Around the state: Osceola’s school board votes down a proposal to implement the state’s volunteer chaplain program in district schools, New College of Florida officials say they intend to fire the library dean for violating state protocols in disposing of 13,000 books, a trustees committee is proposing a $342,000-a-year raise in compensation for University of South Florida President Rhea Law to bring her in line with other system presidents, turnaround plans for struggling schools are approved in the Leon and Bay school districts, and data show that Florida is the runaway leader in the number of false reports of school shootings. Here are details about those stories and others from the state’s districts, private schools, and colleges and universities:
Broward: Six unions representing district school teachers and other employees have fallen short of the 60 percent membership required by the state to retain certification, district officials said this week. Unions that don’t get the minimum support must petition for another election, which would be conducted through the mail. If a majority of the members then vote yes for their unions, they will retain certification. Sun Sentinel. After a propane leak at an elementary school and a carbon monoxide leak at a high school less than a week apart, Superintendent Howard Hepburn said the district will add carbon monoxide detectors in school cafeterias. “We’re going to go above and beyond to make sure we have that extra layer of safety in our facilities so we can detect those gases sooner rather than later,” he said. WPLG.
Hillsborough: A new school for neurodiverse learners is holding an open house today in Valrico. The Easter Seals School for Limitless Learning can accommodate up to 110 special-needs students ranging from 6 weeks old to 2nd-graders, and will use a play-based approach to teaching. “We don’t focus on pen and paper. We use hands-on manipulatives and games and also just one-on-one programming with the children,” said program director Janine Stewart. WFTS.
Osceola: In a 3-2 vote Tuesday, school board members rejected a motion to implement the state’s volunteer chaplain program in the district’s schools. A proposal to consider adding the program was postponed last week after officials had received interest in participating from the Satanic Temple. State officials then issued a model policy detailing who would be eligible to participate. Board member Jon Arguello, who brought up the proposal, said he will raise the issue again at the board’s Sept. 10 meeting. WOFL. WKMG. WFTV. WESH.
Volusia: A teacher at Forest Lake Elementary School in Deltona has been arrested and accused of placing a 3-year-old boy with autism in a chokehold with her legs. Deputies said Vilma Otero, 59, is charged with felony child abuse. The boy told deputies that “I got in trouble at school” and “she hurt me.” Otero, who has worked with special-needs children for most of her 36 years of teaching, denied restraining the boy in the manner described by an assistant in the room at the time, but was placed on administrative leave while the incident is being investigated. WESH. WKMG.
St. Lucie: A gun scare at last Friday’s Fort Pierce Westwood Academy football game has prompted changes in the district’s policies for admitting spectators to sporting events. Superintendent Jon Prince said only clear bags will be allowed into events, and that attendees can expect to be checked with a metal detector wand randomly. Weapon-detecting dogs will also be present. WPTV.
Marion: West Port High School’s principal was treated at a hospital for injuries she received when she attempted to break up a fight among five students moving from one class to another. Principal Ginger Cruz was treated and released. A student involved in the fight at the Ocala school was arrested and charged with felony battery on a school official. The other four were issued civil citations for disorderly conduct. WKMG. WOFL. WESH.
Escambia: A motion for a protective order to shield school board members from having to testify about their decision to remove a book from school libraries will be heard Sept. 4 by U.S. District Judge Allen Winsor. In July, Winsor rejected the board’s argument, but allowed the board to revise and refile its request. Co-authors of the book And Tango Makes Three, which is about two adult male penguins in a zoo raising a chick, filed the suit. News Service of Florida.
Okaloosa: Bruner Middle School’s dean of students, Michelle Robinson Cook, has been named the assistant principal at the K-8 Lewis School in Valparaiso. Okaloosa County School District.
Leon: School district paraprofessionals and other support staff will receive a $1-an-hour pay raise and two extra days of bereavement leave this school year. School board members approved the agreement between the district and union at this week’s meeting. The board also approved a turnaround plan for Apalachee Tapestry Magnet School of the Arts, which received a D grade from the state. The plan includes progress monitoring and more individualized instruction based on student needs. WTXL.
Alachua: District officials have resumed handing out laptops to students as part of their plan to put devices in the hands of every student. About 1,300 of the devices are going to Santa Fe High School students this week, and the district will distribute another 3,200 in the next two months. Mainstreet Daily News.
Bay: An assistant administrator’s decision to peer over the top of a stall in the girls bathroom at J.R. Arnold High School in Panama City to catch students vaping has been rebuked by Superintendent Mark McQueen. “This action violates our processes, our procedures and the trust placed in us by our stakeholders,” he said in a statement. “Following the conclusion of the investigation, we will be taking corrective action.” A photo of Anji Dunlap looking into the stall has circulated on social media. Panama City News Herald. School board members have approved a turnaround plan for the Oscar Patterson Academy, which received an F grade from the state this year. If the state approves the plan, the district will have two years to bring the school’s grade up to a C. WMBB. WJHG.
Colleges and universities: New College of Florida officials say they have made a preliminary decision to fire library dean Shannon Hausinger, who threw out 13,000 books earlier this month, for deleting or failing to “maintain notes relating to the reasons or justification that each book was selected for disposal.” Hausinger has 10 days to respond to the decision, which she received in a letter from the school’s general counsel. Tampa Bay Times. A University of South Florida trustees committee is recommending that President Rhea Law be given a raise of $342,000 a year in pay to keep her compensation comparable to other system presidents. Trustees will vote in September on the proposal. Tampa Bay Times. University of North Florida officials are proposing new rules for on-campus protests. College trustees will consider the proposal at their Sept. 30 meeting. WJXT. Daytona State College has opened a building in Deltona that will house the nursing, diagnostic medical sonography and computer numerical control machining programs. Daytona Beach News-Journal. James J. Brady Jr., president of Jacksonville University from 1989 to 1996, has died in Jacksonville at the age of 88. Florida Times-Union.
Moms brand takes a hit: A lackluster showing in the Aug. 20 primary election by Florida school board candidates supported by the conservative activist group Moms for Liberty has some critics questioning whether the group is losing its influence. Equality Florida, an LGBTQ+ advocacy organization, said in a statement that support from Moms for Liberty was the only thing worse for candidates than an endorsement from Gov. Ron DeSantis. Three of the statewide candidates backed by Moms won, while six lost and five others are in the Nov. 5 runoff. Tampa Bay Times.
Florida, swatting capital: Florida is the runaway U.S. leader in the number of false reports of shootings at schools, known as “swatting,” according to TDR Technology Solutions, a research firm that tracks the calls. In 2023-2024, Florida received 1,564 swatting threats, which was 1,179 more than the runnerup Texas. TDR says swatting calls cost U.S. taxpayers more than $1 billion in the last two years and affected about 16 million students. Daytona Beach News-Journal.
