The League of Women Voters of Manatee County Education Issues Committee observes the Manatee County School Board meetings for items of interest to citizens and the League and notes adherence, or lack of adherence, to good governance procedures and the sunshine laws. The following are the key points from the school board meeting held on September 9, 2025.
The meeting was called to order at 5:31 p.m. by Chair Choate. Mr. Tatem read the district vision followed by the invocation given by Brother Gio Gonzalez of the Suncoast Baptist Church. Chair Choate then led the Pledge of Allegiance.
Approval of the Agenda for Public Hearing - approved 5-0.
Chair Choate then gaveled the meeting closed and opened again for the Public Hearing for 2025-2026 Final Millage Rates and Final Budget.
Deputy Superintendent Sellers made a presentation referencing the final millage rates and final budget for 2025-2026 after reminding the Board that they saw the preliminary budget earlier in the year. She indicated that once the millage and final budget are adopted then it goes to the tax collector. She referred Board Members to various specific pages as she reviewed the Budget Book and process. The final budget for the 2025-2026 fiscal year is $1,747,977,849. The final millage is 6.304.
Links to the presentation and the Budget Book for 2025-2026 are here:
Public Comments: None
New Business (Non-Consent Items)
Approval of Final Millage Rates for Fiscal Year 2025-2026. The Board voted 5-0 in favor of each of the following eight recommendations by the Superintendent.
Required Local Effort, Including Prior Period Funding Adjustment Millage for the Fiscal Year 2025-2026 of 3.0560 mills.
Capital Outlay Millage for the Fiscal Year 2025-20256 of 1.5000 mills.
Discretionary Operating Millage for the Fiscal Year 2025-2026 of 0.7480 mills.
Discretionary Capital Improvement Millage for the Fiscal Year 2025-2026 of 0.0000 mills.
Additional Voted Millage for the Fiscal Year 2025-2026 of 1.0000 mills.
Debt Millage for the Fiscal Year 2025- 2026 of 0.0000 mills.
Resolution 2025-005 - Resolution Adopting Final Millage Rates
Resolution 2025-008 - FDOE Form ESE524 - Resolution Determining Revenues and Millages Levied
https://legistarweb-
Approval of the Final Budget for 2025-2026 in the amount of $1,747,977,849. Approved 5-0.
Mr. Kennedy asked Ms. Sellers to respond to the public question as to what is the district doing with increased income due to the increased value of homes. He clarified that when values are going up, total millage goes down. Ms. Spray wanted people to understand the chart shows what we charge (local effort) may not be the same as other districts as percent is different due to relative home values and number of homes in their district. She clarified the district was not spending more than they are taking in.
Approval of the Annual Financial Report and All Official Parts Thereof for the Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 2025 (No Fiscal Impact) – Approved 5-0. Links to these documents:
Superintendent Remarks. Mr. Chapman thanked Ms. Sellers and her budget team for their months and months putting this together.
Board Comments
Mr. Tatem made the analogy of going to his reunion and meeting someone who worked at the water treatment plant and he was fascinated with what the man does as everyone just expects to turn on the tap and get clean water – that is what the public thinks about the district budget.
Ms. Felton reiterated what had been said praising the entire finance department.
Mr. Kennedy said the district’s budget and how the money is spent is a big economic driver for the county.
Public Hearing Adjourned at 6:08 p.m. and the General Meeting reconvened at 6:17 p.m. by Chair Choate.
Approval of the Agenda as Amended for the General Meeting– approval 5-0
Prior to approving the agenda, Ms. Spray made a motion, seconded by Mr. Tatem to pull the approval of the contract for the new superintendent because she did not receive the item for her perusal at least 48 hours before the meeting. She indicated the entire process had been transparent until this point and therefore was not properly published. Mr. Tatem said people are here and there is support for the superintendent and on the other hand there may be some who would have liked more time but it would not have made a difference in their vote. To him it was an administrative item. Mr. Choate said this date has been set for 4 or 5 months and if people were really interested in this item they would have looked at it that morning. He pointed out there are only one or two differences in this contract compared to ones from the past. Mr. Dye sent out pages and asked what members liked and did not like. He asked Mr. Dye if there was anything legally wrong and Mr. Dye replied no. Ms. Felton said she had sent her comments to Mr. Dye and he responded and there was not anything in there that she had any reservations about. Ms. Felton said, “We trusted the Chair to negotiate on our behalf. I am not going to support this motion.” Mr. Kennedy said he had nothing left to say but appreciates Mr. Spray’s concerns. He said “it did come late and we trusted Mr. Choate to negotiate for us. We were elected to do this for our community.” Ms. Spray’s motion was defeated 1-4 with Ms. Spray as the only yes.
Public Comments - None
Consent Items – Three consent items were approved 5-0.
New Business (Non-Consent Items)
Approval of the Budget Amendments for June 2025 (No Financial Impact). Approved 5-0.
Year-to-Date Charter School Financial Statement Summary Through June 30, 2025.
Approved 5-0.
Approval of New Job Description of Associate Superintendent, Administration and Strategic Engagement (General Fund). Approved 5-0.
Chair Choate commented to Mr. Chapman that this is his own new job description, tweaking what his original job was and adding more to it. [LWV note: Mr. Chapman’s prior job before assuming the role of interim superintendent was classified on the 12-month SAMP pay scale as D15. His new job is classified as D17.]
New Business (No Superintendent Recommendation)
Approve the Contract for the New Superintendent for the School District of Manatee Count. Approved 5-0.
