School district employees reprimanded, demoted for taking notes after Bible meeting

High-ranking school district employees are being reprimanded and demoted in Alachua County for taking notes during meetings in what appears to be the fallout from an event where the superintendent referenced biblical scripture.

The district maintains that the shifting around is being done during the summer months as part of the standard business to prepare for the upcoming school year. But the names of recent resignations and a key demotion raise questions about the superintendent retaliating and forcing others out by ostracizing them.

In late April, the Gainesville Sun reported that employees and school board members were growing frustrated with Superintendent Shane Andrew's lack of progress on major issues facing the district. It was later discovered through a records request by the newspaper that he brought a Bible into a cabinet meeting a week earlier with a dozen of officials present, likened himself to the biblical character Joshua and accused employees of backstabbing him.

Though Andrew has repeatedly denied the April incident occurred, he is the only one at the district who has done so publicly and has yet to turnover his own notes from the meeting as part of The Sun's request.

Since a split school board voted 3-2 in May to retain Andrew into next year, several high-ranking officials at the district have submitted resignations, including one from an employee who was admonished for taking notes during a separate meeting.

"This is the time of year when the superintendent, with input from the leadership team and after reviewing school and district needs, traditionally makes administrative changes," District spokeswoman Jackie Johnson wrote in an email. "That process is happening now. It’s complex and time-consuming, and Mr. Andrew is focused on making decisions that are in the best interests of our students and schools."

More: Records suggest district leader misled public, school board about Bible in meeting

More: Superintendent Shane Andrew defends lack of progress, evaluation during heated meeting

Punishment for note taking

On May 31, Jacquatte Rolle, who at the time served as the district's school-improvement principal, wrote a scathing email to Taylor Gilfillan that took issue with his attendance in a strategic planning meeting a day prior. Gilfillan, who worked as the district's director of evaluation, accountability and analytics, has played a key role in gauging metrics, achievement gaps and strategic planning at the district to promote better outcomes during his tenure.

She said his "gratuitous" note taking and "barrage of questions" were disruptive and "disingenuous in nature" to the purpose of the meeting. She accused him of stalling the strategic planning process, something that has seen little movement since the appointment of Andrew last year.

Rolle, who wasn't Gilfillan's supervisor, then barred him from future meetings unless directed by the superintendent or deputy superintendent, an email shows.

In response, he wrote an email back expressing his concern over an issue of him taking of notes − a common practice in professional settings − and ensured that his intentions were only to develop a clear understanding of the district's direction with planning. There was no follow-up or further discussion of the matter from district leaders.

Gilfillan submitted his resignation the next week, citing a lack of communication and direction that has made his job increasingly difficult.

"A workplace culture where top leadership doesn't fully address or rectify breaches of professional conduct has also been a concern, including openly negative perceptions of taking notes during meetings," his resignation letter states. "Additionally, there have been instances where I couldn't fulfill my duties due to siloed departmental structures, creating a lack of trust in our organization's decision-making process and its use of data to guide decisions."

His resignation follows the departure of a handful of other employees, including Alex Rella, the chief of finance and assistant superintendent for business services. He, too, was also often blocked out of certain key discussions prior to leaving.

The host of resignations were previously hinted at prior to the school board's decision to retain Andrew.

Andrew's Bible meeting

Gilfillan isn't the only employee who has been in trouble for taking notes recently.

The superintendent provided a list to school board members this week with district-wide changes to personnel.

The list included Gilfillan's boss, Jennifer Wise, who served as the district's chief of teaching and learning. She was demoted with no prior notice.

Wise was notably the employee who wrote about Andrew's Bible and Joshua references in the April cabinet meeting.

She will now become principal of Howard Bishop Middle School, replacing longtime Principal Michael Gamble, who will lead Mebane Middle School. Gamble, who held the title for 13 years, shared news of the change in a letter to parents Tuesday.

"I was not at all looking to leave HBMS,” he wrote. ”It's going to take some time for this to sink in for me. HMBS and all that it encompasses have been such a huge part of my life these past 13 years.”

Though the district denies the moves are in retaliation, Andrew previously took issue with not knowing employees referenced in an article publish by The Sun.

So far, Wise is the only employee who turned over notes from the meeting as part of the newspaper's records request, one that came only after Andrew denied the biblical exchange happened. Wise has yet to publicly criticize her boss or speak with the newspaper about the incident.

Andrew also promoted Rolle to Wise's old job.

School Board chairwoman Tina Certain said she is perplexed to see Wise demoted, given that she hadn't had an evaluation based on her job performance. She also said that she has heard from several other district employees who say taking notes at meetings is now "frowned upon" in Andrew's administration.

Among the renewals Andrew authorized were Camp Crystal Director Scott Burton and his wife, Holly Burton, who last year sued the school board and former superintendent Carlee Simon. The couple were the center of an investigation revolving around years of mismanagement of the camp.

Certain said she asked multiple times for Andrew's list of staffing changes over the weeks in hope of discussing the moves, but hadn't received anything until minutes before Tuesday's meeting. While staffing decisions are well within Andrew's control, she said she is worried about some decisions and lack of communication.

"I am very concerned about the turnover and issues raised by staff," she said. "I have received complaints from various employees that the environment is toxic."

This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Alachua County district employees demotes, punished for taking notes