Ex-Bunnell Elementary principal, teacher discriminated based on color: Investigation
A former principal and a teacher at Bunnell Elementary were found to have discriminated against students on the basis of color, according to an investigation released Monday.
The former principal admitted to knowing about assemblies that would segregate Black fourth- and fifth-grade students, the investigation stated.
And the teacher who led the assemblies admitted to telling children that unsuccessful students have a higher chance of going to jail or being shot or killed.
District Coordinator of Professional Standards Michael Rinaldi headed the investigation, which showed that former Principal Donelle Evensen reviewed and approved the two identical presentations – one for each grade level.
Rinaldi investigated the following allegations against Evensen:
Race was the “sole criteria” for students attending the assemblies.
Content that was presented at the assemblies was inappropriate for its audiences and the general school setting.
There was a lack of parental notification prior to the assemblies.
She reviewed and approved the assemblies and relevant content.
Teacher Anthony Hines, who facilitated the assemblies, was investigated for the first three allegations.
The allegations, which Jason Wheeler, Flagler's Coordinator of Communications, confirmed were "substantive," violate School Board Policy 676 Professional Ethics; School Board Policy 606 Unlawful Discrimination; and F.A.C. 6A-10.081 the Principles of Professional Conduct for the Education Profession.
The investigation determined Evensen and Hines were guilty of the following, among other violations:
Discriminating against students under an educational program or activity.
Harassing or discriminating against students on the basis of race, color, religion … and not making reasonable effort to ensure each student is protected against harassment or discrimination.
Exposing students to unnecessary embarrassment or disparagement.
Not making reasonable effort to protect the students from conditions harmful to learning and/or to the students' mental and/or physical health and/or safety.
Following community outrage, Evensen resigned from her position Sept. 6 and Hines resigned Sept. 7. The two were previously placed on paid administrative leave pending the investigation's outcome.
The Bunnell Elementary investigation
Hines started a mentorship program in the 2022-23 school year to help students improve their academics. He believed it was successful and wanted to expand the program’s reach, so he initially pitched “a mentoring type program for African American students to increase academic achievement and success” to Evensen and former principal Marcus Sanfilippo in May 2023, according to the investigation.
After a faculty School Improvement Focus meeting on Aug. 2 which shared ESSA (Every Student Succeeds Act) subgroup data, Hines spoke with Sanfilippo about reaching out to all Black students. Evensen came into the room while the two were speaking.
At this point, according to the investigation, there was no discussion of “a whole group presentation.”
Hines wanted to mentor as many Black students as possible, according to the investigation.
“In order to make that happen, he wanted to introduce the program to all of the students at the same time,” the investigation said. “Ms. Evensen said the plan for the program was goal-setting, incentives and competition as she understood.”
When Rinaldi asked Hines why all Black students were invited, as opposed to only those who were struggling academically, Hines said, “It wasn’t given a whole lot of thought because I took the Level 4 high-performing students and put them on stage as academic leaders and heralded them so everyone was included.”
Hines had sent a proposal and the presentation slideshow to Evensen on Aug. 9 for her to review and approve, according to the investigation. She approved the assemblies and the content slides on Aug. 15 and notified fourth- and fifth-grade teachers the same day.
Both Hines and Evensen said none of the administrators questioned why only Black students were invited.
“No one ever said anything to me or had questions about having it with just African American students,” Evensen said in the investigation.
Fourth-grade team lead Melissa Anderson, however, did express concern to Evensen after Evensen sent out her initial email regarding the assemblies, according to the investigation.
“Ms. Anderson explained that when they received the initial email from Ms. Evensen, the email stated that the assemblies would be for African American students with no list of which student to send for the assembly,” according to the investigation. “Ms. Anderson stated that she went to Ms. Evensen and said that some of the fourth-grade teachers have come to her because they are not comfortable with which students to send because they didn’t have a list and asked Ms. Evensen if she would send a list to the teachers.”
Evensen sent a list of names on Aug. 16.
Evensen also was under the impression that Sanfilippo knew about the assembly plan, according to the investigation. But Sanfilippo told the investigator that he had not heard anything about the assemblies between the Aug. 2 meeting and the night of Aug. 18, after they had already occurred.
Evensen and Sanfilippo did not respond to requests for comment. Sanfilippo was named interim principal after Evensen resigned.
The News-Journal spoke with Hines Sept. 13. He refused to share additional information regarding the assemblies.
