Alafia Elementary School under scrutiny after parents complain

VALRICO — Parents at Alafia Elementary were looking for action when they recently took their gripes about the principal of the A-rated school to the School Board.

They complained about teacher turnover and morale and student safety on campus, and said they were dismayed by the results of a survey of the school climate.

Hillsborough superintendent MaryEllen Elia is dispatching a team to assess the school and help diagnose its problems. The committee will conduct interviews for three days, beginning Wednesday.

"No names. People can say what they like,'' said Elia, updating the School Board on the Alafia situation Tuesday.

She said the assessment group will report to district administrators, the principal, school employees and parents.

"When we have issues that come up, we have to listen, we have to work through those issues,'' Elia said. "And we have to use a fair process to look at what’s happening at a school and then come up with a plan.''

She said district officials have stepped up their involvement at Alafia after a dozen parents showed up at a board meeting two weeks ago to complain about principal Ellyn Smith.

The district was already aware of many of their concerns. School officials have held six meetings regarding the Alafia situation since June, Elia said. She also met directly with the principal.

The district already had plans to conduct one-on-one interviews with teachers in mid October in the effort to create a plan for Alafia, long considered one of the best schools in the county.

"I want to make it clear that this is something that we have been working on,'' Elia said.

Alafia is one of the few schools to have earned straight A’s since the state began grading schools. But parents say its storied reputation is endangered by campus tension.

School Board members rarely hear parents complain about principals during their public meetings. Chairwoman Jennifer Faliero, who represents eastern Hillsborough, said she had never seen so many turn out at once.

She was pleased to see Elia getting more involved.

"When a school is polarized, it’s not a healthy environment for students or staff to be part of, and it filters out in to the community as well,'' Faliero said.

Letitia Stein, Times Staff Writer

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