JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- A Duval County public elementary school principal is being demoted after allegations she did not follow proper testing procedure for the FCATs.
Sharon Sanders went to Monday night's school board meeting prepared to fight for her job. She arrived with not only her lawyer, but dozens of character witnesses.
Teachers, parents and community members paraded to the podium, pleading with board members to allow Sanders to remain principal at the Southside's Windy Hill Elementary School.
Tad Delegal, Sanders' attorney, told Action News, "Just to be merely demoted or publicly humiliated is truly shameful."
Sanders, principal at Windy Hill for the past five years, was under investigation for allegedly not complying with FCAT testing standards. But she learned Thursday the school board would vote this week to demote her to assistant principal at Landmark Middle School and to take a pay cut.
Delegal said, "They claim there was no effort to remove items from the bulletin board in the testing center. Ms. Sanders says, 'yes, there was.'"
Delegal claims his client was denied due process.
The school district investigation cited multiple allegations against Sanders. The board voted unanimously to demote her to assistant principal at Landmark Middle School. Board members said the move was made in the best interest of the district's students.