“It’s no comment,” he said. “I want it to go away … It’s sad. I know that much. It’s unfortunate, and I don’t want any more negative light to be shined on that school because I love my kids. … I’m not gonna go into details. I’m not gonna go into intentions and what was said and what would have happened because at this point, it’s a moot point. But I do love my kids, and I do miss my school, and I appreciate the opportunity to work with my colleagues at Bunnell Elementary School.”
Expert: Low test scores reflect learning environment, not students
Ivory Toldsen, director of Education, Innovation and Research at the NAACP, who also works as a professor at Howard University and editor in chief of The Journal of Negro Education, was “shocked” and “seriously disappointed” to learn about Bunnell’s assemblies.
“If the students are scoring low, that doesn’t mean that the students aren’t trying hard for that test. It means that there may be something going on in your learning environment that needs to improve,” he said.
“In other words,” Toldsen continued, “the test and its results are really to inform adults, not students. And to tell a student that you need to perform better on a standardized test in order to get what you want in life – that’s anti-intellectual. It’s false. It’s a false narrative, and it’s harmful and possibly illegal.”
School counselor would have 'pushed back' against assembly
While some school board members have pointed out that children are "resilient" and will bounce back from this experience, Jae’sha Baul a school counselor at Matchbox Learning in Indianapolis, said it's not always that simple.
“While I do agree that students at that age are very resilient, they also are very impressionable. Their brains are not fully developed yet,” Baul said in an interview with The News-Journal. “I do understand that things that happen can build character, but you don't want them to always be negative experiences that build positive character.”
Matchbox serves a diverse population of 650 students and focuses on improving their academics through positively meeting students’ needs. According to its website, 97.5% students qualify for free or reduced lunches, 42.5% are English Language learners and 8.7% have an individualized learning program, according to the center’s website.
Baul said if this assembly plan was presented to her, she would have pushed back.
“One of my number one priorities is to be the advocate for the students, and something like this, I feel like the students – the Black students, specifically – were fallen short,” Baul said. “Singling those students out instills negative feelings about themselves. It instills anxiety. And then you add this race factor.”
Education expert: Teaching to the test is 'antiquated'
Toldsen notes that concerns surrounding the assemblies are twofold.
Teaching to the test is an obsolete approach to education, and letting standardized testing dictate teaching is an “antiquated” practice, according to Toldsen. Instead, educators and school leaders should look at education with a holistic lens.
“It’s 2023,” Toldsen said, “We shouldn’t be teaching for the test. I thought teaching to the test was something that – it was known to be unproductive. But to see them doing it in such egregious ways just shows me how backwards they are.
“So if they want a world class education, they want to bring education forward, they really have to get rid of their dependence on standardized tests in order to understand what they’re doing good and what they’re doing poorly in education,” he said.
Segregating the students by race and “parading” them in front of their peers adds an additional layer of tension to the situation.
“The expectation for a person of color – an African American person of color – is not good,” Baul said. “It puts this pressure on students whether they’re doing good or bad.”
Students who performed well may now feel like they will always have to uphold the image they have been labeled with, Baul said. And for students who fell short, they may feel like they will never be able to reach the benchmark established by their peers.
Toldsen believes this event will have long-term impacts.
Segregating and spotlighting students in this way could actually lower their performance on standardized tests, he said, because “they go into a test thinking that they naturally are included not to do as well because they are Black.”
It can also make school an unenjoyable space for students, which is detrimental because students learn well when they enjoy being in the space they are in, Toldsen said.
He also noted that this event could cause Bunnell teachers to form biases among their students.
“The white students, even if they score lower, they can hide in the group that’s perceived to be doing well, whereas Black students – it’s the opposite,” he said. “Even if they’re performing well, they have to work against the stereotype among their teachers that they may be the ones that aren’t doing well.”
Bunnell Elementary would have been better off improving test scores by teaching students mindfulness, helping them learn how to calm their bodies, and motivating them with positive affirmations, according to Baul.
Superintendent LaShakia Moore released the following statement after the investigation was released:
“This was unacceptable,” said Superintendent LaShakia Moore in a statement. “We will do better, and that begins with transparency and training for all of our staff, administrators and educators. This incident was not indicative of Flagler Schools, and we have much to do to regain the trust of many in our community. This process starts on September 27th, when we host a Community Connection forum at the Carver Center, starting at 6:00 p.m. I look forward to an open line of communication among our entire Flagler County community.”
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Florida principal OK'd assemblies targeting Black students: Investigation