Superintendent Robert Runcie, now charged with perjury, long dealt with criticism after Parkland shooting

Robert Runcie drew a succession of accolades as the head of the country’s sixth-largest school system, enjoying the backing of unions, principals and business leaders. The Harvard-educated leader was considered a fixer in a massive school district that had been embroiled in a corruption scandal a decade ago.

But Runcie became a target of scorn, with the district facing the scrutiny of a grand jury a decade later. Some critics seized on the news Wednesday that Runcie was indicted on a perjury charge, while others expressed devastation.

Under the national spotlight, Runcie served as the public face of the Broward School District amid the chaos of Feb. 14, 2018, when a teen gunman opened fire at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High, killing 17 and wounding another 17.

Many Parkland families have since criticized Runcie as a leader who failed to do more. Tony Montalto lost his 14-year-old daughter, Gina, in the Parkland shooting. Thursday would have been her 18th birthday, so he said he took no joy in the day’s events.

“We believe the grand jury is doing their job by holding people accountable. We know Mr. Runcie’s poor leadership exacerbated the tragedy at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. I think it’s the beginning of accountability. These issues affected all Broward County families — everyone who has a child in school. They’re lucky they didn’t pay the price that mine did.”

Fred Guttenberg, whose 14-year-old daughter, Jaime, was killed in the Parkland school shooting, said he was cautious about commenting about the accusations since details still were unclear.

“I don’t trust him and it won’t surprise me if in fact it turns out to be true. Do I call this justice? No. My daughter is still gone and the school district is still fighting the families. So if Robert Runcie winds up fired, then maybe the school district will finally be able to do the right thing on behalf of the 17 families.”

Before the Parkland shooting, Runcie received a $28,000 raise, bringing his annual salary to $335,000. His contract as superintendent, the School Board decided in October 2017, should be extended another five years.

But by March 2019, there was a school board vote that could have led to his ouster. Runcie and his fans — and there were many — emerged the victors.

Taking the reins

Born in Jamaica, Runcie was the first in his family to go to college, attending Harvard.

As leader of the school district, he was the recipient of five superintendent-of-the-year awards and many other leadership accolades over a span of just a few years since joining the school district in 2011.

Broward County Commissioner Dale Holness ticked off a list of Runcie’s accomplishments, such as improving the graduation rate and the many certification programs he implemented. “The achievements for our Black male students is off the charts as is the turn-around that has occurred under his tenure,” Holness said.

Runcie had a strong alliance of business leaders who also wanted to contribute to helping the schoolchildren of Broward County, Holness said. “We support him because of the accomplishments in the school system. Unparalleled accomplishments,” Holness said.

Holness said he’s devastated to learn of Runcie’s arrest. “He’s a dedicated public servant, and I am saddened, brokenhearted and afraid of what will happen if he is not there.”

Calls for his removal

Candidates for a busy School Board race following the Parkland shooting used Runcie as a referendum: They either publicly said they were standing with him or said they would call for his ouster if elected.

The South Florida Sun Sentinel outlined the failures and missteps by the school district. It revealed the culture of tolerance that allowed unruly students to have repeated second chances. It exposed how Broward and school districts across the state under-report crimes, making their campuses appear safer than they are.

And the Sun Sentinel reported how the district failed to act on warning signs involving the Parkland killer, botched his special education services, failed to hold administrators accountable for actions related to the tragedy and has regularly hidden information from the public.

School board member Lori Alhadeff, who lost her daughter in the massacre, had called for Runcie’s ouster, saying he acted with “willful neglect.”

A School Board meeting a year after Parkland lasted seven hours. Ninety people spoke, all but a handful with glowing praise. Just two of the eight other School Board members sided with Alhadeff. It was a 6-3 vote to keep Runcie.

While many Parkland parents blamed Runcie for the district’s failures, other parents contended their grieving counterparts were looking for someone, anyone, to blame.

After the meeting, Runcie said it was an opportunity for a fresh start. He said he was grateful to be able to stay because he wanted to continue to create opportunities for schoolchildren. He offered that it was possible in the wake of such horrific loss, that the Broward school community could unite and set an example for the country and children.

“I really believe if we could come together in a united way, we could do so much more and move beyond the grief that we have.

“There’s always going to be pain. There is always going to be loss there but we need to figure out how to use that to create a legacy to honor the lives we lost.”

A grand jury’s findings

After the Parkland massacre, Gov. Ron DeSantis announced he was forming a statewide grand jury. A report that will focus on school safety in Parkland’s aftermath is expected to be released in the coming weeks. The report also could spotlight problems that Broward schools never resolved after a grand jury a decade ago when Runcie was brought in.

The statewide panel also has been tackling repeated issues considered by grand juries in 1997, 2002 and 2011, including public corruption and mismanagement of school construction projects, preliminary reports show.

A previous version of this story misstated the timing of Robert Runcie’s $28,000 raise.

Eileen Kelley can be reached at 772-925-9193 or ekelley@sunsentinel.com Follow on Twitter @reporterkell