Miami-Dade School Board members on Monday chose longtime administrator José Dotres to be the new superintendent after the abrupt departure of Alberto Carvalho to the Los Angeles, California, school district.

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Miami-Dade Public Schools’ wildly popular Superintendent Alberto Carvalho said on Thursday, in a very dramatic fashion, that he turned down a job leading New York City’s public school system to stay with the district where he began his career as a physics teacher at Jackson High.
Wide speculation Wednesday that Carvalho was taking the School Chancellor position offered by New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio prompted a special emergency meeting Thursday of the School Board to discuss  “the stability of the executive management leadership.” After pleas from board members, students, teachers, parents and people from the community, Carvalho took a short break, purportedly, to think about it.
When he came back, he announced that “the decision that I have made about that position is, however, a decision I can no longer sustain.” Yeah, that’s how he talks.
“I am breaking an agreement between adults to honor an agreement and a pact I have with the children of Miami. I just don’t know how to break a promise to a child, how to break a promise to a community,” Carvalho said, adding that the decision weighed heavily on him “over the last 24 hours like nothing has weighed on me before.”
Related: Alberto Carvalho to leave Miami-Dade Schools for NYC — at the worst time
Um, 24 hours? He’s purportedly known about this for days, weeks even. He was gonna break the “promise” yesterday. The announcement had been reportedly delayed because of the Parkland shooting and the resulting political fallout. So he decided right there? On the spot? Were the hugs that convincing?
Here’s another scenario:
Carvalho — who is known for his fiery speeches, staunch defense of immigrants and public dollars for public schools and opposition to guns in the classroom — has been under fire in recent months, mostly for the management of the $1.2 billion general obligation bond that voters passed to modernize schools and bring in new technology. He’s got Board Member Steve Gallon beating him up on the regular and enlisting cohorts, principally Maria Teresa Rojas, to question and dog him. The board recently asked for an outside audit of GOB monies spent so far and Gallon — who notably skipped the emergency love fest meeting — has questioned whether the bond program has included a sufficient representation of minority contractors.
So, Carvalho pretends to take the New York job offer more seriously. He never really wanted it. Think about it. Even though the New York Times reported that de Blasio promised to match his $352,874-a-year salary (the current chancellor makes $234,569) the job was still a bear. New York City has a $30 billion budget and 1.1 million students, compared to Miami-Dade’s $4.3 billion budget and 365,000 students. It’s daunting, even for a superstar like Carvalho. Which, by the way, he wouldn’t be in NYC. The 2014 national Superintendent of the Year is a big fish in a small pond here but there? He’d be, like, a guppy. Fishbait. De Blasio would not let him just have press conferences on his own agenda whenever he wanted.
Frankly, he’d be de Blasio’s bitch. And Ladra doesn’t think Carvalho relished that thought.
He also wouldn’t have an entire squad of media professionals dedicated entirely to positioning him and creating that darling image of the man so many love. He wouldn’t have his dream team of administrators who actually do all the work — he is a man of vision — behind him. As chancellor, Carvalho would be executing someone else’s vision, with people he doesn’t know or trust. And he would not be able to just flash that smile and talk his way out of anything in New York. Fuggedaboudit.
In this scenario, Carvalho turned the job down almost instantly — only he didn’t tell anyone. He let everybody believe that he had one foot out the door. He went to New York City to meet with de Blasio twice. He met with other city leaders. You know, just to make it stick. Plus Manhattan is an awesome place to spend a few days. Which means he also fooled de Blasio. And that’s the gist you get from the NYC mayor’s press conference Thursday afternoon, where he said he was “very surprised” by the news.
Related: Alberto Carvalho drops mayoral hopes for UM dreams
De Blasio told reporters that Carvalho had taken the job and then “changed his mind,” quoted the Village Voice. We know that he spoke to the Sup during that half hour or so break because the visibly pissed off de Blasio said Carvalho called him with “second thoughts.” But, again, Carvalho is someone who likes theatrics. To pull it off, he would have had to fool de Blasio and his people, too. He may have planned it like this all along. And just look at the number of impressions he’s gotten: It’s been in all the major networks. Not just Channel 7 locally, but CNN and Fox News and every single media outlet in New York has been on it all day (not favorably).
Even his Wikipedia page was already edited to include today’s news. Like his team was ready to do it.
In this scenario, dangling this job before the community and the School Board was a trick, a ruse to get his nine bosses to (1) change the narrative and bring back the love fest (2) offer him a 3-5 year extension on his contract, which expires in 2020.
Ladra doesn’t think they’ll offer him a raise. Carvalho already makes more than any Superintendent in the world. And it won’t be “politically correct” while teacher pay is still an issue. But look for an item at the next school board meeting or two where he gets an extension on his contract and maybe something else. Like more staff to make him look good.
Or was it all a ruse to raise his profile another notch for a mayoral run in 2020 or a bid for Congress, after all?
One thing is for sure: He’s not gonna tell us right away.

