As the lead counsel at the Florida Virtual School, Frank Kruppenbacher, a once-powerful public attorney, broke a state ethics statute, according to a decision that the Florida Commission on Ethics unanimously accepted on Friday.
Kruppenbacher acknowledged one ethical violation in the settlement that the commission’s lawyers and he reached: using a virtual school employee to carry out work for his private company. According to the agreement, the penalty consists of a $5,000 fine, public censure, and admonition.
After working as an attorney for Orange County Public Schools, the virtual school, six government organizations, and most recently the Osceola County school district, Kruppenbacher enjoyed a lengthy legal career in Central Florida. September was the month he resigned from Osceola. In addition, he held the position of powerful chairman of the board that managed Orlando International Airport for seven years.
He was formerly listed as one of the most influential people in the city by Orlando Magazine for seven years running.
The ethics panel determined in 2021 that there was probable reason to believe Kruppenbacher had broken six state ethics laws.
Although mediation was accepted by both parties, the matter was scheduled for an administrative hearing. According to the agreement struck in December and approved by the commission on Friday, during mediation, the state consented to dismiss five further allegations, stating that the “evidence does not warrant moving forward,” while Kruppenbacher conceded to the single accusation.
During the brief hearing the commission held on his case, Kruppenbacher did not show up. He did not respond to demands for comment on Friday, nor did his attorney, Mark Herron, do so when the Orlando Sentinel first reported on the arrangement earlier this month.
A text message by Leslie McLaughlin, the paralegal, and clerk for the virtual school that filed the ethics complaint, indicated she had nothing to say.
The ethics commission vote ought to be the last formal reaction to the scandal that shook the online school in 2018 when Kruppenbacher, an ally of then-Gov. Rick Scott, resigned over allegations of “boorish” behavior from whistleblowers and a school audit that raised concerns about contracts and spending he had approved.
About twelve other school employees filed whistleblower complaints.
In 2018, the virtual school recruited auditors and a law company to look into the accusations. The concerns were also sent to the Ethics Commission and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. Without bringing any criminal charges against Kruppenbacher, the FDLE concluded its investigation in 2020 and gave the ethics commission its report.
Following the publication of the Orlando Sentinel’s investigation into Kruppenbacher’s employment at the school in April 2019, lawmakers and Governor Ron DeSantis urged the state to take over FLVS, which is regarded as a national pioneer in online education. The state hired new administrators, called for audits, and dissolved the school’s board of trustees.
The virtual school is once again an autonomous public school with a board of trustees chosen by the governor, following a period of direct state supervision. It provides full- and part-time online education to over 240,000 students and is getting over $300 million in state funding this academic year.
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