Hillsborough County Public Schools alerted parents of students at four district schools on Jan. 17 that the leadership of those schools would be replaced.

Families of students at Mango Elementary School, Dover Elementary School, Pizzo Elementary and Palm River Elementary were sent a message Wednesday afternoon about the impending change:

This is an important message about your child’s school from Hillsborough County Public Schools.

This afternoon, Superintendent Eakins met with the State Board of Education about our district’s turnaround plan to improve progress at [Dover/Mango/Pizzo/Palm River] Elementary School.

We are making significant gains at your child's school. The data we are looking at every day shows this positive progress. Your principal has been a key part of this improvement.

We shared that with the state board.

However, the state board members felt we need to do things differently. They’ve directed our district to make changes, which includes replacing the leadership at Dover.

We will be working with the State Commissioner of Education to look at Dover Elementary’s specific situation before any changes take place.

It’s very important to maintain consistency and continue the gains we are making right now – while also meeting the state board’s goals.

We want to make sure everything we do is focused on what is best for the students in our schools.

We will keep you posted as we move forward.

A spokesperson for the district said no decisions about the leadership at the schools had been been made. Superintendent Jeff Eakins will discuss each school's situation with the Commission of Education before any changes were made.