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Broward School Board Met On Moving Forward With A Separation Agreement For Supt. Robert Runcie

MIAMI (CBSMiami) - The Broward school board met Thursday to determine if Chairwoman Dr. Rosalind Osgood can meet with embattled Superintendent Robert Runcie and General Council Barbara Myrick to come up with a mutual agreement for separation.

If and when tentative agreements are reached, they will then be brought to a public School Board Meeting for discussion and approval.

During last Tuesday's School Board workshop, Runcie told board member Lori Alhadeff that "I'm willing to discuss the path of a mutual agreement of separation."

"If this is going to give you peace mind, if it's going to give you and any other parents that remain mad at me because I don't see what else there is I can do, if this going to give you that, I'll step aside so you can have the peace that you were looking for," said Runcie.

Alhadeff, whose 17-year-old daughter Alyssa was killed in the 2018 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, blames Runcie for it.

"The lack of school safety measures, the lack of policies, the lack of training, are some of the failures that led up to that tragedy. I know that Mr. Runcie didn't pull the trigger but his lack of leadership as Superintendent led up to what happened that day," she said.

Runcie and Myrick were arrested last week. Runcie is charged with perjury, Myrick with unlawful disclosure of grand jury proceedings. On Wednesday, Runcie entered a plea of not guilty to the charge.

Runcie's charge stems from testimony about school safety funding tied to the grand jury investigation into the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.

Gov. Ron DeSantis ordered the grand jury investigation months following the massacre.

Prosecutors say Runcie spoke with witnesses in a case involving Broward County Public Schools former technology chief Tony Hunter, who is accused of steering a lucrative contract to a friend. Runcie is accused of denying he spoke to them while under oath.

This week it became evident most board members felt the arrest would be a distraction and the superintendent could not effectively do his job. Two board members lost loved ones in the Parkland Massacre. Many of those families said it's time for a change. Tony Montalto, whose daughter Gina was killed in the shooting, said Runcie failed to make the necessary changes even before the shooting

"We saw a district that was in disarray. We saw the issues with the $800 million bond program that went on and on and on," he said.

Osgood credits Runcie with pulling up the F schools in underserved communities but said his downfall was the Marjory Stoneman Douglas massacre.

"Unfortunately we had 17 individuals to be killed in the school, an act committed by an evil person, we know who it is and from that evil that has occurred has caused so much pain and hurt to our entire community," she said.

Runcie lawyers called the move dirty politics and say he's done nothing wrong. But due process or not, Alhadef says Runcie and Myrick's departure would help her move forward.

"For me, it's one step in the healing process and one step into holding Mr. Runcie responsible," added Alhadef.

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