BROOKSVILLE — The construction industry needs trained workers.
Students 18 and older need job training to get good jobs.
Sophia Watson, director of adult and technical education, was beaming May 24 as she introduced
Steve Cona, president and CEO of Associated Builders and Contractors of the Florida Gulf Coast, to
the School Board. He said a $1.2 million grant from the state will allow them to fast-track their
apprenticeship programs.
The grant will give the school district the seed money to start the program, which will be offered to
students 18 years or older. They will get 2,000 hours of paid on-the-job training, he said, and will
attend school for 144 hours.
Among the job fields to be offered will be electrical, sheet metal, HVAC, carpentry, roofing and more.
There will be a path from the SunTech vocational-technical training to the apprenticeships, Cona said.
The agreement behind the program will begin July 1 and end June 30, 2023.
The board voted 5-0 to accept the agreement.
Stratton contract upsets some
Despite some concerns from the public, the board voted 5-0 to renew Superintendent John
Stratton’s contract through June 30, 2026. He is not getting a pay increase and will continue to earn
$166,000 per year, and can receive small increases based on his performance evaluation score. If
there’s a new board majority, they could fire Stratton but then he would receive terminal pay.
Because of concerns over nepotism, Stratton will not be permitted to recommend a family member
for employment with the district, and the board will not consider a family member for employment.
Any current family member will be evaluated according to district procedures.
Pam Everett, a candidate for School Board, made it clear that the move was wrong and an attempt
to tie the hands of the School Board after the Aug. 23 election. She and others have made it clear
that if the three incumbents are defeated, changes will be coming and they want a free hand when
dealing with Stratton.
Everett is hoping to unseat Susan Duval in District 5. Incumbents Kay Hatch of District 1 and Jimmy
Lodato of District 3 also face challenges.
Stratton’s original contract was set to last through June. According to reports, he replaced Lori
Romano, who was fired “over concerns about her leadership abilities.”
Substitute pay
The board told Ray Pinder, human resources director, to find more money to pay substitute teachers
and rejected 5-0 a contract for $340,000 with Kelly Educational Services.
“I find the pay rate not acceptable,” Duval said. “We have to be able to do better than this.”
Subs get $11 or $12 an hour and must have a bachelor’s degree.
Stratton said it’s difficult to plan ahead for budgets because they change four times a year, and they
just saw their final budget on Tuesday. Board member Linda Prescott asked Pinder to look at the pay
in surrounding counties and come back with a new dollar amount.
In other action
• The board approved 5-0 the renewal of a piggyback contract for prefabricated concrete classrooms
for an estimated $1 million from half-cent sales tax funds. The concrete prefabs cost more but last
40 years instead of 20 years for portables, and can withstand wind up to 200 mph.
• The board approved 5-0 an amendment to the agreement with Air Mechanical & Service Corp. for
the J.D. Floyd and Pine Grove Elementary Soffit replacement projects for just over $3 million using
half-cent funds. Brian Ragan, director of facilities and construction, said the soffits were built in the
1980s and gypsum turned out to be the wrong material to use. “I’m surprised it lasted this long,” he
said.
• The board voted 5-0 to approve $2.4 million for the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office for school
resource officers. Members said, in response to public comment about bullying and fighting — and
fights being uploaded to social media — that they will work this summer to develop plans to deal with
bullying and fighting. “We need to send a message to our students that it will not be tolerated,”
Stratton said. “We may disagree, but we agree on the safety of our children. That’s our No. 1 focus,
apart from educating them, is keeping them safe.” The problem also is a lag time between bad acts
and punishment, and he said he’d subject misbehaving students to arrest and expulsion.
The decision also came in the wake of the mass shooting at a Texas school. It “breaks our hearts,”
Duval said. By VINCENT F. SAFUTO, Hernando Today. Jun 1, 2022 Updated Jun 8, 2022.