Florida Official Threatens School Board with Continued Oversight Over Alleged Speech Violations

(GAINESVILLE, Fla.) — In an ongoing dispute between the state and a local school board, Florida’s education commissioner warned the Alachua County School Board (ACSB) at an Oct. 7 meeting that it would continue to be monitored after a second member criticized a right-wing public figure on social media.

The Florida Education Commissioner Anastasios Kamoutsas called out  Alachua County School Board Vice Chair Tina Certain for comments she made on social media following the death of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, and her alleged behavior at a previous meeting in which the Florida Department of Education determined that she had violated the First Amendment rights of a parent. 

In a since-deleted post on her personal Facebook page, Certain referred to Kirk as a “31-year-old uneducated white boy” who has been “glorified.”

Certain’s comments come less than two months after ACSB Chair Sarah Rockwell made comments on a friend’s post regarding the death of Hulk Hogan using her personal Facebook account. “Oh, did Hulk die? I didn’t even know. Good,” she wrote, “One less MAGA in the world.”  Rockwell later apologized for the comments on her school board member Facebook page. 

The comments led to a tense school board meeting on July 31, where parent Jeremy Clepper demanded that Rockwell resign. After Clepper used his allotted time to speak, he engaged in a back-and-forth with audience members, which prompted Certain to call for his removal from the meeting. She later rescinded the order at the advice of the school board attorney.

As a result of these accusations, the ACSB will be monitored by the Florida Department of Education through the end of the school year.

“The state board of education and I will continue to monitor the Alachua County School Board until it complies with the law, protects parental rights, and ensures that every student is put first and that every citizen is treated with the respect and the dignity that they are entitled to,” Kamoutsas said at the Oct. 7 ACSB meeting.

 “I’m outraged by the toxic culture, the pattern of intimidation, and the dereliction of duty that this board has repeatedly demonstrated,” he added.“The First Amendment, state law, and parents’ rights have been violated and frequently ignored by the Alachua County School Board.”  

“Meanwhile, board members behave as if the law doesn’t apply to themselves. This is unacceptable in any public institution, but it is especially egregious in our schools, where accountability, transparency, and professionalism are non-negotiable,” he said.

 During the meeting’s public comment period, several people expressed their support for the ACSB and rejection of state interference in local matters.

 Kamoustas did not stay for public comment, however. 

“The League [of Women Voters] always stands for home rule, and we understand perfectly that you folks are in the position you’re in, because local control has been taken away by the state,” said League representative Donna Waller. “We will stand behind you forever as you struggle for local control of our school system.” 

 Rock Aboujaoude Jr., a candidate for U.S. Congress, addressed the controversy over Certain’s social media posts concerning the death of Charlie Kirk.

“While I understand that there are issues with the remarks of Ms. Certain,” he said, “to threaten her [with] censorship or removal as a result of a private post on her social media, goes against everything that we as Americans stand for. This is not the American way. This is political theater, and it’s designed not to elevate discourse but to intimidate dissenters. The rightful remedy for poor speech is better speech, rebuttal, debate, exposure, not censorship,” he told the board.  

 Board member Janine Plavac asked for clarity from school board attorney David Delaney, about a workshop board members attended regarding best practices for the use of personal social media accounts. She asked if adding a disclaimer to social media accounts stating that the page is personal and the views expressed are their own would subject board members to less scrutiny. 

Delaney said that the approach is a recommended best practice based on the U.S. Supreme Court decision Lindke v Freed (2024), which gives elected officials more control over their social media accounts but that he couldn’t promise it would lead to less scrutiny.

 Certain addressed this issue during her allotted time.

 “The page that I made the comment on was my personal page, and so it shows that I didn’t get any less scrutiny,” Certain explained during the meeting.  “But I made it in my personal capacity on a Sunday afternoon with my personal device that I spend my own money on.”

“ [T]hose are my feelings. I didn’t purport to speak for you, Mr. Vu, Dr McNealy, or Dr Rockwell,” she said referring to her fellow board members who attended the meeting.“Those are Tina Certain’s views, and they were taken out of context, so I don’t feel like I have to have to justify that,” she said.

 In his remarks, Kamoustas told Certain that he will see her at the Nov. 13 State Board of Education meeting, where she should be prepared to answer “some very difficult questions.”