New Schools Commissioner Threatens Superintendents About Violating ‘Parental Rights’

Education Commissioner Anastasios Kamoutsas delivered his first speech to the State Board of Education Wednesday, quoting the Book of Psalms and promising to work closely with Florida’s top law enforcement officer to ensure students aren’t being “indoctrinated.”

“The Book of Psalms says the children are a gift from the Lord. They are a reward from him,” said Kamoustas, who started his position July 14.

“On my first day as Commissioner of Education, it was important for me to connect with parents, teachers, and superintendents across the state to ensure that we are working together for the common goal of educating our students to the best of our abilities and prioritizing them as the blessing that they are in our lives.”

To that end, Kamoustas has issued a series of missives to parents and teachers advising them of their statutory rights while cautioning superintendents that he was“putting them on notice that if they violate these rights, I will be knocking on their door. This is not an empty threat.”

Kamousta’s letter to the parents is being mailed out on his behalf by local school superintendents. The commissioner said he hasn’t gotten any pushback from local officials about the letters.

He said a separate memorandum was being sent Wednesday to school districts, charter schools, and private schools advising them to update information in a statewide online parent porta, Myfloridaschools.

“Florida is the education state because we have removed indoctrination from instruction, we have empowered our teachers to create learning environments without repeated disruptions, and we have supported the power of the parent to make important decisions in the education of their child,” he said.

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.

Kamoutsas is the former deputy chief of staff for Gov. Ron DeSantis, but the new job puts him in a familiar place. He started at the Department of Education in 2019, serving as general counsel and eventually chief of staff before leaving the DOE to join the governor’s staff in 2023.

He succeeds Manny Diaz, who left the post to serve as interim president at the University of West Florida in Pensacola.

Kamoutsas touted 2024-2025 school grades that show Florida has 6% more A-rated schools (based on its own metrics) with 28 of Florida’s 67 districts earning As. He also pointed to improvements in math and reading on Florida assessment tests, although Florida scores dropped on the National Assessment of Educational Progress.

While it was Kamoutsas’ first state education board meeting it was the last for Ben Gibson, chair of the state board. Gibson’s term on the board expired and the panel agreed to elect Ryan Petty its chair. Petty was serving as vice chair under Gibson.  Board member Esther Byrd was elected vice chair.

–Christine Sexton, Florida Phoenix