Around the state: Senate and House plans for the state budget are $4.4 billion apart, lawmakers want to revise the law governing school book challenges for the fifth time in the past five years, senators unanimously approve a proposal to make later school start times optional for districts, a bill cutting school regulations also moves through a committee, and Polk’s school board is considering a change that would require school employees to pay part of their health insurance premiums. Here are details about those stories and others from the state’s districts, private schools, and colleges and universities:
Hillsborough: A teacher who collapsed in a Strawberry Crest High School classroom in February was revived by a resource officer and administrator. The deputy quickly began CPR and the administrator got an AED to shock the teacher until paramedics arrived. WFLA. WFTS. Tampa Jesuit High School has received an anonymous $1 million donation that officials say will be used to advance the campus master plan and break ground on several new projects. WFLA.
Orange: An employee at the Orlando Torah Academy has been arrested and charged with sexually abusing a child in Chicago about 15 years ago. Police said Avraham Levin has worked at the Orlando school since last August, but has been removed from his post. WOFL.
Polk: School board members are considering requiring school employees to pay part of their health-insurance premiums for the first time. The district’s health insurance plan ended in 2024 with about $19 million in reserves, which is short of the recommended amount. Projections for 2027 suggest the need to restructure the plan, said the district’s Linda King, which prompted the reconsideration of how the premiums are paid. Lakeland Ledger.
Osceola: Nearly 4,000 parents are petitioning the school district to reverse its plans to change the way it educates students with disabilities. Those students would be sent to one of four elementary schools instead of being spread out in 26 schools that offer special services, and the number of students in self-contained classes will be reduced as more students with milder disabilities are placed into general education classrooms. Orlando Sentinel.
Manatee: Bayshore High School students who face different challenges in graduating from high school on time could benefit from a pilot program that extends the school day for those who want to improve their GPA, make up classes, graduate early or can’t get to school on time because they have jobs or have to take care of siblings. Officials hope the program will improve the school’s graduation rate from 81% to 90%. Bradenton Herald.
Marion: District officials have begun discussions with the community about the future of Fessenden, Anthony, Sparr and Reddick-Collier elementary schools, which are some of the oldest schools in the county. “There’s no decisions that are going to be made until maybe 2026, 2027. So we really want to get out and make sure that the community gets a voice,” said Casey Griffith, district director of government and community relations. WCJB.
Bay: School board members have approved a $7 million architectural fee for Tyndall Academy and another $140,000 for an environmental assessment. The current academy’s lease ends in four years, and the new school would have to be ready by the fall of 2028, though a site has not yet been chosen. It’s expected to cost $132 million and accommodate about 1,200 K-8 students. WJHG. School board members voted last week to move forward with the termination process for Shannon Smith, a teacher at Oscar Patterson Academy, who reportedly used more than the district-allowed 10 unpaid sick days by taking about 30 of them in each of the past two years. Smith can request a hearing. Panama City News Herald.
Martin: Teachers who have already retired and those planning to do so before July 1 will continue to receive contributions toward health insurance and promised insurance subsidies, the school board decided last week. But a new policy for those retiring after that date will be discussed at Tuesday’s board meeting. TCPalm.
Colleges and universities: New College of Florida has fired an adjunct Chinese professor, citing a state law that limits public universities from employing people from so-called “countries of concern,” including China, Cuba, Iran, Russia and Venezuela. Kevin Wang, who is seeking asylum and is authorized to work in the United States, had been teaching Chinese language and culture classes for almost two years. Suncoast Searchlight.
State budget gap: Senate and House state budgets are $4.4 billion apart in spending. Senators are proposing a $117.36 billion budget, while the House wants to spend $112.95 billion. In February, Gov. Ron DeSantis put forward a budget of $115.6 billion. Politico Florida. News Service of Florida. Florida Politics. One of the more contested budget battles is expected to be over tax cuts. DeSantis has called for an end to property taxes, while House Speaker Daniel Perez, R-Miami, wants to drop the sales tax from 6% to 5.25%. That difference, and others, is causing problems for the governor’s agenda. Spectrum News 13. The House budget proposes spending $100 million to improve the pay of veteran teachers. Florida Politics.
Book challenge law: For the fifth time in the past five legislative sessions, legislators are revising the rules governing book challenges in schools. Over that span, the length of the bill has grown from 1,500 words to about 2,700. This year’s bill would ban school officials from considering the literary merits of books with sexual content when deciding whether they should stay in libraries. Tampa Bay Times.
School start times: The Florida Senate unanimously approved a measure last week that gives school districts the option of setting later school start times for middle and high schools instead of requiring them to by 2026. Sen. Jennifer Bradley, a Fleming Island Republican who sponsored SB 296, said the 2003 law was a “very well-intended law sought to ensure our students were rested.” But many districts said the requirement “would present incredible challenges, financially and otherwise,” she added. News Service of Florida.
Also in the Legislature: A proposal that would cut regulations on high school graduation testing requirements, district spending and more has been approved by its final Senate committee. Florida Politics. News Service of Florida. A House committee approved a bill last week that would expand services for students with autism. Florida Politics. Common areas of schools would be required to have an AED in case of a cardiac emergency under a bill that is headed to a vote by the full House. Florida Politics. A bill that means to improve access to workforce education is now ready for a vote on the House floor. Florida Politics.
FLVS AI certification: Florida Virtual School is offering a year-long artificial intelligence in math course for middle and high school students through a partnership with the University of Florida and the Concord Consortium. FLVS algebra 1 students begin the course April 7. Florida Virtual School.
Around the nation: U.S. Education Secretary Linda McMahon said Friday that time had run out for school districts to spend emergency funds they received from the federal government during the pandemic. Extensions that had already been granted were canceled as of 5 p.m. Friday. “Extending deadlines for COVID-related grants, which are in fact taxpayer funds, years after the COVID pandemic ended is not consistent with the department’s priorities and thus not a worthwhile exercise of its discretion,” McMahon said. Education Week.
Opinions on schools: Perhaps a one-size-fits-all math graduation exam doesn’t serve the best interests of all of our students. In fact, it might not even serve the best interests of most of them. Paul Cottle, Bridge to Tomorrow. If Ben Sasse’s brief run in Gainesville can be remembered for anything, it’s the mess state lawmakers and their well-oiled supplicants have made in selecting university presidents. A bill making its way through the Florida House would help repair the damage by reopening the process to public scrutiny, better preparing campus leaders for the rigors of the job. John Hill, Tampa Bay Times. The proposed rollback of the state’s child-labor laws basically means that if employers in this state can’t exploit immigrants, the governor and Legislature want them to be able to legally exploit your children. Scott Maxwell, Orlando Sentinel.
