Leon County School Board

Gov. Ron DeSantis is expanding his influence down to local politics, especially when it comes to school board races. Lynn Hatter reports that’s playing out in school board races in Leon County where some candidates are being careful when it comes to issues like how to address LGBTQ students, and how to discuss race and history in the classroom, following new laws that place restrictions on each.

Leon’s School Board has approved a new LGBTQ guide after more than four hours of public comment.

Leon County School Board member Dee Dee Rasmussen is resigning. Her departure from the board means the seat will come available for a special election this Fall.

Leon County Sheriff Walt McNeil sees the school district as a key partner in an effort to lower gun violence in the community. Most of the perpetrators and the victims of gun crimes also have a history of expulsions, dropping out, or being sent to an alternative school.

As the president of the local NAACP chapter, Davis changed the makeup of the Leon County Commission and the county's school board to better reflect the diversity of the community she called home.

The Leon County School District has dropped its mask requirements for students in grades Pre-K through 8th. Leon Superintendent Rocky Hanna says he’s following through on his promise to parents to revisit the policy when positivity rates fell.

Leon County’s School Board and Superintendent are the latest to take a fight with the state over student masking to court. The district has filed a challenge to a Florida Department of Health rule that says districts have to allow parents to opt out.

The Leon County School district is lawyering up to defend its school mask mandate. The district has hired the same firm that is also representing Miami Dade Schools in the ongoing fight over requiring students to wear face coverings.

Florida Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran says Leon Superintendent Rocky Hanna and school board chairwoman Joy Bowen are being investigated for bucking Gov. Ron DeSantis’ mandatory mask ban.

Gov. Ron DeSantis says school districts that choose mask mandates could see their school board and superintendent’s salaries cut. The move is the latest salvo in an escalating fight over whether students should have to wear masks amid rising coronavirus infections.