Florida’s secretary of education says the School Board of Alachua County (SBAC) violated state law during a contentious school board meeting Thursday and is working to withhold funding equal to the salaries of all five school board members.
Secretary of Education Anastasios Kamoutsas delivered the news in a Friday letter to SBAC Chair Sarah Rockwell, whose controversial Facebook comments escalated into a national story this week. In the letter, Kamoutsas also wrote that he would not renew Rockwell’s certificate to teach in Florida.
The issue started when Rockwell commented on her personal Facebook about the July 24 death of Hulk Hogan. She said he’d never been a good guy.
“Oh did Hulk die? I didn’t even know. Good. One less MAGA in the world,” the comment said.
Backlash came fast from around the county. National and international outlets—including Fox News, The Independent and The Daily Caller—picked up the story, and the Alachua County Republican Party called for her resignation.
Rockwell apologized for the comment on her official Facebook page and during the school board meeting. She also said the backlash has included death threats, harassment and the public release of her home address.
Emails to her school district account show multiple messages with vile comments toward Rockwell.
“My hope is that you pissed off a deranged person that will take you OUT,” one said.
Kamoutsas targeted not just the Hogan comments but mainly how the school board treated a parent who commented at the board’s meeting. His letter said he found probable cause of state law violations and will recommend the State Board of Education (BOE) investigate the matter.
“Not only did you allow a parent’s constitutional rights to be violated under your leadership, but the rest of the board stood by silently, failing to stop it,” Kamoutsas wrote.
He added that the BOE can issue sanctions if a school district fails to cooperate or fix its actions, and Kamoutsas said he is recommending the board withhold funds equal to the salaries of all five school board members.
The letter said that, as chair, Rockwell will need to attend the BOE meeting on Aug. 20 in order to update the board on what corrective actions the school district has taken.
Kamoutsas ended the letter by noting that Rockwell has a teacher’s certificate in Florida.
“I strongly recommend that you not apply for renewal,” he wrote. “Considering I will not permit you to hold a Florida teaching certificate, I think it’s time for some reflection on whether you are properly equipped to serve on the Alachua County School Board.”
On Friday, the school district released the following statement in response.
“Everyone who requested to speak at the School Board meeting was able to do so. Regardless of their expressed viewpoint, no one was required to leave the meeting. It is our belief that everyone’s First Amendment rights were upheld.”
At Thursday’s SBAC meeting, Rockwell issued a second apology over her comments. She said it was her mistake alone and added that she wouldn’t address the issue again so the district could move forward.
“As a public official, I know that I am held to a higher standard, and I should have been more thoughtful. I’m not perfect, and I know that. And I know that I can—and will—do better,” Rockwell said.
Board member Janine Plavac, appointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis in April, said Rockwell should step down as the board chair. But other members disagreed.
The district needed overflow space for all the meeting attendees, and, one by one, teachers, parents and citizens stepped up to the podium and voiced their support for Rockwell.
While not excusing the comments, supporters emphasized that everyone makes mistakes and stressed the importance of moving forward for the betterment of the teachers and students.
But a couple of commenters disagreed.
One man, identified as Jeremy, berated several board members and said Rockwell should resign if she has “a shred of integrity.” He called SBAC an echo chamber and was glad DeSantis had appointed Plavac as a new member. His full comments are in a video at the bottom of the story.
He concluded on full blast against Rockwell.
“You’re a Ph.D., aren’t you? A highly educated woman that knows the exact meaning behind her words. Aren’t you? You know what you said, and you should step down. You’re a disgusting vile, human being,” the man said.
Members of the crowd responded as the man returned to his seat. The man called out to one person before sitting down. Board member Tina Certain, who was moderating the meeting, was already calling for the attorney and then asked for the deputies.
“Sir, I’m going to ask you to be removed from the auditorium,” Certain said as members of the crowd said “bye.”
The man stood and asked the deputy: “This is a public space, right?”
The crowd began to clap as the man complied and walked away with the deputy.
Over the mic, the SBAC attorney can be heard telling the board, “I do not recommend that.”
Certain pivots and said the man can stay, but then the crowd gets louder. Certain tries to speak and deputies ask the people to quiet.
“He needs to go,” one said. Another grabbed the microphone from the public podium and began to call out, “He’s a white supremacist and needs to get the hell out.” Then she turned on a citizen who appeared to move the microphone away and talk to her.
“Mind your damn business,” she said to him and through the mic.
The school board asked for a recess, and the audio and video feed were cut. In the room, the man who had been asked to leave spoke with the SBAC attorney before decided to leave with deputies around him.
The meeting and public comment started again, and Certain asked the crowd to let everyone speak without interfering or clapping.
Alachua County Public Schools released the following statement on Friday.
“Everyone who requested to speak at the School Board meeting was able to do so. Regardless of their expressed viewpoint, no one was required to leave the meeting. It is our belief that everyone’s First Amendment rights were upheld.”
In his letter, Kamoutsas said Rockwell had brought negative attention onto the Alachua County school district. He said it’s not fair for the teachers and staff who work in the district.
“Let me be clear, by publicly humiliating this parent for his views, you’ve created a chilling effect on all parents with similar beliefs,” Kamoutsas said. “You’ve signaled that certain viewpoints are not welcome in Alachua County Public Schools, and that should alarm every family in your district.”
The school district has not responded with a request for comment.
DeSantis declared Aug. 1 as Hulk Hogan Day in Florida and ordered flags be flown at half-staff to honor the wrestling icon.
