While Publicly Seeking DeSantis Appointment, David Dyer Endorses Peggy Jones.
Dr. Peggy Jones, who is on the DeSantis list for replacement in 2024, joined Dyer at his first fundraiser.
At his first fundraiser, district 5 candidate for school board, David Dyer, began sharing his vision for schools which includes the endorsement of Dr. Peggy Jones’s re-election for her district 3 seat. According to the newspaper, 32963, Dyer who has openly sought the Governor’s appointment of the vacant board seat left by the abrupt resignation of former board member, Brian Barefoot, stated that Jones “deserves to be re-elected.”
At the soiree, Jones acknowledged the endorsement telling 32963, she was “simply honored” by him standing for her re-election. The Sunshine Journal could not reach her for further comment in time for this story. The Sunshine Journal did reach Peggy Jones’s opponent, Rob MacCallum, asking him if he was interviewed by Dyer prior to this announcement. “I have not met or have had any conversations with Dyer,” responded MacCallum. The Dyer campaign is managed by longtime Barefoot confidant, Jeffrey Andros, who endorsed Jones in January. The campaign has been publicly distant to the point of not answering invitations from other organizations. It has been confirmed Dyer will be at the Taxpayer’s association forum April 5th, but there isn’t a mainland visit in the foreseeable future. It is not clear whether Andros is managing Jones as well.
Dyer’s endorsement of Jones came in spite of the fact that DeSantis targeted the philosophically liberal board member in February 2023 for replacement because she failed to vote for the protection of parental rights and against woke ideologies. His announcement of the named 14 statewide school board incumbents to replace included Brian Barefoot too. In the exclusive release to Fox News Digital, DeSantis outlined his Education Agenda from his 2022 campaign. He then added, "We will defend our children against those who seek to rob them of their innocence. “[Floridians] reject this woke ideology."
Jones and Barefoot sided against state law and FLDOE rules on mask mandates and voted to return pornography to school libraries in February 2022. Also, Jones sided with the Biden Administration and the National School Board Association over parents advocacy at school board meetings in September of 2021. In taking their position, Jones brought forth a proposal to remove public comment to outside the formal gavel of the business meeting violating the citizen right to participate in the governmental process. Fortunately, after public outcry, the board voted against her proposal.
Jones also fought against the FLDOE removal of the Racial Equity and Inclusion policy that charged the superintendent to view the School District of Indian River County “through a system-wide racial equity lens” rather than an equality lens of character as advocated by civil rights icon, Martin Luther King. Furthermore, after Kamala Harris politically attacked the Florida African American History curriculum for falsely claiming it says, “slaves benefitted from slavery,” Jones continued the political campaign against the FLDOE committee that included the involvement of 4 African-American doctoral professors. Jones launched her own re-election bid making the false attack on the standards the central issue of her announcement. She sought board unity in standing against the African American History Standards as unanimously passed by the state Board of Education after a lengthy review process. Her issue went nowhere.
Candidates can speak individually with board members in regard to Sunshine laws. Dyer has found in Jones, a board member he most aligns with in his vision for the board seat. Also, he happens to agree with his campaign manager. However, it is against the DeSantis Education Agenda. That may mean his team, like Barefoot, is even resigned to receiving an appointment.