SCHOOLHOUSE ROCKED

do things right, not undermine and constantly seek to get me out."

Smith admitted he was surprised he got the job in 2020. He said, "I thought it was a miracle because I didn't think I was going to be selected as the process was progressing. But then it happened, and I really feel that I was called to be here. Now, I don't know how long I was supposed to be called here—obviously not too long."

Smith said he feared for the future of the school district. "If you were to look at ratings on how our community perceives us, me and you, it's not very good. There are problems, but the research says if we're not united, the school district will not move forward."

The day after the vote, Inweekly reached out to school board members for their thoughts in the wake of the abrupt firing of Smith.

Board member Bill Slayton was stunned the motion was made.

Hours after being berated by the State Board of Education, the Escambia County School Board voted 3-2 to terminate School Superintendent Tim Smith's contract and install Assistant Superintendent Keith Leonard as interim, effective May 31.

The surprise move came after the board approved an agreement for Charter Schools USA to take over Warrington Middle School—avoiding a 48-hour deadline imposed by the state board that would've put the school board members' salaries at risk.

The motion to fire Smith was made by Board Chairman Paul Fetsko and seconded by Board Member Kevin Adams. David Williams, the former Pensacola High School principal elected in 2022, was the swing vote. The termination leaves the school in turmoil three months before it begins the 2023-24 school year.

At the school board meeting Tuesday, May 16, Fetsko criticized Smith's lack of leadership inside the district, saying, "There is no feeling that they are being led."

Adams ran through a litany of issues he had with Smith that included leadership, staff shortages, his handling of book bans and the lack of communication regarding Charter USA and other district problems.

"We need to get out of this little mess we've been in," Adams said.

Smith didn't sit quietly. His passionate words have resonated throughout the district and county.

"I think through this entire process, where we've been on shaky ground is some of your statements have impacted the trust factor from Charter Schools USA," Smith said to Fetsko.

sponsible for you … These situations happened. You are the chairman, but yet you don't take responsibility. It's not your fault; it's my fault. There's a pattern here."

The former superintendent called Fetsko and Adams dividers, accusing them of being divisive. He said, "It started in the fall and continued in February," Smith said. "You've been plotting, evidently behind the scenes."

Smith went after the pair about their criticism of him regarding the district's review policy for challenged books in school libraries and classrooms.

"Mr. Adams, you sat in that chair and led this board through a process to come up with a policy," Smith said, pointing out that the school board member wanted him to ban books without following the review process. "General counsel said, 'I will not recommend that, because that's not in the intent of the law,' but you hammer away, 'Oh, the superintendent should pull these books.' Why? Because you don't want to deal with it."

Smith continued, "It's your policy that you led, and you are asking me to violate your policy. What is that?"

Smith then turned back to the board chair, "Mr. Fetsko, the other day, I believe you said some laws need to be violated, because you said the same thing. You wanted me to pull the books."

Smith admitted he wasn't perfect and had "room to grow," which he included in his selfevaluation, but he felt Fetsko and Adams undermined his leadership.

"I'm telling you, there's something bad that exists here," Smith said. "There's something toxic that exists here. You all want to fire me. I think the answer would be for the two of you to resign your positions, really."

He continued, "What's the difference? Is it you or me, right? I guess you outnumber me. If you care about the kids, as you have said, we need to

Fetsko wasn't trying to embarrass Smith, but he said the termination was needed to curb the resignations hitting the district. Adams said Smith's actions before the State Board of Education were the last straw.

"To me, the motion was totally out of place," Slayton said. "Nobody was there to defend the superintendent, because nobody knew that was coming up. I felt it was totally poorly done, a chicken's way out. A lot of people called me today and wanted to know why they didn't know about it and couldn't come to speak out in support of the superintendent."

He wasn't sure Leonard would take the interim job. "It seems the chairman has put forth his name without consulting him," Slayton said. "Keith Leonard did not know his name was going to be mentioned. According to a discussion I had with the attorney, we're hanging on now and don't know what's going to happen next. We may have to call a special meeting."

He also worried about how the termination would impact finding Smith's successor. He asked, "Do you think people are going to want to come here? We had a gentleman that didn't even get through his three-year contract, and we didn't tell him why. We just voted him out."

Slayton praised Smith. "I like the things he's been doing with discipline," Slayton said. "It's something we all needed. We've been a little lax on punishment; we need strong discipline in our schools."

Fetsko mentioned the State Board of Education. "I was really looking at what was going on with the evaluation before that, but adding on to it, for the state board to make the comments they made, was a little bit stunning. It was stunning to hear what Ryan Petty said, but again, I didn't disagree with what he said."

The board chairman insisted he was not trying to embarrass, undermine or disparage Smith. "I went out of my way to say I understand what his strength is and that's curriculum and I appre - ciate that, but it had to do with the idea of leadership," Fetsko said.

It was the resignations that worried him. "The thing that was most important on that, was we have had a number of elementary principals resign, one on the first day of school and three others in the first semester. There's a likelihood we'll have a good number retire, leave or just walk away, and it's not just principals. It's been other staff."

Fetsko continued, "The methods being employed were not working. Before the district loses all its seasoned, trained and competent leadership, we needed to make a change."

