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A Rhode Island school district said it will charge a mother $117,130.50 to review the curriculum and emails of a teacher who called Charlie Kirk "a piece of garbage" shortly after the conservative activist was assassinated on Sept. 10. In a September letter to Nicole Solas, a law firm representing Barrington Public Schools, said her public records request for social studies teacher Benjamin Fillo’s teaching materials and emails would total $117,131. In her public records request, Solas asked for any emails Fillo sent from his school email address from Sept. 1, 2024, to present containing the word, "Trump," which turned out to be 789 emails, as well as email correspondence from Fillo since Jan. 1, 2016, containing the word ‘Trump.’" Solas, a mom living in a different school district whose kids are in a private school because National Education Association Rhode Island (NEARI) sued her for sending public records requests about political indoctrination four years ago, also requested Fillo’s education materials, including handouts, assignments, videos, links, resources, guides, worksheets, workbooks, prompts. FLORIDA TEACHER CLAIMS HE WAS FORCED TO REMOVE CHARLIE KIRK POSTER FROM CLASSROOM AFTER STUDENT COMPLAINT Shortly after Kirk’s public assassination on Sept. 10 while speaking at Utah Valley University during his American Comeback Tour, Fillo had posted a video online saying that Kirk "hated the LGTBQ community" and "hated women’s rights." Fillo, who was placed on administrative leave following his video post, also said in the video that Kirk "thought he proved how tough he was with his words... What a piece of garbage. Look what happens... Bye, Charlie!" In their letter, the law firm, Henneous Carroll Lombardo LLC, told Solas that gathering the emails that contained the word "Trump" would cost $379.50, and that the curriculum cost would be $116,032.50, and that the request for Fillo’s email correspondence since Jan. 1, 2016, containing the word, "Trump" would be $718.50, for a grand total of $117,130.50. CHICAGO SCHOOLS SILENT ON PUNISHMENT OR PUBLIC CONDEMNATION OF TEACHER WHO MOCKED CHARLIE KIRK'S DEATH "This estimate that we received is exorbitant, completely unreasonable, just to get the curriculum materials," Solas told Fox News Digital in an interview Thursday. "And the Goldwater Institute and my attorney James McGlone have sent a letter to the school district demanding that they lower the fee. Quite frankly, it should be zero because these are curriculum materials that the taxpayer has already paid for." Solas said reviewing Fillo’s curriculum materials is necessary because it is "the only way that you can see what kids are in public school, and if you can't get them because you are stonewalled deliberately with an unreasonable fee, then, you know, we don't have open government." FLORIDA TEACHER WINS LAWSUIT, GETS TO RESTORE CHARLIE KIRK POSTER SCHOOL DISTRICT BANNED FROM CLASSROOM "I just don't see how this can stand if we file a lawsuit on it," Solas added. "So I hope the school district makes the right decision and releases the materials for free." In a statement to Fox News Digital, Morgan Hollenbrook, a mom whose kids used to be in Barrington Public Schools, told Fox News Digital, "Mr. Fillo’s social media tirade was shocking to watch, and it’s concerning that BPS has attached such an exorbitant price tag to a public records request. Taxpayers have a right to this information that should be readily available and the actions of BPS lead one to believe that there’s something to hide." Heather Ryan, who has a ninth grader at Barrington High School, told Fox News Digital in a statement that "As a Parent and Turning Point USA Action RI member, my family and I find it disturbing that a man is permitted to politically indoctrinate children and celebrate political assassinations of people that he disagrees with. No Christian family of any partisan ideology should feel comfortable with Ben Fillo teaching their child behind closed doors." Kiela Daley, a mom of five kids with three in Barrington schools, told Fox News Digital that "Transparency in the classroom is essential for maintaining trust between educators and families. Our district’s curriculum is broad online. It does not reveal the specific materials used, for example, readings, videos, slides, etc., that shape our children’s minds. Parents have the right to see what is being taught without having to pay an astronomical fee to disclose that information." CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP Daley added, "Teachers have a powerful influence on students and it is their responsibility to promote independent thought, not any particular ideology. Do we need to ask for training and oversight to ensure viewpoint-neutral instruction so that students are not belittled for their beliefs ? No student should feel emotionally threatened for his heartfelt beliefs, should they clash with the teacher's viewpoint and narrative." Fox News Digital reached out to Fillo and Christopher Ashley, acting superintendent at Barrington Public Schools, for comment.
