A local politician is looking to change the way the superintendent of the Duval County Public School District is chosen by letting voters decide instead of keeping the role an appointed position.
Jason Fischer is a state representative and the chairman of the Duval County Delegation. He says he filed an amendment to his proposed bill today because voters should have the final say in picking the schools superintendent.
He says the Duval County Delegation will vote on the bill at the next meeting, and from there it would go to Tallahassee. If the bill makes it all the way through the state legislature, it would mean a referendum on the 2020 ballot.
“The referendum’s question on the ballot that voters will see is should Duval County have an elected superintendent,” Fischer says.
The previous wording of the proposed bill had called for the members of the Duval County School Board to be positions appointed by the mayor, but Fischer says now it just focuses on how the superintendent is picked.
Duval County School Board Chairwoman Lori Hershey is weighing in today, saying the current system of an elected board and an appointed superintendent is working just fine.
“With an appointed superintendent, Duval has become recognized as one of the best urban school districts in the nation,” Hershey says in a statement. “The last time we had an elected school superintendent, Duval lost its accreditation.”
She says when the superintendent is appointed, it allows the person in that position to do what’s best for the children in the district instead of worrying about political interests or ambitions.
Fischer says he just wants to let the voters decide.