He praised Leonard for understanding "district leadership versus school leadership." Fetsko said, "He's been involved with things. He'll get up to speed a lot quicker than somebody who has not been here. I'm trying to look at somebody who can kind of keep things calm. His demeanor and manner are described like that by everyone who has met him and makes it a very reasonable thing to do at this point."

Fetsko debunked rumors the vote was staged. "I didn't know exactly what was going to happen, but I had to make the statement or go ahead with this at this point, because there are a lot of things getting prepared for next school year. I want to avoid having to change a whole lot later, when they can get done now. Dr. Smith was just not the right fit for us at this time."

What responses has he received? "I've had some hostile calls this morning, but I've had 20 more saying we appreciate you doing what needs to be done," Fetsko said. "In my heart, I do not take any joy in doing this. I feel for Dr. Smith and his family and will continue to do so."

Fetsko said he expects the school board to conduct a search for a new superintendent in June.

Adams was candid and straightforward. "Everyone in Escambia County knows where I was. It's no secret we had our little turf battles. I like Tim Smith. I just didn't like the direction we were going."

He continued, "I want the district to settle down. We started having people quit at all different levels and that has to stop."

For Adams, Smith's performance in front of the state board was the "straw that broke the camel's back." He said, "We've got to get back to the attention of these low-performing schools. Eleven schools are in the DOE pipeline, and we have to do stuff now, not later."

He feels the appointed superintendent isn't any less political than the elected one. "I can't picture another guy coming in from out of town who doesn't know anything about this county. That last time, they said an appointed superintendent was going to bring in less politics. That was a lie."

"If it gets political again, I might be forced in that direction," Adams said of encouraging the superintendent position to be put back on the ballot.

"I'm ready to move forward," Adams said. "We need to get the state board off our back." {in}

LATE TO THE PARTY On Tuesday, May 16, Moms for Liberty gave the Santa Rosa County School Board its list of books that it wants removed from school libraries.

Mariya Calkins, the chapter's leader, said the books contain "racist commentary and misrepresentations of racism and history, contains graphic illustrations involving sexual nudity, sexuality and alternate genders, excessive profanity, sexual activities, illegal drug use, alcohol use, sexual assault, child molestation and abuse graphic violence, incest and profanity."

The chapter's determination is based on the website BookLook.Info. Free speech advocates claim the website appears to be an objective measure of a book's content, mirrored after movie ratings. However, the site is a tool developed by Moms For Liberty to push its agenda.

"I am a mother of an elementary school-aged child, and these findings are what makes our fight so real," said Calkins in a press release. "These horrible books are not just somewhere in woke San Francisco; they are here in Santa Rosa County School Libraries … Moms for Liberty Santa Rosa County Chapter is rapidly growing with motivated parents and teachers who are willing to dedicate their time and efforts to advocate for our public education because our children's future is at stake."

The books the Moms want removed include "Flowers in the Attic" by V.C. Andrews, "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini and "Slaughterhouse-Five" by Kurt Vonnegut.

The day after Calkins' presentation, PEN America, Penguin Random House and a diverse group of authors joined with parents and students in Escambia County to file a federal lawsuit challenging removals and restrictions of books from school libraries that violate their rights to free speech and equal protection under the law. Santa Rosa County could be next.

MAGICAL MOMENT On Thursday, May 15, Gov. Ron DeSantis awarded more than $3.9 million to the City of Pensacola through the governor's Florida Job Growth Grant Fund to facilitate infrastructure improvements at the Port of Pensacola. The grant will fund the design, build-out and retrofit of Warehouse 10.

"Today's award to the City of Pensacola will strengthen the Port of Pensacola's infrastructure and promote economic opportunities in the sailing industry for the Florida Panhandle," Gov. DeSantis said. "We believe in making strategic investments to create job opportunities and ensure Florida's prosperity for generations to come."

This award will spur economic growth by establishing a High-Performance Maritime Center of Excellence. It also helps secure the port as American Magic's homebase, bringing at least 150 high-wage jobs in maritime industries, including research and development, engineering and design and manufacturing, to the Pensacola area.

After hearing the news, Mayor D.C. Reeves wrote in a text to Inweekly, "Full Steam Ahead." He later said the design and renovation of Warehouse 10 would begin as soon as he received this commitment from the governor's office.

Wearing an American Magic polo at his press conference May 16, Reeves talked about the possibility of Pensacola hosting a future America's Cup if American Magic wins in Barcelona in 2024.

"I was joking with someone today," Reeves said. "You know, the City of Pensacola's chances to host an America's Cup one day went from a one in a trillion to about one in four."

He later added, "It would be, no doubt about it, the largest event that the city's ever seen. We are rooting them on.

"The day after they win the cup. I can guarantee that I'd be over there cheering them on and then probably on a plane the next morning back here to try to figure out how we can pull this thing off."

Mayor Reeves said his staff will work on a Memorandum of Understanding with American Magic in the coming weeks.

"Just so you know that we've got something on paper, certainly before we're accepting dollars formally," Reeves said. "But we've been in conversations with them for a long, long time, and we feel that is their intent (to relocate to Pensac-