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E-mail Home > Blogs > Get on the Bus > Archives > 2008 > May > 31 > Entry
Brathwaite: I won’t be an interim superintendent
Debra Brathwaite
Dayton Superintendent Percy Mack’s top deputy want to replace her boss but has told the school board she only wants the job on a permanent basis and will not accept the role of interim superintendent.
Debra Brathwaite, Dayton’s deputy superintendent since 2003, just learned Thursday that she would not be offered the superintendency of Princeton schools near Cincinnati, adding to a list of near misses for desirable superintendent jobs that includes Akron and Toledo.
With Percy Mack’s plan to depart for Columbia, S.C., in July, Dayton school board members have expressed a strong preference to name an interim superintendent and conduct a national search for his replacement.
Brathwaite said she has declined an offer of the interim superintendent spot by board President Yvonne Isaacs.
“I’ve been deputy for five years in Dayton,” she said. “I believe I have done some exemplary work. Interim is a temporary position. I have been very open with my desire to be a a superintendent. The process in Princeton really validated my skills. I was up against two sitting superintendents. I think I did pretty well.”
Isaacs said she believes Brathwaite is the best choice for interim superintendent and would be a viable candidate for the permanent job, but now the board must consider its options.
“She made it very clear to me she was not interested in being interim superintendent,” Isaacs said. “I need to now have a converastions with the board. But I don’t believe our position will change with regard to going the interim route and doing a national search.”
Brathwaite said it is the board’s prerogative to conduct a national search but that she believes she has earned the top job.
“When you are interim, it ties you to the positon,” she said. “You are really put on hold and at the end of the day you don’t know what happens. I believe I don’t deserve that. I have really given a ll I have in Dayton.”
Word of Brathwaite’s possible rejection angered some of her allies within the district, prompting a letter signed by every elementary school principal in support of her candidacy for superintendent.
“By being just who she is: Brilliant, hardworking, earnest, fair and generous, she has earned our respect and undying loyalty,” the letter to the board states. “This letter is to let you know that we have utmost confidence in her and her ability to lead not only this district, but any district.”
Brathwaite, a native New Yorker, followed former Cleveland Superintendent Barbara Byrd Bennett to that city from New York City before coming to Dayton. She recently completed a doctorate in education and has run the day-to-day academic operations of the district under Mack. She has been a key player in the development of choice options, including the Dayton Early College Academy and two single gender schools.
Permalink | Comments (13) | Post your comment | Categories: Dayton Public Schools
Comments
By Lifelong Learner
August 30, 2008 5:50 PM | Link to this
Unfortunately many of the comments posted further shows why Dayton is a city stuck in a time warp. Some people comment about Ms. Brathwaite being another overpaid administrator when if you compare her and all the other administrators’ salaries across the country, Dayton administrators are on the lower end of the scale. I guess I wouldn’t expect some of the teachers to understand or empathize with Ms. Brathwaite’s stance that she did not want to be placed in an interim position. Most of you probably didn’t know that when she taught over 30 years ago she was also a victim of teacher lay-offs that took place in her native NYC. So, she’s been in the position that you are in. And to Dave who asked, “Second, how did she complete her doctorate while working a challenging, full-time position? A dissertation is normally a full-time task for a minimum of a year.” The answer is easy. She worked extremely hard at it not allowing it to get in the way of her commitment to the children of Dayton. She has not yet completed her dissertation because she was not able to work on it full-time as some people do. Clearly, she did not have the luxury of working on a doctorate full-time. You all sound like haters. This woman has shown that she has what it takes to run a district as she and Dr. Mack have done an awesome job working together for the past 5 years. Now that they are both gone and other people are leaving in droves, I can only imagine what will become of DPS. I’m getting the heck out of Dodge myself because my children will soon be school-aged and I want more for their education than what DPS has to offer at this time. Hopefully it will not end up in the same situation as Clayton County Schools in Georgia.
By Stan the Man
June 6, 2008 11:08 PM | Link to this
Ms. Brathwaite is another one of those over paid administrators that thinks they deserve the next rung in the ladder to a higher paid retirement. Just like Percy, there is no loyalty to the kids in the district. The kids are the bottom line and it is the teachers that are there for them day in and day out. Dayton B.O.E., you want to invest in the future? Cut some of your over paid administration and invest in your teachers and books!
