BRADENTON – The Manatee County Chapter of the NAACP and the Manatee County Republican Party's executive committee are not often on the same side of local political issues. However, the two groups agree that the Manatee Schools Superintendent Cynthia Saunders should resign or be terminated in the wake of her settlement with the Department of Education after overseeing a scheme that inflated the district's graduation rate by miscoding dropouts as students who had "transferred" to homeschooling.
Last month, TBT reported that Saunders had entered into a "Revised Settlement Agreement" with Florida Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran after a previous settlement offer from Saunders' attorneys was harshly rejected. Saunders will be able to keep her education certificate, though she will be placed on a two-year probation period (which will begin if and when she returns to a position that requires one), pay a $2,000 fine, and have a letter of reprimand entered into her file.
"The District should never tolerate, accept, or promote this type of behavior. The EPC determined her actions were fraudulent, discriminatory, and illegal, it could significantly impact the 115 students not home-schooled," the NAACP said in a statement calling for Saunders' resignation that was released after the settlement was announced.
On March 28, the Manatee County Republican Executive Committee voted to approve a resolution demanding the resignation of Saunders, which called on the school board to immediately fire Saunders if she would not voluntarily resign.
"The committee expects more and demands more from a superintendent who heads an organization with a $1 billion annual budget and who is responsible for the education of 50,000 Manatee County children," said REC chair Steve Vernon in a statement accompanying the resolution. "Saunders knowingly and willingly falsified data that led to inflated district graduation rates. There is absolutely no excuse for that. By her actions, Saunders has tarnished the reputation of the school district and has lost any and all credibility as an effective leader. We need a new superintendent who has the vision and unquestioned ethical standards to lead a district that faces continued challenges on a multitude of levels."
The school board is set to meet on Tuesday, April 12, at 10 a.m., the board's first public meeting since the settlement was reached.
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