NORTHWEST TALLAHASSEE, FL (WTXL) — Parents and educators at Riley Elementary say the school's environment has changed since assistant principal Gladys Robinson-Calloway was reassigned, raising concerns about student behavior, academic performance and communication with district leadership.
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During a town hall meeting in Northwest Tallahassee, parents and educators gathered with District 5 School Board Representative Marcus Nicolas to discuss the leadership change and get answers about why it happened.
For fourth-grade teacher Leah Hutchins, Robinson-Calloway was someone she could rely on when students needed additional support.
"Over the last couple years, I've had classes with lots of ESE kids and kids with lots of behavior issues, and a lot of times I could just be like, 'Go to Miss Calloway,' and they would be there for like 10 minutes, and then they would come back, they'd be fine and ready to learn," Hutchins said.
Hutchins said Robinson-Calloway built relationships with students that helped them work through behavioral challenges and return to the classroom ready to learn.
She said the change has been noticeable since Robinson-Calloway left.
"Over the last month, like it's four weeks, it's not that long, but there has been a sharp decrease in teacher morale, student morale," Hutchins said. "Students will still ask, 'When's Miss Calloway coming back?'"
Hutchins also raised concerns about what she described as an increase in student behavior issues and a decrease in academic performance.
In October, two elementary school assistant principals were reassigned to different schools.
Robinson-Calloway moved from Riley Elementary to Ruediger Elementary, while Melissa Sumner moved from Ruediger to Riley.
The district has said the changes were intended to create school leadership teams that work better together.
Nicolas acknowledged the importance of communication between district leadership and families. He also clarified that the reassignment decision was made by Superintendent Rocky Hanna, not the school board.
Nicholas said the decision followed disagreements involving the school's new principal.
"And so it was a disagreement. That's a brand new principal, and so the superintendent made the decision that after hearing from, I guess all parties, I'm assuming, right, that he made that decision," Nicholas said.
As parents continue seeking answers about the leadership change, Nicholas encouraged families to become more involved in school decisions.
He pointed to opportunities to participate in the School Advisory Council, School Improvement Team and Parent-Teacher Organization.
For parents and educators, the concerns extend beyond who holds a leadership position. They want to know how students will continue receiving the support they say helped them succeed.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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