Superintendent Arrested for Drunk Driving

Escambia County School Superintendent Jim Paul Escambia Co. Schools Superintendent Jim Paul says a copy of the arrest report will be put in his file & he will undergo counseling. Click to read his full statement.

by Jennifer Dale

Published: Fri, January 11, 2008 - 11:43 am CST Last Updated: Fri, January 11, 2008 - 12:47 pm CST

One day after the arrest of Escambia County School Superintendent Jim Paul, he says he will undergo counseling. Paul was arrested yesterday in Pinellas County, Florida. Deputies say they stopped Paul around 3:30 yesterday morning. They say he was speeding and weaving. In a statement released Friday morning, Paul says he will be held accountable in the same fashion as other employees accused of similar charges. Paul says he will undergo counseling, paperwork will be placed in his file and he will talk to student government associations about the experience. News 5 has a crew in Pensacola. We will be talking to Paul this afternoon. News 5's Debbie Williams will have a complete report tonight on News 5 at Six.

Here's the full statement released by Paul this morning:

"Today I must offer a most heartfelt apology to the employees and students of our school district, as well as the community at large, for the poor judgment I exercised that led to my arrest on driving-under-the-influence charges yesterday in Pinellas County.

I have strived for the past seven years as superintendent of our school district to exhibit the highest personal standards of conduct as an example to all district stakeholders and have expected the same of our employees and students. Obviously, my recent actions have fallen far short of that example and I quite frankly find it difficult to find the appropriate words to relate my remorse for the shame and embarrassment I have brought to my position as the school district*s chief executive and to the school district itself.

Clearly, I have disappointed a great number of people. Just as clearly, I violated state law and must now accept the consequences of my actions in the legal, personal, and professional arenas.

It is important to me that I be held personally accountable as employees have for similar transgressions and I follow the same process that any individual in our school district would face. To that end, I have instructed Dr. Alan Scott, assistant superintendent for human resources, to take the following actions:

1. A copy of the arrest report will be placed in my personnel file
2. Appropriate documentation will be filed with the Professional Practices Commission in Tallahassee for its consideration
3. I will be referred to our Employee Assistance Program for counseling

In addition, I plan to schedule meetings with student government associations in our high schools to discuss my recent experience in an effort to communicate with students in general and bring a *real life* example of the hazards of such actions.

I am proud of the accomplishments of our school district over the past seven years and am most proud of the daily performance of our teachers and staff. I apologize once again for the distraction that these recent events have caused. We have a great deal of work in front of us on a variety of fronts and I am eager to move forward with your help and place the focus of our efforts squarely where it belongs*on the achievement of our students."

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ethansmuma Says:

Fri, Jan 11, 2008 at 12:45 pm

I may be out of line, but I dont think he should be allowed to advise the assistant super of what will be done or placed in his file. Some sort of board or panal should decide the actions or repremands placed in his “file”. Futhermore, if my children were in his district I would pust strongly for a resignation. What kind of example does that set? “HERE KIDS YOU CAN BREAK THE LAW AND SO LONG AS YOU SAY YOU ARE SORRY IT’S OK AND IT DOESNT HAVE ANY LONGTERM EFFECTS. I think an example needs to be made out of him.