Natalie La Roche PietriRace for District 4 seat pits Tiffany Bryant, Anthony Hamlet, Christina Romelus and Daniel Zapata.
It’s a packed race for the District 4 seat on the Palm Beach County School Board. Four candidates are vying for the spot: a financial adviser, a former superintendent, an ex-vice mayor and a high school teacher.
Tiffany Bryant, 48, is a licensed financial adviser who also substitute teaches in the district and lends time to a robotics team for fourth to eighth graders.
Anthony Hamlet, 56, who was the superintendent of Pittsburgh Public Schools for five years, is the owner and CEO of an education consulting firm and is an adjunct professor.
Against them also runs Christina Romelus, 38, a city commissioner and vice mayor in Boynton Beach from 2016 to 2022. She is CEO of PolitiCALM, a government and policy consulting firm.
Daniel Zapata is a high school teacher at a private school in Palm Beach County. If elected, Zapata, 25, would be the youngest School Board member ever after Alexandra Ayala was elected to her seat at age 27 in 2020.
District 4 includes 19 schools on the coastal part of the county, stretching from Boca Raton to West Palm Beach. Erica Whitfield represents the district, but she’s running for County Commission.
The Palm Beach County School District is the 10th-largest in the nation and Florida’s fifth-largest. It serves more than 189,000 students, including those in charter schools, and is the county’s largest employer with 22,801 employees, including more than 13,000 teachers.
The salary for a School Board member last fiscal year was $56,587.
Only residents of District 4 can vote in this race. School board races are nonpartisan; however, Bryant and Zapata are registered Republicans and Hamlet and Romelus are registered Democrats.
The primary is Aug. 18. School board races are decided on that day unless no candidate gets 50% of the vote, in which case the top two finishers compete in a runoff on Election Day, Nov. 3.
Tiffany Bryant
Bryant was born in Miami but has been a Palm Beach County resident for 14 years. She’s worked in various fields: mental health, research, financial and government services. The diversity of her professional background has “uniquely prepared me to serve on the Palm Beach County School Board,” she said.
Bryant has a doctorate in international relations from Florida International University and speaks Spanish. Her research encompasses public school systems and government affairs in Central and South America and the Caribbean.
She has spent time in classrooms as a substitute counselor, teacher and paraprofessional for K-12 students across different programs.
Witnessing the day-to-day happenings and operations of the school day gave her a “current, practical understanding of the challenges facing students, teachers and administrators, and reinforced my belief that effective governance begins with listening to those working and learning in our schools every day,” she said.
Bryant’s husband is a 10th grade social studies teacher in Palm Beach County schools. She has two children. Her daughter attends a dual-language district school in Delray Beach, and her son is to begin a district prekindergarten in Boynton Beach in the fall.
Bryant is involved in their daughter’s robotics team, serving as the team’s referee and judge.
As of late July, Bryant’s campaign has nearly $13,000, including about $1,200 she loaned her campaign and $174 in in-kind contributions. She spent about $8,500.
Anthony Hamlet
Hamlet was born in Delray Beach and attended Palm Beach County schools, graduating from Atlantic High School and going on to play football for the University of Miami team that won national championships in 1987, 1989 and 1991.
His education journey began in 1994, after knee injuries while playing with the NFL’s Seattle Seahawks and then the Indianapolis Colts ended his football career. He started his tenure in Palm Beach County schools as a teacher and ascended to principal, and later, ran the transformation office, focused on closing achievement gaps in academically struggling schools. He had a stint at being a superintendent and, most recently, he’s a professor of educational leadership in two online schools, American InterContinental University based in Georgia and American College of Education based in Indiana.
“Those experiences taught me that sustainable improvement never happens by chance. It happens when governance is disciplined, priorities are clear, decisions are grounded in evidence, and leaders are held accountable for measurable results,” he said.
Hamlet admitted to an error in his résumé after reports that he misrepresented some academic feats for the superintendent job at Pittsburgh Public Schools. He highlighted JFK Middle and Palm Beach Lakes High and said they went from F ratings to C while he was principal, but state data showed the schools maintained C grades when he was principal, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported at the time. He said the claim about JFK Middle was wrong.
“There was one error that I publicly acknowledged, accepted responsibility for, and apologized for. My degrees, certifications, employment history, leadership positions, and more than 33 years of service in education are documented and verifiable,” Hamlet said in an email. “I have never attempted to avoid accountability for that mistake.”
He became superintendent in 2016 but resigned in 2021. It was after a state ethics commission found violations, including “negligently” being reimbursed for travel payments, submitting financial interest forms with mistakes and accepting “honoraria” payments (which was considered a “technical” violation).