By Rick
June 2, 2008 9:43 PM | Link to this
I respect Ms. Brathwaite’s position. I hope she will respect the Board’s decision not to consider her for superintendent.
By Concerned DPS teacher
June 2, 2008 4:26 PM | Link to this
I have been a teacher in Dayton for over 20 years and I am offended that Ms. Brathwaite thinks she has done so much for the district since she has been here, that she cannot be an interim superintendent. She is put on hold and doesn’t know at the end of the day what happens. Welcome to our world. Not only do we not know from year to year what they are doing with us sometimes it changes day to day. Then they hold the levy over our heads….if the levy doesn’t pass then…we will cut all the elementary art and music teachers. This is how it has been as long as I have been in this district. I stay because I love my job and my students but it is hard not to burn out when you don’t know what is happening from year to year. Why does Ms. Brathwaite deserve the security that the teachers do not get? Also I think they should check out the letter from “all the elementary principals.” I would like to know which ones read and signed this letter of support.
By charterschoolhater
June 2, 2008 10:38 AM | Link to this
Apparently Debra Brathwaite doesn’t want the board of ed to find out that she really may not be an effective superintendent. There is some reason no one in knocking down the door to employ her. I support the bd of eds reasoning of try before you buy. If Ms. Debra Brathwaite is not interested in interim, then don’t consider her at all. We need to find things out about her that only the interim label will allow us to. Are you listening Dayton bd of ed?
By D.T.
June 1, 2008 3:41 PM | Link to this
Buckeye Larry, I can’t see the board not being upset with her decision. She is certainly the most obvious choice to fill Dr. Mack’s shoes in the short term. It seems to me that taking the intern job and allowing the board, district, and community to see her skills is the best course of action. If she’s concerned about members of the board choosing sides and not liking her she shouldn’t be looking for superintendent jobs.
By Not So Special
May 31, 2008 10:34 PM | Link to this
�You are really put on hold and at the end of the day you don�t know what happens. I believe I don�t deserve that. I have really given a ll I have in Dayton.� Hmmmmm……now you know what it’s like to be a teacher in Dayton. Especially an Art, Music or PE teacher. They go in each day giving everything they have to Dayton’s children not knowing each year if they are going to have a job to take care of their own children. I myself, am offended by what I perceive as arrogance from a person who has never been a Superintendent.
By Buckeye Larry
May 31, 2008 9:58 PM | Link to this
On the surface it appears an egotistic position and poor strategic decision to not serve as interim of the Dayton schools. In reality being interim superintendent puts you at a disadvantage as you must make tough decisions that some folks like - and some don’t. As result you start having board members “chose sides”. Being a candidate at large but still being in the community serves her well, unless the board is going to hold it “against her” for declining to serve as interim during a period of need for the district.
By null
May 31, 2008 8:36 PM | Link to this
If anyone in Dayton was truly interested in her assuming the roll of superintendent in Dayton, she would have been groomed for the position long ago. The fact that this did not and has not happened should be a clear message for her to pack up and go…oh, she has done just that or is trying to.
By I agree
May 31, 2008 8:24 PM | Link to this
I agree with Ms. Brathwaite! Dr. Mack has done an outstanding job with a district that was already in horrible conditions. She was by his side through the whole reconstruction of a disfunctional school district……do you really think that she is NOT capable of filling his shoes? Not only did she probably learn alot from him, she probably brought quite a few things to the table herself.
By Scott Elliott
May 31, 2008 7:03 PM | Link to this
My understanding is that Brathwaite completed her doctorate as a part-time student over the course of several years. Her dissertation was on single gender education.
By Dave
May 31, 2008 5:00 PM | Link to this
Two questions about Ms. Brathwaite keep coming to mind. First, what was the topic of her dissertation? (That tells a lot about her educational philosophy and direction. Hers is not on Dissertation Abstracts.) Second, how did she complete her doctorate while working a challenging, full-time position? A dissertation is normally a full-time task for a minimum of a year.
By Force the issue
May 31, 2008 3:38 PM | Link to this
I’m sure Ms. Brathwaite has her reasons, but this strikes me as a poor strategic move. The Board wants to try her out for a while. There MUST be questions about whether she can handle the job or not, otherwise, she wouldn’t continually be runner up for all of the other jobs. If she DOES want the DPS job (and perhaps this is her way of saying thanks, but no thanks) she should accept the post on an interim basis, do her best, get a levy passed and then she’ll get the job permanently.