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Parents, advocates tell Seminole County board of alleged retaliation, IEP and service failures during public comment
Summary
Multiple speakers used the meeting's public-comment period to accuse district employees of retaliatory behavior and failing to deliver required special-education services; speakers asked the board to investigate and respond.
Several parents and advocates used the School Board's public-comment period Tuesday to describe alleged mistreatment of students with disabilities and to call for accountability, while others offered support for ethical teachers and advocates.
"I'm calling for the removal of principal Elizabeth Darcy and assistant principal Megan Boza," parent Jamie Davis told the board, alleging that district employees falsified reports to the Florida Department of Children and Families and retaliated against a teacher for reporting failures to deliver services in students' individualized education programs (IEPs). "This is retaliation. This is unethical," Davis said. She asked the board to respond to constituent emails and to hold staff accountable.
Nina Sandberg, who identified herself as an advocate for students with disabilities, criticized district handling of special-education grievances and said retaliation claims often escalate after families report problems. "Students with disabilities are the most marginalized and mistreated minority group in Seminole County Public Schools," Sandberg said. She described a pattern of alleged failures to follow IEPs and medical instructions and alleged that formal grievances have not stopped further retaliation.
Raquel Molina thanked ethical teachers and urged the board to prevent retaliation against staff who advocate for students. "Please continue advocating for your students and don't ever let leadership retaliate against you for all your advocacy and for speaking up against injustice," Molina said.
The public-comment speakers made specific allegations and requested board responses; the meeting transcript does not record any immediate board action, investigation orders, or staff comments responding to the allegations. One speaker said she had emailed the board and had not received replies. The comments were part of the nonagenda public-comment segment; no votes or policy actions were taken during public comment.
Separately, members of the public, including Emily Duguid from the Orlando Science Center, used the public-comment period to describe partnerships and programming (see separate article). The transcript identifies these remarks as public comment and does not record board replies or decisions tied to the allegations.
