Two DeSantis-backed Miami school board members unofficially sworn in by lieutenant governor
The Miami-Dade County School Board Tuesday welcomed two new board members — Roberto Alonso and Monica Colucci — in an unofficial swearing-in ceremony that featured Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nuñez administering the oaths of office and a priest that asked the “Heavenly Father” to ensure “our children, our community and the nation will always have the priority on you.”
The event came one day before the current board’s final meeting and one week before the official swearing-in ceremony on Tuesday, Nov. 22; the incoming members’ terms do not begin until then.
The unofficial ceremony was scheduled after the members-elect requested it “to facilitate sharing their swearing-in with friends and family and felt that it would be difficult to get people to attend so close to Thanksgiving,” according to district officials.
Alonso, 43, will succeed Chairwoman Perla Tabares Hantman, who announced in April she would not seek re-election. Alonso, whom Gov. Ron DeSantis appointed to the Miami Dade College board in 2020, won the open seat in the Aug. 23 primary.
Colucci, 49, will replace longtime board member Marta Perez, whom she defeated in August. A third board member is also expected to join the board, though it’s unclear whether a new board member would be appointed prior to next week’s ceremony and sworn in with Alonso and Colucci.
The individual, who will be appointed by DeSantis, will succeed Christi Fraga, the board member who is in a Dec. 13 runoff election to become the mayor of Doral. She is required to step down by Nov. 22, when the new board members are officially sworn in, per state statute.
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New board members, DeSantis aligned
Ahead of the August primaries, DeSantis endorsed more than 30 school board candidates across the state, including Alonso and Colucci. At the time, the move was seen as an attempt by the governor to inject partisan politics in what had historically been a non-partisan entity, as school districts are partially funded by taxpayers.
But Tuesday’s event highlighted the political similarities between DeSantis and the incoming board members. During their acceptance speeches, Alonso and Colucci each reiterated their commitment to increasing parental rights and support to a “back to basics” education model that focuses solely on core subjects — a message Republicans and conservatives statewide have embraced this election season.
Alonso, on multiple occasions, evoked a common phrase used by DeSantis: “Education, not indoctrination.” As a board member, “I will work to oppose any extreme agenda and make sure our focus is on educating our students. The focus needs to return to the basics of math, English, science and civics with a strong focus on career pathways, preparing our students for future success,” he said.
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Colucci said she will “never settle for being politically correct, but rather morally correct. When it comes to kids, I pledge to protect their minds, hearts and spirits and in turn, protect their innocence.” Education, she said, “must return to teaching children how to think, not what to think.”
Despite Alonso and Colucci espousing common conservative slogans or political talking points throughout their speeches, Nuñez, who campaigned for Colucci, rejected any assertions that Tuesday’s event — and her participation in it — suggests a Republican stronghold on the board. Alonso and Colucci, for their part, have both maintained they will act independently from the governor.
“I’m here to celebrate board members that were duly elected by their voters in their respective districts and I was asked to swear in both. I’m very proud to do that and I think they’re proud to have me here,” she said. “There’s no signal being sent other than the fact that it’s a great day for them.”
Still, for Fernand Amandi, a Democratic pollster, the Republican Party has proven that it rarely acts independently when it comes to political topics.
“The subtext is there,” Amandi told the Herald ahead of the ceremony. Tuesday’s event, he argued, was simply the “latest sign that the Republicans have found in education a political weapon [and] a potential cultural wedge.”
This story was originally published November 15, 2022 at 5:12 PM.