Mr. Dye thanked Dr. Vogel for his help in the process and highlighted features of the contract. Link to the contract is here
Term is from today to June 30, 2028. The annual base salary is $245,000. Performance reviews require establishing goals for each year with annual review done in June each year. Mr. Dye reviewed sick days, vacation days, personal days, retirement, etc. The Superintendent will participate in a leadership program set up by state. A new provision in this contract is an annual salary bonus of $10,000 if the district achieves A status, and an annual salary bonus of $ 2,500 if the district's graduation rate is 90% or higher. Another change is going from a 90-day notice to a 30-day notice for termination without cause. On or before March 31, 2028, the parties agree to mutually determine if this Agreement will be extended beyond the June 30, 2028, end of contract date.
Mr. Tatem questioned the goals part of the contract and encouraged the Board and Dr. Breslin to do this informally throughout, so that regular feedback is given and there is no repeat of what we just had. He also suggested she would benefit from a professional coach outside of the system. He questioned why she would receive a bonus for outstanding performance by the district, while no one else did, when they had done the work that earned her the bonus.
Mr. Tatem moved and Ms. Spray seconded to remove the portion about the annual salary bonus for performance. The motion failed 2-3 with Mr. Tatem and Ms. Spray for and Ms. Felton, Mr. Kennedy, and Mr. Choate against.
Mr. Choate explained that the performance bonus is outlined in the contract as an incentive for the leader, likening it to the quarterback receiving more money than the entire team. Mr. Tatem said this is a public agency, and the analogy is not equal to a private organization.
Mr. Kennedy said we had authorized the chair to come up with the contract, so adding things on the fly is not good, which would take us back to Ms. Spray’s earlier comment about timing. Ms. Spray said this is the only time we can talk about it, and the item of bonuses was one of her concerns as well. Ms. Spray cited comparisons of superintendents’ salaries in other districts. Ms. Spray said it is the Superintendent’s role to reach those high goal,s and she does not think extra reward is needed. Ms. Felton said she understood both of their points but believed “we do that in the future and not now.” Ms. Felton pointed out the contract has been agreed upon by Dr. Breslin and her attorney and our Chair and the Board attorney and this is not the time to take the contract apart. Mr. Choate explained how they reached the starting point of the salary. Mr. Kennedy thought the salary is fair and would be uncomfortable with paying a female superintendent less than her male predecessor.
Swear In Superintendent Dr. Laurie Breslin
Dr. Breslin, accompanied by her family, was sworn in by Rev. Dr. Robert S. Bledsoe, Trinity United Methodist Church. Dr. Breslin received a standing ovation and took her seat in the chair vacated by Mr. Chapman.
Superintendent Remarks
Dr. Breslin thanked the Board for putting their trust in her. She thanked all those who came to support her on this Tuesday night, when there are places you would rather be. She acknowledged her “amazing husband and family and my pastor,” saying, “I owe you some extra volunteer hours at church. We are in such a wonderful place here in Manatee County and we want it to continue.”
Board Comments
Mr. Kennedy stated what a special time this is for him to have Dr. Breslin as the Superintendent. From the search he indicated she is certainly admired by the district and public. He said he was already celebrating.
Mr. Tatem extended his congratulations to Dr. Breslin. He wanted to be sure everyone is following all the safety protocols in the district like wearing identification. He shared a story about Cincinnatus who was summoned from his plow to lead the state and then returned to his plow. He thanked Mr. Chapman who did the same thing.
Ms. Felton recounted the one-on-one interview with Dr. Breslin as the first time in person. Ms. Felton said she is even more excited to have Dr. Breslin in this role and said, “I know we will work together in this role.” And to Mr. Chapman, she said, “Kevin, good job.”
Ms. Spray stated she has had many meetings with Dr. Breslin and does not think there is more she can say “but know you can pull us to an A.” Ms. Spray added, “We are focusing on grade 3 but graduation rate needs to go up. I think you are ready to work 24/7.”
Mr. Choate said there is nothing like a home-grown person taking over. He said, “I know the pride you have in Manatee County will only grow.” He said Dr. Breslin’s willingness to step up is appreciated. And Mr. Choate said, “To the public, we got a good one!”
Adjournment 7:15 p.m.
The meeting was well run and efficient. Discussions were cordial even when there were disagreements. This was a very good meeting. The Board Members are clearly united in their support of the new Superintendent.
We appreciate the time it must take for each of the Board Members to pore through the materials and attend meetings with personnel in preparation for each meeting. Ms. Spray’s frequent reminders that she reads everything thoroughly (e.g. “tooth and nail”) indicates the effort it takes.
Ms. Felton brought clarity to the conversation about the Superintendent’s contract when she reminded her colleagues that this was a negotiated contract and could not be changed on the fly.
The observers appreciated Ms. Spray’s concern about the short timing of making the Superintendent’s contract available and the responsiveness of other board members to strive to get information out at least 48 hours before a meeting. School Board Policy 0165.1 requires that the agenda and meeting materials be published seven days prior to the meeting. Mr. Choate’s inquiry of Mr. Dye regarding the legality of only publishing the Superintendent’s contract the morning of the meeting was observed to be insensitive to the responsibility of keeping the public informed. Late publications have been observed to happen more frequently than in the past.
It seemed odd that the Interim Superintendent would make the recommendation for his own new job description, which resulted in a promotion, increased salary, and additional supervisory responsibilities. It would have been more appropriate for this to be done by the new superintendent as part of any reorganization she may deem necessary.
Mr. Kennedy made a comment about not being comfortable if they were to pay a woman less than her male predecessor. It was irrelevant, as the new Superintendent is making more than her male predecessor.
Unfortunately, after the swearing in of Dr. Breslin, remarks were made off mic and could not be heard by those viewing from home. Perhaps Ms. Spray’s presentation of a token to Dr. Breslin would have been more appropriate in private.
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