Around the state: Middle and high school students in Orange and at least six other state districts got no sex education during the 2023-2024 school year after the state never approved their submitted instructional plans, the mother of a Broward transgender student may lose her district job Tuesday for violating a state law prohibiting biological boys from playing on girls sports teams, a Brevard elementary school begins its experiment with year-round schooling today, Gov. Ron DeSantis appoints new school board members in Osceola and Okaloosa counties, and issues endorsements for 23 school board candidates in 14 counties. Here are details about those stories and others from the state’s districts, private schools, and colleges and universities:
Miami-Dade: A full-scale active shooter drill with 50 armed officers at Miami Central Senior High School last week was called a “helpful” experience for officers so they can rely in their training during times of high stress. But some experts say the drills can be traumatic for students and do more harm that good. “Students who have experienced trauma in a variety of ways, especially gun violence, for them to be involved in a highly sensorial armed assailant drill at school could be a very negative thing for them. It can re-traumatize them,” said Scott Woitaszewski, a psychology professor at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls and chair of a national committee that offers tips for schools on responding to security threats. Miami Herald.
Broward: The mother of a transgender athlete could be fired from her district job by the school board Tuesday for violating a state law banning anyone born a boy from competing on a girls sports team. Jessica Norton is an information management specialist at Monarch High School in Coconut Creek, where her child played volleyball. Eight district employees were investigated for breaking the law, but only Norton faces punishment. Superintendent Howard Hepburn is recommending Norton be fired. Four of the nine board members have said publicly they are unlikely to support her dismissal. Sun Sentinel.
Hillsborough: Educators are still reeling from last week’s county commission vote to delay a school district request to put a tax request for teacher pay on the November ballot, with some believing the commission wanted to protect its own sales tax already on the ballot to continue building parks, fire stations and other public facilities. Superintendent Van Ayres will ask the school board Tuesday to authorize legal action to force the commission to send the tax request to the supervisor of elections. Tampa Bay Times. Plans for a $70 million reconstruction of Just Elementary and Stewart Middle Magnet School in Tampa were discussed by school board members last week at a workshop meeting. Just was closed down in May 2023, causing an uproar in the black community, and is now scheduled to be rebuilt by 2027. Construction would then begin on Stewart. Tampa Bay Times.
Orange: Students in Orange and at least six other school districts went without sex education during the 2023-2024 school year after the state never approved the plans each submitted. When the district received no answer from the state, it decided to forgo the subject. Several other districts, including Broward, Seminole and Collier, chose to teach the curriculum they submitted without the state’s approval rather than risk violating another portion of the law that mandates such instruction in grades 6 to 12 that focus on the “benefits of sexual abstinence as the expected standard and the consequences of teenage pregnancy.” Orlando Sentinel.
Duval: Four district school board seats are on the Aug. 20 primary ballot. District 1 candidates are Nadine Ebri and Tony Ricardo, and District 3 is a race between incumbent Cindy Pierson and Rebecca Nathanson. The three candidates for District 5 are Reginald Blount, Nahshon Nicks and Hank Rogers, and Sarah Ann Mannion and Melody Ann Bolduc are running in District 7. Candidate forums for each of the four races have been scheduled in the next two weeks: Tuesday for the District 3 race, Thursday for District 1, July 30 for District 5, and Aug. 2 for District 7. Florida Times-Union.
Polk: Four sites are under consideration for new district schools, a site selection committee said last week. Two of the sites are in Haines City, with others in Auburndale and in the unincorporated Poinciana area. Three of the sites already have been purchased by the district. Lakeland Ledger.
Lee, southwest Florida: The Lee, Sarasota, Hendry, Glades and DeSoto school districts will have free breakfasts and lunches for most students this coming school year after being declared eligible for the federal free meal program for schools and districts in low-income areas. Four of the five school districts have free meals for all students, and 43 of Sarasota County’s 53 public schools are eligible. WGCU.
Pinellas: A math teacher at Tarpon Springs High School has been arrested and accused of having an inappropriate relationship with a student younger than 16. Police said James Collins, 39, has been charged with lewd and lascivious battery, lewd and lascivious molestation, offense against student by an authority figure, prohibited computer use, traveling to meet a minor, interference with child custody and tampering with physical evidence. Tampa Bay Times. WFTS.
