When the Polk County School Board met on June 10, the third chair from the left at the committee table was vacant — again.
Rick Nolte, the School Board member representing District 3, was absent for the fifth consecutive meeting. Nolte last attended a meeting on Jan. 28.
“Mr. Nolte is on medical leave, and any essential duties are covered by members of the board or superintendent,” Polk County Public Schools spokesman Kyle Kennedy said by email. “Members of the public can address any concerns directly to the board chair or the superintendent’s office.”
We have requested any letter or other communication Nolte might about a medical leave. There were no such records, the district said.
William Allen, the chair of the Polk County School Board, did not respond to voicemails or an email asking about Nolte.
A call to Nolte’s phone yielded a recorded response saying the mailbox was full.
Under Florida law, a governor may suspend an elected official for malfeasance, misfeasance, neglect of duty, habitual drunkenness, incompetence or permanent inability to perform official duties.
Nolte, 69, defeated incumbent School Board member Sarah Fortney in the 2022 election for District 3, capturing about 51% of the vote. Nolte was one of four conservative candidates running that year in the nonpartisan races, all of whom drew support from the Polk County Republican Party.
Nolte was the only candidate in Polk County to receive an endorsement from Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. He signed DeSantis’ “Education Agenda” pledge, with an oath containing 10 priorities, such as avoiding school closures, rejecting Critical Race Theory and supporting the rights of parents to petition school boards over grievances.
Nolte’s term is scheduled to end in November 2026. He has not yet filed to run for reelection.
District 3 contains 23 schools in Alturas, Bartow, Lakeland, Mulberry and Winter Haven.
If he is on medical leave like any job prove it or be fired. Lakeland needs a representative not a name to fill a position!
And we don’t need someone who smears his opponent like he and his son did. Absolutely reprehensible. Can’t win an election against a qualified incumbent? Start a hate campaign. And bring in an outside paid source to do it. Good going.