- July 23, 2026
School Board candidate Jill Woolbright responds to former School Board member Colleen Conklin's opinion: ‘Woolbright brought 'division and dysfunction’”.
Dear Editor:
Recent commentary about my service on the Flagler County School Board paints a picture that simply isn’t supported by the public record. Voters deserve facts, not opinions, and those facts are documented in public records, School Board meeting minutes and video recordings available for anyone to review.
Throughout my service, the disagreements were never about personalities, they were about two fundamentally different views of the role of parents and the role of government in our schools.
After spending 28 years in a Flagler County classroom, I never forgot that parents are a child’s first teacher and greatest advocate. That belief guided every vote I cast. Consider just a few examples.
My first vote as a School Board member was against adding “gender identity” to the district’s nondiscrimination policy. The motion passed on a 3-2 vote. Colleen Conklin, Cheryl Massaro, and Trevor Tucker voted in favor. Janet McDonald and I voted against it because I believed a policy of that significance deserved broader public discussion before being adopted.
When Governor Ron DeSantis ended school mask mandates, the Board majority attempted three separate times during one meeting to reinstate mask mandates despite the governor’s executive order. I voted no each time because I believed healthcare decisions for children belong to parents — not the School Board.
I also exposed internal district forms that allowed students to socially transition at school while parents were kept in the dark. During a public meeting, former School Board Chair Colleen Conklin acknowledged those forms had been used for years. By exposing those practices and working alongside legislative leaders, including then-House Speaker Paul Renner, I helped bring statewide attention to a practice that parents overwhelmingly believed should end. Those efforts contributed to stronger parental rights protections that are now reflected in Florida law.
Later, I identified a book in our middle and high school libraries that contained sexually explicit material I believed was inappropriate for students and inconsistent with Florida law governing age-appropriate materials. I called for its removal because I believe our schools should never provide children with sexually explicit content. Ms. Conklin opposed removing the book and supported keeping it in our school libraries. The Superintendent ultimately removed the book, and Flagler County became one of the first school districts in Florida to act.
Our district helped lead the way for parents and school districts across the state as Florida strengthened its laws to ensure school library materials are age appropriate and reaffirmed parents’ right to have a voice in what is available to their children.
Every one of those decisions was rooted in the same principle: parents have the right to know, the right to be involved, and the right to raise their children without schools withholding important information from them.
I stood for parents before parental rights became state law. I stood for transparency before Florida required it. I stood for protecting children when it invited criticism. Today, many of those same principles have been affirmed in Florida law and state policy.
I would make those same decisions again because I believe they were the right decisions for the children and families of Flagler County. My loyalty has never been to politics; it has always been to the students, parents, and families I was privileged to serve for 28 years. That is the record I offer the voters, and I respectfully ask for their support on August 18.
Jill Woolbright
Candidate for Flagler County School Board, District 1
