gotten much better. They were teaching sight reading, consequently my son never really learned to spell. He had a teacher in second grade who told me because of mainstreaming disturbed children she spent 70% of her day on one child. Not much has changed over all these years as evidenced by caring parents flocking to private schools, charter schools and homeschooling!
It’s time to break up this ridiculous bloated monopoly into smaller more manageable districts where parents have a say in their management. It’s time to get rid of the school board members who don’t know how to manage a checkbook and replace them with business people who understand dollars and cents. Those who created this consolidated city should be tired and feathered. How can someone from the beach possibly make decisions for people who live on the far west side when they’ve never even been there.
Smaller is better! Big government is a disaster!
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