The Senate Appropriations Committee approved two bills today aimed at providing aid for struggling schools and attracting nationally recognized charters to their neighborhoods.
Together, the bills are similar to the House’s ‘Schools of Hope,’ a $200 million plan to move students from struggling public schools into new schools operated by nationally recognized charter school operators.
But at the same time, the Senate bills have key differences — including an uncertain price tag.
The committee approved SB 796, by Sen. Aaron Bean, R-Fernandina Beach, which aims to attract “high-impact” charter schools to Florida.
The legislation requires charter school organizations to prove to the state Board of Education they have a track record of achieving results with low-income students.
In the event they met the state’s qualifications, they could then submit streamlined applications to open in areas where existing public schools struggle. They would be expected to draw at least 60 percent of their student populations from persistently low-performing schools.
The committee also approved a teacher bonus bill (SB 1552) with changes by Senate Education Appropriations Chairman David Simmons, R-Altamonte Springs, which would overhaul the state’s system for turning around struggling schools.
But Simmons’ bill strays further from ‘Schools of Hope’.
Simmons’ proposal doesn’t deal directly with charter schools.
It would encourage school turnaround approaches such as providing students with wraparound services, giving charter-like autonomy to principals and extending school days by at least an hour.
Cathy Boehme of the Florida Education Association has spoken out against the House’s proposal.
She argued SB 796 favors charter management companies over traditional public schools.
“This is just ‘Schools of Hope’ with a different label,” she said.
Most concerning, Boehme said, is the legislation avoids all “requirements for any teacher to be certified in any way whatsoever.”
