By forming an education team stacked with charter school leaders, voucher proponents and controversial headline-grabbing education reformer Michelle Rhee, Gov.-elect Rick Scott seemed to signal this week that big changes might be coming to Florida schools.
And they likely won't be popular with teachers or teachers unions.
"I truly believe that there is a move afoot to privatize education in the United States...and it seems that Michelle Rhee is in the vanguard of those people," said Robert Dow, president of the Palm Beach County teachers union. "And I think they're totally wrong."
Rhee, the former chancellor of Washington D.C. schools, is an Ivy-League-educated reformer who became known for a brief, tumultuous reign in what is arguably the nation's worst public school system.
With the blessing of Washington's former mayor, Rhee fired teachers based on student achievement, closed failing schools and championed a new pay system for teachers that promised big monetary rewards for higher test scores but limited teacher tenure.
She stepped down in October after Mayor Adrian Fenty lost his re-election bid.
In an e-mail to the Palm Beach Post today, Rhee said: "I am happy to be of service to Gov.-elect Scott and the State of Florida. When it comes to improving our schools for our children, I will work with Democrats, Republicans, Independents, and people who have general interest in making schools great for our children."
There has been speculation that Rhee might become Florida's next education commissioner, but she told the Washington Post this week that she wouldn't be moving here.
Rhee topped the list of Scott's education transition team, announced late Thursday. Second on the list was Patricia Levesque, executive director of the Foundation for Florida's Future and former deputy chief of staff for education under Gov. Jeb Bush.
Bush, who is chairman of the foundation, implemented one of the most aggressive school overhauls in Florida's history. He championed high-stakes standardized testing, charter schools and voucher programs.
Frank Brogan, chancellor of the state university system and former president of Florida Atlantic University, also is in the group.
The 18-member transition team also includes the owners of charter school companies, superintendent of Hillsborough County schools, chairman of a voucher organization, and university chancellors.
Mark Pudlow, a spokesman for the state teachers union said the Florida Education Association had only this to say via e-mail about Scott's transition team: "We hope that the governor and his team will seek the expertise, experiences and opinions of Florida's teachers, who are the most knowledgeable about what's been going on in Florida's public schools."
The team - Scott's "Champions of Achievement" - includes just one teacher, an online history instructor with Florida Virtual Schools.