Some interesting conversation highlights from Wednesday’s School Board special meeting.
1. Board member Karen Brill declared she was fed up with the city of West Palm Beach’s repeated need to extend the negotiating time on its charter school. Brill’s argument got Board Member Frank Barbieri. They agreed to let Superintendent Wayne Gent withdraw the request and bring it back on Oct. 15, after more discussion with the city, but not before Barbieri made this comment:
“On the one hand, I’d like to see them set up a charter school because the mayor of West Palm Beach said our schools are appalling in her city. I’d like to see how they’re going to do it any differently with the same population.”
2. The Riviera Beach Maritime Academy was up for a 15 renewal of its charter. That too got pushed back to Oct. 15. That move came after School Board member Debra Robinson said this:
“I just have to say I remember when this charter was an idea. I remember when Palm Beach Lakes had a program that wasn’t as expansive as Maritime Academy but we closed that program essentially in support of this charter school.
“But what troubles me greatly, enormously is despite the conversations that took in the beginning, this school situated in Riviera Beach on the water has 8 percent of the student population African-American, 8 percent.
“I’m going to work with you on remedying that. I’m sure there’s a number of reasons that some people might call excuses, but this is very disturbing…. this is a shame. This is a shame. The promises made. This is a shame.”
Other board members followed voicing their concerns about the racial and ethnic makeup of both charter schools and choice programs within public schools.
3. Students come before the School Board all of the time, but usually they’re there to be recognized for some achievement or to demonstrate their talents. But a brother and sister got a lift to the meeting to protest the proposed 5-day suspension of their former science teacher James Byrd.
Byrd admitted to some flip and what were later deemed to be inappropriate remarks to students at Emerald Cove Middle last year.
Kennedy Ramsarran, an 8th grader with fond memories of 7th thanks to Mr. Byrd said, “I’ve never found him offensive… His sarcastic personality.. he made learning fun for us. He kept the class under control because he was so respected.”
She added that rumors on campus suggest some “group of girls were trying to get him fired.”
Her brother Maddox Ramsarran, now at Palm Beach Central High, then spoke: “To this day I remember a lot of the things he taught me. .. the allegations against him are against his sense of humor. He’s very sardonic.”
He argued that whatever Byrd was accused of saying it was probably “something you couldn’t take seriously. A teacher would say that as a joke.”
The board approved Byrd’s 5-day suspension without comment.