“Importantly, the Commission did not conclude that I intentionally engaged in fraud, theft, corruption, self-dealing, or deliberately sought personal financial gain through dishonest conduct,” Hamlet said in an email. “I voluntarily stepped down because I believed the district and the City of Pittsburgh needed to move forward with their full attention on students as schools were emerging from the pandemic and returning to full-time, in-person instruction.” Afterward, he founded the education consultation firm CSI Strategies.
Hamlet has a doctorate degree in education leadership from Nova Southeastern University.
His campaign has collected about $41,500, including $23,700 in loans from Hamlet. He’s spent $15,400 as of late July.
Christina Romelus
With experience in health care, education and local government, Romelus says she’s equipped to represent District 4 on the School Board.
Born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, and raised in Palm Beach County, Romelus was a nurse, anatomy and physiology professor, and commissioner and vice mayor of Boynton Beach. She’s also the founder and CEO of a government affairs and public policy consulting firm.
“As a nurse, I recognize the critical connection between student health, safety, mental well-being and academic success,” she said. “My six years as a Boynton Beach commissioner and vice mayor taught me how to responsibly oversee public budgets, evaluate policy, ask thoughtful questions and make decisions that serve the public interest.”
She is a mom of two sons who go to Palm Beach County schools.
“I understand the importance of transparency, accountability and building consensus while keeping the needs of the community at the center of every decision,” Romelus said.
Following her 2016 election to the Boynton Beach City Commission, the campaign marketing firm owned by her and her husband, Darren Romelus, was tied up in allegations of voter fraud in primary elections.
Twenty-two voters claimed their signatures were forged on vote-by-mail request forms in the August primary, a Palm Beach Post investigation found. Christina Romelus was seen going door-to-door helping residents in Haitian neighborhoods fill out their ballots and then picking up ballots, which is legal for the candidate or a campaign volunteer to do.
The Romeluses firm was paid tens of thousands for signs by three candidates who had an influx of absentee ballots cast in their races, including then-County Commissioner Mack Bernard and then-Sen. Bobby Powell.
The State Attorney’s Office investigated, but went no further. Absentee ballots put Christina Romelus over the top in her election to the Boynton Beach Commission in 2017.
Romelus leads the race in campaign money. As of late July, she’s raised about $72,200 and spent $46,100.
Contributors include Miami-based political committees Accountable Miami Dade, Defend Democracy, Democracy and Freedom, Miami Dade Safe and Secure, New Leadership For Florida, Our Voice Our Future, Project Freedom Y Libertad, Residents First Leadership, Residents for Safe Neighborhoods and Engaged Florida. Each gave $1,000.
Daniel Zapata
High school teacher Zapata was born and raised in Palm Beach County and is a second-generation Cuban American. He teaches Spanish, government and economics at Atlantic Christian Academy, a private school in West Palm Beach. He is not certified by the state to be a teacher though that is not necessarily a requirement at private schools.
He’s served in different education roles, including assistant administrator and assistant athletic director.
“Each position has given me a different perspective on how our schools operate and how decisions made by the School Board affect students, teachers and principals,” Zapata said.
Zapata leans on his time spent in classrooms to come up with solutions “for the challenges educators face every day,” he said, while also understanding the operations and finances of a school.
“I believe those experiences will allow me to ask better questions, make informed decisions and focus on practical solutions that improve student outcomes while being responsible with taxpayer dollars,” he said.
Zapata has raised $34,725 as of July 24 and has spent $17,450. The Palm Beach County Police Benevolent Association gave him $1,000, as did ACEs Action Florida. Zapata loaned $15,000 to his own campaign.
On the issues
For this story, Stet News interviewed each candidate over email and considered their answers to questions from the League of Women Voters of Palm Beach County.
To what extent should artificial intelligence be used in the classroom by students and by teachers?
Bryant
“Artificial intelligence should be introduced in the classroom as a learning tool that supports, rather than replaces, the role of teachers and the development of student skills,” Bryant said.
AI can support student learning and problem-solving, she said. But it shouldn’t be used to outsource critical thinking or creativity, as original work and academic integrity should always be the bottom line. For teachers, AI can help plan lessons and suggest materials, but the teacher should always rely on “professional judgment and expertise” when deciding what materials suggested by AI could be used.
Importantly, everything that comes from AI should be fact-checked, as it can sometimes produce inaccurate information.
“When implemented thoughtfully, AI can be a valuable educational tool that prepares students for the future while maintaining the importance of human creativity, curiosity, critical thinking and connection in the classroom,” she said.
Hamlet
Above all, when it comes to AI in the classroom, student privacy should always be protected and academic integrity must be upheld, Hamlet said. He wants students to be prepared for a workforce that expects employees to know how to use modern technology, but not bypass the foundational learning of math, reading, science and critical thinking.
“Artificial intelligence is transforming every profession, from medicine and engineering to business, manufacturing and education. Our responsibility is not to decide whether AI will exist in our schools. It already does,” he said. “Our responsibility is to ensure students graduate knowing how to use it ethically, responsibly and effectively.”
