school board

Massive Changes as New Members Take Seats on Broward School Board

Four new faces joined the Broward County School Board: Torey Alston, Kevin Tynan, Ryan Reiter, and Manuel Serrano

NBC Universal, Inc.

It’s only been ten days since the statewide grand jury report was released, and the fallout has been swift and stunning.

That report recommended that Gov. Ron DeSantis remove four sitting Broward County school board members, and he did so, suspending Donna Korn, Laurie Rich-Levinson, Patricia Good and Anne Murray.

Tuesday, four new faces joined the Broward County School Board: Torey Alston, Kevin Tynan, Ryan Reiter, and Manuel Serrano, each of them promising change.

One after another, the four men were sworn in and instantly, radically changed the non-partisan school board, from majority female and Democratic to majority male and Republican. Including sitting board member Daniel Fogenholi, all five men were appointed by DeSantis.

“This new reform board looks like Broward County: it’s competent, it brings a diversity of thought, and collectively different experiences that will help us govern," Alston said. "With the grand jury report now available, my goal is to ensure holding all of our staff accountable."

Reiter comes from the construction industry, which he says makes him uniquely suited to lead the effort to get the SMART Bond program, heavily criticized by the grand jury, back on track.

“In the next two months with all five of us here, I believe we can push forward a lot of great reform,” Reiter said, saying he’s referring to “Cleaning up the mess with the school board bond projects.”

The new conservative majority wasted no time exercising their power. The five men rejected Lori Alhadeff and nominated Alston to be the new school board chair.

“Student achievement and school safety must remain our priority, and again I’m talking to all our board members here, as chair, I’ll be balanced, but I also appreciate hearing comments from the public and key stakeholders even when we disagree," Alston said after he was voted chair unanimously. "I want this board to be collegial, engage in respectful debate, refrain from personal attacks and leave the partisanship at the door."

Newly appointed Broward County School Board members are preparing to take their seats after Gov. Ron DeSantis' suspensions of previous members. NBC 6's Ari Odzer reports

Because he took over Good’s seat, which was not up for re-election, Alston has at least two years on the board ahead of him. The other appointees know time is of the essence.

“From what I understand, there’s a lot of work to be done in a very short period of time, so I want to see the proposals that are in front of us and take action,” said Serrano, who along with Tynan and Reiter, has about three months on the board before runoff election winners take their seats.

So the conservative flavor of the board is likely to be temporary, but the new members are vowing to make a positive impact on accountability, budgeting, and safety issues.

Contact Us