Several local residents expressed their support for the new interim superintendent in Marion County who was appointed to her new role during a special meeting on Tuesday, with some emphasizing the need to search nationally for a permanent replacement.
On Tuesday, board members voted to approve the appointment of Dr. Danielle Brewer as the Marion County School District’s Interim Superintendent.
Brewer assumed the one-year role immediately and will relinquish it by April 29, 2026, or until a successor Superintendent has taken office. She will be compensated with a salary of $169,333 and various benefits.
During Tuesday’s meeting, ten members of the public shared comments about the new appointment, with many expressing their support for Brewer.
Ben Whitehouse, the Marion County Public Schools Area Director for Secondary Schools, spoke favorably of his colleague, saying he has worked closely with Brewer for over a decade and a half.
“I was disappointed at the last board meeting to hear a member of our community attacking the character of our interim superintendent,” said Whitehouse, who has worked closely with Dr. Brewer at two different high schools in the district since 2010.
“I’ve known her longer than just about anyone still working in this district. I can honestly say, without hesitation, that working with her at both schools made me a better leader. Her genuine love and concern for both the students and the staff we supported was something to admire. She maintained a clear focus on helping our students succeed, while also holding them to high expectations. She built relationships with all staff and took time to listen and support them, while also pushing them to grow as educators,” said Whitehouse.
He went on to state that he supported Brewer “wholeheartedly as an educator, a leader, a champion for our students, and as our interim superintendent.” Whitehouse closed his comments by stating that the opportunity to address the Marion County School Board during one of its meetings is a “great responsibility of the citizens of this community,” and that although there are “many challenges” that the district faces, it is important to stay focused on the task at hand.
“My hope is that, as a community, we stay focused on those challenges and on helping every student find success, and not stoop to the level of attacking the character of the hardworking employees of this school district,” said Whitehouse. “They all deserve better, our mission is greater.”
Glen Fiorello said that the job description for the superintendent was “an embarrassment,” saying the document was approved in 2019 and is outdated.
“I’m just going to read what it says: ‘The Superintendent of Schools should work with the School Board to create a vision for the future and then work to communicate it effectively internally and externally and focus on its implementation,” said Fiorello. “To me, that’s no kind of a description, and that could be what gets us in trouble each time with our superintendents.
Fiorello said the school board would benefit from having a clearer set of responsibilities for its Superintendent so that it could work together “in harmony” and “accomplish tasks.” He went on to read passages from the description that described the physical requirements for the job, reiterating that it was “embarrassing” to read them into public record.
“You need to know what the job descriptions really are and what is expected of these individuals,” said Fiorello. “I’m embarrassed to even say this up here.”
Deborah Daniels, a retired Florida teacher and grandparent of two students in Marion County Public Schools, asked the board to proceed with caution as they select a new permanent superintendent.
“I’m here tonight to ask that the board not take any shortcuts, but follow the usual procedures and protocol for the selection of our permanent superintendent. The board needs to widely advertise to create a pool of the most highly-qualified candidates. And then interview and eventually negotiate the contract for that permanent position. There’s no need to rush the process,” said Daniels. “It’s crucial that the candidate fits with the district’s mission, vision, and strategic priorities.”
Keith Cunningham, a retired Air Force colonel who serves at North Marion High School, lent his support behind Brewer as well, saying her leadership is “exactly what we need at this time.” Cunningham said that he had completed hundreds of hours of leadership training and listed a long list of credentials before stating that Brewer was the most effective leader he had encountered in education.
“Her direct, decisive approach, her willingness to hold people accountable, and her unwavering integrity set her apart,” said Cunningham. “I strongly encourage you to leverage Dr. Brewer’s powerful leadership immediately as our interim superintendent. Our students and our district would benefit immensely from her leadership.”
Victoria Barkley said she seconded Cunningham. Barkley said she met Brewer years prior and that she was the first female that she worked for who didn’t make her feel inferior as a teacher or paraprofessional.
“As a new teacher, I needed more support than most. Dr. Brewer had an open door policy and I felt comfortable going to her anytime I had a question or just needed support with a particular strategy, student, or class. I liked that she was present,” said Barkley.
Barkley said she was impressed by how well Brewer knew her students and staff, and how well she made all individuals “feel heard.”
“Dr. Brewer cares about the students, teachers, support staff, administrators, and all school board employees in Marion County,” said Barkley, going on to highlight Brewer’s local connection and loyalty to those she serves. “I know she would never fail us.”
Ocala resident Kearsten Angel, who made accusations about Brewer during a previous school board meeting, offered additional public comments after Barkley left the podium.
“We, as the citizens, will be paying her a lot of money. And it’s a lot of money that one needs to think about…just like running a business, we need and want someone who would be subject to a national search. We need, and want, a job description. We need and want a timeline from you all that says what we’re going to be doing and hiring this person. I ask you, when we’re looking for someone who’s going to be running our school system. Is this somebody that we definitely want to run our school system?
“One thing that I would ask that you do, especially in conducting this national search, is ask the teachers, ask the employees, the people that you all help represent. Ask them what they want in a school superintendent. Ask them what they expect in a school superintendent,” said Angel.
Patricia “PG” Schafer, who is the Marion County Republican Party State Committeewoman, said that the 140,000 Republicans represented by her organization in the county expected a national search for the permanent superintendent.
“That is actually the benefit of an appointed superintendent – a very large pool from which to search. We must select the very best and brightest to serve the children and the parents of this county,” said Schafer.
At least one other resident echoed Schafer’s concerns before the final speaker, Gary Smallridge, lent his support for Brewer and spoke about the national search referred to by many.
Smallridge, who spent 29 years in the district as an educator and 20 years as a principal, said his path crossed with Dr. Brewer at Fort King Middle School while he was principal. He said that previous comments made about Brewer’s lack of impact on the district were “wrong” and that the improvements at Fort King Middle School were a testimony to that.
“She is the right choice guys,” said Smallridge, who said he believed the board should have increased the salary being offered to attract additional candidates.
“We did one national search in this county, we used to vote for our Superintendent. The national search brought in a big superintendent that had big county, big district experience…she had a lot of experience…well guess what, she came into our district, and she did the job for five years,” said Smallridge, referring to current Superintendent Dr. Diane Gullett.
Smallridge said that Gullett, who was brought in from a national search, turned to hire Brewer as part of her cabinet because of her experience and expertise.
“She proved to a national search superintendent that she was worthy to be on this cabinet. So, I don’t know why people are saying she’s not ready, or she shouldn’t be considered,” said Smallridge.
After comments from the public, board members offered their comments and insight on the matter before voting unanimously to approve the contract.
Now that she has been appointed, Brewer has entered a “transition period” through July 11, 2025, wherein current Superintendent Dr. Diane V. Gullett will remain in control of operations while Brewer devotes her “full time and best efforts to studying the conditions of and matters pertinent to the District.”
During this time, Brewer is charged with developing plans for “continued operations and improvement” of the district, according to staff’s memo.
The board came to a consensus on Brewer over several other candidates last week, saying she earned the highest scores from individual interviews conducted by each board member. Brewer began her career with MCPS as a teacher in 2005. Over the past twenty years, she served as an assistant principal and a principal, with her most recent stint coming at North Marion High School. In 2021, Brewer was named director of curriculum, instruction, and digital learning, and in 2023, she was promoted to her current executive role. Gullett, who announced her resignation last month, is leaving the position to become the Chief Academic Officer for the Bailey Education Group.
Join the conversation on Ocala-News.com