Hopes stokes old flames with Teitelbaum hire, Lincoln Memorial Academy to see its day in court

Nearly four years after Lincoln Memorial Academy’s charter was terminated, Manatee County has hired a man pivotal to the decision as a new deputy county administrator.

Manatee County commissioners met Tuesday, with three newly elected county commissioners taking their seats for the first time.

One of their first actions was to unanimously authorize the hiring of Mitchell Teitelbaum to fill the county’s fourth deputy administrator position that was left vacant in May when former CFO Jan Brewer resigned, making claims about County Administrator Scott Hopes that eventually went public. Commissioners also confirmed the appointment of Sheila McLean to fill the CFO role.

Previously: Manatee Schools chairman alleges fraud in Lincoln Memorial Academy case

Hopes gets raise: Manatee County Scott Hopes scores another raise, CFO Jan Brewer resigns amid turmoil

Manatee CFO named: Manatee County names Sheila McLean as interim Chief Financial Officer

Teitelbaum previously served as general counsel for the School District of Manatee County and was tasked with providing oversight of five departments as well as negotiation of pending litigation.

One of those cases is a lawsuit from the former leaders of Lincoln Memorial Academy, which was filed in U.S. Circuit Court in the Middle District of Florida in February 2020 over actions taken by the school district in 2019 to terminate the academy's charter.

County commissioners, staff, and a couple of members of the public praised Teitelbaum on Tuesday for his accolades, years of experience, success as an attorney, and even support during personal times.

Except for one local resident, Paula Lohness, who instead voiced apprehension about him being hired away from the school board just a year before going to trial on a case in which he has played a pivotal role.

“My concern is the timing of this,” Lohness said Tuesday during public comment. “This is somebody with a deep level of knowledge with the school board, but also was pivotal in the controversial takeover of the Lincoln school. He was a key player in that, and folks from that school are finally going to be getting their day in court very soon.”

Lincoln Memorial Academy gets day in court

Hopes threw his name into the ring in February 2021 when he declared that he desired to become Manatee County’s next administrator so much that he would do the job without pay.

His hiring, though, drew criticism from members of the community who remain bitter about the role he played as a former school board member in terminating the Lincoln Memorial Academy’s charter in 2019 in a four to one vote.

Many local residents supported the charter effort at Lincoln Memorial Academy as a means to improve education for Palmetto area families, including many minorities.

Hopes himself made the motion to terminate the charter in 2019 in the face of 35 upset residents who spoke against the district’s actions during public comment that day. The school has since been renamed Lincoln Memorial Middle School.

There was an outcry from the audience at the motion, and an even louder outcry at a second to the motion by James T. Golden, the only black man on the board. He was voted out of office during this year’s primary election.

Serving in his role as the district’s general counsel, Teitelbaum was the first person to publicly speak against the school and in favor of terminating the academy’s charter.

He delivered a presentation addressing concerns about financial conditions at the academy, and other concerns that were used as justifications the district eventually used for the termination.

“Let me make it very simple,” Teitelbaum said that day. “Right now, this is really the question that we have. As a sponsor, we set forth in writing, and I will tell you we have, the particular facts and circumstances indicating that immediate and serious danger to the health, safety, and welfare of the school students exists.”

The district also cited concerns about the academy's CEO Eddie Hundley, whose educators certificate had been revoked in May 2019 for five years by the Education Practices Commission as a reason for taking action, court records show.

Mitchell Teitelbaum makes his debut

Teitelbaum congratulated the new Manatee County board members and pledged to faithfully serve the county and the community in his brief remarks during Tuesday's meeting.

He is the county's fourth deputy administrator, and Hopes said he rounds out the leadership team he has envisioned for the county since he was hired.

“This rounds out the redesign of Manatee County government, it aligns various departments and divisions ... and it lightens the load a little bit for me,” Hopes said.

In his new role, Teitelbaum will oversee the county’s human resources, public records, code enforcement, transit, and economic development departments.

Commissioner George Kruse showed support for the hire but also cautioned the longtime attorney to be mindful that his role is separate from the county attorney's office.

“I trust his judgment, I trust his hires,” Kruse said. “We’ve given direction to the county administrator to streamline this government, to shrink this government, to become a more efficient government, and what I’ve seen in the past 18 months is a process that is steering him toward the policy that we’ve dictated up here.”

“Now it’s up to the county administrator to prove that this is a good move for Manatee County, and I believe it is,” Kruse said. “I believe we are going to see a lot more progress here.”

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Manatee County hires Teitelbaum, Lincoln Memorial to see day in court