A shake-up may be brewing at the Escambia Children's Trust. Would it help or hurt kids?

The Escambia County School Board is taking a second look at who it wants filling their lone, guaranteed seat on the Escambia Children's Trust.

District 4 Board Member is Patty Hightower currently the vice chairwoman of the Children's Trust. However at a school board workshop Monday, District 1 Board Member Kevin Adams said he believes District 3 representative David Williams, who was elected in Nov. 2022, would be a better spokesperson for the “have-nots” in the district.

“I think the haves are doing fine, but the have-nots is where my concern is,” Adams said during the workshop. “The reason I’m bringing this up is because when I look from one end of this dais to the other end of this dais — I only see one individual that has an intimate relationship, deep knowledge, and experience on this dais, along with a strong family legacy in the community. That’s David Williams. … We’ve got a gentleman here that has been in that community that will be advocating for those have-nots and knows the issues going on in there.”

Hightower said she does not plan to forfeit her position on the trust without a vote from the school board. The board members discussed putting the vote on its agenda in April.

Williams said that although he was surprised by Adams’ comments, he would like to serve.

“District 3 is in need, and I would love to serve on the Children’s’ Trust Fund, but I want it to be decent and in order," Williams said. "That’s where I’m at. I’d love to be on the board, and I’ve expressed that to Ms. Hightower as well."

Adams proposes referendum :Escambia School Board member vows to overturn appointed superintendent. What happens next?

Superintendent referendum fails :Escambia County School Board votes against return to elected superintendent

Board member Bill Slayton said District 3 is not the only one with “have-nots” or economically disadvantaged children in their district, noting each board member has their own challenges.

“I think if Mr. Williams would like to put in that application, I would welcome it. I have no problem with him serving on there because I think he looks out for all children. But at the same time — I think our decision to put Ms. Hightower on there to start with was a great decision because of her familiarity with the governing and the operations,” Slayton said. “She’s got the time, and she puts forth the time to do it. That’s a main part, in my opinion, you can’t just show up for the meeting and be a real participant.”

Hightower said it is ultimately the board’s decision on who they would want to serve, however, she does leave large shoes to fill.

“If it this board’s view that they want Mr. Williams on in my place, that frees up my schedule because I have like seven meetings a month with this group. I serve on the bylaws committee, I serve as vice chair of the board, I serve on the children’s summit planning committee, I serve on the personnel committee, and I serve on the finance committee. That doesn’t mean that anyone else has to do that — but I am involved."

“My PTA work will tell you that I represent all children, not just those that live in my neighborhood,” Hightower continued.

How are seats on the Escambia Children’s Trust selected?

The Escambia Children’s Trust was formed in Nov. 2020 with 61% voter approval. Five members of the council are set by state law as the school district superintendent, a sitting school board member, a sitting county commissioner, a juvenile judge and an administrator from the Florida Department of Children and Families.

Joining Superintendent Tim Smith, Hightower volunteered to take on the remaining school district spot.

The other five spots were selected by the governor from a list of 17 names approved by the County Commission. Set members can serve as long as they still hold the position that got them there.

There are several gubernatorial appointees with term-dates ending in Dec. 2024, including Tori Woods, David Peaden and Stephanie White, that school board members could apply for. Until then, Hightower said there are currently plenty of opportunities for any of the board members to serve on committees connected to the trust without being on the board.

Escambia School Board Chair Paul Fetsko said in the past, the board has been able to work out who serves on various committees on a volunteer basis without needing a formal vote. This time, since both Williams and Hightower would like the position, Hightower is requiring one.

How often can Escambia School Board members switch out their representatives?

Childrens Trust Executive Director Tammy Greer said that although there is only one set school board seat on the trust, there is no limit as to how many school board members could be appointed by the governor.

Although unlikely, the trust would theoretically be able to have five school board members, plus the superintendent, seated at one time.

As far as the secured seat on the trust, Greer said it is up to the school board to decide who they want to represent them and how often they would like to switch their representative out. However, Greer cautioned that just because the board has the power to switch out members, does not mean that will benefit the Children's Trust.

“It (state statute) doesn’t say which member of the school board, it just says a member of the school board. Each school board can do that however they want. They can have someone volunteer for it, they can vote for whoever they want. They can switch them out every year, they can switch them out every 20 years. But none of that is dictated, there just has to be a school board member on there,” Greer said.

The Children's Trust board that has only been consistently active for about a year now, and the board had just found a stride of continuity in learning how to work together, she said.

Greer also praised Hightower’s work for the Children’s Trust so far.

“I would certainly welcome any of the school board members to be on our board. I do have to say that Patty has been a phenomenal addition to our board because she really has turned out to be our resident parliamentarian,” Greer said. “She has a very good handle on the inner workings of the school district and the school board. She knows her community … I can’t say enough good things about Patty and how valuable she has been. That’s not to say that any other school board member wouldn’t be, but I do really enjoy working with Patty.”

What is the purpose of the Escambia Children’s Trust?

The mission of the Escambia Children’s Trust is to maximize resources for the children in Escambia County, then ensure the programs they are funding are successful.

The trust has come off as slow-moving, first in getting candidates selected, then in selecting recipients for $5.1 million in grant money that was delayed by two months.

Hightower said not only does she feel she is qualified for her seat, but a disruption in leadership on the trust could have negative results on the work they are trying to accomplish.

“It would create some issues at the Children’s Trust board right now to change what we’re doing. But if that is the desire, then that’s fine,” Hightower said.

Greer echoed Hightower’s concerns, saying that changeups can “slow us down significantly.”

“The longer the trust is in operation — the more complicated and complex our work is going to get. Because we’re going to have contracts that are ongoing, we’re going to have discussions about new funding going out. We’re going to have monitoring reports about how things are going with the programs that have already been funded,” Greer said. “It will slow us down significantly if they choose to change the membership frequently because that person, that member, is going to have so much to catch up on."

This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Escambia County School Board reconsiders Children's Trust representative