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Pinellas School Chief Choice Also Offered Miami-Dade Job

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By STEVEN GIRARDI

The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 11, 2008

LARGO - On the same day they passed over one of their own to select a new superintendent, Pinellas County School Board members learned their choice also can have the same position in Miami-Dade County if he wants.

With a 4-3 vote, the Pinellas board offered the job to Alberto M. Carvalho, a rising star in education and an associate superintendent in the Miami-Dade County School District.

The same afternoon, the Miami-Dade board parted ways with its schools superintendent and offered the position to the same man.

Carvalho said he hadn't made up his mind on which offer to pursue.

Late Wednesday, he said he had spoken to the leaders of each county school board and was contemplating another visit to Pinellas County.

"I want to honor the process," he said.

Carvalho has spent 18 years with Miami-Dade, beginning as a high school teacher in 1990 and quickly moving through the administration. He has a bachelor's degree from Barry University and a master's degree in educational leadership from Nova Southeastern University, where he is a doctoral candidate.

He was considered a favorite in Miami-Dade to replace Superintendent Rudy Crew, who had a rocky tenure with some board members and whose ouster was talked about openly for some time.

Wednesday afternoon, the Miami-Dade board reached a $368,000 severance deal with Crew and must replace him by Friday. Initially the board considered appointing an interim person but, on a 5-3 vote, offered the permanent job to Carvalho.

In an interview with The Miami Herald after both job offers were made, Carvalho said of Miami: "My heart is in this community. I've been here 18 years and I have a great interest in working with this community."

Carvalho, 43, is the youngest of three finalists for the Pinellas position. He impressed board members here with his experience in progressive education programs, obtaining grant money and lobbying at the state and national level.

If he comes to Pinellas, he is expected to earn $200,000 to $240,000 a year in leading the 23rd-largest school district in the country, with a $1.5 billion budget.

Miami-Dade is the fourth-largest school district in the nation, serving about 340,000 pupils. Salary was not discussed Wednesday, and length of the contract was not finalized.

But Carvalho said salary won't be a factor in making his choice.

What will be, he told the Herald: "The question is: Will the chair here give me a sense that I will have the leverage, authority, board support and contract to overcome the challenges?"

After nearly three hours of sometimes contentious debate, Pinellas board members bypassed their interim superintendent, Julie Janssen, 59, the former deputy superintendent who has led the district since Clayton Wilcox departed in June.

Janssen was the favorite of three board members, the Pinellas Classroom Teachers Association, the PTA and other community groups.

The third finalist, Nicholas M. Gledich, 55, chief operations officer in the Orange County School District, drew praise from board members for his expertise in developing efficient procedures and his calm demeanor.

Board Chairwoman Nancy Bostock and members Jane Gallucci, Janet Clark and Carol Cook voted for Carvalho.

Linda Lerner, Mary Brown and Peggy O'Shea voted for Janssen.

"Mr. Carvalho was the candidate that most got that across to me," Clark said. "He was looking for communication, and two-way communication."

Bostock said she began to have reservations about Janssen in recent days as people have e-mailed and groups have publicly campaigned for the board to keep the 23-year district employee.

"The negativity of the last couple days has just overwhelmed me," she said. She said it seemed divisive and "overtly political." She didn't blame Janssen.

Janssen's backers said the support was the kind of public input the board had said it wanted and should be considered a benefit.

Brown and Lerner said Janssen has the skills, which she proved during her interim term, and the familiarity with Pinellas schools to begin moving forward right away.

Janssen was a teacher and principal before becoming Wilcox's deputy.

Jade Moore, executive director of the Pinellas Classroom Teacher's Association, along with union President Kim Black, were among those who spoke in favor of Janssen.

Information from The Miami Herald was used in this report. Reporter Steven Girardi can be reached at (727) 451-2333.

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