Orange County schools cancel pep rallies amid scholarship controversy

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — Orange County Public Schools leaders announced Wednesday evening that two previously planned pep rallies at Jones and Evans high schools would be indefinitely postponed.

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The pep rallies were arranged by Orange County Supervisor of Elections Glen Gilzean, who was set to announce $2.1 million in scholarships to allow the students to attend Valencia College for free if they studied cybersecurity and registered to vote.

The scholarships became the source of controversy on Friday, when Orange County leaders learned about them. The scholarships were not a part of the office’s budget request.

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Gilzean said the money accumulated after last year’s Presidential Preference Primary and general primaries came in under budget, and as a constitutional officer, he had the authority to repurpose the funds. He drew criticism for naming the scholarships after himself, though he agreed to tweak the name Tuesday and name them after Orange County.

Orange County schools cancels pep rallies amid scholarship controversy (WFTV)

State law, though, says unused money must be returned to the county for commissioners to determine how to spend it. It’s common for the elections office to return between $1 million and $3 million per year. This year, the county was expecting $800,000 – and the office came up short.

“In an effort to avoid disappointing our students, we have decided not to move forward with the events on Friday,” OCPS spokesman Michael Ollendorf said. “Once it is determined that the funds donated for the scholarship are appropriate we will work to reschedule the events.”

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Less than an hour before the announcement was made, Mayor Jerry Demings sent a statement of his own, floating the possibility of the county suing its own elections office.

“I am concerned about recent decisions made by the Orange County Supervisor of Elections to expend taxpayers’ dollars on non-budgetary expenditures,” Demings wrote. “As a result, I will have discussions with the Board of County Commissioners to include the merits of litigation to recover funds used inappropriately.”

At least one commissioner, Nicole Wilson, said she would be open to that option. Others also spoke favorably of trying to get the money back.

It wasn’t just the scholarships. Gilzean’s office also inked a deal with CareerSource in the final day of the fiscal year to spend $1.9 million on job training programs.

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The multi-pronged deal would train the more than 100 temporary elections workers to help them find a permanent source of income, as well as encourage high school students to pursue careers in public service.

Gilzean’s office also announced Wednesday that it hired a company to audit it as it prepares to hand over control to incoming Supervisor of Elections Karen Castor Dentel, though Dentel expressed discomfort with the deal, which was signed October 17, before the scholarship controversy began.

“In order for the public to trust Mr. Gilzean’s audit of his office, any audit of the supervisor of elections office must be conducted by an independent third party,” she said. “That’s why I’m calling on the Orange County Comptroller to lead this process.”

Gilzean’s spokesperson acknowledged WFTV’s request for comment on the school district’s decision and Demings’ statement Wednesday evening but did not immediately offer a response.

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