School Board to Discuss Admin Restructuring

The Pinellas County School Board and Superintendent John Stewart’s Cabinet will meet in a special workshop at 9 a.m. today to begin discussing a possible administrative restructuring.

According to the distrct, the conversation will center on an organization and management study conducted by the Florida Association of District School Superintendents.

You can view the complete results of the study online. 

Stewart commissioned the study in November in an effort to improve operations districtwide and to determine how district administrators can better provide support to schools, the district said.

“It’s imperative for an organization as large as ours to periodically take a good hard look at itself to determine if its procedures are aligned to its mission and goals,” Stewart said in a news release. “Certainly an organization with a mission as crucial as ours – 100 percent success for all students – is duty-bound to take stock of its strengths and weaknesses, affirming the former and mitigating the latter to the largest degree possible."

Stewart acknowledged that the report, which was based on information provided by district and school leadership, objectively articulates what the district has known for a long time.

“Our workforce is dispirited and discouraged for a number of reasons,” Stewart said in the release. “It is within our power to address many of their concerns, and I intend to do that based on the results of the study and with the support of our School Board.”

Some of the issues identified by the FADSS group include confusion concerning who to contact for information or assistance; job descriptions that do not portray an accurate picture of position functions; and, a need for more staff development.

Board members are expected to discuss the report’s findings at Monday’s workshop following Stewart’s presentation of the material. No board action will be taken, but subsequent discussions will take place at a future board workshop.