South Florida Sun-Sentinel (Sunday)
Four open seats add to uncertainty faced by district
Broward voters are choosing four School Board members during a time of enormous uncertainty, with a superintendent who barely escaped being fired and candidates in two races who face questions about whether they could be removed from office.
All eight candidates for four seats have survived one election, on Aug. 23. School Board races go to the Nov. 8 general election if no candidate gets more than 50% of the votes the first time.
The winners will represent a district that has undergone extreme upheaval since Gov. Ron DeSantis suspended and replaced four School Board members three days after the last election.
The suspensions were recommended by a statewide grand jury that issued a scathing report of the district’s operations.
One of the candidates was suspended herself; another is the daughter of a suspended board member.
The new School Board members could face a pivotal decision early on: whether to keep Superintendent Vickie Cartwright, who just started in the permanent role in February. Many current board members are unhappy with Cartwright, saying she’s been more of a “chaos manager” than a change agent.
The School Board almost fired her Tuesday, but instead voted 9 to 0 to give her 90 days to address a long list of concerns. She appears to have solid support from
only three of the five School Board members who stay on after the election.
But Cartwright’s future isn’t the only one that could be in limbo after the elections. In two races, candidates say their opponents could face suspension from DeSantis for different reasons.
Here’s a closer look at
each race. The winners will be sworn in on Nov. 22.
Countywide seat
Probably the most anticipated race will be the countywide Seat 8 contest, where Donna Korn, 51, a commercial real estate broker who lives in Davie, is vying to reclaim the seat she held from 2012 until Aug. 26, when DeSantis suspended her.
DeSantis could easily do it again, says her opponent, Allen Zeman, 58, who is CEO of a business consulting company.
Zeman said removing Korn would give DeSantis a second pick on the School Board, following Torey Alston, who will fill out the remaining two years of Patti Good’s term. That outcome would be “horrific,” Zeman said. He and Korn are both Democrats who oppose many of DeSantis’s policies.
“Thre’s a choice between electing someone from which there’s no pretense of being removed or somebody for which there is some risk,” Zeman said during a Sept. 20 interview with the South Florida Sun Sentinel Editorial Board.
Korn has said multiple times DeSantis can’t suspend her again for the same reason.
She noted that the governor said in 2019 that he would not suspend former Sheriff Scott Israel a second time if voters elected him in 2020. DeSantis appointee Gregory Tony defeated Israel so it was never tested. The governor’s office has refused to comment about whether Korn could face a second suspension.
“I believe the governor will stay true to his word and will let the voters of Broward County decide who should represent them on the School Board, and when elected, I will have the honor to serve the community as their countywide School Board member
for four more years,” she told the Sun Sentinel a few days after DeSantis suspended her, a sentiment she echoed with the Editorial Board Sept. 20.
The new School Board member could face a decision on whether to take action against Cartwright in January after she completes her 90-day improvement plan.
Korn couldn’t be reached this week, but she said in the Sept. 20 interview that she would assess Cartwright based on student outcomes.
“Dr. Cartwright is going through a lot of transition. A lot is being asked of her,” Korn told the Editorial Board. “Whether we would all navigate these rough waters the same way, I think probably we don’t see eye to eye on many of those things. But at the same time, she has many challenges and has to make decisions in a global way.”
Zeman said Friday that he’s glad the School Board refrained from firing Cartwright.
“I don’t think the public review of her behavior indicated a need to urgently remove her,” Zeman said. “So in the absence of that, giving her 90 days to work on things and address missteps, I thought was
a good conclusion. I was heartened it was a unanimous decision. Everyone wanted to go in that direction.”
During the Aug. 23 election, held three days before the suspensions, Korn fared slightly better with just under 31% of the votes, compared to just under 30% for Zeman.
Zeman has a giant campaign finance advantage with a war chest of
$233,000, most of which is self-funded, compared to
$66,000 for Korn.
District 1
The possibility of a DeSantis suspension also is being raised in the District
1 race, between teacher Marie Martin, 59, and Rod Velez, 52, a property manager with a construction company for the District 1 seat. The district includes Hollywood, Hallandale Beach, Dania Beach and parts of eastern Miramar and Pembroke Pines.
The seat was held for 14 years by Martin’s mother, Ann Murray, whose retirement came prematurely when DeSantis suspended her.
A major issue in this race is the eligibility of Velez, who was convicted in
1995 of aggravated battery, a second-degree felony. Velez, who hasn’t had any criminal issues since, got
his voting rights restored after DeSantis signed into law Amendment 4, a ballot initiative passed by voters in 2018.
The amendment guarantees the right to vote, but not the right to hold office, according to rules prepared by the Board of Clemency in March 2021.
“Qualifying to vote under Amendment 4 does not restore any other civil rights — including the right to serve on a jury or to hold public office — or the specific authority to own, possess, or use firearms to a person convicted of a felony,” the document states.
Martin filed a complaint with the state Elections Commission, saying only the clemency board can grant full civil rights and it hasn’t done so with Velez. She said he improperly notified the Broward supervisor of elections he is eligible to run.
However, Velez points to comments from the March 2021 clemency board meeting where DeSantis supported restoring other civil rights.
