Bloc the Vote

Tuesday’s School Board Elections Will Decide the Fate of a Voting Bloc, Teacher Layoffs and Raises, and the Superintendent’s Job

By Jordan Melnick

A lot is riding on the Aug. 26 Miami-Dade County School Board elections. The results may determine whether 1,500 teachers get laid off; whether the embattled head of the school system keeps his job; and whether the county will see a shift in the current 5-4 voting bloc among board members. Five sitting board members are up for re-election, with one of them running unopposed. Although all four contested races represent a possible shake-up, two in particular could result in a seismic shift: the firing of Superintendent Rudy Crew.

District 3

The race in District 3, which covers large parts of Miami Beach, is between incumbent Martin Karp and Shawn Beightol, a science teacher at Dr. Michael Krop Senior High. Karp joined the board in 2004 after being named Teacher of the Year in his district. He campaigns on his ability to navigate the system.

“I know exactly who to go to so I can get done what I want to get done,” Karp said. “Every board item I’ve proffered in the last four years has passed. That shows that I have the respect of my colleagues.”

One of those items was a proposal to raise revenues by introducing advertising into schools, something Karp says he wants to pursue further. He also prides himself on getting four schools built in his district, which he says has eliminated overcrowding.

Beightol, a two-time candidate for president of the United Teachers of Dade and a vocal critic of Superintendent Crew, has called Karp “a non-leader [who] has rubberstamped Rudy Crew’s agenda for the last four years.”

Karp recently came under fire from teachers when he voted to reopen negotiations on their promised raises, which would have taken effect on July 1.

“His name is on the contract that he just voted to reopen,” Beightol said. “He signed his name on a contract promising great raises and failed to put money away for them. He is a part of the problem. And I want to fix that.”

Karp, however, points to the district’s estimate that paying the raises would mean laying off 1,500 employees.

“Certainly, we have to be very concerned that we don’t get more people laid off” Karp said. “In this economy, where do you go if that happens? Sixty-eight thousand people have already lost their jobs in Florida.”

The two candidates also have very different stances on Crew. Karp thinks he should stay. Beightol wants him out. While Karp commends Crew for improved FCAT scores, Beightol accuses him of budget mismanagement and throwing teachers under the bus.

The United Teachers of Dade did not endorse either Karp or Beightol, who is a union member and a two-time UTD Steward of the Year nominee. He was suspended from the union earlier this year, however, for allegedly working against the union with rival organization The Professional Educators Network.

Beightol characterizes himself as a warrior for teachers, as well as someone who would root out fiscal mismanagement if elected. He wants to raise teacher salaries and has proposed funding the raises with savings identified in an independent performance audit. The audit, which Beightol says would save $850 million over five years, would look at potential cost-saving measures ranging from closing regional offices to shutting off the motors of buses while they wait for students.

Beightol wants to give more autonomy to schools.

“I believe we have seen a centralized philosophy of education grow in our county,” Beightol said. “I’m all about delivering to the local community control of their schools again.”

Karp has also suggested he supports giving schools more autonomy, an idea Beightol says his opponent borrowed.

“He takes notes when I speak,” Beightol said.

At the very least, the snipe indicates that the rivals for District 3 might not like each other very much. Beightol has called Karp a “status quo” candidate and reviled him for taking a back seat on the board.

And Karp has thrown his own punches.

“Just because you scream the loudest doesn’t mean you’re effective,” he said. “My opponent has a tendency to overstate things. You want to elect someone who is going to tell it like it is, not fabricate and exaggerate.”

As an example, Karp disputes Beightol’s claim that the district has wasted $2.9 billion this year.

“That’s absurd,” he said. “The whole operating budget for schools is $2.9 billion.”

It’s also no secret that Karp has made repeated attempts to disqualify Beightol as a candidate. First, he claimed Beightol lived outside the district. Then, Karp accused him of wrongly filing for a homestead exemption on a condo he owns in North Miami. The State Attorney’s Public Corruption Unit cleared Beightol of both charges.

While he has fended off disqualification attempts, Beightol faces many more challenges to getting elected. Karp has been endorsed by all but one of the mayors in his district. He also has more than $100,000 in his campaign fund — $80,000 of which he loaned to himself. Beightol had raised only $7,613 as of July 18.

