Duval County superintendent earns high marks in first-year evaluation
Duval County Schools Superintendent Dr. Christopher Bernier received high praise from the school board after completing his first year at the helm, with a recent evaluation rating his performance “highly effective,” posting an overall score of 3.6 out of a possible 4.0.
The school board assessed Dr. Bernier in five key categories, in addition to providing an overall score. Here’s how he performed in each area:
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Finance: 3.51
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Communication: 3.54
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Administrative Leadership: 3.65
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Operational Leadership: 3.61
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Curriculum and Instruction: 3.67
In a statement about the evaluation, the board said:
In his first year as superintendent Dr. Bernier spent time listening and learning from all stakeholder groups while making many difficult decisions to move the district towards operational efficiency and educational excellence for all students.
Overall, Dr. Bernier received highly effective ratings across all performance indicators, paralleling the success of the district in receiving its first A rating.
Expectations remain high for the 2025-2026 school year as there is always room for growth with the implementation of a refreshed strategic plan.
Duval County School Board
Although Board Chair Charlotte Joyce was unavailable for a recent interview, she previously spoke about Dr. Bernier’s impact during the district’s celebration for earning its first A rating.
“I think you have to have a strong leader that can put people in the right places. And I think Dr. Bernier has done that, and that’s what really put us over the top—getting those right leaders in the buildings, climate and cultures, everything, delivering the instruction to the students. We did it, and I’m so excited about that,” Joyce said.
Dr. Bernier also submitted a self-evaluation at the end of May, before the release of official school and district grade data. In his review, he highlighted several initiatives from his first year:
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“Know the Line” Campaign: A board policy created in response to misconduct incidents at Douglas Anderson School of the Arts.
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“Be Safe, Be Seen” Initiative: A program aimed at keeping students safe on their way to and from school.
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Community Engagement: Hosting seven town halls across the district.
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Strategic Planning: Leading a refresh of the district’s strategic plan.
At the time of his self-evaluation, Dr. Bernier noted that early numbers on student achievement and school grades looked very promising.
When asked about the district’s recent success, Dr. Bernier was quick to share credit with the entire school community.
“There’s always a little bit of understanding that I know I helped drive some of this, but when I talked about leadership and culture and how leadership builds culture, I will also tell you that when I got here very early on, people would say, ‘What’s one thing you noticed?’ I noticed the quality of the individual. We’ve got really great principals, teachers, paraprofessionals. They really go all out,” Dr. Bernier said.
The full evaluation can be found here.
Ariel Schiller joined the News4Jax team as an evening reporter in September of 2023. She comes to Jacksonville from Tallahassee where she worked at ABC27 as a Weekend Anchor/Reporter for 10 months.