JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Parents showed mixed reactions to the Duval County School Board’s pick for the next leader of Duval County Public Schools.
Dr. Christopher Bernier, who is the former Lee County superintendent, was named the school district’s next superintendent on Thursday after one year and two nationwide searches.
Bernier comes to the district as it faces financial challenges, teacher shortages, safety concerns and multiple misconduct reports.
The choice was narrowed down between Bernier and finalist Dr. Daniel Smith, who is currently chief of staff for Loudon County Public Schools in Virginia. Last week, the community got the chance to meet the two finalists ahead of the final decision.
Yasmina White hoped the board would pick Smith instead, saying she was “not happy with the pick at all.”
“I’m more so disappointed at the fact that Darryl Willie, who is the chairman, decided to say that he was going to throw his vote behind Bernier, but he was supporting Smith. He is accountable to the constituents that voted him in. He is beholden to us, not his board members, he should have made that clear, he should have voted against what he truly wanted to bring to the district,” White said.
The district asked people to fill out a survey on who they wanted to be superintendent, but White feels the community’s feedback wasn’t considered.
“I’ve read hundreds of comments on social media. I’ve talked to people. I’ve talked to teachers. They all wanted Dr. Smith. So why ask for feedback if it wasn’t really going to be utilized?” White said.
Colleen November has also been vocal about the school district’s recent decisions as a member of the Save Atlantic Beach Elementary group.
“We were hoping for a choice that would be supporting public schools. We think, we hope that Dr. Bernier can be that option,” she said.
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The group is fighting for the elementary school to remain open after the district’s Master Facility Plan named the school as one of 30 that could close.
“This has taken a lot of time to get here to the superintendent,” November said. “We’re excited that the board now has the time to focus on the Master Facility Plan. We’re looking forward to working together with Dr. Bernier to come up with some alternative plans that don’t involve closing our well-attended, well-respected, highly-rated traditional public schools.”
Earlier this week, parents and residents packed Fletcher High School for the first of several community meetings about the proposed changes. The district says while nothing is set in stone and there will not be a decision anytime soon, many parents have spoken out against the plan.
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November hoped they could work with the district to get a clear plan on when community feedback would be applied to the proposed plan to bridge the $1.4 billion gap facing the district.
“What dates will we see revisions? What we’re seeing right now in the community meetings in each district is the same master facilities proposal from March 11. What we would like to do is see some changes to that, or alternatives,” November said.
White, on the other hand, was focused on the upcoming school board elections in August for Districts 1, 3, 5, and 7.
“People really need to show up and vote in August for a board that truly supports their constituents and that truly supports public education,” White said.
Bernier will start working in his new role on July 1.