“I believe that those who have had their voting rights restored under Amendment 4 — it makes sense to also restore the other civil rights,” DeSantis said at the time.
Martin counters, “The governor’s belief did not change the Constitution
in regard to the clemency process. It still takes an application to the Executive Office of Clemency to gain rights to serve on a jury or run for office— it’s not automatic.”
Experts say restoring civil rights through the Clemency Board can take years, as the board has a huge backlog of applications and meets infrequently.
No one from the governor’s, clemency office or Department of State’s office or Elections Commission provides clarity when contacted by the Sun Sentinel. An email Martin received from a representative for Supervisor of Elections Joe Scott said the supervisor’s role is “ministerial in nature,” and he isn’t authorized to determine if Velez is eligible to hold office.
Velez said he has lawyers fighting this issue for him, and he’s convinced he’ll be able to serve.
“If I have to be the person to pioneer this, I’ll be that person,” he said.
The winner of the race could help determine Cartwright’s fate.
Velez said he wants to give her time to make needed changes.
“I don’t think she’s doing a spectacular job by any means, but I’ve seen improvements,” he said.
Martin said she wouldn’t have supported hiring Cartwright, as she originally
agreed to serve as only the interim leader when she was first hired in August
2021. Martin said she agrees with the current board’s
90-day plan.
“I will hold her accountable for the expected ... improvements, and based on her performance reconsider her position as Broward County Public Schools’ leader,” Martin said.
During the Aug. 23 election, Velez led Martin in total votes, 41% to 35%. Velez, a registered Democrat, leads in fundraising with $32,406, compared to
$23,651 for Martin, who has no party affiliation.
District 5
Ruth Carter Lynch, 69, a charter schools consultant, and Jeff Holness, 50, who owns a tutoring company, are seeking to be elected in the majority Black District 5, which includes Lauderhill, Lauderdale Lakes and parts of Fort Lauderdale, Plantation and Sunrise.
Both candidates have run for School Board before, with Holness losing to Debbi Hixon for an at-large seat in 2020 and Lynch losing to Osgood in 2012.
One issue raised in the campaign is Lynch’s ties to charter schools, which teachers’ unions and many other public education advocates argue siphon money from traditional schools.
Lynch has worked as communications director for Charter Schools of Excellence, which operates two schools in Broward, and as a director for advocacy for Florida Consortium of Public Charter Schools, a membership group for the industry.
“I am pro-choice,” Lynch said. “I think parents deserve the right to send their kids where they feel their kids are safe and getting a better deal. One size doesn’t fit all in public education.”
Holness could not be reached for comment, despite multiple attempts by phone. Both candidates are registered Democrats. Holness is the cousin of Dale Holness, a former county commissioner and congressional candidate.
Lynch wouldn’t say whether she would vote to fire Cartwright, who has received harsh criticism from some in the Black community for the demotions of several Black administrators and a last-minute decision to rescind an offer to a Black candidate for facilities chief due to an issue related to his leave time at a job nine years ago.
“I’m trying to remain as neutral as possible. I want to do the right thing. I don’t want to do the emotional stuff,” she said. “I want to weigh through all the rhetoric. Let’s take a breath. The situation is too polarizing right now. I will say the school district is a hot mess, and the new board will have a lot of work to do.”
In a seven-person race in August, Holness led with
31% of the votes, compared to Lynch’s 24%. Most of the defeated candidates are backing Lynch, who leads in fundraising $58,538 to
$38,626.
District 6
Although School Board races are non-partisan, the District 6 race has turned into a major partisan battle between Steven Julian, a registered Democrat who is pursuing his master’s in mental health, and Brenda Fam, a Republican who is a lawyer. The district includes Weston, Cooper City, Davie and parts of Plantation and Sunrise.
Fam, who is the only School Board candidate endorsed on a Broward GOP voter guide, champions the issues that have become popular among conservatives in School Board elections, including opposition to mask mandates and the teaching of critical race theory.
Fam also has made unsubstantiated allegations that teachers are showing sexually explicit material to elementary students and that a teacher at an unnamed school falsely told 7-year-old boys they must marry a man when they grow up because “it’s the law.”
The campaign between the two has been heated.
Julian issued a “cease and desist” letter against Fam, saying she falsely said he’d been imprisoned and called him a groomer, a word traditionally associated with pedophilia that is now used by conservatives against those who support LGBTQ issues in schools.
Julian also said Fam’s supporters showed cartoon pornography and accused him of supporting that for children.
“This is not how elections are supposed to be run, especially when we’re talking about what’s good for children,” Julian said.
Fam denies that she or her supporter did any of that.
“The accusations are false. When you can’t go after someone for their credentials or background, you make fake allegations,” she said.
Fam is the only School Board candidate who has said she would vote to fire Cartwright. She asked the School Board to take that action at Tuesday’s meeting.
“I don’t think she takes accountability for things. I don’t think she’s transparent,” Fam said.
Julian said he’s glad the School Board didn’t remove Cartwright, especially since she’d recently been rated effective.
“The distrust people already have in the School Board would be enhanced, and I think it’s time for us to really start building trust,” he said. “I have a very open mind. I think setting goals to meet in a timeframe was good.”