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Say it ain’t so, Alberto!
Miami-Dade Schools Superintendent Alberto Carvalho, the charismatic populist leader of the 4th largest school district in the U.S., has been tapped to lead the largest school district in New York City, several news sources reported Wednesday afternoon.
Perhaps New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, right, who was expected to make the official announcement Thursday — it had been postponed because of the school shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas — isn’t used to las malas lenguas in Miami taking the wind out of his sails. Because it seems de Blasio had to make a hasty reveal Wednesday afternoon after word got out.
“Alberto Carvalho is a world-class educator with an unmatched track record of success,” de Blasio said in a statement published on Chalkbeat. “I am very confident that our extensive, national search has found New York City the best person to lead the nation’s largest school system into the future.”
Extensive? Extensive?
Carvalho had been floated as a name for the post since December, immediately after Chancellor Carmen Fariña announced she would be stepping down. He’s just the flashy type that de Blasio and NYC love: a longtime educator from a scrappy, immigrant background who rose through the ranks to become a leading voice on education at the national level. Plus he’s boss on twitter. If Ladra were a betting dog, and she is, she would wager that de Blasio wanted Carvalho all along.
Related: Alberto Carvalho drops mayoral hopes for UM dream
But weeks ago, the Sup told reporters he was committed to Miami-Dade, where he championed a $1.2 billion referendum for modernization and technology upgrades that are just getting started, which is likely one of the reasons de Blasio wants him.
“My commitment to Miami is so strong and I have demonstrated it in the face of political opportunities,” Carvalho told Chalkbeat back then, referring to encouragement he has gotten to run for posts from Miami-Dade mayor to Congress to University of Miami president.  “It’s really hard for me to imagine a set of circumstances that would lead to a different decision on my part,” he added.
Oh what a difference a month or two makes? Or was it an offer he couldn’t refuse? The New York Times reported that Carvalho — who makes $352,874 a year in Miami-Dade — could take a sizable pay cut because Fariña’s salary is $234,569.
But this is Carvalho we’re talking about. The king of gab. He can convince anybody of practically anything. He convinced property owners in Miami to tax themselves additionally to soup up public schools, didn’t he?
But this is New York City we’re talking about. Is Carvalho, who rose early through the government affairs branch of administration, a parrot or an empty suit propped up by boatloads of charisma and well-crafted tweets? Or does he have the substance to make it in The Big Apple, which arguably has better public schools than we do? This could be a make or break moment. Some folks think that he has that twinkle in his eye that the city needs and that his initiatives can turn the private school drain around. Others think Carvalho’s gonna get eaten alive in New York City, where charisma only gets you so far and you can’t just tell the same story 25 times.
He certainly is going to have to lower his profile a little. De Blasio runs the show over there. He won’t be able to usurp his boss like he does here with the board. There will be fewer press conferences.
Related: Lawmakers vote to leave assault rifles on the street and arm teachers instead
And while Ladra is not the hugest fan — he is an egomaniac with a history of, er, potentially compromising extracurricular activities — Carvalho has good instincts, thinks out of the box, knows a bad idea when he sees one and is truly committed to public dollars for public schools. Many teachers love him because he is accessible and responsive and he has defended them, blasting the latest evaluation process, for example, as inadequate.
“Miami Dade County Public Schools has been fortunate to have the leadership of Superintendent Carvalho for the past decade. His dedication and passion for education, coupled with our phenomenal workforce, has made MDCPS a leader in public education nationwide,” said United Teachers of Dade President Karla Hernandez Mats in a statement late Wednesday.
“As a colleague, he has always been responsive and respectful, even when we disagreed or I thought his actions weren’t in the best interest of our bargaining unit,” the union leader said. “I believe the Superintendent could have been even more effective for MDCPS if the Florida State Legislature was more focused on supporting our children, its education workforce, and schools, rather than its maniacal obsession with defunding our school system and decertifying the unions. Now more than ever, it is important to have a strong and vibrant voice in Miami Dade County to deflect the destructive education proposals that are being considered in Tallahassee. New York City should be pleased to have Sup. Carvalho lead their public schools and we wish him well in this new chapter of his career.”
School Board members might not be as sad to see him go. There have been some tensions for about a year. Carvalho doesn’t have the same love fest as before. There’s been confrontation, antagonism. One of the board members preempted one of his initiatives at a recent meeting. And they are calling for an audit of the expenditures made so far with the $1.2 billion in bond monies. Could Carvalho be making the move now to avoid any questions about that spending later?
Most recently, Carvalho’s strong stance against arming teachers in the wake of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas school shooting was a downright relief because it was taken seriously by both sides of the aisle.
What are we going to do now? This community is still reeling from the Valentine’s Day massacre of 14 students and three educators at the Broward high school. Parents and teachers and students are in Tallahassee as you read this, trying to sway legislators to amend the current school safety bills by taking out the marshal program that would arm teachers and putting in a ban on some assault rifles. Will we be vulnerable to a Republican majority School Board and a new Sup that could come specifically to advance an NRA and/or (more likely) a charter school agenda? Will there be a national search? Or does the board already have someone in mind from inside? Ladra would imagine that there are already at least 100 resumes submitted. It’s scary.
The Miami-Dade School Board has called an emergency meeting for Thursday to discuss “the stability of the executive management leadership.”
This appointment is one of the most important in our community, and it is made by a majority of the nine-member School Board. So, basically, five people could choose the next person to hold our children’s future educational experience in his or her hands.
Let’s pay close attention.