Brevard: Students return today to Challenger 7 Elementary School in Port St. John for the first day of its new year-round schedule. The school is part of a statewide year-round schooling test that will determine if the program expands. Challenger has three fewer weeks of summer vacation but the same 180 days in class as other schools, with a two-week break from Sept. 23 through Oct. 4 and another in March. WKMG. WESH.
Osceola: A District 5 school board candidate in the Aug. 20 primary has been appointed to that seat by Gov. DeSantis. William “Scott” Ramsey of Kenansville immediately assumes the spot that was vacated last December by Erika Booth, who resigned to run for a Florida House seat. Ramsey will face Brian Bennett, Paula Bronson and Dylan Reinsel in the primary. If no one gets more than 50 percent of the vote, the top two finishers advance to the Nov. 5 runoff. Orlando Sentinel.
Escambia: Year 1 of the conversion of Warrington Middle School into the charter Warrington Preparatory Academy is complete, and school officials believe it set the tone for what’s expected in Year 2 and beyond. Many students started the last school year two or three grades below where they should be academically, and in-year testing shows that 75 to 80 percent of those students are still at least a grade level below what’s considered passing the state tests. But incoming principal Delvin Vick said there was progress made within those levels. The school’s operator, Charter Schools USA, has four years to bring the school’s grade up to a C. If that happens, the charter contract will be renewed for 15 years. Pensacola News Journal.
Okaloosa: Brett Hinely of Niceville, who is president of Cove Marine Inc. and Bluewater High & Dry, has been appointed to the District 5 school board seat by Gov. DeSantis. Hinely replaces Diane Kelley, who is resigning Aug. 1 to become principal of Destin High School, and will fill the final two-plus years of her term. Northwest Florida Daily News. WJHG. WMBB.
Alachua: District 2 school board candidates Diyonne McGraw, the incumbent, and Thomas Vu answer questions about the biggest challenges for the district, their plans to address the district’s racial achievement gap, and more. Gainesville Sun.
Bay: A private high school focusing on science, technology, engineering and math is opening this fall in Panama City. Up to 150 students are expected to enroll in grades 9, 10 and 11 at St. Andrews Bay STEM Academy. School officials hope to convert the school into a charter school and add a 12th grade. WJHG.
Highlands: District 3 school board candidates Mason Whidden and Javita McKinney talked about their candidacies, their views of board members’ financial responsibilities, vocational training for students, and more at a candidates forum last week. Highlands News-Sun.
Colleges and universities: Florida’s Supreme Court has been asked to step into the lawsuit that alleges the University of Florida charged fees to potential and admitted students that were higher than allowed by law. News Service of Florida. In President Ben Sasse’s less-than-two-year tenure at UF, the school has topped The Wall Street Journal’s ranking of public universities and made Forbes’ list of “new Ivy” schools. But there has been spotty progress on his key priorities — maintaining viewpoint diversity on campus, establishing a role of AI in the classroom, bolstering career services, expanding UF Health and helping “Gator athletics win more.” Tampa Bay Times. Construction has begun on a $20 million student dorm at the Palatka campus of St. Johns River State College. The building will have 32 four-bedroom units and is expected to open in the fall of 2025. Palatka Daily News.
Governor’s board choices: Gov. DeSantis has issued endorsements of 23 school board candidates in 14 counties across the state for the Aug. 20 primary. The backed candidates have “pledged to serve with a focus on student success, parental rights, and curriculum transparency,” DeSantis said. in a statement. In the 2022 election, DeSantis endorsed 30 candidates, and 25 of them won in either the primary or general elections. Florida’s Voice. Tampa Bay Times. Daytona Beach News-Journal. Sarasota Herald-Tribune.
Around the nation: The conservative American Enterprise Institute, the left-leaning Education Trust and the national nonprofit Attendance Works are partnering to create a six-step process to cut chronic student absenteeism in half over the next five years. “We’ve got to take a long-term approach, and we’ve got to use our data to call everyone,” said Attendance Works founder and executive director Hedy Chang. “It needs all hands on deck.” The 74.
