Nora Rupert deserves to be re-elected

The District 7 Broward School Board race is another one that may well be determined by what voters think of Schools Superintendent Robert Runcie.

Incumbent and Board Chair Nora Rupert faces Mikelange (Mike) Olbel and Rupert St. Clair in the Aug. 28 race. Olbel, 33, is executive director of Community Based Connections in Pompano Beach. Its mission, he said during the Sun Sentinel endorsement interview, is “to make sure kids get family support and do well in school.”

St. Clair said he was too busy to attend the interview and returned his questionnaire late. In it, he said he was running for the School Board because he doesn’t like the way Runcie is running the district.

Rupert is one of the few board members who challenges Runcie, mostly on attention to detail, followthrough and communications. She rated the superintendent as “needs improvement” on his November evaluation.

Rupert has been an engaged board member since 2010 and knows what the district does well and does poorly.

District 7 voters should re-elect Rupert, a knowledgeable and resolute board member.

In her questionnaire, Rupert, 54, praised Runcie for his ability to build relationships, including with powerful business groups, but said his performance is inconsistent.

She cited her criticism in his most recent evaluation about a one-year delay in playground projects: “This is unacceptable and indicative of a much larger problem – failure to plan adequately and the ability to bounce back with solutions and quickly counteract any delays with full transparency and ownership of the delays.”

Olbel gave Runcie a mixed review. Extending Runcie’s contract “should be a conversation on the table.”

However, his questionnaire was replete with praise for the district’s successes: more schools with high letter grades; fewer schools with low letter grades; a higher graduation rate; steady class sizes despite money challenges; and reduced costs for running the system’s buses.

Olbel said his only motivation is to help provide the kind of care and support he experienced when he attended public schools in Broward County. “I am always reminded of the heroes who helped shape and mold my life (i.e. cafeteria staff, janitors, front desk staff, principal & TEACHERS),” he wrote in his questionnaire.

But the district has changed, he said. He blames it on the school board members. “There’s turmoil on the board. They don’t respect each other. If they don’t respect each other, why should the community respect them?”

Rupert says the rally call she hears in the community is, “change the board, but for Rupert.”

Rupert said education is improving, including in District 7, which includes Deerfield Beach, Pompano Beach and Coconut Creek. She cited an organization she helped establish called “The Community of Caring,” whose members adopt certain schools. The volunteers, she said, mentor students and the results have been gratifying.

But more needs to be done for at-risk kids, she said, where big disparities remain.

Rupert and Olbel agree the Legislature should provide public schools with more money, primarily to raise salaries so that the district can recruit and retain quality teachers.

Both said they would vote for the proposed property tax increase in November, which would raise $93 million a year for four years.

Rupert said she would vote for the increase, though she’s reluctant to ask voters for another tax hike, given the administration’s poor performance with the 2014 construction bond.

Rupert attributed most of the delays to the people Runcie hired to oversee the program. She also said he asks the board to approve contracts that contain mistakes.

During this time of tumult, experience matters. Nora Rupert remains focused and asks the kind of questions taxpayers expect. She has earned your vote.

Rupert