Democrats focus on 11 School Board candidates to fight back against culture wars

The Florida Democratic Party (FDP) is giving money and doing grassroots organizing to support 11 School Board candidates for the Aug. 20 Primary.

“Our Take Back Local program is our way of investing in the candidates we feel will be most competitive in the upcoming election,” said FDP Chair Nikki Fried in a statement. “We are not going to let Ron DeSantis and his allies take over our school boards with far-right, Moms for Liberty candidates.”

The female-dominated candidates are spread throughout the state. Five are incumbents. The group of candidates includes teachers, lawyers, a social worker and a tech entrepreneur.

Fried said the candidates “represent the best of Florida’s education system and offer a clear contrast to the culture wars Republicans have been waging in our school systems.”

The full list of the candidates includes Stephanie Arguello (Seminole), School Board member Nadia Combs (Hillsborough), School Board member Debbi Hixon (Broward), School Board member Sarah Leonardi (Broward), Sarah Mannion (Duval), Jeremy Rogers (Leon), School Board member Luisa Santos (Miami-Dade), Rebecca Thompson (Broward), Max Tuchman (Miami-Dade), Stephanie Vanos (Orange), and School Board member Jessica Vaughn (Hillsborough).

In the Hillsborough School Board race, the Democrats are supporting Vaughn and Combs, a pair of incumbents who were both elected in 2020 and both worked as teachers. Democrats praised Combs, who is up for Seat 1, for leading the district through the pandemic and financial problems. Meanwhile, Vaughn, who is seeking Seat 3, advocates for students who fall between the cracks, Democrats said.

In Central Florida, Democrats are supporting Orange County Public Schools candidate Vanos, a lawyer who had served as Vice President for the Democratic Public Education Caucus of Florida, Meanwhile, Seminole candidate Arguello brings ” fresh perspective” to the table and is focused on students’ health from her background in public health, Democrats said.

The deadline to request a vote-by-mail ballot for the August 20th elections is August 10th.

Stephanie Arguello, Seminole County School Board, Seat 3

Stephanie Arguello is an experienced public health professional and mother of a current student in Seminole County. After over a decade serving the Central Florida community as a health educator, and leader of community health improvement efforts, Stephanie decided to step up to bring a fresh perspective to the board. She will keep the health and wellbeing of students, educators, and community in focus.

Nadia Combs, Hillsborough County School Board, Seat 1 (incumbent)

Nadia Combs was elected to the Hillsborough County School Board in 2020, and was instrumental in navigating Florida’s seventh largest school district through a pandemic and budget crisis. Under her leadership as the Board Chair, the district implemented smart and common sense budget alignments that put the school system on a stable financial footing for the future.

Before becoming a member of the school board, Combs was a teacher, team leader, department head, district teacher trainer, Dropout Prevention instructor, and a selection for both Franklin Middle School Teacher of the Year and Hillsborough County Middle School Social Studies Teacher of the Year. She is excited to continue serving on the school board and building a stronger educational foundation for our entire community.

Debbi Hixon, Broward County School Board, Seat 9 (incumbent)

Debbi Hixon was elected to the Broward County School Board in 2020, and has spent her first term fighting to increase teacher pay and increase resources to schools across the district. A native of Hollywood, Hixon is a Nationally Certified teacher with 35 years of experience in Broward County schools.

Hixon is committed to supporting students and keeping her schools and community safe. She serves as the President of the Chris Hixon Athletic Scholarship, dedicated to the memory of her husband, who lost his life at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on February 14, 2018 in an attempt to disarm a school shooter. She is running for re-election to continue making the changes necessary to keep Broward County schools safe, not only from active shooters, but from bullying and overtesting, as well as expand mental health support for both students and teachers and ensure that teachers receive adequate pay and sufficient support in the classroom.

