January 19, 2008
Time for Garcia to go
I initally applauded the hiring of Metro Nashville Public Schools Director Pedro Garcia, but I think it’s time for him to go. I considered the school board’s decision to bring in someone with a proven track record from outside the system to be an intelligent and well-reasoned decision. In retrospect, it looks more like a mistake.
The word on the street has long been that Garcia is dictatorial and adversarial, and that might have been tolerable with improving schools. With a critical evaluation forthcoming, that clearly isn’t the case.
Metro Schools Director Pedro Garcia on Friday made his first official move to be released from his contract, just one day before the board was set to begin his annual evaluation process … The embattled school director is under contract until 2010 but submitted a written request for the board to consider giving him a severance package.
Garcia’s contract states that he must give 120 days’ notice unless the board agrees to a shorter period of time. The board also has the power to fire him for a number of reasons, in which case he gets no compensation and has to forfeit all his sick leave.
Nashville should not foot the bill, in my opinion, for an official who has frequently flirted with other school systems about job vacancies and has engendered much ill will within the system along the way. I hope the school board will make the case against keeping Garcia rather than accepting this overture from the beleaguered director. It’s in the best interest, I believe, of the city, the schools and, ultimately, the students for there to be a change in leadership.
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Malia said,
January 19, 2008 @ 1:37 pm
“an official who has frequently flirted with other school systems about job vacancies and has engendered much ill will within the system along the way”
Exactly!
When I heard the news, I thought, “Good riddance!” I don’t think he ever really wanted to be here in the first place. Let him go and get someone else who actually wants to work on behalf of Nashville’s schools.
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January 21, 2008 @ 8:26 am
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Rob Robinson said,
January 21, 2008 @ 1:48 pm
This timing may be good, with Dean in the mayor’s office after a campaign focused on improving schools. I hope he’ll weigh in substantially in determining who will follow Garcia.
Kieran said,
January 22, 2008 @ 4:48 pm
I’m not the most informed on the ins and outs of Garcia’s tenure here, but my rough impression has been this:
1) the guy doesn’t tell people what they want to hear
2) he doesn’t make a lot of friends, as a result
3) he’s held more accountable than the people he’s responsible for
It’s certainly easier to fire Garcia than it is to fire the under-performing people who report to him…
I realize there are no easy answers here, but firing a guy because he foments ‘ill will’ in an organization like Metro Schools just seems silly.
Rob Robinson said,
January 24, 2008 @ 4:01 pm
You make a fair point, Kieran. There were plenty of problems in Nashville’s school system before Garcia arrived. He did do some good things along with alienating many of his subordinates, and there is a lot more that needs to be done than replacing him. I think his departure is a good thing for the system, but it appears that the inertia toward mediocrity in the system is not going to change by itself.