On Jan. 13, Duval County Schools Superintendent Nikolai Vitti pulled a maverick move. He switched 11 principals from their current posts to positions at other schools. Some were transferred to schools he felt needed better leadership, some were demoted and others were switched from principal to administrator. Such a drastic mid-year change alarmed many parents and teachers, and for good reason: What was so wrong that Vitti felt the need to presto-chango so dramatically?
We asked Vitti directly. The answer, he says, is that he wanted to send a message: "We made an action plan – a blueprint. Mid-year changes create a sense of urgency and I feel that it shows we are serious about putting the right leader in the right school. It energizes the faculty. Teachers and students will see the results."
These changes were based on data Vitti's staff collected during the fall, which showed that some schools' needs were more dire than they'd realized, he says. Ribault Middle, R.L. Brown Elementary and West Jacksonville Elementary, for example, all came up short in the four core academic areas: math, science, English and history.
While the moves caught people off-guard, Vitti insists that decisions weren't made rashly. And on one particular point he's quite firm: "There will be no more principal changes this year. Period."
The community's feedback has been mostly positive, especially after the dust settled and the initial shock wore off, Vitti says. "Trust me. I encourage patience and understanding that change – if any – to your school moving forward is based on the best interest of our community."
Those changes, he adds, weren't based on a specific formula or metric; rather, they seem more a product of Vitti's gut. He says he looked at the experience and abilities of each leader, as well as his principals' track records.
"Change is not easy," he says, "but I think the community wants a change agent. Some people embrace it and some people adjust. Some are just waiting to see results."
http://folioweekly.com/St-Augustine-Record-Worst-Newspaper-Ever,8851
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