TALLAHASSEE, Florida — State officials said they are keeping a close eye on how Florida teachers react to the assassination of Charlie Kirk by pledging to investigate and punish any “vile, sanctionable” behavior from educators.
The warning, contained in a Thursday memo from Education Commissioner Anastasios Kamoutsas, comes as at least one Florida teacher was suspended over a social media post that Kamoutsas said “despicably celebrated” Kirk’s death. Florida’s top education official told school leaders that teachers could face state discipline for how they respond, cautioning that free speech rights “do not extend without limit to their professional duties.”
“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,” Kamoutsas said on social media. “We will hold teachers who choose to make disgusting comments about the horrific assassination of Charlie Kirk accountable.”
Kirk, an influential figure in conservative politics known for mobilizing young voters, was shot to death Wednesday while speaking at a college campus in Utah in an apparent act of political violence.
The state memo is a response to an incident in Clay County, where a local elementary school teacher made coarse comments about Kirk, which were blasted on social media early Thursday morning. The comments quickly reached the area’s state senator, Jennifer Bradley (R-Fleming Island), who labeled them as “egregious,” and eventually the education commissioner and Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Both Bradley and Kamoutsas said the teacher — who allegedly wrote, “This may not be the obituary. We were all hoping to wake up to, but this is a close second for me,” in response to Kirk’s assassination — was promptly suspended.
“This type of hate has no place in our schools and around our children,” Bradley said on social media.
Florida GOP’s governor said he was “glad” to see his education department “bringing accountability” to the matter.
“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,” DeSantis said on social media.
Officials with Clay County District Schools, located in northeast Florida outside of Jacksonville, said they are “aware of a recent social media post that has drawn attention in our community” and are “addressing this situation with the utmost seriousness.”
“The views expressed in this post do not reflect the values or beliefs of our schools or district, and we do not condone the content in any way,” county school officials said in a statement. “Our Human Resources department is actively reviewing the matter and taking action in line with district policy.”
In floating the possibly of punishment, Florida’s education chief pointed to state conduct rules for educators, suggesting he could sanction teacher certifications due to possible violations.
Just last month, Kamoutsas, a former deputy chief of staff for DeSantis, led the charge in attempting to punish Alachua County’s school board for allegedly violating local parents’ free speech rights in a First Amendment dispute stemming from callous social media comments about the death of wrestler Hulk Hogan. The state Board of Education, in this instance, warned the local school board instead of leveling sanctions but put them under scrutiny over how they handled public comment after blowback toward anti-MAGA sentiments was posted online.