FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Broward County Public Schools Superintendent Vickie Cartwright agreed to a separation deal with the school board Tuesday, making it her final day with the district.
Cartwright’s attorneys negotiated a more than $365,000 separation agreement with the board last week after the board voted to terminate Cartwright in January.
That package was cut down to $267,000 after Cartwright agreed to forgo staying another 60 days and instead leave the district immediately.
The board, comprised mainly of appointees of Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, voted in November to terminate Cartwright, but a newly-elected board quickly voted to rescind that termination.
The second termination vote came after DeSantis re-appointed Daniel Foganholi to the board.
Some board members felt the original settlement agreement was too pricey, leading to the renegotiated agreement.
“This settlement agreement is too big and I wanted to stand in front of the people who elected me to this office -- $366,000 is too much,” board member Allen Zeman said.
Cartwright read from her resignation letter in front of the board.
“During my tenure, I am proud to have achieved several significant milestones alongside staff, including negotiating one of the largest raises for teachers in 15 years, improving graduation rates at a faster pace than the state and higher than the state for the subgroups of Black, Hispanic, white students with disabilities and students who receive free and reduced lunch,” Cartwright said.
Broward school board members then began discussions about Cartwright’s replacement.
The board voted 7-2 to appoint Associate Superintendent Valerie Wanza to the role on an interim basis. She will serve for only about a week, because the board also voted to hire Earlean Smiley as interim superintendent.
Smiley was School Board Member Torey Alston’s principal in high school. Smiley was a superintendent between 2010-2013 at the McCormick Public Schools in McCormick, South Carolina. Prior to that post, Smiley was deputy superintendent at Broward County Public Schools for ten years.
Cartwright would last less than a year as the district’s superintendent. She was hired on Feb. 24, 2022.