No one should be surprised that now-former Superintendent Mark Rendell used his final days on the job to wreak more havoc on a school district he left in a financial and administrative mess.
It was predictable, really, given the chaos and controversy that defined so much of his four years here, including his last two months, when, unable to convince the School Board to extend his contract, he opted to take the low road out of town.
Only the naïve would have expected him to act in the district’s best interest at the end.
Remember: This is a man who tried to pressure the board into negotiating a resignation deal in which our tax dollars would be used to buy him out of the final year of his contract, an effort that continued even after he had already decided to take the principal’s job at Cocoa Beach Junior/Senior High School.
This is also a man who, when forced to abandon his pathetic plan because he was outsmarted by Board Chairman Laura Zorc, chose to give only the contractually required minimum of 30 days’ notice before departing, leaving the School Board in a tight spot, needing to find an interim superintendent within a matter of a few weeks.
It was already the wrong way to go out, particularly for someone who plans to continue to live in our community.
What happened last week made it worse.
Among his final personnel moves, Rendell recommended that Sebastian River High School’s well-liked longtime assistant principal, Billy Wilson, be transferred to Vero Beach High School – even though Wilson plans to retire after the next school year.
Rendell made the decision without first discussing his intention with Wilson, showing no respect for Wilson’s 25 years at Sebastian River and, once the news spread, ignoring the public outrage it sparked throughout the community, particularly from the school’s faculty, students and graduates.
“I told him I wasn’t happy about it,” Wilson said. “He knows I don’t want to go. But the only choice I was given was to accept the transfer or retire. I’m not sure what I’m going to do.”
He might not need to do anything.
As of 12:01 a.m. Saturday, Susan Moxley replaced Rendell and assumed her duties as the district’s interim superintendent. She takes on the challenge of cleaning up Rendell’s many messes and she has the authority to clean up this one.
We can only hope she does.
Certainly, the early signs are encouraging: By Friday afternoon, Moxley, a 35-year educator who served as Lake County’s schools superintendent from 2008 to 2017 before retiring, already had decided to remove all of Rendell’s recommendations for administrative renewals and transfers from the agenda for Tuesday’s board meeting.
Zorc said Moxley will review the recommendations and consult with School Board Attorney Suzanne D’Agresta before deciding whether to embrace or reject them.
“Dr. Moxley wants to read through them and understand what the changes are and why they’re being made,” Zorc said. “What we don’t want to do is try to fix one mess and, in so doing, create all kinds of other messes. I know a lot of people are upset about the recommendations.”
They should be, especially the ones involving Sebastian River High School, where Rendell recommended the transfer of two assistant principals, including Wilson, who said he’s both flattered and humbled by the outpouring of support he’s receiving.
“It’s kind of embarrassing, really,” Wilson said. “So many people have shown support, calling and texting and sending emails, all of them telling me they want me to stay. My phone has blown up.”
Sebastian River’s faculty and support staff workers have been especially supportive, though they’re reluctant to publicly share their unhappiness with Rendell’s recommendations for fear of retaliation by his supporters, who still occupy prominent positions in the district offices.
Longtime Sebastian River teacher Joe Nathaniel, though, didn’t hesitate to voice his opposition to Rendell’s decision to transfer Wilson, whom he has known for 17 years.
“They’d be destroying the fabric of the school,” said Nathaniel, who has taught there for 14 years. “Billy is the glue at Sebastian River High School – the calm in the storm – and everybody knows it. Nobody wants him to leave. He’s honest, straight-forward and he cares. He’s the go-to guy when you’re in trouble.
“A lot of the good things that happen on that campus are because of Billy, and taking him away would be a huge mistake,” he added. “It’s fairly obvious that this isn’t about the kids.”
So why do it?
According to district sources, there have been disputes between Wilson and Sebastian River’s first-year principal, Dariyall Brown – who was hired by Rendell.
Even Wilson conceded, “Mr. Brown and I don’t get along that well.”
But Wilson believes whatever friction exists between him and Brown, whom he said he tried to mentor, should not have been sufficient grounds to have him transferred.
In fact, Rendell also recommended that another Sebastian River High assistant principal, Michele Holmes, be transferred to Sebastian River Middle School – which, unless the district agrees to pay her the same salary she received at the high school, would be a demotion.
That demotion could open up the district to a lawsuit: In October, Holmes filed a complaint against Brown in connecting to her work environment.
Holmes could not be reached for comment and Wilson didn’t want to get into specifics about his relationship with Brown.
Clearly, though, Rendell was intent on taking care of his allies before heading out the door, even at the expense of truly valued administrators and the best interests of the faculty and students.
“When Rendell told me I was being transferred to Vero Beach, I asked for his reason,” Wilson said. “He said that in order for the administration team at Sebastian River High School to function properly, he needed to move me. He never explained why.
“So after 25 years, with one year to go until I retire, he told me I was being moved,” he added. “Then he had the nerve to tell me I needed to keep it confidential. Can you believe that? I told him that when I walked out the door, everyone was going to know what you did.”
That was two Mondays ago and, by the end of that day, Wilson’s transfer was the talk of the county, from Sebastian to Vero Beach. Nobody liked what they were hearing.
It wasn’t too long ago that Wilson, 56, opted to not pursue the principal’s job at Sebastian River High, because he believed he could do more good as an assistant, which enabled him to build better relationships with students and serve as a buffer between the faculty and administration.
“I’m not a political guy,” Wilson said. “That’s not in my DNA. I’m all about consistency, loyalty and dependability. I do this job because of the kids, and I like the group that’s coming up now. I’d like to be there for them.”
Now that the shock has worn off, Wilson said he probably would accept the transfer to Vero Beach, if given no choice.
“That’s my alma mater, but it would be tough to go down there for one year,” he said. “I’d like to finish my career at Sebastian River High School.”
Moxley can make that happen.
She already has plenty on her plate, but this is important. She has a silver-platter opportunity to step in and make a statement all of us need to hear – a statement that goes beyond the inspirational words in her opening letter to the district’s employees.
At the end of her letter, Moxley lists her guiding principles:
nWe lead with integrity: “Truth, fairness and respect guide every decision we make.”
nWe’re all on the same team: “Every employee, at every level in every department, works toward the same mission – to provide every student with individual opportunities to excel.”
nWe’re committed to excellence: “We embrace innovation, monitor progress, focus on results and make every day and every effort better than the last.”
Those are wonderful ideals that too often have been absent the past four years, but Moxley can make a difference.
She can begin to rid the district of its culture of employee intimidation and administration retaliation. She can stop Rendell’s wrecking ball before it does any more damage. She can make us feel good about our schools again.
Overruling her predecessor and letting Wilson stay at Sebastian River High School for one last year would be the perfect way to start.