Teachers should also feel free to use AI responsibly. Teachers can use it to plan lessons, find instructional materials, analyze student performance data, communicate with families who speak a different language at home and reduce administrative tasks.
“Every hour teachers save on routine work is an additional hour they can spend providing direct instruction, building relationships with students and addressing individual learning needs.”
Romelus
AI is an opportunity to enhance teaching and learning, Romelus said. Keeping academic integrity at the forefront and centering critical thinking skills must be the priority, but it can also be a tool to assist with language translation and improve accessibility for students with disabilities, for example.
“The district should also invest in professional development so teachers understand how to effectively integrate AI into instruction while protecting student privacy and maintaining academic integrity,” she said.
Guardrails must also be in place to prevent creating a culture of overdependence on technology.
“AI should supplement learning, not do the work for students,” Romelus said. “Our goal should be to prepare students for a workforce where AI will be commonplace, while ensuring they graduate with the knowledge, judgment and critical thinking skills to use these tools responsibly.”
Zapata
Students need to learn to use AI responsibly. “I don’t think AI should ever replace learning, but I do think it can be a valuable resource, not a crutch, when used appropriately.”
Teachers can use the tool to reduce the time they spend on administrative tasks and dedicate that time to being in front of students.
District guidelines should outline “clear expectations so AI is used ethically and in ways that enhance learning.”
How should the district approach competing with charter and private schools?
Bryant
The hot competition between public, charter and private schools should incentivize the board to “examine what attracts families to charter and private schools and determine where it is appropriate to expand or enhance comparable programs and opportunities within our district,” she said.
“Competition with charter and private schools should not be viewed as a threat but as an opportunity to better understand what families are looking for and to ensure our public schools remain their first choice,” Bryant said.
If elected, Bryant would like to explore partnerships with corporate and private investors keen on supporting public education to “supplement — not replace — public funding through grants, sponsorships and collaborative initiatives that bring additional opportunities to our public schools and students.”
Bryant would also like to see more advertising of the diversity of academic programs the district offers and expand community outreach.
Hamlet
Hamlet says the district should be thinking beyond this rivalry.
“The district should not define its success by competing with charter and private schools,” he said. “It should define its success by ensuring that every Palm Beach County public school is a high-quality school that families are proud to choose.”
The push for better marketing of the district looms over this conversation, but Hamlet said that’s not the way. “The most effective response is not better marketing. It is better schools.”
If elected, the policies he would push for prioritize outcomes over operations.
Families choose schools also based on campus safety, specialized programs, communication with families, extracurricular opportunities and more — in addition to academic achievement, he said. The opportunities such as dual enrollment and career and technical education should keep expanding, but, “at the same time, we must ensure that every neighborhood school provides an outstanding educational experience, not just our specialty programs,” Hamlet said.
The reality of school choice comes at a cost to the district. Fewer students means fewer dollars in the budget.
“I support parents having educational choices. However, every school receiving public funds should be held to the same high expectations for academic performance, financial stewardship, operational transparency, student safety and accountability,” he said. “Public dollars should always be accompanied by public accountability.”
Romelus
Even with the packed school choice landscape, most parents still opt for public school.
“Every student who chooses to remain in our district strengthens both our educational community and our ability to invest in excellent schools for all,” she said.
“Our goal should be to make Palm Beach County public schools the first choice for families by providing excellent academics, safe learning environments, outstanding teachers and programs that meet the diverse needs of students.
The district should also offer a diversity of specialized programs: career and technical education, magnet and choice programs, advanced coursework, arts, athletics and partnerships with local businesses, colleges and community organizations. But if parents don’t know about them, then the district still loses, so communicating with families about the offerings is a must.
Zapata
“The best way for Palm Beach County Schools to compete (with other school choices) is by being the school system families choose because of the quality of education we provide,” Zapata said.
That, he said, includes “offering programs that meet the interests of today’s students.”
Listening to parents’ feedback is also critical, he said.
“If we’re providing an outstanding education and communicating effectively, families will have confidence in our public schools.”
Amid declining enrollment rates and a tightening budget, where might you consider reducing expenses? And are there any areas where cuts would be a nonstarter?
Bryant
Bryant’s priority on the budget would be to “protect the classroom first.”
“I would not support budget adjustments that negatively impact instruction, student services or the educators who directly serve our students,” she said.
After reviewing the district’s budget, she would examine administrative processes, contracts, procurement practices, technology investments and programs. If elected, she said, she would use data to guide any decision that would affect students and staff.
This is also an area where Bryant said she believes there’s opportunity for partnerships with businesses, nonprofit organizations, higher education institutions and the private sector to buoy Palm Beach County’s financial state.
Hamlet:
“Fiscal responsibility is not simply about cutting budgets,” Hamlet said. “It is about making strategic investments that produce the greatest return for students.”
