Daily Outtakes: Kim Krupa interim?, Political Pressure Fails

Escambia Children’s Trust board will hold an emergency meeting today at 3:30 p.m. in the County Commission chamber. Please note place and time have changed since I first posted about the meeting.

The board will decide whether to allow Executive Director Tammy Greer to stay on the job through Oct. 15 or to cut her a check and hire an interim.

Krupa – Logical Interim

The most logical pick for interim director is Dr. Kim Krupa, the second in command at the Escambia Children’s Trust and its Director of Programs and Performance.

• I – and many others – made the same argument for Deputy School Superintendent Sheena Payne to be the school district’s interim superintendent when Dr. Tim Smith was fired.
• Most organizations pick the next in line to serve as interim leader until a job search is conducted. Why should the Trust be different?

Strengths

Dr. Krupa wrote the Needs Assessment Report. In her current role, she is very familiar with the grant recipients and Trust’s systems, policies and processes.

• She led Achieve Escambia, which shows she has experience in leading a non-profit. Dr. Krupa won national awards for the campaign to get the referendum for the Trust passed.
• The Pensacola Chamber named her 2020 PACE Award Advocate Leader of the Year.

Dr. Krupa is the perfect interim to get the Trust working while a national search is done for the next executive director.

Less Disruption

I also understant that while naming Krupa interim makes the most logical choice, there are forces at play to bring someone in from outside the organization.

• An outsider would be more disruptive than helpful.
• The interim should be chosen based on what’s best for the organization, not political lobbying or emotion.
• Remember this is a 10-million dollar operation with millions in grants that need to be monitored and that will come up for renewal in the next few months.

If Krupa declines, then the next choice still needs to be someone inside the organization. Too much money is involved to bring someone from outside the operation.

---

Political Pressure

Speaking of political pressure, the friends of attorneys Chris and Nicole Ferry lobbied the Pensacola Police and the State Attorney’s Office for leniency for Nicholas Ferry, 16, and Kessler Ferry, 18.

The two teenagers have been arrested for their alleged involvement in a series of antisemitic crimes in the Pensacola area – throwing bricks through the windows of Jewish religious buildings and spraying antisemitic symbols on buildings.

The pressure didn’t work. The state attorneys announced both Ferry teens will be tried as adults.

Dig Deeper:

Charged in these incidents are:

Waylon Moon Fowler (06-13-06): charged with 7 counts of felony criminal mischief, enhanced to a hate crime. 1 count of misdemeanor criminal mischief, and 1 count of felony trespassing in a construction zone.

Wyatt Fox Fowler (03-29-08): charged with 7 counts of felony criminal mischief, enhanced to a hate crime. 1 count of misdemeanor criminal mischief, and 1 count of felony trespassing in a construction zone.

Nicholas Pearce Ferry (02-23-07): charged with 4 counts of felony criminal mischief enhanced to a hate crime, and 1 count of felony trespassing in a construction zone.

Kessler Alexander Ferry (01-31-05): charged with 1 count of felony criminal mischief enhanced to a hate crime.

Since the arrests, the charges have been enhanced to hate crimes.

Wyatt Fowler is not eligible for adult prosecution and will stay in juvenile court.

Kessler Ferry pleaded not guilty in his court appearance.