TALLAHASSEE — The Florida Education Association (FEA) wants an emergency order by Florida Commissioner of Education Richard Corcoran to be rescinded.
FEA President Fedrick Ingram said in a news conference last week that it, along with several others, filed a lawsuit against Gov. Ron DeSantis, Corcoran, the Florida Department of Education, the Florida Board of Education and Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Gimenez for the emergency order.
"This morning the Florida Education Association along with a number of other named plaintiffs filed suit in the 11th circuit court in Miami...seeking to overturn Richard Corcoran's emergency order forcing school campuses to open," Ingram said in a news conference.
Ingram said that local school boards should be in control.
"Several FEA members from various parts of the state are named plaintiffs," Ingram said. "The lawsuit seeks to return control to where it belongs to locally elected school board members and superintendents."
Ingram said after DeSantis had said recently that schools would not be penalized if campuses did not reopen five days a week, the emergency order shouldn't be valid.
"Just last week Gov. DeSantis said that schools would not be penalized if school campuses were not open five days a week," Ingram said. "If that is the case, the emergency order needs to be rescinded. This lawsuit does not seek to interfere with local school districts' plans on reopening."
Ingram said local school boards know what is best for their schools.
"We believe that decisions such as how and when to reopen schools are best made at the local level," Ingram said.
The emergency order was filed July 6 and states that education is critical and that schools need to be fully reopened. It lays out multiple statutes for schools to follow in reopening in August.
In its lawsuit, the FEA and other plaintiffs allege that if the court does not grant an injunction, students, families, teachers and staff will be put at risk for harm due to the pandemic.
"Employees and students should not have to risk injury or death by being required to report to school," the lawsuit states. "Indeed, the Florida Constitution guarantees their safety and condemns needless harm."