When asked about Republican incumbent superintendent Karen Barber’s plans for Santa Rosa County District Schools, she’ll point you to recent tales of success. The highest graduation rates in the school district’s history. Six consecutive years of “A” ratings . A 177% increase in industry certifications and a 95% student attendance rate for the 2023-24 first semester.
“The numbers demonstrate that,” Barber said of the school district’s success under her leadership.
But two new Republican candidates - David Godwin , a teacher of 33-years and president of the Santa Rosa Professional Educators, and Brenda Stephens, former educator and owner of In & Out No Bullshit Loading & Unloading LLC – are vying to take Santa Rosa County District Schools in a different direction.
Candidate Q&A: Karen Barber for Superintendent, Santa Rosa County District Schools
Candidate Q&A David Godwin for Superintendent of Santa Rosa Schools
Experience in education
Barber’s passion for education started at a young age. She earned her doctorate in Educational Management then climbed up the ranks in teaching and administrative positions throughout Santa Rosa County District Schools.
“I’ve known since I was 10 I wanted to be a teacher,” Barber said. “This has been a lifelong dream of mine…helping students to be successful and have an impact in a positive way.”
Barber won the 2020 race against challengers David Gunter and Michael Alan Thorpe, with 54.13% of the vote. Even then, her “strong and experienced leadership” was a characteristic she attributed as key to the position.
Experience is something that Godwin, a geometry teacher for Pace High School with over 30 years in the classroom, brings to the table. In addition to serving as elected president for the Santa Rosa Professional Educators, Godwin has been involved in many Santa Rosa County School Board committees throughout the years. Some committees he’s served on involve curriculum, evaluation, performance pay, calendar, insurance, coaching supplements, textbook selection and scheduling.
Godwin thinks his recent experience in the classroom means he is better able to advocate on behalf of teachers in meeting the real-time needs of teachers and students in the county.
“There’s not another candidate that has been in the classroom in the last 25 years,” Godwin said.
Stephens, a Venezuelan native who holds a bachelor’s degree in human resources and master’s degree in occupational adult education and human resources management, was a bilingual educator for nine years in Texas, has a 30-year-career in human resources, and most recently is the owner of a moving company.
While attending school board meetings after moving to the Navarre area from Texas, she realized her desire to run in the superintendent race. Stephens held the position of treasurer for the Santa Rosa County Moms for Liberty chapter before stepping down to run for the superintendent position.
“I realized we have a big problem here with education,” Stephens said. “I am the person with the kind of energy to do what needs to be done in our schools.”
Where do we stand on teacher pay?
Godwin led the crusade for teacher salary increases this past year over a dozen negotiation sessions as chief negotiator before eventually accepting a 3.87% increase in total instructional salaries. He considered this a “forced” settlement with the school district.
Godwin said that the district is heavily relying on the state’s Teacher Salary Increase Allocation (TSIA) to give teachers raises, instead of using it to supplement to the district’s own discretionary funds.
“They’re using that money to replace their efforts for what they can do to attract and retain teachers,” Godwin said. “We’ve got to do better for our teachers.”
Godwin said that if elected, he would use the state allocation to supplement what the district is committing to paying its teachers.
According to Barber, teacher pay has continued to rise, with an average increase of 16% over the past four years. Under her leadership, teacher salaries went from about 1% below the state average, to about 1% above it, she said.
She said she has been unified with the school board regarding fiscal responsibility, which has help maintained an A+ credit rating for the district, helping to secure lower interest rates for constructions of schools like Wallace Lake K-8 and Soundside High School .
“The school board made a real commitment to the financial condition ratio,” Barber said.
Stephens said she would like to address the salary compression that has occurred for longtime teachers, some whose wages are comparable to recent college graduates in the district. She believes in offering fair wages to teachers with increased levels of experience and education.
“We would do something that would be fair to the teachers,” Stephens said of adjusting salaries.
How are students performing academically?
Barber was proud of state assessments released this summer from the 2023-24 school year, with some subject areas scoring in the top five across the state of Florida.
The school district received an “A” for the sixth year in a row, ranking eighth overall in the state of Florida. Five schools increased a letter grade from 22-23 to 23-24.
“I’m standing on the shoulders of great educators,” Barber said.
However, she said she is “happy, but not satisfied” and believes there is room for growth.
Barber said she has expanded not only traditional classroom opportunities, but workforce education, and has increased student industry certifications by 177%.
“We’re not just interested in graduation, we’re interested in their future,” Barber said.
She plans to continue to be aggressive in applying for grants to help the district. In her current term, she secured a nearly $3 million grant from the U.S. Department of Defense to expand foreign languages in the district and also a $9 million Triumph Gulf Coast grant for the Santa Rosa Center for Innovation.
For Godwin, his focus is on maximizing classroom time for students. He plans on doing this by adding a seven-period school day and changing up the current three-tier bus route.
Under the current three-tier route, Godwin said elementary students are losing up to two and a half hours of instructional time every week. He plans to minimize travel time to ensure students have more time in the classroom.
Stephens plans to take a deep dive into the county’s curriculum to offer more “classical” curriculum, which is backed by Gov. Ron DeSantis in HB 1285. Stephens said although the district’s graduation rates are high, some of the proficiency areas revealed in testing are alarming.
She believes students need to go back to the basics of education, “not indoctrination.”
What is the status of school security?
Barber said she has made strides in securing student safety, first with the addition of school guardians , then student resource officers on every Santa Rosa County District Schools campus. Volunteer safety monitors will start in the school district during the 2024-25 school year.
Part of Godwin’s plan to transition into a seven-period school day would allow for teachers to take on a duty period patrolling unsupervised areas like the hallways and parking lots. This would increase school security and break up teachers’ schedules of back-to-back direct instruction, he said.
Stephens would like to partner with veterans to create a school safety campaign and have screenings to detect weapons inside of the school to increase safety for students, teachers and staff.
Editor's note: Candidate Q&As with Karen Barber and David Godwin can be found at pnj.com. Brenda Stephens did not complete the candidate profile.
This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Santa Rosa superintendent challenged by union chief, former Moms for Liberty treasurer
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