Lubby Navarro is named to Miami-Dade School Board

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Florida Rick Scott has appointed Lubby Navarro, a Miami-Dade School Board lobbyist, to the school board’s governing body in the seat vacated by former School Board Member Carlos Curbelo, who was elected to Congress in November.

Navarro’s appointment is about to be announced any minute now (Friday afternoon). She was picked from a group of more than half a dozen wannabes that included former Miami-Dade Commissioner Lynda Bell and former Miami-Dade School Board Member Renier Diaz de la Portilla.

Best news: The charter school industry that had floated at least two potential candidates to the list, didn’t get their representative on the school board.

Worst news: Navarro could be a representative, instead, for Superintendent Alberto Carvalho, who was once a lobbyist himself, and who, las malas lenguas say, pushed hard for his girl.

Read related story: Hopefuls jostle for Carlos Curbelo’s school board seat

The others on the list of those who had expressed an interest in the job included lobbyist Daniel Diaz-Leyva, who lost his $500,000 bid for state House in November, Judith Marty, principal at iMater Academy, school teacher Carolina Blanco, once named Teacher of the Year at Coral Reef Elementary, and former teacher Ira Paul. There was at least one other charter school person’s name floated, but Ladra can’t remember right now. She was Latina, though.

Charter school critics already consider it a victory that neither of the candidates connected to that industry would be allowed to take their agenda to the county school board. Lynda Bell haters are glad the former county commissioner, who was booted from office in November, didn’t get such a soft landing.

And some people think Navarro is a good choice because she can hit the ground running. She knows the system and procedures because she has worked there for 10 years. She has allies already because she started in the office of Chairwoman Perla Tabares Hantman. She knows the legislative agenda and the school board’s priorities like the back of her hand and everybody in Tallahassee already knows her so she’ll be received warmly there.

The only concern is whether Navarro is too close to Carvalho and will protect his interests at the board. But, what the hey? He already has Hantman doing that. In fact, Carvalho and Hantman are being characterized by observers as Navarro’s fairy god parents.

What will be interesting will be to watch is the transformation from lobbyist for the entire county district, the 4th largest in the nation, to a representative for the constituents in one of its largest districts in Kendall and South Dade. Who will she leverage to get dollars and stuff for the schools in her district?

Some people are also curious as to why Navarro, who also once worked for Miami-Dade Commissioner Bruno Barreiro and the county planning department, would want to cut her paycheck practically in half to serve on the school board. Navarro currently makes $85,215 a year as executive director of government affairs and grants administration. School board members make just over $40,000. Miami-Dade Public Schools spokesman John Schuster said she would likely take an unpaid leave of absence while she serves the term.

She may have to resign her community council seat, to which she was appointed by Commissioner Dennis Moss.

But Ladra fully expects Navarro — who once almost ran for state House and has been pretty active in the local GOP serving as executive committeewoman — to run for the seat when this term finishes next year. Or, maybe she uses this as a platform to run for higher office.

But she’s already got an opponent if she does: Blanco, who was Ladra’s grassroots favorite going in, said she was serious about the seat and would likely file for the 2016 election next week.

  Carlos Curbelo, Lubby Navarro