INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — Schools Superintendent Dr. Fran Adams took the post nearly one year ago and has since earned high marks and praise not only from the School Board but also from a member of the public who polled those in the know out in the community.
“You earned a 10,” said Dr. Harry Hurst, a regular member of the audience at both regular and extra School Board meetings. Hurst said he talked to several people who keep up with school-related issues, and they, too, are satisfied with the superintendent’s work.
He said that Dr. Adams has overcome 18 years of negative feelings between the public and the district – no small feat. He pointed, too, to the improving relationship between the district and its charter schools.
School Board members echoed many of Hurst’s sentiments when they discussed Dr. Adams’s annual evaluation at Tuesday evening’s meeting.
School Board member Karen Disney-Brombach said she was encouraged to hear Hurst’s assessment of public opinion.
School Board Chair Jeff Pegler told Dr. Adams that she has served the district “with grace” and “with integrity” and that it has been a privilege to work alongside her as the chairman.
The School Board as a whole gave Dr. Adams an average score of 7.67 – out of 10 – putting her in the “Above Expectations” category.
Each member met individually with Dr. Adams and filled out evaluation forms on their own, resulting in a wide range for some of her scores.
Pegler gave Dr. Adams the highest marks – all 9s and 10s – resulting in an average score of 9.5, while member Claudia Jimenez gave the superintendent the lowest marks – mostly 5s and 6s for an average of 5.2.
The 5-6 point range indicates that Dr. Adams “meets expectations,” according to the scale provided with the full evaluations on file at the School District office.
“I’m very pleased with the superintendent’s work,” Jimenez said after the School Board meeting, explaining that she felt her marks were consistent with the work Dr. Adams was asked to do and has been doing.
“She’s doing what we hired her to do,” Jimenez said.
School Board member Matt McCain, who offered no written comments on the individual evaluation areas, wrote in general that Dr. Adams was doing well in communicating with the community and is visible.
“Thank you for the honesty,” Dr. Adams said in response to the evaluations. “I’m here to learn.”
She added that in this first year, she has indeed learned a lot and appreciates working together with the School Board as a team.
“The work is never done,” Dr. Adams said.
Here’s how the School Board evaluated Dr. Adams:
| Academic Success | Integrity and Leadership | Communication and Community Engagement | Effective Board Relations | Highly Developed, High Performing Staff | Efficient, Effective Operational Planning, Organization | |
| Karen Disney-Brombach | 9 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 7 |
| Jeff Pegler | 9 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 9 |
| Matt McCain | 8 | 8 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 |
| Carol Johnson | 9 | 10 | 10 | 8 | 7 | 7 |
| Claudia Jimenez | 5 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 5 | 5 |
| Avg. Rating | 8 | 8.4 | 8 | 7.6 | 7 | 7 |
