Page 9 - Florida Sentinel 4-8-16 Edition

Local
Superintendent Puts Emphasis On School District Offices
BY IRIS B. HOLTON Sentinel City Editor
Hillsborough County School District Supt. Jeff Eakins will take his plan to reorganization the school district to its Board next Tuesday. If approved, the plan will call for the elimina- tion of some positions, the creation of others, and the merge of other slots.
In a press conference on Tuesday, Supt. Eakins ex- plained his aggressive reor- ganization plan that he wants in place by July 1, 2016. He also said he will continue “to access the reor- ganization. We’re going t0 be analyzing every division moving forward.”
Supt. Eakins said he met with his current staff about the upcoming changes “I’m trying to be very respectful of
the organization. But I think any teacher, any parent, and any leader would way, ‘I want the very best people to support our schools and our students.’”
His plan calls for it to be reviewed quarterly to deter- mine if it is effective. Thir- teen employees will be affected by the reorganiza- tion. Two of those, Chief of Information and Technology Officer Anna Brown, and Denny Oest, Assistant Su- perintendent of Curriculum and Instruction, will be elim- inated.
Supt. Eakins began ac- cepting applications for some of the other 11 posi- tions last week. Those posi- tions are, Chief Diversity Officer, Chief Business Offi- cer, Chief Operations Officer, Chief Human Resources Of- ficer, and Area Superintend-
JEFF EAKINS Hillsborough County School District Superintendent
ent, Priority Schools. All 8 District Area Superintend- ents must re-apply and com- plete the interview process as well.
His goal is to place more responsibility on the 8 Dis- trict Areas to provide sup- port for the schools. He feels that by placing more control at the district level will help the schools by providing them with support.
“We believe ownership of success has to take place closer to our schools. This is about shifting our organiza- tion so that our schools truly are at the center of it all,” he said.
By creating strategic the smaller districts will become the “go-to team” to assist schools in accomplishing their goals. “We want the Area Superintendent to be the Regional CEO.”
Positions that will be eliminated are the Executive Leadership Director, Man- ager of Communications, Di- rector of Nontraditional Programs, Assistant Man- ager of External Communi- cations, Business Process Improvement Specialist, an ATOSS Teacher, 2 Executive Secretaries, and Several Of- fice Deputies.
Supt. Eakins said the plan will also create new po- sitions, some of which are: Assistant Department Man- ager for Community and Hispanic Outreach, Chief Ac- ademic Officer; Assistant Su- perintendent for Education Leadership and Professional Development; Manager of Legislative Services, Director of Community Partnerships and Philanthropy, Program
Manager of Community En- gagement, Department Man- ager for Policy and Research, and Senior Data Strategist.
After being chosen to lead the nation’s 8th largest school district last year, Supt. Eakins instituted the first step of his reorganization plan. He restructured some positions and reclassified others.
However, during the press conference, he pointed out that the individuals in top level positions were ap- pointed to serve in those po- sitions. He also said displaced employees would most likely be placed in a pool.
Unique Interviewing Process
Supt. Jeff Eakins said the process of hiring the 8 Area Superintendents will be a unique process. “It will be a 5 or 6 step process. There will be an onsite walk through, a leadership walk through, and they will be re- quired to make a presenta- tion of information.
“We’re going through a process to make sure we have the right people in these positions.”
Some of the positions were posted last week and his office has been inundated with applications to fill those slots.
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