Beightol, however, remains undaunted.

“I don’t have 80 grand to loan myself. But I have energy, tenacity and courage. Those are three important characteristics my opponent does not have. And those will win the day.”

Karp does not plan on giving up his seat without a fight. “There are things I want to see through to completion, and I’ll do whatever it takes to be successful.”

District 9

Larry Feldman, the recently retired principal of Devon Aire K-8 Center, is challenging incumbent Evelyn Greer in the School Board’s southernmost district. Feldman made headlines last year when he offered to stay on as principal for a token salary of $1 a year — a proposal the financially strapped district rejected to avoid a potential budgeting crisis were the bargain-priced principal to go back on his promise mid-school year.

Like Beightol, Feldman is running as a candidate who would end financial “mismanagement” and support teachers.

“The first reason I’m doing this is to honor our teachers and to honor their contracts,” he said. “The second is to stop the mismanagement and wasteful use of our tax dollars and quit putting people [out] on the street.”

He criticized Greer, a former mayor of Pinecrest and the owner and CEO of a real estate development company, for overseeing the mismanagement of funds.

“Why didn’t she know we spent $27 million in overtime last year?” Feldman said, referring to a finding in a recent state audit. “Why didn’t she know that we were robbing our rainy-day fund for two years in a row? She may know numbers, but does she know what to do with them?”

Greer called these instances of mismanagement “administrative oversights” that did not fall under the board’s discretion.

The candidates in District 9 also disagree on the superintendent. Feldman has said he would vote to fire Crew, while Greer voted against terminating the superintendent’s contract at this month’s board meeting. Echoing Beightol, Feldman has also accused Greer of “rubber-stamping.”

Feldman has been an educator in Miami-Dade County for 35 years. Before becoming principal of Devon Aire in 2003, he spent 14 years as a regional director in charge of 55 schools and a $200 million budget. His administrative experience, he says, qualifies him for the board.

“I’m not a seasoned politician,” he said. “I’m just an educator for 35 years who wants to do what’s right for kids. She can’t buy 35 years of experience.”

Greer refrained from criticizing her opponent, saying that “win or lose, I’m going to stay on the high road.” She preferred to discuss the highlights of her four years on the board.

“I campaign on the things that I have done for my constituents,” she said, “including eliminating overcrowding and bringing programs to my district of a quality that had not been seen across the county.”

One of Greer’s proudest achievements was entering into a partnership with the University of Miami to build a high school on its campus “to provide high quality math and science education. There is no program like that in the south end of town,” she said.

Greer also provided a K-12 International Baccalaureate program to South Dade Senior High School, which she says allowed students in her district to join the IB program for the first time.

Last month, the UTD endorsed Feldman over Greer, saying he had “proven to be supportive of teachers, students and public education.” Greer fell out of the union’s good graces when, like Karp, she voted to renegotiate teacher raises.

Still, Greer claims to have the support of teachers.

“I’ve received a lot of e-mails from teachers who understand that you do not want to fire 1,500 people in order to give raises,” she said.

It is unclear, however, how many teachers have contributed money to Greer’s campaign. Of the 82 contributors itemized in her Treasurer’s Report Summary, none is listed as a teacher. Feldman, on the other hand, boasts 15 contributors who are listed as either a teacher or principal.

According to Voterfocus.com, Greer has raised almost $34,000 for her campaign, including $10,000 she loaned herself. (She has also contributed $100 each to Karp and Renier Diaz de la Portilla, another board member up for re-election.) Having raised just over $18,000, Feldman is calling the race for District 9 a “David and Goliath battle."

“I don’t have lobbyists or construction companies or Realtors or lawyers donating to me,” Feldman said. “I’m a grassroots candidate. I have people who believe it’s time for a change.”

But Greer is not willing to concede the progressive platform to her opponent.

“I simply feel that education is the single most important service that government offers,” she said. “I think if this community is going to make any progress of any kind, we have to produce an educated workforce. And that’s my interest.”

Originally published in Jordan Melnick's blog at TeachDade.com