Attachment B
School District of Hillsborough County • Superintendent’s Evaluation 2011-2012
Standards/Indicators
Comments
Standard I.
Griffin:
Lamb:
White:
Standard II.
Griffin:
Leadership and District Culture
Student achievement is the top priority of the school board members and the superintendent.
As stated in several of the superintendent’s past evaluations, the forward thinking and vision of
the school board members, superintendent, and CTA has kept Hillsborough County in the
national spotlight due to our innovation and forward thinking. The leaders of this school district
have shielded teachers from very harmful legislation.
The reason the decision was made to seek the Gates Grant and the legislation affecting all other
school districts in the State of Florida needs to be better communicated to our employees in
order to help raise morale among district employees. Teachers need to understand that the
Empowering Effective Teachers initiative, a.k.a. the Gates Grant, was sought and won to shield
them from very harmful legislation, not to “get them.” In other words, what would the alternative
look like?
Works on raising level of aspirations.
Mrs. Elia has made excellent progress with respect to engaging herself in the eastern
Hillsborough County community. I expect that she will consider the suburban and rural student
in eastern Hillsborough as decisions are made regarding the educational system in our county.
Policy and Governance
Hillsborough County Public Schools continues to be a resource for the state and nation, which
gives school board members and district staff a seat at the table when major legislative issues
are being decided, both nationally and at the state level. However, appropriately interpreting
and executing the intent of school board members is a difficult task and needs constant
attention. Improvement is needed in this area. It is up to the superintendent to manage
appropriate channels of communication to ALL members of the board.
Under Standard II Policy and Governance, numbers 8,9,10, and 11 specifically address policy
and procedure. There is a blurred line between policy and procedure. An example of this
blurred line is the recent issue of speakers in the classroom. This board member had multiple
discussions and advised the superintendent not to react in a rash, knee-jerk way.
I have since discussed this with the superintendent and I have been assured that it was not her
intent to write policy. However, the timing of the “guidelines” was in my opinion, and many others
who have read them borderline policy which was ill-advised and became problematic as a result.
White:
The board was informed of the proposal the day before a board meeting, leaving this board
member with a feeling of being blindsided. As a result, the board was put in a position to have
to deal with an ongoing situation that caused distractions to both board and staff. This resulted
in keeping all of us from the business of the district for quite a while.
Mrs. Elia’s communication with and collaboration with the board get better every day. I expect
that the superintendent will strive towards transparency and openness with the board members.
Standard III. Communications and Community Relations
Griffin:
Communication, both internal and external, will always be an area to strive for improvement.
We cannot control many of the changes being forced on our employees and morale is
influenced thusly. But, we can communicate constantly and clearly with our employees and our
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Attachment B
School District of Hillsborough County • Superintendent’s Evaluation 2011-2012
Standards/Indicators
Comments
Standard III. Communications and Community Relations, cont’d
Griffin:
cont’d
White:
community. The superintendent has communicated the “how” of Empowering Effective
Teachers very well. As stated in Standard II, we must communicate the “why” of Empowering
Effective Teachers, a.k.a. The Gates Grant, so that teachers understand that school board
members and the superintendent were shielding them from harmful legislation. We also need to
communicate what changes are taking place in regard to principal training and evaluations as a
result of the Wallace Grant. This will let teachers know they are not alone in the ongoing
process of public education reform. It is important that Hillsborough County employees know
this is a nationwide trend and it is not just happening to them. Continued improvement in this
area is necessary.
I would like to see Mrs. Elia work on improving media relations. This would include being more
candid with members of the media when necessary. Mrs. Elia should be more diligent in
forming partnerships with the business community.
Standard IV. Organizational Management
Griffin:
Lamb:
White:
Financial management in the Hillsborough County Public Schools continues to be outstanding
considering the financial crisis and the all-out assault on education from the legislature and the
corporate entities determined to put as much public funding into private enterprise as possible.
As directed by school board members, the superintendent has continued to look for budget cuts
that will not lead to layoffs. Again, continue to improve internal and external communication in
reference to the budget.
Data driven.
Mrs. Elia simply must provide more information to the public and board members on the budget.
Voting on the budget is one of the most significant tasks of a school board member and a board
member shouldn’t be expected to approve a $2.7 billion budget based on only highlights of each
fund.
Standard V. Human Resource Management
Griffin:
Lamb:
White:
As stated in the previous evaluations, aside from the budget, human resources management is
the most fluid and transitional aspect of education at this moment. At this point, there are too
many unknown variables to say how successful the superintendent has been with the evaluation
reform. Morale seems to be pretty low. This must be addressed and resolved as soon as
possible. Some suggestions to help in this area have been made by this board member in
public meetings, board workshops, one-on-one meetings, and in this evaluation. Please focus
as much energy as possible trying to figure out ways to let employees know we are working hard
to protect them from harmful outside influences. Again, this standard can show the greatest
growth or decline in future evaluations based on outcomes in the next few years.
Complete revamping of evaluation system is taking place.
