Board chair cites statute after superintendent removes facilities-naming item; members debate naming

The DeSoto County School Board on Jan. 13 publicly recorded that a facilities-naming proposal had been removed from the published agenda and discussed whether that removal complied with statutory requirements.

At the start of the meeting the chair said the superintendent had removed items from the agenda, including a facilities-naming proposal, and stated, "The removal of this item was not done by my request and is therefore inconsistent with Florida statute." The chair said he nevertheless found "just cause" to have the item remain off the agenda while noting the removal was visible on the district website.

The board attorney read the governing language to the record: "After the agenda has been made available, a change shall be made only for good cause as determined by the person designated to preside and stated in the record." The attorney told the chair, "Your reading this afternoon is spot on," confirming the statutory standard that post-publication changes require a stated good-cause finding by the presiding official.

Several board members addressed the naming during the board-comments portion of the meeting. Miss Mercer said she had not supported naming the football field for "Vivian Fuld," but understood Doctor Bennett’s reasoning for pulling the item. Doctor Goodman criticized critics who did not attend the meeting and said he supported naming the field for Doctor Bennett: "I cannot think of anyone any better to have that football field named after than doctor Bennett. I would have voted for it then." Doctor Bennett, identified in the agenda, said he did not want the debate to distract from the district’s work and urged community support for the newly named coach, Tommy Henry.

No formal vote was taken on the naming at the Jan. 13 meeting. The chair told members of the public that anyone wishing to address the removed agenda item could do so during the public-comment period for non-agenda items at the end of the meeting; no members of the public spoke.

The board approved other routine items during the meeting, and the session adjourned at 5:56 p.m. If the district or board chooses to reintroduce the facilities-naming proposal, a future agenda or a non-agenda public-comment presentation would be the likely forum for further discussion or a formal vote.