Overview

• Education Commissioner Anastasios Kamoutsas sent a letter to superintendents and posted on X pledging investigations of educators who celebrate or mock Kirk’s assassination.
• He wrote that educators retain First Amendment rights but emphasized professional duties and the risk that public posts could undermine families’ trust.
• Clay County confirmed suspending an elementary teacher after a post reportedly stated, “This may not be the obituary we were all hoping to wake up to, but this is a close second for me.”
• Spokespersons for Seminole, Lake, and Osceola counties said no teachers had been flagged, and Orange County had no immediate information.
• A spokesperson for the commissioner did not provide details on which posts prompted the action, as coverage noted Kirk was killed Wednesday at Utah Valley University, prompting sharply divided online reactions.