Hank Rogers and Reginald Blount are competing in the runoffs this November for the Duval County School Board District 5 seat, representing some of the oldest schools in the district. 

The election comes as the school district grapples with budget cuts, declining enrollment and the potential closure of 18 schools by 2028. 

The two candidates represent a stark political divide. Democrats support Rogers, while Republican groups back Blount, who has echoed conservative conspiracy theories about public education.

The winner will replace term-limited Warren Jones. Both candidates advanced to the November runoffs with only a margin of 67 votes between them. 

Both candidates have previously run for office.

Blount, a military veteran, has been endorsed by parents advocacy group Moms For Liberty and the Republican Party of Duval County. He has also been endorsed by GOP state Rep. Wyman Duggan and City Councilman Mike Gay. He’s part of a slate of conservative candidates that formed this year for each of Duval’s four school board contests. He previously ran for Jacksonville City Council as a Republican in 2019 and 2023.

Rogers, the chief operating officer of the I Am A Star Foundation, has touted his experience as a legislative aide in Tallahassee and his involvement in local education, including serving as the chairman of the school district’s half-cent sales tax oversight committee. He has secured endorsements from the teachers union and most of the area’s Democratic elected officials, including state Rep. Angie Nixon, Sen. Tracie Davis and both of the area’s city councilmen, Jimmy Peluso and Rahman Johnson.

Rogers ran for this School Board seat in 2016, losing to Jones, who has also endorsed Rogers as his successor.

CULTURE WARS

This election also unfolds against a backdrop of intensifying culture wars in education. Conservative groups like Moms for Liberty have gained influence statewide, pushing for restrictions on how schools address issues of race, gender, and sexuality. In Duval County, these efforts have manifested in heated debates over book bans and curriculum changes.

“We have to teach true and accurate history,” Rogers said in an interview with WJCT in early August. “We have to. That’s fair to our students. … That’s a non-negotiable for me.”

Blount has aligned himself with groups advocating for stricter control over school content, arguing that there is inappropriate content currently in schools. His campaign website says children must “never become subjects in social engineering experiments.”

Blount also referenced in a July interview with WJCT a widely debunked conspiracy theory about schools providing litter boxes for students who identify as cats. This false claim, which has circulated in conservative circles nationwide, has been repeatedly disproven by school officials and fact-checkers.

Blount did not provide The Tributary or other news outlets proof for his claims, despite initially saying he would do so.

Politics has gotten so deep into the school system, Blount said, “You have so many social and outside groups that have such an influence that you wonder where the teaching is now. Is the social order taking over basic education?”

Blount told the Tributary that he has heard parents are tired of teachers “convincing” children “to be a certain way, a certain gender, a certain group.” He said he is not strictly opposed to discussing gender and sexuality, suggesting that sexual education could be appropriate for older students if parents consent. Those topics, he said, should first come up for a vote by the parents.

Rogers expressed concern that the political environment has caused teachers to become afraid of what they can and can’t teach.

SCHOOL CLOSURES

The district must also grapple with significant operational challenges. Enrollment has declined as more families opt for charter or private schools, straining the budget and forcing discussions about potential school closures and job cuts.

The district has faced unexpected restrictions in managing a voter-approved half-cent sales tax for school construction and maintenance. New state rules, passed after the tax was approved in 2020, have forced the district to share a larger portion of the revenue with charter schools.

Rogers acknowledged the enrollment challenges but emphasized the need for better marketing of public schools to compete with charter and private options. “We have to do a better job of telling what’s in the building,” Rogers said. “People just don’t know what’s inside.”

But it’s not enough to market Duval County Public Schools, he said. Neighborhood schools need programs that parents want.

“Are we really listening to hear from the families what it is that they want in their schools? What program — are we offering the correct program?” he said.

Blount thinks the district is lacking in results, and he advocated for an independent audit.

“The charter school industry is not going anywhere, so the public school has to find out, figure out a way to maintain their levels in public schools,” Blount said. “And that, for me, that means increasing better teachers, better pay, better standards, better pay for teachers.”

At a forum hosted by the local Libertarian Party in May, he said the School Board needs to find where in the budget it can make cuts.

“And I continue to hit on budgets because that’s where the money comes from,” Blount said. “Again, it’s not to find fault but to find out how we can cut. Where is the money going and can we move it and fund it properly because the schools are falling apart.”

Rogers suggested cutting down on district-wide programs, as he has seen schools that don’t implement them. For example, the district pays for a car-rider app at every school, even though not every school uses the app, he said.

“I think we need to take a look at how we look at different, different programs, different services as it relates to the budget shortfall,” Rogers said. That, he said, would allow the district to spend more in the classroom and less on procurement.

 Regardless of the outcome, the next school board will face immediate challenges in addressing budget shortfalls, potential school closures, and ongoing debates about curriculum and book bans. The District 5 School Board member will play a crucial role in shaping how Duval County navigates these contentious education issues in the coming years.