Updates on the Fight for Quality Public Education in Brevard County, FL
1:23 It sa. Good morning. The May 23 special board meeting is now in order. I’d like to take this opportunity to remind the public that your appropriate place for public participation in the meeting is during your individual public comment opportunity as identified in the agenda outside your individual public comment opportunity.
9:04 Your role is meeting as an observer. Paul, roll call, please. Mister Susan.
9:08 Here. Miss Wright. Here.
9:10 Miss Campbell. Here. Miss Jenkins.
9:12 Here. Mister Trent. Here.
9:13 Please stand for the pledge of allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. That brings us to the adoption of the agenda.
9:35 So, on this morning’s agenda, we have one action item and one discussion topic. Changes made to the agenda since release to the public include the addition of administrative staff recommendations. Do I hear a motion move to approve? Second.
9:47 Is there any discussion? All in favor, signify by saying aye. Aye. All opposed passes 50.
9:54 We’re now on to the public comments. As this is a special board meeting, comments will be limited to the agenda items only. We have one speaker, which will receive three minutes.
10:03 I will call up that speaker. Pursuant to the board policy, you’re allowed to address the board members by name, but not staff or the public. The first speaker is, and only speaker is Miss Katie Delaney.
10:19 Good morning. I’m here to speak about Sophia, a little girl with down syndrome who’s also non verbal. The previous board made an illegal mask mandate on our district that resulted in this little girl who cannot speak for herself, to be masked against her will and frankly, traumatized.
10:52 That resulted in false statements made by Miss Jenkins all over social media and all over the news. Those false statements made by Miss Jenkins created a culture of harassment to this family, to the point that they had to move out of the county. Prior to moving their family out of the county.
11:20 They lost trust in this district and pulled their two children from the schools. From Brevard schools. The teacher’s assistant admitted that they were not going by the guidelines for tying a mask onto a child’s head with down syndrome.
11:45 In both the police report and in her deposition, the mask was consistently saturated in spit and God only knows what else, to the point where now Sophia has lasting medical issues and there’s multiple pictures to prove it. This board is here because the previous board made such poor decisions in regards to our kids and parental rights. And I hope that you guys use your power now to do what’s right by this family and give Sophia some justice.
12:31 Because what happened to her was horrible. And it should never, ever, ever happen again. And Miss Jenkins, you can’t even look at me.
12:42 Even though you were fine taunting the father, telling him. Oh, don’t worry. I went and saw Sophie, and she’s happy.
12:56 Even though parents weren’t allowed in the building. Miss Delaney, if you can bring it back to an agenda item, that would be good. I know.
13:05 That’s what I’m saying. Number seven talks about your legal stuff going on. And I assume, because the trial is coming up that that’s what this is about.
13:17 And I could be wrong, but that’s my assumption. You guys have the authority to ask. To tell your lawyers how to proceed.
13:34 We’ve already wasted God only knows how much money on this case. And I hope that you guys do the right thing in regards to Sophia and her family, because they deserve it. Thank you.
13:47 Thank you, Miss Delaney. There are no other public speakers. That concludes public comments.
13:51 We thank you for your willingness to address us in this public manner. Miss Hand, will you please let us know about today’s action item? Yes, sir. Today, there are 14 administrative staff recommendations for the board’s consideration.
14:04 Do I hear a motion move to approve? Second. Is there any discussion? All in favor, signify by saying aye. Aye.
14:12 All opposed passes 50. I would like an opportunity. Thank you, mister chairman.
14:14 I would like an opportunity to welcome those who are with us this morning. And first, I’d like to welcome to Brevard and introduce Ryan Dufresne, who’s being appointed to the position of assistant superintendent of human resources. So, welcome, Mister Dufresne.
14:36 Would you like to say a few words? Good morning, everyone. I’d just like to thank you, that board, and doctor Rendell for the opportunity. I’m not sure I’m a big believer in fate, but I saw a gentleman walk in with his Hamilton shirt.
14:49 I have a daughter who’s in 7th grade, and she’s a big Hamilton fan. And I can promise you this. I’m not going to throw away my shot, okay? So, thank you, everybody.
14:59 Thank you for trusting and believing me. I won’t let you down. Thank you, Mister Dufresne.
15:05 Does anybody want to comment? To Mister Dufresne? The head of HR now? Just like. Okay, go ahead. Just.
15:13 Congrats. Welcome to BPS. We’re excited and we’re happy to have you.
15:19 I think one of the unique things is that Mister Dufresne’s wife is a teacher. Right? And you also have kids that are still inside the system. And that’s consistent with this board, which is the first board to ever have every single person has a kid inside the system, which is pretty incredible because when you can tie back to personal experiences and understand the struggles that you have, that’s amazing.
15:38 So thank you so much for the time for being here. Thanks for coming. We really appreciate it and look forward to spending some time with you and getting things moving.
