Windstorm aftermath
Homecomings of the past
Fairfield West goes wild
Dayton Daily News education reporter Scott Elliott writes about schools, kids, teaching and learning.
Home > Blogs > Get on the Bus > Archives > 2008 > June > 03 > Entry
Debra Brathwaite and the superintendent search
What’s going on with Debra Brathwaite?
That is the question I’ve been getting a lot since this story broke Saturday with Brathwaite saying she had refused an offer to become interim superintendent.
Brathwaite’s friends don’t understand why the board won’t simply make her superintendent. She’s been groomed for the job, they say, and now that the job is open why not give it to her? Her critics believe she is placing unreasonable demands by trying to force the board’s hand to pick her now rather than conduct the wider search board members want.
Who’s right? That’s a tricky question. How has it come to this? That’s one I will take a crack at. The answer comes down to a simple truism — things change.
I remember the first time I met Percy Mack. He was introduced at a school board meeting as Jerrie Bascome McGill’s deputy superintendent after a troubled search that lasted more than a year and had a couple of false starts. A high level school official tapped me on the shoulder soon after that night and said “Keep an eye on Percy Mack. He looks like our next superintendent to me.”
The Gail Littlejohn-run Kids First team, which took control of the school board in 2001, took an immediate liking to Mack. It was also clear from the beginning that McGill’s days were numbered. With a pretty big nudge from the board, McGill decided to retire less than a year after the 2001 sea-change election and very quickly Mack was introduced as her replacement.
Take note that there was no search at all.
Mack had taught the district the value of having a strong No. 2 — someone who could be depended on to get things done and who could step up and take over if needed. So the district went searching for the next Percy Mack and found Debra Brathwaite.
Brathwaite was well regarded when she arrived. At the time her mentor, Cleveland Superintendent Barbara Byrd Bennett, was something of a hot shot among big city superintendents. It seemed very clear that Brathwaite was brought in with the idea that she could potentially be developed as a future superintendent much as Mack had been.
And, in fact, Brathwaite worked hard to make her case that she was superintendent material. She began working toward a doctorate while managing the day-to-day academic operations of the district. Her work was noticed by several large districts — Akron and Toledo most prominently — which brought her in to interview for their open superintendent jobs.
So what happened? If the board hired her with the idea that she could potentially be groomed for superintendent, she had bolstered her resume for that role and the job is now open, why not just hire her?
Well, again, things change.
Littlejohn and the Kids First team are gone with the exception of school board President Yvonne Isaacs. Littlejohn resigned and moved to Houston. Last fall, two Kids First allied board members — Mario Gallin and Lee Massoud — were defeated. Six of the seven board members have joined the board since 2005.
The new board wants a chance to pick its own superintendent.
So you can see how both sides’ feelings can get bruised here. Brathwaite can fairly ask why she has not been promoted, since it was — at a minimum — hinted to her through the years that job would be hers if it ever came open. This board, on the other hand, never made those promises and even Brathwaite acknowledged when I spoke to her that the board has every right to conduct the search any way it wants.
Will a national search yield a better candidate? That’s hard to say. Maybe we should ask the folks in Memphis.
The last national search here was a fiasco. For a recap, go here. It is hard to get someone good in a consultant-run national search. Many of the names on those consultant lists are folks who are looking to make a quick mark and move on. The board has unanimously said they want someone who will care about the community.
But you never know. A consultant found Mack and the board was pleased with his work and his commitment to the community over six years.
If board members go forward with the search, where does that leave Brathwaite? Unless she reconsiders her position on being interim superintendent, it is hard to see how things wouldn’t be awkward for her.
Perhaps the board finds a retired local CEO to fill in during the search. Brathwaite would be reporting to that person. Or, even worse for her, the board could appoint someone who now works for her as her new boss. If the board goes one of those routes you’d have to expect Brathwaite’s job search to kick into overdrive.
That’s where things appear to be going, though, unless she or the board has a change of heart.
Permalink | Comments (6) | Post your comment | Categories: Dayton Public Schools
Comments
By Old Coach
June 6, 2008 3:10 PM | Link to this
C’mon. Stacia Smith is highly intelligent, but has the personality of a rock. From what I have seen, she is highly confrontaional. She may know her stuff when it comes to education, but to be a Superintendant the candidate must posses a certain amount of people skills. Plus if I recall she never taught or anything else in Dayton. Like the poster below said, I would like to see someone who has some stock in DPS.By just passing through
June 5, 2008 10:00 PM | Link to this
If she REALLY wants to be the next Dayton Superintendent, then perhaps Brathwaite ought to re-consider her hard-line position regarding Interim because it appears any other options she was pursuing are all but dried up… http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080605/NEWS0102/806050333/1058/NEWS01By Avoice
June 5, 2008 9:05 PM | Link to this
I think that Stacia goes to the wrong “church” for most of the top DPS brass. She left when she saw the handwriting on the wall. I am sure that she is happy at Clark County ESC.By DPS Educator
June 5, 2008 2:07 PM | Link to this
The DPS Board needs to continue the search for a Superintentdent. I for one, and several educators I know would like to see the Board request Dr. Stacia Smith return to DPS. She would be a fabulous interim Superintendent and could easily step into the role of Deputy Superintendent and replace Ms. Brathwaite. Dr. Smith’s ability to connect with teachers and her innovative ideas for curriculum implementation are sorely missed in Dayton. I say, the DPS Board should pursue Dr. Stacia Smith!By Seriously Though
June 4, 2008 4:01 PM | Link to this
Scott, why is it that Jane Rafals’name has not been mentioned as a replacement? In my opinion she has stock in Dayton, serving as a teacher,principal and upper management. She has also served as a superintendent in Youngstown. So the experience is there. Some of us are curious that her name has never (at least) publicly been brought up for the interim job if not full time.By former employee
June 4, 2008 11:03 AM | Link to this
Ms. Brathwaithe is not the individual that DPS needs at this time. Ask the community how much they know about her. Ask the community how often she has been to their meetings, churches, etc. Ask teachers how much contact hse has ha with them. Ask students if she has ever spent time with them in the classroom. According to her she is entitled to the job. No she isn’t, she must show what she can do. DPS iis facing major financial problems and needs to pass the levy. I haven’t heard anything from her. Has she been out in the communities, priority boards, neighborhood organizations talking of the importance of why this levy must pass? Has she met with the community leaders and government officials to solicit their input or help? Also, there are several key individulas leaving the system. Is she going to hire the best person for each of these jobs, or reward those who have been supported of her. The principal’s endorsement was a JOKE. They are just CYA because they have been left alone. Dayton needs someone at the top that is not afraid to make the changes that need to happen in order to make the system turn around. Central office administration need to be diversified to represent all groups and not just one as it is now. The citizens of Dayton ned to see this if the levy is to pass. DPS go for a nationwide search.