Florida Commissioner of Education Anastasios Kamoutsas sent a letter to the state’s school district superintendents, warning them that they must maintain professional conduct or face repercussions.
“Teachers are held to a higher standard as public servants and must ensure their conduct does not undermine the trust of the students and families they serve,” he wrote on X. “We will hold teachers who choose to make disgusting comments about the horrific assassination of Charlie Kirk accountable. Govern yourselves accordingly.”
Kamoutsas’ letter condemns Florida educators who have “posted despicable comments on social media” regarding Kirk’s death, declaring that he will conduct investigations into “every educator who engages in this vile, sanctionable behavior.”
The memorandum “serves to remind superintendents and their employees that they are held to a higher standard as public servants,” it explains, adding that First Amendment rights “do not extend without limit into their professional duties.”
“An educator’s personal views that are made public may undermine the trust of the students and families that they serve,” the memo reads.
“Govern yourselves accordingly,” Kamoutsas warned.
“Celebrating the assassination of a 31 year old father of two young kids is disturbing; that teachers would be among those who do so is completely unacceptable,” Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) said in a statement.
“Glad @StasiKamoutsas is bringing accountability,” he added. “It is sad that we’ve seen a number of teachers across America celebrate Charlie Kirk’s murder.”
Some educators across the country, like a professor at the University of Michigan, have defended the assassination of Charlie Kirk, calling it a “solution.”
