Broward County鈥檚 new superintendent is no stranger to South Florida public schools. Dr. Peter Licata grew up in a big Italian family in Pompano Beach and spent almost three decades as a teacher, principal and administrator right over the county line in the School District of Palm Beach County.
WLRN鈥檚 education reporter Kate Payne spent time there to find out more about the kind of leader Licata is 鈥� and the people and experiences that have shaped him.
'Doc's a mentor'
As soon as I walked into Principal Dominick Rizzatti鈥檚 office at Eagles Landing Middle School in Boca Raton, he made sure I saw what was hanging on the wall.
鈥淭hat's the picture of the regional office team. So in the center of the picture is Dr. Peter Licata,鈥� Rizzatti explained. 鈥淒oc's been 鈥� Dr. Licata has been a mentor. It's just nice to see him. So I keep him up there.鈥�
I met with Rizzatti the day after the Broward County School Board voted unanimously to approve Licata鈥檚 as the district鈥檚 new superintendent. Even though Licata had officially left Palm Beach schools, Rizzatti told me he has no plans of taking down the photo.
鈥淗e鈥檒l be up there. He鈥檚 not coming down,鈥� Rizzatti said. 鈥淏roward County鈥檚 lucky. But he鈥檚 not coming down.鈥�
Rizzatti and Licata go way back 鈥� before Licata became the regional superintendent overseeing Eagles Landing and dozens of other schools in the southern part of Palm Beach County.
鈥淚 was a teacher at Olympic Heights High School,鈥� RIzzatti said. 鈥淭hat's how I got to know him. He was my principal.鈥�
Licata was inspired to go into teaching after the death of his father, a longtime algebra teacher and coach. Starting out as a teacher and basketball coach at John F. Kennedy Middle School in Riviera Beach, Licata worked his way up the ranks in the district.
He鈥檚 known for his devotion to his family, his sense of humor, his attention to detail 鈥� the kind of person who doesn鈥檛 forget a face or a name 鈥� and for really listening to people.
鈥淕ood decisions are made collaboratively and catastrophic decisions are made in isolation 鈥� that's his leadership style,鈥� Rizzatti said. 鈥淲hen you trust that the person leading you means what he says and says what he means, that goes a long way.鈥�
For Rizzatti, Licata was more than just a teacher, a principal, a boss.
鈥淢y kids were both born under his leadership as my principal. He was at the hospital for both of their births,鈥� Rizzatti said. (His wife confirmed this).
鈥淗is guidance has led me to help a lot of kids,鈥� Rizzatti added. 鈥淚t chokes me up. I love him! I love him. It's a huge loss for us.鈥�
'He must have seen something in me'
Next door at Sunrise Park Elementary School, Principal Alicia Steiger was seeing some summer school students off on a field trip.
She鈥檚 been the principal of this school for more than a decade 鈥� but she didn鈥檛 always believe she was cut out for leadership. (A week after we spoke, Steiger was promoted to be the Elementary Instructional Superintendent for the South Region.)
鈥淒r. Licata is probably the reason that I'm in administration,鈥� Steiger told WLRN.
He hired her as an assistant principal back when he was the principal of Boca Raton Community Middle School.
鈥淚 did not think for a minute that I was going to get that job. Did not think for a minute,鈥� she said. 鈥淗e must have seen something in me that maybe at the end of that interview, I didn't see. So I'm super thankful for that.鈥�
That鈥檚 one of Licata鈥檚 gifts, Steiger says.
鈥淗e is in the business of really seeing people's attributes and their leadership styles and tapping into that,鈥� she said.
'People think of him as a politician'
That was a common refrain among the district officials and former colleagues who spoke to 港澳天下彩about Licata 鈥� that he鈥檚 a collector of people and a builder of relationships.
Former coworkers say he's competitive, and he's clearly ambitious 鈥� in recent years, he's applied to at least 10 other superintendent searches in Florida and elsewhere.
鈥淚 think that people think of him as a politician. And I don't mean that in the most negative sense. I mean that in terms of the shaking hands and kissing babies kind, right?鈥� said , a former Palm Beach County school board member and the chair of the Coalition for Black Student Achievement.
鈥淲hat he adds to that is setting the vision and doing the work,鈥� Robinson said. 鈥淲orking relationships for the common good.鈥�
Robinson, who served on the board from 2000 to 2022, said she鈥檚 seen Licata build relationships in communities of color in Palm Beach.
鈥淓verywhere he has gone in the Black community 鈥� when I've been there 鈥� he's got a story that connects whoever he's talking to. Like his dad was their coach or he started teaching at Kennedy [Middle School] with them. It's just like, dog, you know everybody?鈥� she said with a laugh. 鈥淚t鈥檚 like old school conversation, you know what I mean?鈥�
One of Licata鈥檚 main pitches to get the top job in Broward is that he can help all students succeed and make Broward an A-rated district 鈥� like the School District of Palm Beach County. But, as Robinson points out, Palm Beach schools are not 鈥淎鈥漵 for everyone.
Black and Latino students in Palm Beach scored 20%-30% lower than their white classmates in language arts and math on in the 2021-2022 school year.
鈥淚 think we all have some degree of responsibility up and down the food chain, right?鈥� Robinson said. 鈥淣obody's exempt. We're all cogs in the wheel. And the wheel has allowed these disparities to perpetuate. We could point to examples of decreasing disparities. But the real question is, did we do everything we could? I know we didn鈥檛.鈥�
Licata dismisses discrimination allegations as 'frivolous'
Candidly, it was difficult to find people willing to criticize Licata on the record.
Some district staff and community advocates said they simply didn't know him well enough to form an opinion, like the head of the county's Hispanic Education Coalition.
But Licata has faced challenges.
He was named in a 2011 lawsuit, filed by a biracial teacher who claimed Licata created a hostile working environment, made racially discriminatory comments to him and denied him career opportunities.
A judge ultimately dismissed the case, which was later detailed in a written by Fordham University School of Law Professor Tanya Kater铆 Hern谩ndez, who鈥檚 an expert in anti-discrimination law.
Licata has called the lawsuit frivolous and says the fact that the claims were dismissed 鈥渟ays enough鈥�.
One of Licata鈥檚 first big tasks after becoming regional superintendent was handling a scandal at . The school鈥檚 principal had refused to say the Holocaust was a historical fact.
鈥淭he way that Dr. Licata handled that very challenging situation was tremendous,鈥� said Joshua Davidow, the principal of nearby Don Estridge High Tech Middle School.
Licata ushered in a and helped mend relationships in the community, said Davidow, who is Jewish.
鈥淲hen you're talking about national news or things of international news 鈥� it takes a very skilled leader to be able to navigate those waters,鈥� Davidow said. 鈥淗opefully, Broward never has to have anything like that. But if there was tumultuous water, I do feel very confident to have Dr. Licata at the helm.鈥�
As Licata takes on his new job leading the country鈥檚 sixth-largest school system, he鈥檚 inheriting a district that鈥檚 been plagued by dysfunction, distrust and tragedy.
Those challenges will put Licata鈥檚 diplomatic and political skills to the test. His supporters hope that Broward gives him the chance to lead.
