Sarasota County School Board Report Card
The League of Women Voters of Sarasota has established an Observer Corps to monitor the Sarasota County School Board meetings. The goal of the Observer Corps is to objectively evaluate meetings for ethical, legal and professional conduct on the part of the board and chairperson. This evaluation will be shared with the Board and the public following each meeting.
Meeting Date: March 19, 2024
A = Consistently B= Frequently C= Occasionally D= Rarely F= Not at All
Additional Comments:
It is apparent that individuals speaking at the Board meetings have done extensive research on topics brought before the Board. The time and effort put into that research is apparently never recognized by the collective board. In fact, it appears as though it is summarily dismissed.
Also while most board members state publicly that they want to keep politics out of the Board room, at least two of the board members at this meeting proposed the appointment of district committee members that gave the public the impression of political placements. Whether valid or not, the mistrust grows.
Mr. Edwards made it clear in the board member comments at the end of the meeting that he does not feel support by his fellow colleagues. He also said he felt the board attorney did not support him. This is a concern.
Recommendations:
If the Board truly wants to keep politics out of the board room, the board individually and collectively need to be aligned around being non-partisan in its decisions and act accordingly. Seeding mistrust with direct actions that initiate public skepticism is keeping the district from moving forward.
The board needs to find a way to address the concerns raise in public comment, even if it’s only to say they will give the issue further study or to thank them for the research the public has done on various issues.
If at all possible, Ms. Ziegler should remain in her seat during board meetings. She has left in the past two meetings which might give the impression that the public comments are unimportant.
Submitted by: Sarasota League of Women Voters School Board Observer Corps.