As usual the lack of a sense of humor and the intrusion on someone’s FREEDOM of SPEECH And the TRumper Republican weaponizing of the power granted the position they hold in OUR government . Who Is surprised PROJECT 2025 FACIST MINDSET ONCE AGAIN INSULTS OUR CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS AND AS ALACHUA COUNTY IS VERY HONEST AND DEMOCRATIC THEY WILL CONTINUE TO FOCUS ON US. Just sickening…
I don’t believe Rockwell ever said her comment was meant in a humorous manner. If so why did she remove the quote and apologize for it?
No it was just a mean spirited attack on the deceased. SHAMEFUL.
The extremism’s in on the school board
Hopefully the State takes action against Rockwell and the Board. Chilling people’s First amendment rights to disagree is not acceptable. Certian was wrong in calling for the deputies.
Watch the entire school board video. The guy spoke! He was being crude and disruptive and citizens in the audience responded. Sbac was trying to get things calmed down.
Solid reporting. Thank you. Parents who have been paying attention have been frustrated. Some of us feel outright betrayed by a once outstanding district.
It wasn’t bad news that overall FAST scores went up last year, but there was a tradeoff in our kids’ classes. New material was pretty much off the menu by late February so that teachers could teach for the test. One teacher went so far as to tell her class, “If you don’t score better on this last FAST, our school will not get enough money for next year.”
After the FASTs, two weeks of celebrating the end of the year. So, from as far back as March 1st, there was very little or no new learning in our kids’ classes, no new material coming home. Even “accelerated” math classes just circled back to make sure the grade-level FAST prep was hammered home.
If any other readers have read other posts in which I expressed cynicism, sometimes less than pleasantly, I’m sorry that my disappointment, sadness, and exasperation show through.
There are many commonsense remedies. I miss Diyonne McGraw because she kept bringing up classroom behavior. It’s easy to be asleep at the switch as a parent when things seem so sweet and happy in k-2, but even by 3rd grade, disruptions take a toll on learning, and they occasionally result in injuries.
More classroom time where teachers are actually instructing, rather than halfheartedly “facilitating” is another game changer, simple as it sounds. And drilling, not only in class, but with homework assignments. Do teachers in elementary avoid homework because kids don’t like it? Parents complain? Or because teachers don’t like grading. I never got a clear answer.
Finally, and here I’m recycling my own complaints. Alachua County’s once stellar magnet program, the one that fed bright scholars through excellent high-school programs, has been downgraded by a 50% lottery program set to go to 100%, in some cases, low teacher morale, a school board that can NOT see teacher pay as a priority over football stadiums and top-heavy administration, and actual competition from affordable private schools that accept state vouchers.
Yes, there will be hurt pride and anger if the State has to lay down the law, if we get a GRU type of spanking, but many parents will feel as if the cavalry has finally shown up.
Something is wrong in Gainesville when this dysfunctional school board gets elected again and again,
SERIOUSLY!! A parent rages against a school board member’s opinion, and the FL Dept. of Edu. writes that HIS rights were violated??That sounds to me like if you don’t worship wrestlers, you are sending chilling effect to all citizens with similar beliefs… We still do have Freedom of Speech, you know !
Contrary to what Kamoutsas claimed, that citizen “Jeremy” was humiliated by SBAC and Dr Rockwell, the meeting transcript demonstrated that “Jeremy” humiliated himself with his intentionally insulting language directed to Dr Rockwell and the other SBAC members. Other citizens in the audience reacted in disgust at his behavior.
Kamoutsas is just another sycophant eating out of DeSantis’s bowl of vicious actions and policies against undocumented immigrants and Florida citizens whose values and opinions are different than DeSantis’s.
The Trump authoritarian disease is spreading everywhere in our country!
So the delusional mob that shows up wasn’t happy that someone points out the continuing comedy of our school board
Public officials are held to a higher standard than others because they have a duty to serve the public interest, not personal gain. Here’s why that higher standard is important:
Public Trust: Officials are stewards of public resources and decision-making. Their actions directly affect people’s lives, so maintaining trust is essential for a functioning democracy or government.
Power and Influence: Public officials often have access to sensitive information, funding, and authority that can easily be misused. Holding them to a higher standard helps prevent abuse of that power.
Accountability: With authority comes responsibility. When public leaders fail to act ethically or transparently, it can damage institutions and lead to broader corruption or public harm.
Role Model Effect: Public officials set an example. If they act with integrity, it encourages similar behavior throughout government and lead by example and support our children they need role models.
Are you talking about a school board, or the president of the country?
The reporting skipped over an important point. One board member, on her own initiative, decided to contact DeSantis and request Rockwell’s removal. She decided to do this BEFORE hearing from the other members and BEFORE hearing from the public in the meeting. Not exactly an endorsement of local government by the people.
I suggest watching the recording of the meeting yourself – not second or third hand accounts. Listen to what each member says. Then listen to the public comments and decide for yourself if anyone’s rights were violated. Note that poor “Jeremy” didn’t have the guts to give his full name, but was given the same opportunity to speak as anyone else,
Ask yourself when was the last time you saw Desantis or your state representatives sit and take unfiltered comments farce to face from the public. Then listen to the actual business part of the meeting and see how much work goes into this service.
The Governor needs to remove all five members of the board and replace them with people who have a brain. We need schools that are safe, clean, and have the ability to educate, not indoctrinate!
This is a local issue and we don’t need our biased governor throwing his weight around even more than he already has. Tallahassee, stay out of local decisions!