Arkansas Department of Education Deputy Commissioner Stacy Smith fiercely defended Barbara Warren's work as Pine Bluff School District superintendent during a lengthy quarterly report on the local system during Thursday's state Board of Education meeting in Little Rock.
Smith, who works with Warren as the district remains under supervision of the ADE, spent most of her 54-minute presentation outlining Warren's accomplishments and giving her a proverbial vote of confidence while defending her and other district leaders against what she called misinformation regarding the potential status of the Pine Bluff High School rebuilding project and other criticisms from the community.
The presentation followed much shorter and more positive updates on the Lee County and Earle school districts, which are also under state control.
"Last year, she presented a plan that minimized transition for students, prioritized safety for teachers, she even ensured that digital curriculum was purchased in all subjects for all grades and the district went 1-to-1 with technology, [in] two districts," Smith said of Warren.
Warren was also superintendent of the Dollarway School District until its July 1 annexation into the PBSD.
"She had regular weekly Zoom meetings with the community leading up to the new school year about what was happening and what the changes were. They had onsite pickup for computers and onsite assistance if you were having trouble with your computer. They put Wi-Fi in the community. Lots of things happening," Smith added, among other achievements. "... She showed improvements in both fiscal audits for both schools [districts]. ... We have confidence in Mrs. Warren."
Smith said teachers who say they don't have resources for their classrooms should report to their lead teacher, building specialists, principals or other supervisors to obtain them. Smith also outlined what Warren purchased for the district, including literacy programs aligned to the science of reading and digital resources such as Lexia Core (grades K-5) and Lexia Power Up (grades 6-12), ALEKS (grades 6-12 math) and Edgenuity.
"If they didn't have it, they didn't go pick it up," Smith said. "We identified some that had those resources in their classroom, but they didn't open them."
But the reported lack of resources is an isolated incident, Smith remarked.
"We have hard-working teachers in the Pine Bluff School District every day, and you're not hearing from them," she said. "Is it hard? Yes. Is it troubling? Yes. If the district had everything right, we wouldn't be there."
The PBSD has been under state control since 2018. A graphic Smith showed the state board indicated the Education Department took over the PBSD in November that year, while an Arkansas Democrat-Gazette story indicated the move occurred two months earlier.
Go Forward CEO Ryan Watley and the Pine Bluff High School parent-teacher organization (PTO) have written open letters to Warren and the state Education Department in recent days, pleading with them to rebuild the high school at its current West 11th Avenue location. Smith reiterated Thursday the Education Department has not made a final decision on the projected $22,988,538 project (of which the state will provide $12,817,259 and the district will need to cover the rest), pointing out another rumor to the contrary.
A limited-authority board, the next step toward the state's restoration of full local control in the Pine Bluff School District, could be appointed by either August or September of this year, Smith told the state board. The local board will be asked to "take the lead" on steering the direction of the high school project, she added.
"I was very moved today by the vocal support I received from Mrs. Smith," Warren said. "I did not ask her to say that, but I'm glad she did because I'll be honest with you, it's been hard. Yes, I did lead, but it was a team effort."
Said Smith: "I'm not going to say it's smooth, but we have confidence in Barbara Warren."
PBSD VS. VIOLENCE
In giving the latest data on student infractions at PBHS, Smith said there have been 142 instances of cutting class, 141 instances of fighting (including two "significant" altercations involving gangs and resulting in several arrests), and 229 instances of disorderly conduct.
"It's a constant intervention and prevention of what can you do in deescalation of trying to keep everything calm on the campus, all doing this on a very open campus," Smith said.
Smith's voice grew more passionate when she addressed a shooting that happened just to the south of PBHS Monday, forcing the campus to go into lockdown for 42 minutes. Police said the shots came from either the parking lot on the south side of the school or near it, adding no one was injured.
"Every student in that school can tell you somebody who has died from gun violence in that community, and every student in that school can tell you who's sitting in jail," Smith said. "We have unauthorized adults on campus. We had students walk out two weeks ago, and I just want to say the students behaved very well. I want to credit Mrs. Warren for not escalating the situation. Police were called. Police were there. She said, 'No, no, no, we're not making this up. It's a law enforcement thing.'"
The students staged a walkout in protest of perceived lax safety measures at the campus.
Smith outlined the district has four security officers assigned to the high school, with two additional commissioned officers hired in December and January.
"We have contracts with off-duty police officers to be onsite as available," Smith said. "This is all funded by the district. At this point, I'm showing the district spent close to half a million dollars on security alone, that they spent."
Warren also maintains a relationship with Pine Bluff Police Chief Lloyd Franklin Sr., Jefferson County Sheriff Lafayette Woods Jr. and County Judge Gerald Robinson, Smith said, countering rumors that Warren refuses to have open communication with them.
State board Chair Ouida Newton thanked Smith for an "honest evaluation" of the district.
"Sometimes the truth is hard to hear," Newton said. "It's not going to happen overnight, but we're moving in the right direction and we'll get there. It's about those babies."