Florida Commissioner of Education Anastasios Katmoutsas blasted the Broward School District over its sponsorship of a recent Broward Democrat party fundraising gala. Kamoutsas referred to an advertisement in the Obama Roosevelt Legacy Dinner held in Sunrise last month. The advertisement featured pictures of board members as well as the official school district logo.
In a social media post, Katmoutsas said, “Official district branding must never be used to advance partisan efforts.”
The annual Broward Democrat dinner featured an array of local Democrat officials such as Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz.
The main speaker was the hyper-partisan Democrat from Maryland, Congressman Jamie Raskin.
In a letter to the Broward School Superintendent Howard Hepburn, Katmoutsas called for the immediate discipline of any employee involved in the creation and dissemination of the advertisement. He called the advertisement “wholly inappropriate and inexcusable.”
Katmoutsas told Hepburn, “Lastly, I am referring this matter to the Florida Department of Education, Office of Inspector General for review and any further action deemed appropriate.
Let me be clear: the integrity of public education demands strict adherence to both the law and the principle of neutrality. I will not stand idly by while district leadership or district resources are leveraged to advance partisan political messaging. Broward County Public Schools must act immediately to correct this failure and restore the trust placed in it by the public.”
“The principle of neutrality”…”the integrity of public education”….really Tom, in this state??? LOL!!!! The Commissioner obviously lives in something of a fantasy world clearly unattached from those who legislate out of Tallahassee these days.
It’s illegal to spend public money on partisan functions. A commissioner in North Miami Beach paid a fine and had to repay the city when he used city money to attend a Florida Democratic Party weekend. This is a blatant misuse of public funds, and is a violation of FS 106.08.
Despite what your gentle reader, Eric, thinks, the Commissioner is absolutely correct in slamming the Broward School Board. I certainly do not want my tax dollars being spent on any partisan event, whether Democratic or Republican. Eric needs to be educated on Florida law as well as the code of ethics.