Florida School Chief Resigns Following His Role in Indiana Charter School Controversy
Florida education commissioner Tony Bennett resigns
By Steve Bousquet, Kathleen McGrory and Jeffrey S. Solochek, Times/Herald Tallahassee Bureau Thursday, August 1, 2013
TALLAHASSEE — Tony Bennett resigned Thursday as Florida education commissioner following two days of raging controversy over school grading in his home state of Indiana.
“I don’t think anything should distract us,” Bennett said in a late morning news conference. He praised Gov. Rick Scott for his leadership and support and said he ends his tenure “with my head held very high.”
Bennett, who came to Florida from the HoosierState in January, has faced mounting calls for his resignation in the wake of revelations, first reported by the Associated Press, that he interceded on behalf of an Indiana charter school run by a prominent Republican Party donor.
Bennett was hired to overhaul Florida’s system of school accountability and assessment in compliance with the national Common Core standards.
“I’m saddened by Commissioner Bennett’s departure,” state Board of Education member Sally Bradshaw wrote in an email to the Times/Herald. “This is a loss for Florida’s students.”
The Florida Department of Education has had a revolving door of leaders during Scott’s 31 months in office. Including Bennett, there have been three different education commissions and two interim education commissioners.
Bennett, a nationally recognized education reformer, came on board after losing re-election in Indiana.
His tenure encountered some early bumps in June, when superintendents leaned on him to institute a “safety net” to prevent school grades from dropping dramatically. Bennett had some misgivings, but ultimately conceded.
The exercise sparked a statewide dialogue about the validity of school grades, which dipped despite the padding. One member of the state Board of Education