Broward School Board's Failing Grade Is Not The First

FT. LAUDERDALE (CBS4) - A Grand Jury report which blasted the Broward County School Board for being inefficient and possibly corrupt was not the first time the school district has gotten a failing grade for its performance.

In 2002, the Grand Jury criticized board's lack of attention to issues and in 1997 they criticized the board for its passive attitude in dealing with mold and mildew in schools, according to CBS4 news partner The Miami Herald.

The most recent review came after former Governor Charlie Crist called for a statewide investigation into corruption after several public officials, including several Broward School Board members, were arrested.

In the report which was released late Friday, the grand jurors indicated that they if they had the power they would recommend that the board be dissolved.

"But for the Constitutional mandate that requires an elected School Board for each District, our first and foremost recommendation would have been to abolish the Broward County School Board altogether," according to grand jurors in the report.

Click for the full State Grand Jury Report.

According to the report, the board has major management problems. Rather than firing someone for doing a bad job, grand jurors found, "The solution for many departments is to simply add more staff, give the critical work to the new employees and move the incompetent and lazy to another less desirable job or location, or left at the job but given little or nothing to do," a policy it blamed on the administration and the school board which oversees it.

The Grand Jury also criticized the district for wasteful construction spending, incomplete construction record and untrained inspectors.  The report also cited the board for getting involved in construction matters where they did not have the expertise.

"For at least the last 15 years the District has operated a facilities and construction department with little regard for quality, accountability or fiscal responsibility, yet the Board has done nothing to address these issues," the report states.

The grand jury report cites numerous examples, especially in the area of school construction. It is critical of the board for allowing millions of dollars to be spent building new schools in areas where there were already empty classrooms, primarily in the eastern part of the county, while failing to address overcrowding in western schools.

The report delves extensively into what it blasts as Broward's practice of allowing new schools to be opened using Temporary Certificate of Occupancy, or TCO's, which often stay in place for years, allowing what in effect legally unfinished schools to be used by children.

The grand jurors made 21 recommendations, including:

• Refusal of campaign contributions from anyone doing business with the board.
• Mandatory ethics training.
• Cut the size of the school board in half (to five members).
• Allow voters to decide if the district superintendent should be elected.
• Create an independent office of Inspector General to monitor the Board and District.
• Prevent board members from being involved in the selection of contractors, vendors, or financial institutions.

While the major findings against the nation's 6th largest school district were oddly released after business hours at the start of a weekend, it immediately drew reaction.

The Broward Teachers Union, which has issued severe criticism of it's own against the board and Superintendent Notter, called the report justification of their concerns.

"The grand jury's report supports what many BTU members have been saying for years," said the statement by BTU President Pat Santeramo, "concerning undue influence of district contractors who at the same time allegedly contributed to the campaigns of School Board members."

Broward Superintendent James Notter said in a statement released Saturday said the district "will continue to take actions to restore public trust in our educational system.''  He pointed out that they've steps to create a code of ethics and have made changes to their procurement code which bars board members from being involved.

The report does give credit to the district for putting some new policies into place, according to the paper, but says the changes don't go far enough.

(©2011 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All rights reserved.  This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. CBS4 news partner The Miami Herald contributed material for this report)