“Culture of intimidation and neglect of duty”: Commissioner of Education Kamoutsas speaks at the School Board of Alachua County meeting

BY JENNIFER CABRERA

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – At the October 7 School Board of Alachua County meeting, Florida Commissioner of Education Anastasios “Stasi” Kamoutsas showed up to personally invite Vice Chair Tina Certain to the November meeting of the State Board of Education.

After a performance by the Buchholz Brass Quintet and a video of district highlights, Chair Sarah Rockwell said, “We have a very special guest with us today. I’d like to warmly welcome our Florida Commissioner of Education, Anastasios Kamoutsas, who joined us this evening.” She invited him to the podium.

Kamoutsas: “I’m outraged by the toxic culture, the pattern of intimidation, and the dereliction of duty that this Board has repeatedly demonstrated.”

Kamoutsas began, “I wish I was here under better circumstances, but unfortunately, if I’m being frank, I’m outraged. I’m outraged by the toxic culture, the pattern of intimidation, and the dereliction of duty that this Board has repeatedly demonstrated.”

Kamoutsas said state law and the First Amendment rights of parents “have been violated and frequently ignored by the Alachua County School Board. Parents who have dared to voice their concerns at Board meetings have been forcibly removed, in violation of their constitutional rights. 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.”

Kamoutsas said that after Rockwell and Certain were told at the August Board of Education meeting that Board meetings would be monitored, “one would expect that at a minimum, the Board would proceed with caution and professionalism, yet at the very next meeting, on September 2, Vice Chair Certain openly cast doubt on the legitimacy of the State Board of Education’s findings and recommendations. Rather than lead by example, Vice Chair Certain chose to publicly question the process while serving as the acting Chair. She also could not maintain professionalism or decorum at the meeting, according to Department employee Dusty Sims at the Bureau of School Improvement.”

Kamoutsas: “Think — how do your words impact students? How do they impact the employees and the staff and the teachers in the Alachua County School District?”

Kamoutsas commented on Certain’s Facebook comment calling Charlie Kirk an “uneducated white boy”: “Think — how do your words impact students? How do they impact the employees and the staff and the teachers in the Alachua County School District? You have repeatedly brought negative attention to this school district because of your selfish acts.

“That post came after I sent a letter to all Superintendents and teachers in our state, emphasizing the importance of their role over students — young, impressionable minds who are seeing adults not lead by example, by celebrating violence in a school shooting,… by glorifying a school shooter. That is a terrible example for our youth.”

Kamoutsas: “If the Alachua County School Board members are willing to act in this manner while under the active scrutiny of the State Board of Education and FDOE staff, what happens when we’re not watching?”

Kamoutsas also noted that Certain was on the Board when they “refused to comply with COVID laws. She was on the Board when a student was awarded the ‘Most Likely to Be a Dictator’ and did nothing. There is a pattern of behavior that you have demonstrated that is unacceptable. If the Alachua County School Board members are willing to act in this manner while under the active scrutiny of the State Board of Education and FDOE staff, what happens when we’re not watching?”

Kamoutsas noted that the district’s grade is a “B” and nearly 10% of district schools are “D” schools and asked, “Why are you not prioritizing your students? Instead, your public service is about yourself and your selfish acts. 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: “I’m determined to change the culture of intimidation and neglect of duty here in Alachua County. Teachers, students, and parents deserve a better Board.”

“I’m determined to change the culture of intimidation and neglect of duty here in Alachua County. Teachers, students, and parents deserve a better Board. Vice Chair Certain, I will see you at our November State Board of Education meeting, where you will be asked some very difficult questions and have to explain why it is that you believe you’re fit to serve the residents of Alachua County. But until then, I recommend you govern yourself accordingly. Thank you, and God bless.”

Rockwell said, “Thank you for your comments. Commissioner Kamoutsas, and thank you for joining us this evening.”

Click here to watch the video of Kamoutsas’ remarks.

Plavac asks whether a disclaimer would make a comment “less subject to scrutiny”

During Board Member Announcements, Member Janine Plavac said, “I think we all are very upset that we’ve gone through this again.” She referred to a Board workshop on the First Amendment, in which Board Attorney David Delaney advised Board Members to put a disclaimer on their personal social media pages indicating that “the views expressed here are strictly my own.”

Plavac continued, “I think that if Ms. Certain had said that on her post,… we wouldn’t have had an hour of comments about that. Is this correct? Is that all we have to put if somebody wanted to express their First Amendment rights?”

Delaney said that is a “recommended best practice… [that gives] public officials more control over their personal accounts, if they have that information on there.”

Plavac asked again, “And [they] would be less subject to scrutiny… if they put that on there?”

Delaney responded, “I don’t think I could make that promise, but I can say that it does provide more control over your personal social media.”

Certain: “Those were Tina Certain’s views, and they were taken out of context.”

During her time, Certain said, “Ms. Plavac, since you brought up my comment… I do have a separate page that is personal, and I have a page that I share district information… It is strictly for my School Board business that I do. The page that I made the comment on was my personal page… It didn’t get any less scrutiny, but I made it in my personal capacity, on a Sunday afternoon, with my personal device that I spent my own money on…. I leaned into [it] and made it because I do have a First Amendment right, recognizing that I did not give that up after the training that we had,… I made my comment under that that guise there.”

Certain continued, “Some folks may agree with it, and some folks… did not agree with it. But those are my feelings. I didn’t purport to speak for you, Mr. Vu, Dr. McNealy, or Dr. Rockwell. Those were Tina Certain’s views, and they were taken out of context. And I don’t feel like I have to have to justify that, but I just thought I’d let you know that I did speak in my personal capacity, not for you or the Board, okay, so don’t ever worry about that. I don’t do that when I go out and I speak — it’s for myself, unless I’m representing the Board, and it would be in the absence of our Chair, when she wasn’t here. I did speak a couple of times when Dr. Rockwell was out recovering from surgery, but whenever I go out and speak, I make it known that those views are my own views and not the views of the Board.”