Superintendent Malcolm Thomas will be allowed to directly give his “sales pitch” to young voters at luncheon sponsored by United Way, who is recruiting that age group to join its “Emerging Leaders Society,” and is being held at the Pensacola News Journal’s offices.
Thomas is expected to file for re-election soon. He has actively been recruiting community leaders and other politicians to endorse his re-election.
The Superintendent has come under sharp criticism from the Pensacola mayor’s office, the minority community and the rank-and-file teachers. Mayor Ashton Hayward has asked Thomas to deal with the large number of closed school buildings that have become eyesores. He also requested the School District begin a conversion program for its buses to natural gas—a program that was highly successful in Leon County. Thomas, as has become his M.O., has refused to budge on either request.
Thomas isn’t winning much praise in the minority community for his botched handling of the closed Brownsville Middle School (that hasn’t been sold, two years after Friendship Missionary Baptist Church offered $500K for it) and his attempt to close the A.A. Dixon charter school after only one year of operation.
Even though the teachers’ union appears to be satisfied with the superintendent, teachers aren’t has enthusiastic with Thomas as they were four years ago. Classroom safety, lack of funding and micro-management from the Pace Palace (district’s $20-million headquarters) have eroded Thomas’ support.
The PNJ luncheon should be interesting–Press Release:
Malcolm Thomas, Escambia County Superintendent of Schools, and Dr. Sheree Cagle, Principal of the Global Learning Academy. Each will share their thoughts on the state of education in our community. They will also offer suggestions as to how young leaders can engage and give back to support educational needs in Escambia County.
United Way is committed to connecting donors with opportunities to positively impact education. In August of this year, United Way of Escambia County awarded $100,000 to the Foundation for Excellence to fund “The Next Right Thing,†an extended-day tutoring program designed to enhance the skills of underperforming readers. This program is being administered by a dedicated group of teachers, under the leadership of Dr. Cagle.
“The Next Right Thing†program, hosted at the Global Learning Academy, will provide four hours of tutoring beyond the mandated school day, to improve the reading skills of kindergarten through third grade students in need of assistance. Funding will cover the cost of teacher training, transportation and compensation for the extended hours.
United Way has designated this additional funding to ensure that all students in our community are more prepared to succeed in later grades. Based on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test, only 72 percent of Escambia County third graders were proficient readers in 2010. United Way hopes to significantly increase this percentage.
“Lunch with Leaders†will give young professionals an opportunity hear how they can partner with
United Way in this effort to help Escambia County students succeed in school.
More information:
What: Malcolm Thomas, Escambia County Superintendent of Schools and Dr. Sheree Cagle, Principal
of the Global Learning Academy are scheduled to speak at the Emerging Leaders Society “Lunch with Leaders†event.
Who: Young professionals ages 21 to 40.
When: 11:30am-1pm, Tuesday, November 15
Where: Pensacola News Journal, located at 101 E. Romana St. (Motley Room)
Cost: Free for members of the Emerging Leaders Society. $10 for guests.
Details: Lunch will be provided by Olive Garden. The Emerging Leaders are collecting new and
gently used winter coats at the Lunch with Leaders event for children ages 4-12 in Escambia
County. Coat donations of any size are welcomed. “Lunch with Leaders†is the first of a series
scheduled for this year. For more information or to RSVP, call Brandy Gottlieb at 444-7147 or e-mail emergingleaders@unitedwayescambia.org. RSVPs appreciated by November 9.
