Legislative proposals: A Florida Senate committee approves two bills that would, if passed, have an impact on local school officials. S.B. 272 would require 60 percent approval for any tax initiative placed on a special election ballot. It would take effect July 1. Many school districts favor special elections when putting tax increases before voters. S.B. 192 would redefine when two public officials may meet privately to discuss public business. Under the state’s Sunshine Law, any meeting between public officials must be open to the public. Gradebook.
School loses scholarships: A private school in Melbourne is kicked out of the state’s three scholarships programs by the Florida Department of Education. Yakol Christian School, which had an enrollment of fewer than 20 students, was evicted for changing principals without notifying the state and for having no students on campus during a visit by a Step Up For Students representative. Step Up, which hosts this blog, administers two of the three state scholarship programs. Earlier this year, a pastor affiliated with the school was charged with lewd or lascivious molestation of a 15-year-old student. Orlando Sentinel.
Gifted school proposed: The Broward County School District is proposing the creation of a school exclusively for gifted students in grades 3-12. The school would be called the “Center for Intellectually Talented Youth,” and be located at Parkway Middle School in Fort Lauderdale. Supporters like the concept, but opponents argue that the proposal promotes segregation. Sun-Sentinel.
School appeals ruling: Cambridge Christian School of Tampa is appealing a court ruling that the state of Florida had the right to deny the school from broadcasting a prayer over the public address system before a 2015 state championship football game. Then-Florida High School Athletic Association director Roger Dearing told the schools that because the game was in a public facility, the prayer was “off-limits” under federal guidelines and court precedent. Cambridge Christian sued the FHSAA after the denial and lost at the district court level. Last week the school, with the help of the First Liberty Institute, filed an appeal of that decision with the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals. Christian Post.
Galvano ascending: State Sen. Bill Galvano, R-Bradenton, will become Senate president in November 2018 if Republicans maintain their majority in that chamber. Galvano, 51, led the Senate’s higher-education budget committee and is sponsoring a bill to expand and make permanent changes to the Bright Futures merit scholarship program. Miami Herald. Sarasota Herald-Tribune. News Service of Florida. Florida Politics.
Tax hike election: Manatee County School Board members vote 3-2 to hold an election on March 20, 2018, to raise property taxes for schools. The cost of the special election is $300,000. In doing so, they rejected a suggestion by Supervisor of Elections Mike Bennett to hold the election with the gubernatorial primary next August. School officials say waiting that long would create major complications. Bradenton Herald. Sarasota Herald-Tribune.
Displaced students: Puerto Rico has reopened 119 schools that have been closed since Hurricane Maria devastated the island a month ago, but there are almost 1,000 others that could be closed for months. And Secretary of Education Julia Keleher estimates that between 15-20 percent of the schools will never reopen. Several thousand students from Puerto Rico and other islands already have enrolled in Florida schools. Miami Herald. Are your children struggling in school since the hurricanes? Experts and educators offer some tips to help them. WLRN.
Contract negotiations: The Leon County School District and its teachers union tentatively agree on a contract that provides bonuses for “highly effective” and “effective” teachers who don’t qualify for bonuses through the state program, and boosts supplemental pay by 10 percent for teachers who work with students after school hours in academics, performing arts and athletics. WCTV. Tallahassee Democrat. The Bay County School District and its teachers union come to an agreement on pay, with the district setting aside $2.2 million for raises. Also in the agreement: A starting teacher’s salary will be $36,000, teachers and the district will split the 7.5 percent increase in health insurance premiums, and the district will continue to pay the cost for fingerprinting teachers. Panama City News Herald. A year-long impasse between the Polk County School District and its teachers will be placed before the school board next week for a decision. A special magistrate recommended a 2 percent raise. That’s agreeable to the union, but it also wants the raises retroactive to the 2016-2017 school year. The district has offered 2.8 percent, but doesn’t want the raises to be retroactive. Lakeland Ledger.
Software overruns: The Manatee County School Board agrees to spend another $4.25 million to complete a business software upgrade by next July. The system was originally expected to cost $10 million and be installed by February 2017. Now the pricetag is up to $19.3 million. Bradenton Herald.
School impact fees: The St. Johns County School Board will consider a consultant’s proposal to lower school impact fees on most new housing. St. Augustine Record.
Educators honored: Patricia Bowen-Painter, principal at SunRidge Middle School in Winter Garden, is named the Orange County School District’s principal of the year. Jackie Ramsey, of Carver Middle School in Orlando, is assistant principal of the year. Orlando Sentinel.
School programs: Navy JROTC students at Central High School in Brooksville can earn college credits at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and certifications in unmanned aviation vehicles through the high school’s new aerospace technology academy. Tampa Bay Times. Officials from central Florida technology companies say they need to give students technology-oriented training at an earlier age so they can pursue tech careers. That’s the idea behind Project Lead the Way, a partnership between the Orange County School District and Lockheed Martin in 2015 that helps the district develop training programs. Orlando Sentinel. The Marion County School District is spending $1 million over the next five years to develop a reading app for preschoolers to learn reading basics. Ocala Star-Banner.
Teachers conference: Up to 200 educators from around Florida are expected to attend the first EdCamp Flagler on Nov. 4 to discuss ideas, common problems and classroom techniques. Daytona Beach News-Journal.
PTA criticized: The PTA president at Princeton Elementary School is criticized by the Orange County School District attorney for having her father-in-law, an Orlando city commissioner, sponsor a PTA event through his re-election campaign. The PTA bylaws prohibit supporting a campaign or candidate “in any way,” district attorney Woody Rodriguez wrote in a letter to PTA president Kristin Stuart. Orlando Sentinel.
Texting complaint: A retired federal agent says the Okaloosa County School District spokesman is harassing him with angry text messages because he has been sharing critical stories about the district on his Facebook page. Northwest Florida Daily News.
Teacher arrested: A teacher at Escambia Westgate school is arrested and accused of child cruelty for allegedly flipping a Down syndrome student’s desk, causing the student to fall into a large plastic cart and injuring her neck. Donna Dixon, 56, has been suspended. Pensacola News Journal.
Opinions on schools: Not inviting charter schools to a showcase of schools is an abuse of a dominant position done by a quasi-monopoly. Geoffrey Thurston, Palm Beach Post. If the state is to rely on schools for hurricane shelters, it must help pay to upgrade those schools. Sarasota Herald-Tribune. The Florida Board of Education’s computer coding initiative will do nothing to prepare high school students for leadership careers in fields like engineering and computer science. Paul Cottle, Bridge to Tomorrow.