Sarah Leonardi, Broward County School Board, Seat 3 (incumbent)

Sarah Mannion is a Jacksonville native and local attorney with over a decade of experience in bankruptcy law. As a wife and mom of three, she has dedicated her time to serving DCPS on PTAs and School Advisory Councils. Sarah is committed to using her experience working with teachers, school administrators, and families to provide a top-quality education for students, ensuring they feel safe and supported from kindergarten to graduation. A proud graduate of Duval County Public Schools, she attended Greenland Pines Elementary, Mandarin Middle School, Twin Lakes Middle School, and Wolfson High School. Her main goals are to prioritize teacher retention, student safety, and responsible budgeting for the school system.

Jeremy Rogers, Leon County School Board, Seat 4

Jeremy Rogers is a veteran, father, firefighter, owner of Killearn Sunshine Academy preschool, and owner of an outdoor adventure camp, and has a passion for improving children’s education. His goal is to remove extreme politics out of the classroom and implement policies that have a positive impact on students, teachers, staff, and parents by refocusing on student well-being and development, ensuring teacher wages are commensurate with the work they put in, and bringing financial transparency to the county budget.

Luisa Santos, Miami-Dade County School Board, Seat 9 (incumbent)

Luisa Santos is a proud product of Miami-Dade Public Schools and a dedicated education advocate who was elected to the Miami-Dade County School Board in 2020. After moving from Colombia at age eight and overcoming challenges as an undocumented student, she attended Miami Dade College and Georgetown University. With experience teaching and leading educational programs, Luisa founded Lulu’s Ice Cream, integrating learning into the workplace. As a Miami-Dade School Board Member for District 9, she is committed to preparing students for future challenges and empowering the next generation through prioritizing student safety and health, student achievement, educators and staff, equity, and transparency.

Rebecca Thompson, Broward County School Board, Seat 2

Rebecca Thompson is a mom of three kids and former school social worker. She has over 10 years of experience in social work. When elected, Rebecca will be the only mental health professional on the Broward County School Board — a critical voice at a time where we are seeing an increase in mental health issues in school aged students across the country. Rebecca is also a dedicated community advocate and will fight to keep her community informed and involved in the decisions made about our public schools.

Max Tuchman, Miami-Dade County School Board, Seat 7

Max Tuchman is an award-winning tech entrepreneur and lifelong advocate for educational equity. She created an interactive educational platform called Caribu, which earned accolades such as Apple’s “Best Apps of 2020” and TIME Magazine’s Best Inventions. Max has extensive experience in education, from teaching at Miami Northwestern to serving as Executive Director of Teach For America, Miami-Dade. She has also managed education projects for the NYC Mayor’s Office and DC Public Schools, and was appointed as a White House Fellow in 2015. A Miami native and first-generation Cuban-American, Max holds three collegiate degrees and aims to invest in early childhood education, parental classroom involvement, student safety, and future job preparation.

Stephanie Vanos, Orange County School Board, Seat 6

Stephanie Vanos is a mom of three daughters in public schools, lawyer and ten year volunteer public education advocate at the local, state and national levels. She served as the VP for the Democratic Public Education Caucus of Florida. She was also the Co-chair for the Education Committee for the League of Women Voters Orange County, and has served on a number of local boards working to improve her community. Stephanie is running for school board because she believes that we need knowledgeable, rational people on our school board and people who put students first.

Jessica Vaughn, Hillsborough County School Board, Seat 3 (incumbent)

Jessica Vaughn was elected in 2020 and is the current Vice Chair of the Hillsborough County School Board. She is a graduate of the University of South Florida where she earned her B.A in Elementary Education from the College of Education in 2010. She is a certified public educator who has earned additional certifications in Health, Exceptional Student Education, and ESOL.

For the last decade, Mrs. Vaughn has worked inside Hillsborough County classrooms as a full-time classroom teacher, or as a substitute teacher. Both teaching positions have provided her the honor of experiencing an assortment of different classroom settings and a variety of diverse students and schools. These diverse experiences have allowed her to be an extremely effective advocate for students who tend to fall within the margins of our public educational system.