15:47 So next up, Miss Hannah. Thanks. Before we move on, I would like to just acknowledge and thank Doctor Green who has been doing two jobs for quite a while.
15:55 Three, maybe more. So thank you, Doctor Green. And then next, I would like to introduce Timothy Powers, who’s being reclassed from the position of assistant principal at Cocoa High School to the position of principal at Cocoa Beach Junior Senior High school.
16:12 Welcome, Tim. First, I’d like to say thank you to Doctor Rendell, Miss Hand, Chairman Susan and the board for this incredible opportunity to lead Cocoa beach junior senior high as principal. Also, I’d like to recognize my wife, my biggest supporter, the one that supports me the most, but also can put me in line when I need to be put in line.
16:41 My three children are at school. My oldest son is in 7th grade, so he’s preparing for his first final exam session of his schooling career. So it wasn’t fair to bring two in that one, so we sent them all to school.
16:55 I want to thank the office of Secondary leading and learning doctor Sullivan, Miss Wybel, Miss Vega, and Miss Bowman not only for the support that they give us at the school level to positively impact student achievement, but the support they give us as individuals to grow within. Inside of our profession as leaders. So thank you very much.
17:13 I also want to recognize my parents who have been obviously a rock for me, not only in childhood, but as I grow through adults, through adulthood. I would definitely not be who I am today without the amazing parents that I had. So thank you.
17:28 Obviously, I have very big shoes to fill at Cocoa beach junior senior high. The learning curve is going to be steep. But I feel confident of all the things that I have heard and seen of the traditions and the cultures and the staff that are present at Cocoa Beach.
17:42 I know I’ll be able to lean on those people that have been there, that are experts inside of that building to help shrink that gap. I look forward to building those relationships starting this week. I know we have a middle school football event today.
17:54 I’m excited to be able to be an observer of the beach walk and graduation this Friday. So again, thank you all very much. Before I get done, though, I got to point out my high school football coach is also in attendance coach Dan Higgins, who is like an uncle to me, he’s a graduate of Cocoa beach and he, he told me I cannot screw his school up.
18:13 So I told him so. Thank you all. Does anybody want to say anything about Mister Powers? Yeah, please.
18:24 Thank you. Mister Powers. I’m so excited for you.
18:27 I had the opportunity to get to know you and your school the second I walked into Coco High school and got to know it over a year. Long journey there. It is evident that the culture that is set by the administration is one of love, admiration and of course always putting academics at the top of the list as well.
18:47 So I’m really excited for you. As you move on. I had the opportunity to meet your beautiful family at a literacy night as well at Cocoa High school.
18:53 So glad to see you again. Sorry for your kids. And I just want to do another shout out for your coach because doctor Sullivan told me 42 years you served here.
19:05 Yeah, 42 years. That’s pretty incredible. So thank you for being here this morning.
19:10 Congratulations Mister collars. Anybody else? Welcome. And it’s the whole group.
19:24 It’s probably been kind of a long time coming. You might have had this in the back of your mind of one day taking over a school. And I’m excited to say I’m real close to you as far as location.
19:36 And I had the pleasure of also working at Cocoa beach for a few years. And I agree with coach, but I have the confidence you’re not going to screw it up. I’m excited about it.
19:47 The people that I’ve talked to are excited about it. So you’re coming in with a lot of support and I think doctor Rendell has made a great wise decision. So welcome.
19:56 And the AP that you’re bringing, I met him last night as well. And Cocoa beach is excited for you. So it’s going to be a wonderful place.
20:06 Thank you. So I just want to say, my career I was in when I was a teacher, I got called over by Jeremy to go, Jeremy Salman, the current principal, to come from Space coast to go to O’Galley. And the first thing I did because I was a coach was going to the weight room.
20:25 And if you go into the weight room, Tim Powers was across all the lifts and I’ll never forget that. I was like, who in the heck is this Tim Powers? Right? And then we’re going through this stuff and I was. Cause when I, when I coach, I always try to call on kids or people who were leaders in the past to come back, to create that continuity for leadership in the future.
20:43 And then all of a sudden I found out, like, he’s on staff. And I was like, what in the heck is going on here? And so there was a lot of times where I would leave my classroom and we would end up down there in that ad that, like, athletic director’s room and stuff like that. And we were hanging out and yes, his wife will keep him in line because that came up a couple of times.
21:01 So I just want to say, that was a great statement to say, I know exactly how that is, as mine does, too. But I did want to say one of the things that not many people understand is that he was chosen to head our athletics. And one of the things that I said to him when he got it was I called him and I said, tim, I’m so proud to have you come.
21:18 I just don’t want this. Which is, I know your dream is to become a principal, and one of the problems you have is once you divulge yourself into a position like that, you end up staying there forever. And he said, no, no, no.
21:28 He goes, I really want to be a principal, but I think this is a good move to do these things. And then all of a sudden he got it. So I’m so proud of you.
