Palm Beach schools need Barbieri as decisions loom
Frank Barbieri told the Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, “My track record shows that I care deeply about education.” He’s right, and the public especially needs such advocacy now.
Barbieri, a lawyer with Sachs
Sax Caplan, is chairman of the
Palm Beach County School Board. Campaigning in the Aug. 18 non-partisan primary is an afterthought — “I don’t plan to raise any money” — as Barbieri faces decisions far more important than any that have confronted him since winning his first term in 2008.
Should the county’s public schools reopen as planned on Aug. 10, or should the board delay? Who will come to campus and who will learn from home? How will the district protect faculty and staff, especially older teachers at higher risk from COVID-19?
During our interview, the stress showed in Barbieri’s voice. “Who do you trust?” he asked rhetorically, when making such wrenching decisions. Every public health and education expert has “his or her own version of the truth.”
Barbieri believes that, for faculty to have any chance of enforcing social distancing, some students must continue the distance learning that the district implemented in March. More of those, he said, will be high-schoolers.
“Those are the most crowded campuses,” he said. Older children also can better handle the technology and parents can more safely leave those students if they can’t work from home.
Regarding the start of school, Barbieri responded, “We need to educate children. How long do we wait?” Low-income students lost ground in the spring and may not be able to make it up over the summer.
Barbieri acknowledged, however, that the surge in new cases – Florida recorded a record 10,109 on Thursday – further complicates the decision. He first opposed a hybrid schedule, in which students split time between campus and home. He’s now having “second thoughts.”
Superintendent Donald Fennoy expects to present his plan to the board on July 15. Any plan surely will need updating, probably several times.
With all that’s at stake, voters should choose someone who has experience, commitment and the respect of his colleagues. This is Barbieri’s second time as chairman.
Barbieri’s opponent is Suzanne Page. She did not return the Sun Sentinel questionnaire and declined a full interview. “I don’t know anyone who knows her,” Barbieri said.
Contacted by the Editorial Board, Page said she teaches online courses “at several colleges.” Her name did not appear during online searches of the faculty at Broward and Palm Beach state colleges and Florida Atlantic, Nova Southeastern and Lynn universities.
Asked for more information, Page said, “I can’t talk. I’m headed out the door.”
Only voters in District 5 – Boca Raton and West Boca – can cast ballots. Because of that system, board members must look after their districts while dealing with countywide issues. Barbieri has done that.
Revenue from the 2016 sales tax surcharge is financing the rebuilding of Addison Mizner and Verde elementary schools in Boca Raton. Each campus also will add middle-school grades, in tandem with the shift back to K-8 schools. Other projects will increase capacity at high schools in District 5. A new elementary school in Boca Raton, financed from other sources, will relieve crowding at Calusa Elementary.
For Barbieri, the upcoming decisions are personal. He has three grandchildren in county schools – one at each level. “I’m afraid for them.”
Asked to name his proudest accomplishment, Barbieri expressed a similar sentiment. “I have tried to put families in the middle of the equation” on decisions. “If I think something will mostly be good for families, I vote yes. That’s been my guiding principle.”
And where has the district come up short? On helping low-income and minority students. “Equal,” Barbieri said, “does not mean equitable. Some kids need much more.” He added, “I’m afraid of government’s failure to make education the top priority.”
Whoever wins on Aug. 18 will win the seat. The Sun Sentinel recommends Frank Barbieri for District 5 on the Palm Beach County School Board.
Palm Beach County School Board District 5 includes Boca Raton and West Boca.
Editorials are the opinion of the Sun Sentinel Editorial Board and written by one of its members or a designee. The Editorial Board consists of Editorial Page Editor Rosemary O’Hara, Dan Sweeney, Steve Bousquet and Editor-in-Chief Julie Anderson.