This is a letter of recommendation:
James Muwakkil wrote that letter of recommendation for Dr. Bernier in May of 2024. I don’t think he gives out praises easily based on this October 2023 article. Link below. A few excerpts:
James Muwakkil said, “If they were sincere, we would already know because they would have went and done something. We would know that they’ve suspended students, we would know that they’ve terminated teachers, we would know that they removed coaches,” “We would know, but they haven’t done any of that. They’ve left everything in place, and so we see no reason at this point in time to meet with them. Our goal is to pursue civil rights violation complaints. We want civil rights laws upheld.” “Them reaching out to us to meet doesn’t mean a hill of beans to me,” Muwakkil said. “I don’t necessarily want to meet with them. I want what they’re allowing to be stopped, but they haven’t done so. They have not stepped up and said, ‘We won’t tolerate this.’” Muwakkil said the plan is to protest and hold picket signs outside of the school with the names of the staff members they’re calling to resign on them.
https://winknews.com/2023/10/25/lee-county-naacp-declines-meeting-babcock-neighborhood-school/
Here’s another impressive recommendation:
“I recommend Dr. Bernier as a candidate for superintendent without reservation,” former Orange County Superintendent Barbara Jenkins wrote in a reference letter praising his “passion for student success, combined with his intellect and work
This article is about the School Board Chair in Lee County. I post here to demonstrate the toxic environment that Bernier joined.
Lee County School Board member Chris Patricca is under fire after an investigative report found a pattern of bullying and demeaning behavior, leading to school leaders taking action tonight. The school board took almost all night to address the issue. Quite a few people spoke during public comment, some of them even former board members themselves. This investigative report dates back to May 12, 2022, when school board attorney Kathy Dupuy-Bruno filed a written complaint, hoping to get whistleblower protection. The allegation was that board member Chris Patricca engaged in a pattern of bullying and demeaning behavior toward Dupuy-Bruno and created a hostile working environment. The investigation took place over the course of six months with 12 witnesses, including Patricca and other board members. “I can attest to the fact that demeaning behavior is part of Ms. Patricca’s M.O.,” said Vaughn. The board voted to accept the investigative reports, barely passing 4 to 3 with Patricca rejecting the findings. But the board unanimously agreed on one thing— voting to require all board members to take bullying and harassment training, as well as attend and participate in a whistleblower and retaliation workshop. Meaning board members will need to complete that training by October 1.
Here’s a blog post about his compensation package:
https://grumpyoldteacher.com/2024/06/10/king-of-the-road/
Unite Us Do Not Divide Us 