Florida Union Free School District

Florida Union Free School District is a school district in Orange County in the U.S. state of New York. It includes the village of Florida and parts of the towns of Warwick and Goshen.

Florida Union Free School District
51 N Main St Florida , New York, 10921-0757
District information
Grades	Pre-K – 12
Superintendent	Lisamarie Spindler
School board	Rob Andrade, President Lori Gorcsos, Vice President Stephen Caldwell John T. Redman Robert Scheuermann
NCES District ID	3625320[1]
Students and staff
Students	752 2021–2022 school year
Teachers	73.91 2021–2022 school year
Staff	57.50 2021–2022 school year
Student–teacher ratio	10.17
Other information
Website	www.floridaufsd.org

History

The district was a party in the court case dealing called Walczak v. Florida Union Free School District^[2] dealing with free appropriate public education in which a court ruled that children are not entitled to the best education that money can buy; they are only entitled to an appropriate education.

Larry Leaven, a gay man in a same-sex marriage, became superintendent in 2021. He immediately began receiving homophobic harassment from community members, with members of the local chapter of Moms for Liberty being the most persistent. Of the three board members elected in May 2022 on a platform opposing "critical race theory", one was a Moms for Liberty member, one was married to a Moms for Liberty member, and one received funding from Moms for Liberty members. Leaven resigned his position in November 2022, though Leaven's supporters argue that he was forced out by the board.^[3][4]

Schools

The district operates Golden Hill Elementary School, serving pre-K through 5th grade, and S.S. Seward Institute, serving 6th through 12th grades.

References

1. "Search for Public School Districts – District Detail for Florida Union Free School District". National Center for Education Statistics. Institute of Education Sciences. Retrieved 2023-10-01.
2. U.S. Court of Appeals, Second Circuit, 142 F. 3d 119, 122 (2nd Cir. 1998), April 16, 1998
3. Solomon, Will (2023-04-13). "Questions remain about Orange County superintendent's departure". Times Union. Retrieved 2023-10-02.
4. Gilbert, David (2023-04-26). "A Far-Right Moms Group Is Terrorizing Schools in the Name of Protecting Kids". Vice. Retrieved 2023-10-03.