Book publishers sue state: Several major book publishers have filed suit against a Florida law that places restrictions on books with sexual content in school libraries. Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group, Macmillan Publishers, Simon & Schuster and HarperCollins Publishers are among the companies contending the law has led to “indiscriminate” book-banning that violates the First Amendment. The law require school districts to establish a process for parents to challenge books and classroom materials that they believe includes pornographic or sexual content. “Plaintiffs take issue with the removal of books under the guise of ‘pornography’ that are not remotely obscene,” states the suit, which was filed Thursday in Orlando federal court. Wall Street Journal. Tampa Bay Times. Sarasota Herald-Tribune. News Service of Florida. Florida Phoenix. New York Times.
Around the state: University of Florida officials terminate the contracts of at least six of former president Ben Sasse’s political allies that he hired during his 17-month tenure, the president of Lake-Sumter State College has resigned a little over a week after being placed on administrative leave by school trustees, Pasco’s school board will consider a plan to combine two elementary schools and a middle school into a single K-8 school, a state representative from the Orlando area was indicted on forgery charges relating to the university where she used to work, a 15-year-old Broward high school student was killed Thursday after being hit by a car near his school, and Volusia and Clay school employees reach tentative contract agreements with their districts. Here are details about those stories and others from the state’s districts, private schools, and colleges and universities (Note: No education roundup will be published Monday):
Miami-Dade: Hialeah Gardens is the latest city to install speed detection cameras in school zones. Drivers going 11 mph over the posted speed limit during school hours will be mailed $100 tickets. WSVN. WPLG.
Broward: A 15-year-old student at Flanagan High School in Pembroke Pines died Thursday morning when he was hit by a car as he was standing partially in a roadway at a school bus stop near the school. “Low visibility due to poor weather conditions appear to play a factor in this tragic accident,” police said. Miami Herald. WPLG. WFOR. WTVJ. Piper High School in Sunrise was evacuated Thursday after an unknown smell was detected. Principal Marie Hautigan said the source of the odor has not been found, but that no gas leaks were found and the campus has been given the all-clear. WPLG.
Orange: State Rep. Carolina Amesty has been indicted and accused of forgery. In her former role as an administrator at Central Christian University, a small school in Orange County, the 29-year-old Republican representing a district in southwest Orange and northwest Osceola is alleged to have notarized a form declaring that Robert Shaffer was an employee of the university. Shaffer said he did not sign the form and never worked for the university. Orlando Sentinel. WKMG. WESH. Central Florida Public Media.
Palm Beach: The parent of a student at Whispering Pines Elementary School in Boca Raton student who was banned from campus this week after allegedly making anti-Semitic threats has now been arrested off-campus in an unrelated incident, school principal Barbara Riemer told parents in a message Thursday. The number of student absences at the school more than doubled the usual total on Monday after Riemer informed parents about the threats. Palm Beach Post. WPTV.
Lee: The Cape Coral High School football coach who resigned last week had been sending inappropriate text messages to a freshman student, according to school district reports. The girl informed school staff of the contact and said the texts made her uncomfortable. Isaac Harvin resigned after a district investigation recommended he be fired. WBBH.
Pinellas: A campus monitor at Richard O. Jacobsen Technical High School in Seminole has been arrested and accused of having a sexual relationship with a 15-year-old student. Pinellas Park police say Demetrious Jones, 36, is charged with sexual battery. WTVT.
Pasco: Three schools would be merged into a single K-8 campus under a district proposal that will be considered by the school board Sept. 10. The plan calls for sending students from Calusa and Chasco elementaries to Chasco Middle School and making it a K-8 school. Enrollment at Calusa is just 58 percent of capacity, and 73 percent at Chasco Middle. School district planning director Chris Williams also said that Calusa “is an older school and it would cost a lot to remodel. … This is an opportunity to bring a true K-8 school to that community.” If the school board approves the plan, it’s expected to take effect in the fall of 2025. Tampa Bay Times.
Volusia: A tentative contract agreement has been reached that will increase pay for school employees. Workers will get a step on the salary scheduled, pay for speech paraprofessionals will increase by 50 cents an hour, and the district’s contribution for health insurance premiums will increase from $565 a month to $605. Union members will vote on the agreement the week of Sept. 16, and the school board will consider it Sept. 24. Daytona Beach News-Journal.
Manatee: More than 3,500 warnings have been issued to drivers who have exceeded the speed limit by 10 mph or more in county school zones, according to law enforcement officials. Speed detection cameras in the zones have been set up for the past two weeks. Starting Sept. 11, violators will receive $100 tickets in the mail. WWSB.
Clay: School officials and the teachers union have reached a tentative contract agreement that will add a collective $4 million to teacher compensation. Starting teachers will be paid $48,250, and the average teacher salary in the district will be $49,379. Union members and the school board will vote on the contract in September. Clay Today.
Okaloosa: Fort Walton Beach is considering adding speed detection cameras to all public and private school zones in the city. Violators would be fined $100. City council members will discuss the proposal once more before voting. WEAR.
Leon: A 16-year-old student at Leon High School in Tallahassee was arrested Thursday after sheriff’s deputies said they found a loaded handgun and a pellet gun in the student’s vehicle, which was parked in a campus lot. Tallahassee Democrat. WTXL. WCTV.
Citrus: School officials are working on a deal to improve cell phone service to schools by having the cell towers that sit on some school properties but are not owned by the district repurposed and marketed to major cell phone carriers. Towers on other school land would be removed. School board members are expected to vote on the proposal Sept. 10. Citrus County Chronicle.
Colleges and universities: Contracts for at least six political associates hired by former University of Florida president Ben Sasse have been terminated, according to university records. Among them was Penny Schwinn, a vice president and former education commissioner in Tennessee who was hired to carry out a series of initiatives throughout Florida’s K-12 schools at a salary of $367,500 while working from her Tennessee home. Gainesville Sun. Heather Bigard, the president of Lake-Sumter State College in Leesburg, resigned Thursday, saying she needed to focus on her health and her family. She had been placed on administrative leave last week by trustees, who meet today to appoint an interim president. Daily Commercial. WKMG. Rollins College in Winter Park has started construction on a 300-bed dormitory and a building for its tennis and golf programs. Total cost for the projects is $80 million. WFTV. A University of Florida conducted an experiment in space Thursday aboard the Blue Origin New Shepard Rocket that lifted off in Texas. Rob Ferl’s flight lasted just 11 minutes, but it’s expected to show which plant genes turn on and off at various stages of flight. Mainstreet Daily News. WFTV. WCJB.
Opinions on schools: Instead of blaming families for their education choices, district superintendents and critics could embrace innovation, break away from outdated models and design public schools tailored to meet the needs of the community. They don’t need an influx of new money to do so; they simply might need to try something new. Nathan Hoffman, Orlando Sentinel. To sell the school tax, the Hillsborough County School District needs to make the case that its workforce and spending are in line with other counties and the times. It also needs to grasp the swelling call for greater openness. John Hill, Tampa Bay Times.