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The Cortadito Calendar will now be published on Monday to give people time to send Ladra the events they have planned for that week. calendar2Please keep sending info on your government meetings, campaign events and political powwows to edevalle@gmail.com so we have a full calendar each and every Monday.

This one is our first on a Monday and our first for March. It’s about a month before the next important local election — in Coral Gables. So we have the first candidate forum for those three races on Tuesday.

There’s also a commission meeting at the county, a city council meeting in Doral, a talk about women’s issues, the requested upzoning of a whole stretch of Little Gables, more hand-wringing over the future of North Beach and yet another powerful speech by our esteemed schools superintendent.

So, let’s get on with it.

TUESDAY — March 7

9:30 a.m. — The Miami-Dade County Commission meets to again ratify the awarding of $27.5 million to five companies for engineering services related to the water and sewer consent decree (more on that later), consider changes to the annexation and incorporation process, approve $1.8 billion in expenditures for building supplies for mulitple departments and designate an area of Miami Gardens as blighted so they can create another community redevelopment agency for their friends to raid. They will also consider giving yet another no-bid contract to a vendor who wants to open up at Miami International Airport and awarding a $1.5 million contract to Perez & Perez Architects for revisions to the 2008 11th Judicial Circuit Courts and corrections facilities master plans. And they will get a report on a plan to develop and maintain several county owned properties in the downtown Miami area, coincidentally or not including Cielito Lindo, the historic courthouse that needs to be redeveloped or replaced.

