Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
DeSantis appointees to blame for chaos in Broward schools
The tale of the Broward County
School Board in the last two years has been one of state interference, politically motivated chaos, and of a select few individuals holding the district hostage. Their weapon of choice? Threats of a state takeover, removing board members who disagree with the governor from office, and financial penalties that would further punish the students of Broward County Public Schools.
In September 2022, an official on the State Board of Education called for the removal of the superintendent at the time, Dr. Vickie Cartwright, due to her enforcement of a mask mandate that the school board had directed her to enforce. Just months later, a DeSantis-appointed majority on the school board voted to fire her. Two years later, history repeats itself. On March 27, 2024, Superintendent Peter Licata, General Counsel Marilyn Batista, and Board Chair Lori Alhadeff appeared before the State Board of Education, and this time, a member of that board called for the firing of Batista. The offense? She was doing her job to protect the legal interests of the district, something she was directed to do by the school board just two weeks prior. Days later, DeSantis-appointed School Board Member Daniel Foganholi (who, as of this writing, according to the Broward Supervisor of Elections Office, is registered to vote in Coral Springs, not in the district he is supposed to represent and is running for office in) put an item on the agenda to fire Batista.
The issue at hand was Commissioner of Education Manny Diaz’s demand that Broward Schools pay tens of millions of dollars to charter schools even though there was and is active litigation between the Broward Schools and a number of charter schools over those funds. Why would the commissioner involve the Florida Department of Education in an active lawsuit, presumably trying to overrule the courts? One might wonder if it has anything to do with his long history of working for and receiving hefty campaign donations from charter schools. Not long after the DeSantis-appointed commissioner sent his letters, a DeSantis-appointed School Board member, Torey Alston, (who, as of this writing, according to the Broward Supervisor of Elections Office, is registered to vote in Fort Lauderdale, not in the district he is supposed to represent) brought an item before the board to pay all charter schools the money they believe they’re owed, again ignoring the litigation the district was involved in. It appears easy for the DeSantis-appointed commissioner and the DeSantis-appointed board members to make politically motivated decisions because they don’t have to answer to the constituents of Broward County. It appears that they only have one person to answer to, and that certainly isn’t the voters.
The students and employees of
Broward County Public Schools are suffering as a result of this circus. The district continues to sink deeper into power battles and chaos, and Broward’s students, teachers and staff deserve better than a politically charged minefield. It is time for the school board to be an agent of change, not an agent of chaos. It is time for them to focus on real issues impacting the district instead of a few individuals’ political ambitions. From the mental health crisis our youth are facing to the financial pressure under-enrollment is placing on the school district, Broward deserves a board that is student-focused, not a few individuals doing the bidding of whatever Tallahassee regime is in power and making political appointments.
Alfredo Olvera is a Fort Lauderdale resident, local Realtor, Democratic Party state committeeman and president of The Dolphin Democrats.