CRAWFORDVILLE, Fla. – Members of the Republican state Board of Education grilled the Democratic vice chair of the Alachua County school board at their meeting Thursday in the Panhandle over Facebook posts she and other board members wrote about the deaths of conservative figures, including activist Charlie Kirk.
Republicans in Tallahassee called the vice chair, Tina Certain, to the meeting to ask her about calling Kirk – who attended one semester of community college and later took some online college courses – an “uneducated white boy.”
Certain, who has a bachelor’s degree in accounting from the University of Florida, rejected requests for an apology from members of the governor-appointed state education board, questioning their intentions for grilling her over what she described as her First Amended-protected speech.
The board grilled Certain for more than one hour, sharing personal anecdotes on how her comments impacted them. Board member Layla Collins, the wife of Lt. Governor Jay Collins, said Certain’s comment hit close to home, as she and her family had received death threats over the years.
“This step towards political violence, it didn't happen overnight. We allowed it to happen,” said Collins. “And now we have elected school members demeaning a father. Forget politics. This is someone's dad.”
Certain responded that she and board chair Sarah Rockwell, who had also been in the hot seat over Facebook comments she made about the late wrestler Hulk Hogan, had also received death threats over their comments. Certain said she believes the attacks are motivated politically because Alachua County is largely Democratic.
“The focus is on several Dem counties,” Certain said. “I think they see an opening.”
She referred to Janine Plavac, who was appointed to the county school board by Gov. Ron DeSantis in April.
“They’re trying to make space for her, but they don’t have the authority.” she said.
Members of the board, headed by Florida Commissioner of Education Anastasios Kamoutsas, questioned Certain’s ability to treat people with conservative views fairly in her role as vice chair.
Certain disagreed, saying her personal Facebook page didn’t reflect how she governed in Alachua County, where she was elected by a 61-39 margin in the 2022 primary. She questioned the board’s intentions in calling her to the meeting, saying it had no authority to remove her from office over the comments.
Certain maintained that her comment was worded “clumsily,” but she said she still disapproves of Kirk’s politics and the prominent role his death has played. She said she was angry about Republican officials at all levels of government elevating him.
“Politics has no place in education,” said board member Daniel Foganholi, after honoring founders of a Turning Point USA chapter at Wakulla High, and before officially adopting a declaration written by the Heritage Foundation, creators of project 2025. Board members also chastised communism throughout the meeting.
Certain rejected the board’s requests for an apology, saying that her First Amendment right to free speech didn’t disappear when she was elected to the school board.
“Things don’t change when you’re quiet,” she said. “I’m going to lean into my First Amendment right that I did not give up.”
Last month, Kamoutsas appeared unexpectedly at the county school board meeting and ordered Certain to come to the Florida Board of Education meeting, which she was not legally required to attend.
“I’ve been horrified and outraged by public posts and comments coming from Vice Chair Certain,” said Kamoutsas during Thursday’s meeting. He said he lacked confidence in the Alachua County School board, describing a pattern of what he described as divisive intimidation toward conservatives.
Certain questioned why she was ordered to attend the meeting Thursday over a comment that she said did not involve classroom issues.
“It’s deeply concerning that an individual elected official is being called before the appointed board, commissioner, and state board of education for a personal social media comment,” she said. “I wasn’t making decisions about students.”
Alachua County has been a focus for conservatives in Florida. Of Florida’s 67 counties, it is one of only six that voted against President Trump in the 2024 election.
“I think it was political theater. I think they called me here just to humiliate me,” Certain said in an interview with WUFT.
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