6 p.m. — The first of at least two scheduled debates for the candidates in Coral Gables begins at 6 p.m. at the University of Miami’s Fieldhouse, 1245 Dauer Drive (next to the Watsco Center). rauljeannett2This “forum” put on by the Gables Chamber of Commerce every election consistently turns into a lively debate. Each group will be given 50 minutes, moderated by WLRN’s Vice President of News Tom Hudson. The first up will be the four candidates for the open seat, vacated by Jeannett Slesnick‘s move to the mayoral race. The second group will be incumbent Pat Keon against former Commissioner Wayne “Chip” Withers and the last will be the headliners, the mayoral candidates, Slesnick and former Mayor Raul Valdes-Fauli. Residents can submit questions online at events@CoralGablesChamber.com or in person on 4X6 cards that will be made available. Scheduled to end at 9 p.m.

WEDNESDAY — March 8

10 a.m. — The Doral City Council meets Wednesday and on the agenda is the $2.4 million contract for paving and stormwater improvements to H&R Paving, the purchase of 25 police vehicles for $600,000, the negotation of two contracts for towing services in the city, and the creation of a partnership with Baptist Health South to jointly develop a wellness program at Doral Legacy Park. The meeting starts at 10 a.m. at Doral City Hall, 8401 NW 53rd Terrace.

6 p.m. — Women will unite to talk about issues near and dear to them at an International Women’s Day panel raqueltalkingWednesday that will touch upon reproductive rights, workplace equality and religious discrimination. Among the panelists are Maggie Fernandez, director of the Miami-Dade League of Women Voters, Latinas for Trump co-founder Denise Galvez, Safespace Board Member Alicia Consuegra and former Miami-Dade School Board member and one-time mayoral candidate Raquel Regalado, who has been consipcuously quiet on a lot of issues lately. The panelists start their discussion at 6 p.m. and will be there through at least 8 p.m. at La Palma Restaurant, 116 Alhambra Circle.

THURSDAY — March 9

11 a.m. — The Miami-Dade Commission Chairman’s Policy Council will hear presentations from both Lowell Clary, the FDOT’s former assistant secretary for finance, and Miami-Dade Expressway transit trafficAuthority Executive Director Javier Rodriguez before they discuss the possible financial avenues for transportation projects, specifically MDX funds, PTP funds, tax increment financing and community redevelopment agencies. Seeing as how this is Chairman Esteban Bovo‘s special committee for all the important stuff, it stands to reason that this is a preview of what we might see be presented at a future commission meeting.

6:30 p.m. — The Westchester Community Council will have a public hearing Thursday to consider a land use map change for 4.5 acres west of LeJeune from 9th to 16th streets from low density residential (2.5 to 6 dwellings per acre) to medium density (13 to 25 dwellings per acre). This is an area of unincorporated Miami-Dade that is called Little Gables and could be annexed into the City Beautiful. The council could make recommendations to the county’s planning department and commission at the end of the hearing, which begins at 6:30 p.m. at Ruben Dario Middle School, 350 NW 97th Ave.

7 p.m. — Miami-Dade Schools Superintendent Alberto Carvalho, who once carvalhowas thought of as a potential Miami-Dade mayoral candidate and could be again for 2020, is speaking to the members of the Kendall Federation of Homeowners Associations at their meeting Thursday. Carvalho heads the fourth largest school district in the U.S., with 346,000 students and 52,000 employees. He is expected to talk about issues related to Kendall area schools. The meeting is at the Kendall Village Center’s Civic Pavilion in front of the Regal Cinema box office, 8625 SW 124 Ave.

FRIDAY — March 10

8:30 a.m. — Miami Beach North Beach Master Plan Steering Committeenorthbeach meets at the Normandy Shores Golf Club, 2401 Biarritz Drive. These are the people charged with turning the sleepy northern end of the city into a more bustling second or third “downtown” area. It includes the two-block Ocean Terrace, a slower, older version of Ocean Drive (ala 1988) where voters turned down a huge tower development in 2015. The steering committee is tasked with finding ways to revitalize the neighborhood and spur redevelopment while maintanining the pedestrian-friendly, modest, walkable scale that makes it one of the last vestiges of beachside old Florida.


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