LEE COUNTY, Fla. — After a heated Lee County School Board meeting Tuesday night, a 4 to 3 vote keeps Dr. Gregory Adkins as the District's Superintendent.
This comes after District 2's, Melisa Giovanelli, called for his termination in a recent review.
Giovannelli's evaluation gave the superintendent an overall score of 1.42 out of 4, for an "unsatisfactory" grade. In her report, she accuses Adkins of "unacceptable" comments in meetings, leading "through fear and intimidation," poor communication and creating an environment in which students do not feel safe.
Tuesday night, she slammed Dr. Adkins, saying that in order to save the district, he must be removed. Another board member, Betsy Vaughn, also said there are many issues within the district, pointing the finger at Dr. Adkins.
Some board members, including Chris Patricca, disagreed. Patricca said Dr. Adkins is the right leader at the right time for this job.
We spoke with Adkins following Tuesday night's meeting and he says he's happy this is all over. He also promised to make changes, including better communication and creating a better infrastructure that will allow the board to better respond to concerns that were addressed in the meeting.
"We're coming at the end of the school year. We do look forward to the restructuring of how our administrative team is moving forward, how we are structuring the school district in terms of staffing changes," Adkins said.
"I think you will see some changes moving forward. We have some openings in the district we are looking towards filling that you will see us filling in the near future."
