Latest news with #FloridaDepartmentofEducation
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
‘We can't hide kids:' Sumter County superintendent promises change after student records scandal
Sumter County Schools Superintendent Logan Brown greeted reporters at the door first thing Monday morning and made no secret of his reasoning to call a rare press conference at the small district: a need to show change was coming as he focused on rebuilding trust. 'We can't hide kids,' he said. 'We have to educate them to the highest standard, and that's exactly what we're going to do going forward.' Less than a year into his tenure, Brown accepted responsibility and blame for a scheme made public by a 53-page report released by the Florida Department of Education last week that said for six years, the district falsified student records in order to boost its ratings and funding. The plan centered around a program named SOAR. According to the report, the district moved approximately 200 low-performing students out of classrooms in their zoned school and into virtual classes. The investigation found that in some cases, the district never notified parents. Brown said several staff had been terminated and the administrators involved had left before he took over. He said the district would not have to give any money back. 'This is something that happened in the past, and we want to go forward and focus on the great things that we're doing,' he said. 'The only thing that I can commit to you as the leader of the school district now is that this will never happen again.' Online and in-person Monday, residents celebrated the notes of transparency the district was sounding. Mistrust has run deep in some corners of the county, and the response suggested Brown was moving the district in the right direction. Ironically, three of the four schools involved increased their ratings after SOAR ended and students returned to their normal classrooms. Two of the schools are now A-rated. Click here to download our free news, weather and smart TV apps. And click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Virtual job fair will interview teachers for Orange County schools
Orange County Public Schools will host a virtual job for for educators on June 24. Multiple schools will do interviews for in-person teaching positions for the 2025-2026 school year. To qualify, you must have a certification by the Florida Department of Education. The job fair will be held from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. on Career fair Plus. Click here to register. Click here to download our free news, weather and smart TV apps. And click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
DeSantis aide Anastasios Kamoutsas elevated to Education Commissioner
The Turlington Building, which houses the Florida Department of Education, stands in the foreground, with the Tallahassee skyline, including the Capitol building, beyond. Photo taken from the FAMU campus on Dec. 31, 2024. (Photo by Jay Waagmeester/Florida Phoenix) Anastasios Kamoutsas, deputy chief of staff for Gov. Ron DeSantis, received unanimous approval from the Florida Board of Education Wednesday to serve as the state's next education commissioner. Florida's education commissioner plays a major role shaping education policy in a state that has drawn national attention for its contentious policies on library book removals, and diversity, equity, and inclusion, as well as its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. 'If given this opportunity, you can rest assured that I will take the baton and continue to run the race,' Kamoutsas told the Board of Education Wednesday morning. Education commissioner to leave post, become interim president at University of West Florida He started at the Department of Education in 2019, serving as general counsel and eventually as chief of staff, before joining the governor's office in 2023. DeSantis came out in full support of Kamoutsas Tuesday, saying 'Stasi Kamoutsas has delivered on important issues like parental rights, school choice, and fighting back against radical ideologies in education.' The job opened after Education Commissioner Manny Diaz Jr. was named interim president of the University of West Florida. He will take that job in July, making Wednesday's meeting likely his last as commissioner. Kamoutsas' approval as commissioner is contingent on Diaz being named the official president of UWF after a search, board Chair Ben Gibson said. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX 'A lot of times in these situations, we are taking somewhat of a leap of faith in having a commissioner come in, … Here we have an opportunity, members, I believe, to choose someone we don't have to guess, really, how they're going to perform,' Gibson said. 'And someone who's been in the trenches at every level of the department, has been involved in every major education decision that the state of Florida has made over the last six years.' During the public comment period, political figures lined up to praise Kamoutsas, including Florida International University President and former Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nuñez, New College of Florida President and former Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran, former House Speaker Jose Oliva, and Broward County College President Torey Alston. 'If I had to use one world to describe him, I'd say he's relentless,' Oliva said, while others praised him for his work ethic and family values. 'What's been the gem that's been hiding in the background is coming public,' Diaz said, attesting to Kamoutsas' involvement in previous policies and actions by the department. 'He understands that history because he's been present for a good amount of it inside the department, inside the governor's office, but he's heard the battle stories from President Corcoran, from Speaker Oliva, from Chancellor [Ray] Rodrigues, from myself, so he understands the history and where we came from in this reform, and he's perfectly equipped and willing to continue it,' Diaz said. In addition to pledging to fight for parental involvement in the education system, Kamoutsas appealed to teachers, too. 'Teachers, you have my word that I stand in support of you. Whether that's maintaining discipline in your classrooms or working with the governor on continued pay increases, know that I have your back,' Kamoutsas said. The Washington Post reported in 2023 that Kamoutsas, who worked in the governor's office, was responsible for denying a pending promotion to a Florida Department of Law Enforcement attorney who advocated for the governor's travel records to be public. The attorney 'was not on our team,' the paper reported Kamoutsas as saying. The push to hide details of the governor's travel records came before DeSantis ran to be the GOP nominee for U.S. president. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Who is Anastasios Kamoutsas? DeSantis makes pick for Florida Commissioner of Education