21:34 The other thing is, Mister Higgins, good job. I have no idea why you chose, I think, did ose for follow you on the chain? Did Todd Ose follow you? We’ll have to talk about that decision because Os is a big pain in my butt sometimes. So, anyways, great coach.
21:49 But I wanted to say we do have an athletic director of all the athletic directors position that’s going to be coming out. So you may want to come back after your 40 years and come and do that. And that’s it, though.
22:00 I just wanted to say thanks, man. I’m really looking forward to you guys winning some state titles out there and doing what Cocoa beach does well, which is academic achievement, which is off the charts. So thank you so much.
22:09 Anybody else? Yes, sir. I just wanted to mention we have two other appointments on our agenda today, one of which is Jamie Minor being appointed as principal at Lewis Carroll, and she is transferring from assistant principal at Coquina. And hopefully she’ll be with us on the 30th for recognition.
22:27 She’s at school today. And similarly, we are also acknowledging and recognizing Susan Schroeder, who is transferring from Meadow Lane primary to the position of principal at Ralph Williams elementary. So we have two new principals coming in.
22:43 We have seasoned folks coming in to be principals at new schools for them. And hopefully we’ll be able to recognize them on the 30th. Yeah, they’re excited.
22:53 Over at Ralph Williams, they already started calling me. They’re excited. So, anyways, moving on.
22:58 Today’s discussion topic is a request for attorney client session. Mister Gibbs? Good morning, board members. I’m notifying you that advice is needed regarding the case.
23:06 Shirley Bizera Steele, et al. Versus the school board of Brevard County, Florida, et al. Federal case number 621 cv 02035.
23:17 Pursuant to section 286.011, Florida statute known as the Government and the Sunshine Act, I am requesting an attorney client session with the board for the purpose of discussing the evaluation and or compromise of said case. I will ask the board’s clerk to cause reasonable public notice of the time and date of this attorney client session and the names of the persons attending to be published.
23:38 If the board approves, I will work with the board clerk to coordinate dates for the executive session, working with our council’s availability, and provide notice of the meeting, inclusive of scheduling a court reporter. As required by the statute, only the following individuals will be present. School board members Katie Campbell, Jennifer Jenkins, Matt Susan Jean Trent Megan Wright acting superintendent Sue Han or Superintendent doctor Mark Rendell Paul Gibbs, general counsel Robert Sniffin, Esquire Terry Harmon, Esquire, sniffin Spelman law firm.
24:09 I will ask a court reporter to record the session, also, as required by statute, their notes will be fully transcribed and filed with the clerk of the school board. Upon the conclusion of any litigation and or settlement of all claims arising out of this case, the transcript will be made public record. I recommend the board hold an attorney client session, pursuant to section 286.
24:35 011, Florida statutes, to discuss strategy, expenditures and compromise comprise of a pending litigation. If there’s any. No.
24:46 If there are no objections, I will instruct our attorney to work with the board clerk and schedule as soon. As soon thereafter as the matter may be heard. We all good? Good there, Mister Gibbs? Yep.
24:58 All right. Does any board member have anything further to discuss? I’ve got. If you guys have an opportunity, we would like to secure a date for an off site in the near future so that we can talk.
25:01 You know what I mean? You had made some requests. Yeah. No, no, no.
25:10 What I was going to say is we can discuss a possible time. I was looking at the June 6 date as possible. It’s a Tuesday.
25:16 In our line, we kind of said, start clearing our Tuesdays if everybody’s okay with that. We already have a work session scheduled for that day. Actually.
25:21 Is it the. June is the Monday we were looking at? Oh, no, no, the work session. That’s right.
25:27 We blocked it for the work session. So if you guys are okay, we can move that to the off site. We’ll move that away.
25:38 That’s what we were doing. So is that early? Is the June 6 or June 6 at 09:00 yeah, we can see we’re looking at. Mister Rendell is trying to get a place over in Cocoa beach.
25:47 You guys okay? Can we just do the executive session? You okay, mister? Absolutely, Mister Trent. What’s that? To do it on the same day as it. As the work session.
25:52 Yeah, we’re not. What? We haven’t noticed it yet. So that work session will become our off site is what we’ll do.
25:56 Good. I think we got direction to do that. Mister Gibbs, we may.
26:00 You and I may need to step out. We have a. Some sort of a court case that I got to jump on.
26:05 We have mediation on a different case that morning. So it’s time certain. We got to call in.
26:08 It’s no big deal. We’ll do it from there. You just run the meeting for 30, 45 minutes.
26:11 We’re good to go. All right. I have something to say.
26:22 So we had discussed on the 30th that we were going to talk about Ese and Gardendale. So I’m going to remind everyone that we have one week of school left for you to visit. Thank you.
26:28 Four days? Yeah. Okay. Anybody else? No? Good. All right, Miss Hand, do you have anything further to discuss? There being no further business, this meeting is now adjourned.