- September 20, 2024
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Sally Hunt has resigned from the Flagler County School Board. Hunt emailed a letter of resignation to Board Chair Will Furry at 1:35 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 20, and copied Flagler Schools Superintendent LaShakia Moore, Flagler County Supervisor of Elections Kaiti Lenhart and the School Board's interim attorney David DeLaney.
Hunt also included a copy to the Observer. "I am writing to formally submit my resignation from the position of Flagler County School Board Member, District 1, effective immediately," she wrote to Furry.
Hunt has long said her family planned to move out of the district and she would resign before her term runs out in 2026. At a June 4 board workshop she was more specific, saying she would resign before this November's election.
According to Florida statute 114.04, Gov. Ron DeSantis is tasked with appointing a replacement for Hunt to finish her term which has over 25 months remaining. The statute states that the governor shall fill by appointment any vacancy of an elected official other than state legislators if there is less than 28 months remaining in the term.
Hunt wrote in a text to the Observer that she "won't have any additional comments beyond her resignation letter."
Furry said he reached out to Hunt after receiving her resignation letter.
"I thanked her for her efforts over the last two years and wished her the best in her future endeavors," he said.
Hunt reportedly is moving to Georgia. But she did not cite her move as the reason for her resignation. In her resignation letter, she wrote: "While I have been disheartened by and departing because of the manipulation of truth and the lies that continue to be shared and accepted regarding targeted Board members and the District as a whole, I am so proud of what the Board has accomplished in just under two years."
Furry and board member Colleen Conklin said it could take some time before the governor names a replacement. Osceola County had a vacancy on its School Board from November, 2023, until July, 2024, before DeSantis appointed a replacement.
"Potentially it could take time," Furry said. "Our hope is that it could be resolved sooner rather than later. It's problematic to have a four-member board when it's designed to be five, but there's no guarantee on the timeline."
Furry said he will be reaching out to the governor's office and to Lenhart for more information. Conklin said the process could taker over a year.
"I think the timing is good," Furry said of Hunt's resignation, "as we're coming to install a new board. It gives us clarity of what our new board is going to look like after November, and we can start pushing the governor's office for a new appointment."
Lauren Ramirez and Janie Ruddy won their elections to the board in the August primary election and will be sworn in at the Nov. 19 School Board meeting, replacing Cheryl Massaro and Conklin, who is stepping down after serving on the board for 24 years.
Conklin was at Flagler Palm Coast High School's homecoming pep rally on Friday afternoon, when the Observer called her with the news of Hunt's resignation.
"I'm sorry to hear that. I really am," Conklin said. "I wish her well. I had hoped that maybe she had reconsidered, but I wish her well."
Hunt has been the swing vote on several issues during her term, including her final vote on a motion on Wednesday, Sept. 18, which mandates electrocardiogram screenings in addition to the required physical for students to participate in school sports programs.
AdventHealth provides free ECG screenings and physicals annually for Flagler County students. The mandate, which is not scheduled to start until next school year, includes student athletes as well as those who participate in band and JROTC. The mandate passed by a 3-2 vote with Hunt joining Massaro and Conklin voting in favor and Furry and Christy Chong voting against the motion.
Here is a transcript of Hunt's resignation letter:
Chair Furry,
I am writing to formally submit my resignation from the position of Flagler County School Board Member, District 1, effective immediately.
As you know from your own experience, a lot of hard work went into my campaign, and my early departure from the Board was not an intended or desired outcome of that hard work and commitment to help strengthen the Board and District.
While I have been disheartened by and departing because of the manipulation of truth and the lies that continue to be shared and accepted regarding targeted Board members and the District as a whole, I am so proud of what the Board has accomplished in just under two years.
I would like to commend you for your leadership this past year, and believe you and I have proven to be a great example of politics as it should be, approaching the business of the Board respectfully and collaboratively even though we each have strong, and sometimes opposing, convictions on the topics that have come before us.
I wish the Flagler County School District and Board continued success moving Flagler Forward and would like to take this opportunity to once again appreciate LaShakia Moore for her incredible talent, leadership, and dedication to creating and sustaining a premier learning organization that benefits all Flagler County residents and businesses, and especially benefits our awesome and brilliant students.
Sincerely,
Sally Hunt
