ORLANDO, Fla. – Florida’s new education commissioner delivered a spirited speech during his first board meeting Wednesday, offering the public a window into his future tenure.
“As commissioner, it is my mission to ensure that our school districts are firing on all cylinders and that everyone’s rights are respected,” Anastasios Kamoutsas said.
Kamoutsas had previously worked for the Florida Department of Education’s Office of General Counsel, before transitioning to serve as deputy chief of staff for Gov. Ron DeSantis.
During the outset of the board meeting, held in Orlando, Kamoutsas noted that this is his first week on the job. He opened his speech at the meeting by quoting from the Old Testament.
“The Book of Psalms says that ‘Children are a gift from the Lord,’” he said. “‘They are a reward from him.’”
Kamoutsas said that on his first day as commissioner on Monday, he sent three memos outlining the rights and responsibilities of stakeholders in education.
He said he sent one memo to parents, informing them of their rights. The second memo, he said, was to teachers to remind them of their rights as leaders in the classroom.
He also sent a third memo to superintendents, putting them on “notice” that if they violated the rights of educators and parents, he would be “knocking on their door.”
“This is not an empty threat,” Kamoutsas said. “Florida is the ‘Education State’ because we have removed indoctrination from instruction. We have empowered our teachers to create learning environments without repeated disruptions. We have supported the power of the parent to make important decisions in the education of their child. After all, they are their child’s first teacher.”
Kamoutsas also stressed his position that transgender athletes be banned from participating in girls’ and women’s sports. He pointed to his appearance Tuesday with Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier, aimed at “protecting women’s sports.”
“It’s 2025 in Florida,” he said. “Knock the nonsense off. It’s time to move on and protect women. It’s been over 50 years since Title IX has been enacted to protect women and give them the ability to compete in their sports and to feel safe in private spaces like bathrooms and locker rooms.”
Later in the meeting, the board passed two amendments to rules related to school safety.
The board punted on a third amendment after Kamoutsas requested to table the item.
The amendment that was tabled mirrors two recent bills passed by the state legislature. The changes would require automated external defibrillators on campus, clarify what safe-school officer misconduct must be reported to the Office of Safe Schools, and require substitute teachers to be provided school safety protocols and policies prior to their first day, among other things.
The next board meeting is scheduled for Aug. 20. News 6 reached out to the Florida Department of Education to inquire if the tabled amendment will be broached at the next meeting. A response was not returned by the time of publication.