A letter submitted to the Florida Auditor General raises serious questions about UWF Interim President Manny Diaz’s connections to the charter school industry and his push to bring a Somerset Academy to campus.
The letter, signed by “Many Concerned Argonauts,” comes months after a state audit uncovered at least $398 million in mismanaged school voucher funds under Diaz’s tenure as Florida’s Education Commissioner. That audit also highlighted the Diaz family’s financial ties to Florida’s charter school industry.
UWF Charter School
According to the letter, Diaz has repeatedly claimed in public meetings—most recently at a Dec. 10 presidential search forum—that he doesn’t know who would operate a proposed charter school at UWF. However, the Somerset University Prep website has been accepting applications for the 2026-27 school year, suggesting the partnership was established before Diaz’s public statements.
- Background: I reported on the charter school accepting applications last month. In September, Diaz announced he was exploring establishing a K-3 school that would be tuition-free and be a part of the School of Education.
The letter also notes that in October 2025, Diaz and his wife Jennifer filed incorporation papers for MDJ Consulting Group LLC, a for-profit consulting firm. The concerned Argos question why a university president would simultaneously manage a for-profit consulting business. See Sunbiz info for Diaz consulting business.
- Background: Jennifer Diaz is the former vice-chair of the governing board of Tallahassee Classical School, a Hillsdale College–affiliated charter school in Leon County.
“The connections between Mr. Diaz and the charter industry is clearly driving his plan to start a Somerset academy at UWF; follow the money,” the letter states.
The signatories point to the Diaz family’s connections to Academica and Doral College, which includes Somerset Academy, as a potential conflict of interest.
Dig Deeper: Somerset Academy is a large Florida-based charter school network that began in 1997 with a small K–5 charter school in Miramar. Somerset operates several dozen charter schools, with a heavy presence in Miami-Dade and Broward counties, as well as campuses in Palm Beach, St. Lucie, Duval, Jefferson County, and the Florida Keys.
- Manny Diaz Jr. has indirect but significant connections to Somerset Academy through his long-standing ties to Academica and Doral College, which work closely with the Somerset network.
From 2013 to 2022, Diaz worked as chief operating officer at Doral College, which was created in 2010 to offer advanced courses at charter schools, including Somerset Academy schools, and Doral College offers dual-enrollment courses on Somerset campuses. Somerset University Preparatory Academy’s principal, Lourdes Isla, is a former Doral College Dean of Students.
Letter
Dear Florida Auditor General representatives,
I am writing to bring your attention to a situation at the University of West Florida that may be of special interest considering the recent audit of Florida’s school voucher Program. As I am sure you are aware, this audit found major issues with the voucher/charter system and at least $398 million mismanaged state dollars. This mismanagement happened under the watch of then Commissioner of Education, Manny Diaz. You may also be aware that the Diaz family has direct financial ties to the booming charter industry in Florida.
One of the first things that Mr. Diaz did, when starting as interim president at University of West Florida in July of 2025, was to work to bring a charter school to the UWF campus. Diaz has claimed in several public meetings that he didn’t know who would be running the charter school, most recently at the presidential search public forum on December 10th. Yet, this website exists (and did prior to the 10th): https://www.somersetuniversityprep.org/index.php.
In fact, according to the website, the UWF Somerset school is already taking applications for the 2026-27 school year. Why does Mr. Diaz continue to say in public that he does not know who will be running the school he has worked so hard to bring to UWF? Clearly the UWF and Somerset business relationship has been in the works for some time now. Diaz came to UWF with a mission to start a charter school at UWF, before even getting to know our campus community. The Diaz family’s connections to Academica and Doral College, (which includes Somerset Academy), is a clear conflict of interest, possibly far more egregious.
Also, in October of 2025, the Diaz family filed incorporation paperwork with the Division of Corporations to start MDJ CONSULTING GROUP LLC, where Manny Diaz and his wife, Jennifer Diaz, are listed as managers. This is a for profit, education consulting group. Why is a university president also managing a for profit education consulting group?
The connections between Mr. Diaz and the charter industry is clearly driving his plan to start a Somerset academy at UWF; follow the money. Please see attached supporting documentation.
Signed,
Many Concerned Argonauts
Board of Trustees Approval
The UWF Board of Trustees meets on Thursday, Jan. 8, to approve Diaz as the university’s president, his contract and salary range.
Chair Rebecca Matthews has put vague items on the agenda and withheld important supporting documents to avoid public review and scrutiny. She has done it again with the Jan. 8 meeting
The recommended contract and salary range are not included in the agenda packet as of 7 a.m. on Jan. 5. The packet does not include a report from the UWF Presidential Search Committee explaining why it recommended only Diaz.
FL voters are so focused on national politics, they don’t notice that they are getting ripped off by their own party.
That certainly is troubling and deserving of scrutiny, and should hold up/end his approval for UWF President. I wonder if interested persons objected to the past grift by James Biden and his charter school partners while affiliated with John Morgan, Esq., and what was done about that failed effort and the funds allocated to it.
Follow the money. A grift is afoot.