Florida’s Education Commissioner has removed a Florida SouthWestern State College professor from a statewide sociology course workgroup, accusing him of violating state law by including “gender ideology” in course material.
Education Commissioner Anastasios Kamoutsas announced the decision on X, stating that he took “immediate action” against Dr. Phillip Wiseley, a sociology professor at the Fort Myers college.
Kamoutsas also recommended that college President Jeffery Allbritten take further disciplinary action “to ensure this never happens again.” College representatives decline request for comment.
“Florida taxpayers deserve general education courses that reflect proven, lawful, and fact-based instruction — not speculative ideology,” Kamoutsas wrote in the post.
In a letter dated Oct. 30, Kamoutsas told Wiseley that the Florida Department of Education had received reports indicating that his Introduction to Sociology course “promotes gender ideology,” which he said violates Florida Statute 1007.55. That section of state law requires general education courses to avoid content deemed “unproven, speculative or exploratory,” according to the letter.
Kamoutsas indicated that the course meets Florida’s general education requirement for a degree, but that it has not been taught with fidelity to statutory requirements.
“By including this content in your course, you are in clear violation of Florida statute,” Kamoutsas wrote. “This professional lapse is made all the more egregious by the fact that you are participating in the statewide sociology course workgroup.”
