By Terry Witt – Spotlight Senior Reporter

Retiring Levy County School Board member Rick Turner Tuesday harshly criticized the way he was interviewed by a member of a team of educators evaluating the school district for accreditation.

“I think they are looking for something non-existent,” Turner said. “They were ridiculous and picayunish and went far beyond the scope of what I feel a school board member should have been turned into.”

A team of educators is fanning out across the Levy County School District to interview principals and district-level administrators. They will determine whether the district meets or exceeds minimum standards for education quality.

The accreditation team will spend the week examining the school district from head to toe. Having an accredited district is important to graduating seniors. Future employers may require graduation from an accredited school or district.  Seniors hoping to attend an institution of higher learning are well served to have graduated from an accredited school district.

Turner, in one of his last meetings as a board member, didn’t say what questions aggravated him most, but he didn’t agree with the way he was questioned.

School Board Vice Chairman Brad Etheridge, who chaired the meeting for Cameron Asbell, who was out for eye surgery, agreed some of the questions he was asked were difficult to answer as a board member, but on the flip side of the coin, “if we look at it critically, if we can look at things, there are opportunities for us to get better within the district.”

As school board members, Etheridge said the board is not supposed to micromanage the school district, but he said looking at the entire district from the “30,000 feet level,” he said accreditation can create opportunities for the board to assist the district in other ways.

“What I told the accreditation team yesterday; you might micro-analyze what we’re doing but I, as a general overall, like the direction of the leadership we have going on at our school district right now. I think it’s going in a positive direction,” Etheridge said.

Turner said he agreed with Etheridge’s point of view, “but I don’t think it’s within the accreditation process to do that.” Turner said the school board has its own internal process for making things better.”

Turner announced his retirement earlier this year, setting the stage for a two-person race in the August primary election. Ashley Breeden Clemenzi, a political newcomer won the election and will replace Turner, probably in the first week of November.

The Levy County Schools Foundation has created a scholarship recognizing the long service of Turner and his wife, Donna, in the school district. Both are retiring from the district.

 

School Board of Levy County Regular Meeting October 23, 2018

Posted October 23, 2018