Trails in the Sand by Peter Traciet, the Street Detective
Peter Traceit is dedicated to snooping out news in Broward County Public Schools. It’s not for the weary or faint at heart. It’s dirty work, but someone has to do it.
It appears that Superintendent Cartwright was able to avoid being buried under a pile of sand at last Tuesday’s Board meeting. Sources tell Traceit that she is celebrating by throwing up handfuls of colored sand.
But “woah, Nelly”, not so fast. While the Board did not remove her dirty fingerprints from the furniture on the 10th floor of the KC Wright Building, there was some follow up work that she needs to attend to.
The Super has 90 days to respond to some pressing issues and it is uncertain that she has what it takes to get it done. The sand tunnels are filled with rumors that she has hired an Image Coach to work with her on her public perception. And while she was not very interested in engaging with the community, Instagram and Linkedin tell a story of her joining community boards like Career Source Broward to rally support. If you noticed, most of her community support came from businesses from her old school district in Osh Kosh, Wisconsin, where she was ousted after principals launched a no confidence vote.
Speaking of principals, has anyone seen or heard from Lisa Maxwell of the Broward Principals and Assistant Association (BPAA). Anna Fusco of the Broward Teachers Union (BTU) showed up to give a fence straddling speech, yet Maxwell is seemingly waiting for someone else to dig the sinkhole, so she has an easy path to victory. Street Detective Traceit is told she wants Cartwright buried as well.
Traceit is told that Cartwright has two big rocks to shoulder. The first is her relationship with Black employees and the Black community. The Black community, in particular the Pompano Strong group, has been rallying for her departure. Most are a part of the Blanche Ely community where the school has been ignored for years. The Detective Traceit has learned that the school went without multiple math teachers for an entire school year and while the principal, director and Board Member Rupert were all aware nothing was done. Sources tell Ol’ Peter that convincing this community is a soft sand hill to climb and Carmen Jones is not the liaison to make it happen, though Cartwright pays her close to $50,000 for unwise counsel.
A bird whispered to Traceit that Representative Patricia Williams might just be the liaison to bring the community together with Cartwright, but it won’t be done in the way Cartwright anticipates. The rumor sand tunnel has it that Cartwright wanted to convene a meeting with only her and Williams, but Williams advised that she would only meet with Cartwright in conjunction with the Pompano Strong group,
The next boulder that Cartwright must conquer is hiring a Facilities Chief. While the Board worked on a new job description, The Grand Jury report outlined what was most important in the criteria and Detective Traceit hopes that the Sup can read what’s on the line, in between the lines and what’s written in the sand.
The Street Detective suspects that Cartwright won’t make it to 90 days. Her fate will come sooner, not later. Until then, the Detective will continue scurrying through the sand in search of clues.
