Costume may cost schools director
Broward administrator could see demotion, nearly $44K pay cut
An administrator who oversees purchasing for Broward schools could receive a demotion and a nearly $44,000 pay cut because she showed up for work on Halloween dressed as a flasher.
Mary Coker, 46, currently makes $154,286 as the district’s director of procurement and warehousing services, a job she’s held since 2016. Superintendent Robert Runcie plans to ask the School Board on Tuesday to demote her to manager of materials and logistics, a job where the most she could be paid is $110,702.
According to a district complaint, Coker showed up at both Lanier James Education Center, a school for adult students, and an administrative office on Oakland Park Boulevard wearing a costume consisting of “only a black coat and hat, with a tight fabric underneath which replicated a naked female body.”
During a brunch at the office, “Coker inappropriately ‘flashed’ children, staff, and colleagues …” the complaint says. “Employees at the brunch were offended and
some suggested that they could not tell if Coker was wearing a costume or was truly naked. After flashing the crowd of employees and seeing their reaction, Coker stated, ‘Hey everybody, relax, it is fake, please erase the pictures.’”
The complaint says two young children were present and that “Coker’s poor judgment did not reflect the culture or values of the employees.”
Coker, reached Monday, declined to comment.
If approved, this would be Coker’s second pay cut in the past 15 months. In September 2018, Runcie lowered her pay after the South Florida Sun Sentinel discovered she was making $161,358, which was $8,000 above the maximum allowed for her position at the time.
In the new complaint, Runcie alleges a wide range of offenses, including indecent exposure, lewd and lascivious behavior, incompetence, willful neglect of duty, misconduct in office and failure to comply with School Board policy.
Coker has no prior discipline and received three consecutive evaluations of “highly effective,” the best rating possible, most recently in July. That’s prompted School Board member Nora Rupert to question whether the recommended discipline is too severe. Typically, employees receive a reprimand or suspension the first time they commit an infraction, especially if the infraction is not illegal.
“I am very alarmed that we’re not following progressive discipline,” Rupert said. “Everyone needs to be treated fairly, and I’m not sure in this particular case, the situation is being dealt with in a proper way.”
Anna Fusco, president of the Broward Teachers Union, doesn’t represent Coker, but she too questioned the discipline.
“She wore a damn costume,” Fusco said in a text message. “The process was flawed.”
But some question whether Coker should have a job at all.
Carol Schroeder, a retired office manager in the district’s maintenance department, emailed the Sun Sentinel and others Oct. 31 with photo of Coker in costume. “I hope you find it equally inappropriate as I do,” she wrote.
On Monday, she emailed the Sun Sentinel again, saying, “Supposedly Runcie is putting out a petition to demote Mary Coker, not get rid of her … Really? How could this be?”
Although the costume is the only issue mentioned in the complaint, Coker has also been blamed by some in the black community for a small number of black vendors who have gotten business through the $800 million school renovation bond. Overall, the district has exceeded its goals in awarding contracts to minority firms, but most of those are owned by Hispanics.
Coker said at a Facilities Task Force meeting in June that black vendors have been successful in getting contracts when they bid, but they aren’t bidding on a lot of work.
In response to concerns from the Minority Builders Coalition and others, Runcie removed Coker as head of a department that recruits minority contractors. He also plans to ask the School Board to change the type of contract used for eight construction projects to one that is preferred by black contractors.