Gov. Ron DeSantis didn't look far for his pick to be the new Florida commissioner of education. On June 3, he recommended one of his top aides , deputy chief of staff Anastasios Kamoutsas, for the job to replace former commissioner Manny Diaz Jr., who was elected a week prior to be interim president of the University of West Florida. 'Stasi Kamoutsas has delivered on important issues like parental rights, school choice, and fighting back against radical ideologies in education,' DeSantis said in a release. 'I am confident that he will continue to serve our state well as the next Commissioner of Education, and I thank Commissioner Manny Diaz Jr. for his dedicated and productive service.' Diaz, the latest in a line of DeSantis allies put in charge of higher education institutions in Florida, was delighted with the choice. "Great pick Governor!" he posted on X. "Stasi will be a huge advocate for students and families in Florida." The State Board of Education is meeting Wednesday, June 4, at 10:30 a.m. to consider appointing a commissioner. Anastasios I. Kamoutsas, 36, has a fairly low-profile presence, but he has been involved in many of DeSantis' key initiatives and was described by Florida Politics as "one of the most feared staffers." Kamoutsas, who holds a bachelor of arts in political science from Florida International University and his juris doctor from Regent University School of Law, a private Christian university. He joined the Florida Department of Education in 2019 to be general counsel and then chief of staff during the state's battle against mandated COVID masks in schools before he was tapped to be one of DeSantis' deputy chiefs of staff. 'Under my tenure, the Florida Department of Education will remain committed to student safety and success, empowering parents, and supporting teachers,' Kamoutsas said in DeSantis' press release. 'I look forward to working with the State Board of Education to ensure that Florida remains the education state.' While most of his work has been behind the scenes, Kamoutsas has popped up in the news. NBC News reported in March that Kamoutsas was one of DeSantis' aides who had made calls to state lobbyists, asking them not to donate to Florida 2026 gubernatorial candidate Rep. Byron Donalds. First lady Casey DeSantis has not announced her own run, but has been rumored to be considering it for months. Kamoutsas denied NBC's allegations. He was also named in 2023 as the person who called then-FDLE Chief of Staff Shane Desguin to deny the promotion and raise for an attorney who disagreed with DeSantis' aides about what parts of the governor's travel records were public information because she "was not on our team," according to former FDLE deputy chief of staff Patricia Carpenter. When Desguin asked if he could give Robinson another position and salary increase, he 'was told 'no, she is lucky she even has a f—ing job,'' Carpenter said, according to The News Service of Florida. Carpenter was fired after she sought whistleblower protection. Last October, Kamoutsas raised a stink in his homeowner's association in Tallahassee for posting signs against a proposed abortion amendment on his lawn and reportedly gaming HOA rules by removing them before a meeting, avoiding hundreds of dollars in fines, and then replacing and increasing them the next day. Kamoutsas' wife is a lawyer for the State University System. Diaz was selected to replace UWF president Martha Saunders, who chose to step down after a contentious board of trustees meeting where newly appointed member Zach Smith grilled her about "diversity, equity and inclusion" issues he had identified when combing through UWF's social media. Smith had been appointed by DeSantis days earlier. Diaz joins a growing rank of DeSantis allies to head universities and colleges in Florida as the governor continues to leave his mark on education in the Sunshine State. On June 2, Jeanette Nuñez, formerly DeSantis' lieutenant governor, was named president of Florida International University. The appointment remains subject to approval by the state university system's Board of Governors. Marva Johnson, who served as a political appointee in the administrations of Governors Rick Scott and Ron DeSantis, was picked in May to be president of Florida A&M University despite massive and sustained objections from the FAMU community of students, teachers and alumni. Richard Corcoran was the state commissioner of education and one of Desantis' most dependable and effective supporters when he was named president of New College of Florida as part of the governor's efforts to overhaul the liberal arts college into a conservative institution. Contributing: Mary Lett, Pensacola News Journal This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: DeSantis picks Florida education commissioner. What to know
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
DeSantis Gets School Start Times Bill
The Legislature on Friday formally sent about 60 bills to Gov. Ron DeSantis, including a measure that would back away from a requirement about starting high-school classes later in the morning. The measure (SB 296) would largely undo a 2023 law that said high schools could not start earlier than 8:30 a.m. to help teens get more sleep. The law was slated to take effect in 2026, but many school districts said they were struggling to comply with the deadline because of issues such as a need to buy more buses and hire hard-to-find bus drivers. Under the law, middle schools could not start earlier than 8 a.m., but the issue primarily centered on high-school students. This year's bill, which passed the Legislature unanimously, would allow districts to avoid the requirements if they submit reports to the Florida Department of Education that include information about issues such as school start times and strategies considered to have later start times for middle and high schools. Among the other bills going to DeSantis on Friday was a measure (HB 593) that would impose rules related to dogs considered dangerous. Under the bill, owners would be required to have liability insurance and put microchips in the animals. The bill also would set a definition of dangerous dogs, based on issues such as whether they have attacked people, and would make it a third-degree felony to remove the microchips. The bill stems from the 2022 death of Pamela Rock, a 61-year-old mail carrier who was mauled by five dogs that got out of a fenced-in yard after her truck broke down on a dirt road in Putnam County. Lawmakers unanimously passed the bill last month. Click here to download our free news, weather and smart TV apps. And click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.
