State facilitator to mediate upcoming Collier school board meeting

COLLIER COUNTY, Fla.- Could the Collier County School District be headed for another accreditation problem?

WINK News confirmed the board is having a difficult time working together and is paying a state facilitator to mediate an upcoming school board meeting.

This time, the fighting between board members is forcing them to pay a state mediator $1,000 to keep the peace at a board meeting in March.

The mediator is from the Florida School Board Association and was a former school board member who will offer guidance to the board.

Paying a mediator to step in is significant because it shows the board isn’t working well together, the same problem it had back in 2008.

The issue was so monumental, the district was at risk of losing its accreditation.

If that had happened, it could have put a student’s chances of getting into a good college at risk. However, the board was able to move ahead and the district kept its accreditation.

Now, seven years later, it looks like the board is in a similar position.

WINK News reached out to board chairwoman Kathleen Curatolo for comment, but she did not respond.

The special school board meeting is on March 31.

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