A man twice appointed to the Broward School Board by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis was sworn in Wednesday amid a lawsuit filed by the member-elect who's been blocked from the position.
Daniel Foganholi, the first Brazilian American on the board, was sworn in at a ceremony Wednesday morning to represent District 1.
Foganholi, of Coral Springs, just finished a short term as a school board member for District 5 after being sworn-in in May to replace Dr. Rosalind Osgood, who was elected to the Florida State Senate.
During his last stint, Foganholi called for the firing of Broward County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Vickie Cartwright.
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Cartwright last year had been given 90 days by the board to address concerns after an hours-long special meeting debating her future with the district.
But three weeks later, in November, Cartwright was fired with a 5-4 vote following a surprise motion by Foganholi.
A month later, the board voted to overturn Cartwright's firing, but said they would make a final decision on her future at a meeting, scheduled for next week.
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Foganholi takes the place of Rodney Velez who was elected to the District 1 seat in November.
On the day Velez was set to be sworn in, DeSantis declared his seat vacant and announced that Foganholi would replace him over issues with Velez's decades-old felony conviction.
Velez has filed a lawsuit against DeSantis and Foganholi over the issue.
In the meantime, Foganholi said he'll do his best for the students in District 1.
"As much as we always talk about the adult problems and people decide to make it political, whatever the case, we are here for the children and to make sure they are prepared for tomorrow’s world, we’re here for their future," Foganholi said Wednesday. "We know, and there’s not a doubt in my mind that every single one of my colleagues and every single one that’s on this board, we all want to see the best for those children, we all want to see the best for Broward County."
Foganholi acknowledged that it's unfortunate for voters who supported Velez to not see him on the board, and said he's considering moving to the Broward district that he now represents.
"It’s tough to be able to vote for someone and them not serve. As a voter, that would be tough to be misled and see the person I voted for not be able to serve, that’s really tough," Foganholi said. "But for me it’s just making sure that I’m gonna be standing up for the people of District 1 and do the best job I can to represent them."
Meanwhile, another DeSantis appointee was sworn in to the Miami-Dade School Board. Maria Bosque-Blanco is a career educator and school psychologist who works at a Catholic school.
"Having dedicated my professional career to the field of education, I believe all children have a right to feel safe, loved and educated, while preserving the parent’s rights to be the primary educator in the home," Bosque-Blanco said.
