JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Duval County School Board chairwoman Ashley Smith Juarez has finally denied reports that circulated for two days that she was calling for Superintendent Nikolai Vitti to resign or be fired.
In an open letter to Superintendent Nikolai Vitti released Tuesday, Smith Juarez asked him to, "Use his talents elsewhere."
The controversy began Monday, when News4Jax was told by District 2 Board Member Scott Shine that an emergency board meeting Smith Juarez called for Friday morning was to ask the board to terminate Vitti's contract.
Smith Juarez did not respond to questions about the meeting either Monday or Tuesday, but released her letter to Vitti in which she said he had not incorporated recent suggestions from the board and has not "come forward with a plan to accelerate improvement."
After a long-scheduled joint School Board, Jacksonville City Council meeting Wednesday to discuss how they can work together, Smith Juarez did take questions, but remain evasive and refused to give a yes or no answer whether she wanted Vitti to resign.
"I think the letter was clear that discussion was in the past tense and I'm currently open to discussing what is the most effective and the best way to serve our students," Smith Juarez said.
She said the real question is a matter of how the board and superintendent can ensure that Duval County students are getting the best education.
About an hour after facing the media, Smith Juarez released a new statement clarifying the purpose of Friday's meeting.
"It is not my intention to call for resignation or a vote on your contract (Friday). If it was, I would have placed it on the public agenda. I intend for the board and Superintendent to have a discussion about a path forward that is best for students. The Board needs to be able to have a collective discussion with each other and not through the press."
Wednesday's developments came as several Jacksonville businesses and nonprofit organizations issued a statement in support of the School Board and Vitti continuing to work together
READ: Ashley Smith Juarez open letter to superintendent
Vitti said he has no plans to resign and is optimistic about the future.
"I look forward to continuing to work with her and the board," Vitti said. "I want to remain the superintendent. This work is difficult, challenging, but also rewarding. I think we've done some of the work, and there's much more work to be done, and I want to be part of that process."
Wednesday morning, Florida Board of Education member Gary Chartrand expressed concern about the open division between Vitti and Smith Juarez.
“I think there's some strong personalities on the board. He's a strong personality, and I would call on the board and Dr. Vitti to sit down to iron out their differences, and let's go back to work and stop spending so much energy on what's happening right now,” Chartrand said. “Let's spend that energy to try and help kids achieve.”
Chartrand said Vitti is a reformer, and that changing a system can be difficult.
“There's going to be a lot of passion around it, and I think the school board right now and Dr. Vitti have their differences of opinion,” Chartrand said. “And I just hope the school board and Dr. Vitti will sit down and work out those differences and continue with his employment to make sure that we keep the reform moving here in Jacksonville.”
Also Wednesday, leaders of the Jacksonville Civic Council, the Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce, the Community Foundation of Northeast Florida and the Jacksonville Public Education Fund issued a joint statement, standing behind the board as a whole and Vitti and encouraging them "to follow through of their commitment to work with a mediator to unify and resolve their differences."
"A high quality public education system is at the heart of every great city. Our school system leaders have shown the courage to implement long-term education reforms that have resulted in significant improvements when compared to Florida’s seven largest school districts,” Civic Council Chairman Ed Burr. “We are pleased that Duval County School Board Chairwoman Ashley Smith Juarez clarified the purpose of Friday’s meeting, since now is not the time to discuss whether to change superintendents, as reported in the media."
Smith Juarez said she appreciates the input of community leaders.
"I have had conversations with them over years," she said. "This is not a new conversation, and I understand that they have a position as to how we operate as the school district.
City County, School Board meet on common interests
The tension between the school board chair and superintendent did not come up during Wednesday's planned joint meeting with the Jacksonville City Council. The two elected bodies talked about issues they share, including the state of the schools and their impact on neighborhoods.
It was noted that 60 percent of the schools in Duval County are over 50 years old.
"Who is going to move back into those neighborhoods if there isn't a strong school to support them?" Councilman Bill Gulliford said.
A state assessment found there were 57 locations where many children walk to school that are considered dangerous -- an issue the city's Public Works Department was addressing.
Also discussed were the nearly 2,200 students in the school system considered to be homeless.
The meeting ended with all the council members saying they would like to see more joint meetings, believing that a lot could come out working together.
Support for Vitti -- or at least consistency
Current school board members, incoming board members, parents and education leaders have told News4Jax that they don't feel now is the time to consider changing superintendents.
VIEW: Dr. Vitti contract | Dr. Vitti contract amendment
Chartrand said to fire Vitti after the board just extended his contract with a 7-0 vote is “outrageous.”
“They just need to work out their differences,” Chartrand said. “I think there's a lot of tension right now. I think if they sit down, let cooler heads prevail, the good thing about all of this is everyone is passionate about getting kids to learn. I think that's the positive side. The negative side is there's a lot of negative energy around his employment and the friction between him and the board, and I hope that can go away.”
Chartrand and others told News4Jax that the timing of the call for Vitti's dismissal is also inappropriate because it comes less than two weeks before two newly elected school board members will take their seats.
Chartrand said those two new members need to have a say in Vitti's employment status -- something newly elected board member Warren Jones and the two remaining candidates for another seat agree on.