After seeing a comprehensive operational review of district expenditures, Hamlet would consider what can be redirected to more pressing priorities.
“Across my career, I have learned that the easiest cuts are not always the smartest cuts. Decisions should be driven by data, evidence of effectiveness and alignment with the district’s strategic priorities, not by tradition or convenience.”
Hamlet listed his nonstarters: “investments in classroom instruction, teacher recruitment and retention, early literacy, exceptional student education, school safety, mental health services, instructional coaching and programs that have demonstrated measurable improvements in student achievement.”
“My responsibility as a board member will be to ask not simply, ‘What does this cost?’ but rather, ‘What value does this create for students, and how will we know it made a difference?’”
Romelus
The Palm Beach County School District faces a financial challenge many other districts in the state are confronting. The reduction in funding from the state and policy decisions have “placed increasing pressure” on public schools, Romelus said.
“While districts are expected to comply with additional mandates, accountability measures and reporting requirements, they are often asked to do so with limited resources,” the former vice mayor said. “I believe all schools receiving taxpayer funding should be held to high standards of financial transparency, accountability and student outcomes.”
Any decision regarding the budget needs to be based on comprehensive data. Romelus would first review “administrative spending, consulting contracts, duplicative programs, procurement practices and operational efficiencies before considering reductions that directly affect students.”
We should also evaluate how district facilities are being utilized and look for opportunities to consolidate services where it makes sense.
There are certain areas where cuts should be a last resort, such as classroom instruction, teacher compensation, school safety and exceptional student education.
But, Romelus said, “we cannot budget our way out of an enrollment challenge. The district must also focus on retaining and attracting students.”
Zapata
“Government should always be looking for ways to operate more efficiently,” Zapata said.
Every expense in a budget needs to be thoughtfully considered. He would start by reviewing administrative costs, duplicated positions and operational inefficiencies.
“Areas like classroom instruction, school safety and services that directly support students should remain priorities,” he said. “Those are investments that have a direct impact on student success, and they should be protected as much as possible.”
Fifty-nine percent of Palm Beach County third graders are reading at grade level – a slight improvement from last year. What measures should the board consider to improve student reading instruction?
Bryant
Bryant would like to reduce the time spent on laptops in K-2 classrooms, wanting to prioritize teacher-led instruction and hands-on learning.
She would also like to expand “cost-neutral classroom support for teachers” starting in grades K–2 with the help of local colleges and universities. A college student pursuing an education-related major could earn academic credit for supporting reading comprehension instruction in Palm Beach County classes, for example.
“Providing teachers with additional classroom support allows for more individualized instruction and targeted intervention for students who need additional help developing literacy skills,” she said.
Hamlet
“Literacy,” Hamlet said, “is the foundation for every other academic subject.”
If elected, Hamlet would make sure the board outlines clear student reading goals for the superintendent, saying it needs to be a district priority rather than an “initiative.”
In addition to “ambitious but achievable literacy goals,” Hamlet would require regular public progress monitoring that includes why or why not improvement has happened, not merely the results without explanation. Evidence is key to decision-making and accountability.
“The board establishes the destination, monitors the journey, and ensures the district has the leadership, resources and accountability necessary to reach its goals,” he said. “Every child deserves to become a confident reader, and every decision the board makes should move us closer to achieving that outcome.”
Romelus
“Every child deserves to leave third grade with the reading skills needed to succeed in every subject that follows,” she said.
It’s “encouraging to see improvement,” Romelus said, but that can’t distract from those students who are still behind. “We need to treat literacy as our district’s top academic priority.”
If elected, one way she would reach for that goal would be local partnerships that expand reading success beyond the classroom. Student reading skills slip during the summer break, a period known as the summer slide, so encouraging reading at home is another way to strengthen literacy levels, she said.
“Finally, the board should use data to measure what is working and hold ourselves accountable for results. We should regularly review literacy outcomes, replicate successful practices across schools and ensure resources are directed where they will have the greatest impact,” Romelus said.
Zapata
Evidence-based reading instruction should be a continued investment, as well as early intervention for students who need additional support and access to quality pre-kindergarten programs, he said.
“If a child struggles to read, they often struggle across every subject,” Zapata said.
Parents, too, should be involved in their children’s reading practice at home.
“If we build strong foundations early, we’ll see better outcomes throughout a student’s education,” he said.
More information
Read more about the candidates in the League of Women Voters guide.
This story is part of a statewide partnership of 27 nonpartisan newsrooms and universities working to help Florida voters make informed decisions in the 2026 School Board elections. Learn more about the Florida Election Reporting Partnership at floridaelections.org.
Reporters from Stet News and WLRN worked together to cover the county’s two contested School Board races. Read the preview of the District 6 School Board race covering the western communities here.