I have raised Mrs. Elia’s score in this category to a “3” from a “2” on the interim evaluation. I
sense that she is making sincere efforts to engage stakeholders about increasing morale. I was
very pleased that she solicited feedback from frontline staff regarding EET. I expect that Mrs.
Elia will continue these efforts so that she might earn a “4” or “5” next year.
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Attachment B
School District of Hillsborough County • Superintendent’s Evaluation 2011-2012
Standards/Indicators
Comments
Standard VI. Instructional Leadership
Griffin:
Lamb:
White:
Hillsborough County Public Schools continues to be at the forefront of advanced placement.
However, this board member continues to believe that advanced placement is not always the
appropriate avenue to success for all students. More emphasis needs to be placed on elective
courses that engage students in school and career and technical education that give students
who are not college bound the opportunity to gain employment in a career that will not only
benefit them, but the community. This board member understands that constraints are placed
on the school district by the class size amendment and it is difficult to transfer students.
However, when a student is not performing well and the overall G.P.A. will be harmed when they
are forced to stay in a class they are not able to be successful in, we need to allow guidance to
transfer these students out of advanced placement.
Fosters diversity.
I mentioned concerns about assessments (in particular, curved grading on district exams) on the
interim evaluation. The superintendent seems to have launched a sincere effort to closely
analyze and evaluate the process of assessment. She also seems to have opened productive,
long term dialogue with frontline staff. Her continued focus on this standard in addition to
Standard V should benefit the district and earn her a higher score next year.
Standard VII. Curriculum Planning Development
Griffin:
Lamb:
White:
As stated in Standard VI, advanced placement is not the only path for success for students.
There is a continual balancing act between core curriculum and elective courses that engage
students in their educational career.
Her curriculum background provides a great foundation.
The superintendent is doing a fine job in this area. The pass rate on AP exams has improved. I
continue to believe that the AP curriculum is over-utilized and should be evaluated. She should
continue to work with business and trade groups regarding their needs with respect to desire
skills in students.
Standard VIII. Values and Ethics of Leadership
Griffin:
This board member has faith in the superintendent’s values and ethics of leadership. The score
is four, not five, in this standard because of No. 45: “Defend principals and convictions in the
face of pressure and special interests.” As stated in Standard II, the recent issue of speakers in
the classroom is an example of the superintendent yielding to a vocal minority special interest
against the knowledge of what is best for students. I will again state that aside from No. 45, I
have complete confidence in the superintendent’s values and ethics.
Standard IX. Labor Relations
Griffin:
White:
Hillsborough County Public Schools continues to be a leader in public education reform as
indicated by our district being carved out of state legislation regarding teacher evaluation and
tenure and the fact that our labor relations are being studied and modeled across the nation,
including the White House.
Mrs. Elia and her HR staff collaborate effectively with the union.
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Attachment B
School District of Hillsborough County • Superintendent’s Evaluation 2011-2012
Standards/Indicators
Comments
AREAS OF STRENGTH
Lamb:
White:
Under her leadership the district is recognized for many things at both state and national levels.
Good fiscal management is helping the district through very difficult times. High ethics.
Mrs. Elia has gotten much better at communicating with me and working through my concerns.
She continues to do a remarkable job with running a large organization. She also continues to
do an excellent job with following developments at the state and federal level. I was very
pleased with her efforts in administering a survey to the teachers with the objective of making
improvements to EET.
AREAS OF IMPROVEMENT
Lamb:
White:
Continue to work on her pacing and expectations.
Although I am extremely pleased with Mrs. Elia’s efforts to improve morale and loyalty to the
organization, we aren’t where we need to be yet. I expect that she will continue to work on ways
to improve morale. I would also like to see more transparency and more detailed information
each year when the budget is brought to the board.
GENERAL COMMENTS
Olson:
The district is blessed to have a forward-looking, committed, hard-working superintendent who
does many things well. Her work, and that of her staff, is probably among the best in the country
in areas such as financial management and insurance and other operational areas. She
continues to recognize the importance of communication. Academic achievement is coming up,
though it is not where we want it to be, and many students who never considered college or
challenging courses are now college bound. Her credibility has insulated our district, especially
our teachers, from some of the more damaging changes taking place elsewhere in the state.
Ms. Elia’s great strength, her ability to focus on crucial issues, can become a weakness when
the focus becomes too limited. I am concerned for the success of district initiatives if the
superintendent does not take a brief period to reflect and fine tune, and allow our employees a
brief respite from the tumult in the environment and the pressures of their work. Leading change
is like driving a car on a long trip. You know where you are and you know where you want to
end up. You think you know the roads you will take. You are a competent driver. At some
point, though, you may need to take a detour. Or you may find yourself hitting the gas pedal
harder, unaware that you are driving too fast for conditions. At this time, if you are lucky, you
become aware of the need to pull over and walk around for a few minutes, or take a brief nap.
The district is at that point. While it is important to continue to move forward, it is equally
important to recognize the impact that all the changes have had on district staff, particularly on
teachers, and to step back and be sure that teachers receive explicit verbal and substantive
support for their efforts.
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