Florida's Education Commissioner Anastasios Kamoutsas visited the Leon County School Board's meeting Tuesday where he criticized the district's budget priorities and laid out what he called "leadership failures."
He claimed the school district was spending too much on executive staff, noting Leon County had more of those workers than districts like Saint Lucie County despite having fewer students.
Kamoutsas also noted some of the county's facilities are operating at half capacity. He argued the board could save money by consolidating those schools but has delayed making that decision.
"District leaders choose to complain about costs rather than take decisive action. This ongoing lack of leadership and accountability continues to harm students, teachers, and families," Kamoutsas said.
Earlier this month, school board member Alva Smith made a case for consolidation, arguing the district could free up $10 Million dollars which could be used for teacher raises.
Tuesdays comments follow similar accusations from the commissioner earlier this year after the district failed to implement state money for teacher raises.
Those negotiations are still ongoing. After reaching a tentative agreement on teacher pay earlier this month, the deal was not ratified. During the most recent bargaining session, LCS returned to its original offer for teacher salaries, but talks are still ongoing.
The union has argued the state money for salary increases only amounts to around $40 per paycheck. During negotiations, they called for the district to set aside more money for teachers and support staff. The district argued they did not have the money to do that.
“There doesn't seem to be any hesitation to spend money. But in the terms of salary, it's not matching what is in those other categories, and I think that is the burn for most people,” Scott Mazur, president of the Leon Classroom Teachers Association said during the most recent negotiations.
County school board members spoke with state lawmakers during a delegation meeting on Monday, where they requested more per student funding for the state along with money for teachers, early childhood education, and security. They also shared concerns about Florida's school choice program.
In a meeting before the education commissioner last month, LCS board chair Laurie Cox argued the Leon County Teachers Association was stalling salary negotiations over teacher pay.
Board Chair Cox spoke about the LCTA again on Tuesday. She says documents from LCTA's president show he makes more than $100,000 per year. Kamoutsas made note of that as well, saying that amount is more than double the starting annual pay for a Leon County teacher.
Cox also highlighted that teachers in the union must pay more than $700 in dues each year. She says those dues added up to more than $600,000 in total, and she questioned how the union was using that money.
She also claimed the union was spreading misinformation about Superintendent Rocky Hanna's salary and the amount of money the district had available in their budget.
Prior to Tuesday's meeting, the LCTA posted on social media about the district's spending, writing Leon County had budgeted $2.3 Million dollars less for this school year. They also claimed the district left more than $5 Million dollars from the prior year's budget unspent.
About the tentative agreement they also wrote: "Educators voted the way they did for a reason: they’re asking for fairness, for respect, and for solutions that reflect the realities we all face — from rising housing and insurance costs to the daily challenges inside our classrooms."
Following Cox's comments on Tuesday, the union promised to "set the facts straight for everyone soon."
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