School board candidates at a debate sponsored by Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Vero Beach made some dramatic statements about problems in the district and promised sweeping change if elected.
“I can fix the school district, and it won’t take long,” said Eugene Wolff who is running for the District 1 seat that will be vacated by Sean Frost in November, going on to say that “the essential building blocks [of] . . . truth, respect and transparency” needed to run a school district or business “are broken.”
Randy Heimler, who is running against two other candidates for the District 4 seat Charles Searcy is giving up, took a similar tact: “If you want change, vote for me. I’m not going to shake the tree, I’m going to tear it down,” Heimler said, pointing to Superintendent Mark Rendell’s poor performance, the district’s low test scores and high teacher turnover as evidence of a need for fundamental change.
Three of five seats are open in the nonpartisan race – because the incumbents are not running for reelection – and nine candidates are contending. Seven participated in the debate.
With two hours scheduled, the moderator said there were too many candidates to direct the same question to each, which limited across-the-board comparisons on specific issues and policies. One question that all candidates were asked – what distinguishes you from the other candidates – brought out what the contenders see as their strong points.
The two candidates squaring off for District 1 are Wolff and Mara Schiff.
Wolff is the only candidate among the nine who has held elected office. He was elected twice to the Sebastian City Council and is “on the public record,” he said, giving voters something concrete to consider, beyond campaign promises. It was a “tumultuous city council,” he said, and “I helped restore professionalism to the board,” and “helped guide the city through the great recession.”
“I’m on the same executive level as the superintendent,” Wolff said, comparing his position as procurement director for a fresh produce company bringing in $400 million in revenue a year as similar to Superintendent Mark Rendell’s position overseeing a $287-million budget.
“So, I don’t have any problem giving him direction and I don’t feel intimidated by his job responsibilities . . . I can be your numbers guy on the board,” he said.
Schiff said she is a “school safety expert,” touching a top concern among parents following the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting.
For the past 10 years she has been a consultant to school districts desiring to change their “punitive based” school climate. “My education and advocacy are superior,” Schiff said. “I am the expert . . . [school districts] call when they are struggling.”
Four candidates are running for the District 2 seat: Ruben Bermudez, Jr. and Merchon Green, who were at the debate, and Jacqueline Rosario and Devon Dupuis who were no-shows.
Bermudez was a school resource officer at Oslo Middle School and the Freshman Learning Center, experience he said distinguishes him from other candidates. “I have counseled and mentored students for hundreds, thousands of hours,” he said.
He’s also the only candidate among the four in District 2 with children in the school system. He has six children, one with Asperger’s Syndrome, which gives him insight into other parents’ struggle to get services, he said.
Green said she is the only candidate who has been “holding the school board accountable” for the past year and a half, speaking at board meetings and serving on the African American Achievement Plan and Student Code of Conduct committees.
“The board is not holding the district accountable,” she said. They should be basing their decisions on “independent research and evidence, not on their relationship with the superintendent or the person who is supposed to be doing the job.”
“The board needs to tell the community what is going on before they make a final decision,” Green said expressing her belief that the current board is “unengaged,” blocking input from the community, teachers and employees.
She said she will give community stakeholders a voice, forming advisory committees that meet regularly in open forums.
Running in District 4 are Randy Heimler, Stacey Klim and Teri Barenborg.
Heimler said he has “20 years of business experience” that allowed him to retire at 40, as well as education experience as a volunteer in Miami-Dade County. “We turned a double-F school around to a C school,” he said.
Barenborg said she is running because she “started paying attention and got concerned. You have to have a feel for the area,” she added, highlighting the fact she has lived in Vero for 30 years, longer than any other candidate.
Besides having undergraduate and graduate degrees in education, Barenborg said she has helped author seven booklets – lesson plans on science, technology, engineering, art and math, the core STEAM curricula. She also helped write a $12.5 million STEAM grant for St. Lucie schools.
Klim claimed her experience as a local, state and federal legislative advocate and bill writer concerning Exceptional Student Education separates her from the pack. “Giving people a voice [is my forte],” she said.
She said she would go to Tallahassee to confront legislators about too much testing, which she believes is killing creativity in the classroom, keeping students from absorbing what they’ve learned and creating a stressful environment for teachers and students.
“I want to give a voice to our teachers’ union and the CWA (Communications Workers of America) union,” Klim said, suggesting the school board hold one “town hall” a month, giving the unions and other stakeholders a “seat at the table.”
All the candidates agreed teacher turnover and retention are a problem in the Indian River County district under Rendell’s leadership. They also agreed behavior problems in schools are fueling high teacher turnover and low morale.