Around the state: Members of the House vote to ban students' use of cell phones during the school day, the House also approves a bill changing the process of searching for and hiring a university president despite Gov. Ron DeSantis' threat to veto it, a constitutional amendment imposing term limits on local school board members also clears the House, Volusia school officials say the district faces a $25.8 million budget deficit for the rest of the fiscal year, Miami-Dade's school district will require EKG screenings for high school athletes, and Orange's school district reaches an agreement to keep officers from five local police departments in schools. Here are details about those stories and others from the state’s districts, private schools, and colleges and universities:
Miami-Dade: District high school student-athletes will be required to undergo electrocardiogram screenings, school board members unanimously decided at Wednesday's meeting. The goal is to have the free screenings in place by August. WTVJ.
Orange: School officials have reached a tentative agreement with five local police departments to provide resource officers for schools through the 2026-2027 academic year. No details of the agreement were divulged. Officials in Apopka, Ocoee, Winter Garden, Winter Park and the town of Windermere had asked for a combined $2 million more to provide at least one officer to be placed in about 30 campuses. Orlando Sentinel. Spectrum News 13. WFTV. WESH.
Duval: A paraprofessional at Lake Shore Middle School was arrested Wednesday and accused of child abuse without great bodily harm. School officials said Tia Smith, 43, got into a "physical interaction" with a student. WJAX. WJXT.
Brevard: A Viera High School teacher has been arrested and accused of choking a woman in his Melbourne home. Sam Davison, 33, was also arrested in October 2023 and accused of battery-domestic violence, but that charge was dropped. Davison was placed on administrative leave by district officials. WKMG. Florida Today.
Volusia: District officials say they're facing a $25.8 million budget deficit for the rest of this fiscal year that ends June 30. Consolidating schools is one idea being considered to save money. "Consolidation and rezoning are bad words, but this is our job to make decisions like that, so I wish we could operate on emotion only. But that’s not how it works," said school board member Krista Goodrich. Daytona Beach News-Journal.
Sarasota: A longstanding in-school mental health services contract for students will be downgraded, though district officials say the revised deal will offer more services and save $113,000 a year. Some concern was expressed that the new model is untested and may not adequately meet student demand. Board member Tom Edwards conceded, "It could go wrong. It might. But I know that we have the recovery time to fix it." Charlotte Sun. The school is spending $3.3 million to replace 20 of its 320 school buses. Charlotte Sun.
Martin: Naming rights are being marketed for the Martin County High School stadium as the district looks for new revenue streams. The marketing company Tebo & Associates hopes to strike a deal for $2,700 a week before the football season begins. Any deal will have to be approved by the school board. WPTV. WPEC.
Leon: An 8th-grader at Cobb Elementary School was arrested Tuesday and accused of having several weapons on campus. The student was reportedly seen cutting a classmate's backpack, and a subsequent search revealed the boy had a mini stun gun and a blue case containing a "craft carving kit" with multiple razor blades. Tallahassee Democrat. WFSU. WTXL.
Putnam: A 17-year-old Palatka Junior-Senior High School student was arrested this week and accused of having a gun on campus. Deputies said a search of the student's truck revealed a revolver and 17 shotgun shells. WUFT.
Colleges and universities: New College of Florida's director of marketing and media has been fired after his arrest Tuesday for allegedly exposing his sexual organs in a store at Sarasota’s University Town Center Mall. Fred Piccolo, 47, once worked for Gov. Ron DeSantis as a spokesman, leaving in 2020 after a controversial tweet about COVID-19 victims, and has also worked for New College President Richard Corcoran, on and off, for about a decade. Tampa Bay Times. Sarasota Herald-Tribune. WKMG.
Cell phone ban advances: In a unanimous vote Wednesday, the Florida House approved a bill that puts further restrictions on students using cell phones in schools. Phones would have to be put away from bell to bell, except in designated areas on campus, though exceptions would be made for students with certain learning accommodation plans and those who have permission from their doctor. Senators have proposed a study of bell-to-bell restrictions in six school districts before a final decision is made. That bill still has to be approved by two committees. Politico Florida. News Service of Florida. Florida Politics.
Veto threat no deterrence: Members of the House overwhelmingly approved a bill that would change the way university presidents are chosen. HB 1321 would end the public records exemption for searches, make personal information about candidates public, and bar the governor and executive branch employees from getting involved in searches. Gov. DeSantis has threatened to veto it, saying it would "kneecap" his higher education reforms, but the House vote of 104-8 could indicate enough support for an override. Politico Florida. Florida Politics. News Service of Florida. Pensacola News Journal. WUSF. Florida Phoenix.
School board term limits: The House voted overwhelmingly Wednesday to put a constitutional amendment on the 2026 ballot that would limit school board members and county commissioners to eight years in office. A companion bill in the Senate hasn't moved in a month and still has two committee stops. If the measure does get to the ballot, more than 60% of voters would have to approve it for it to take effect. News Service of Florida. Florida Politics.
Also in the Legislature: A proposal that would make it easier to convert public schools into charter schools was approved by a Senate committee and is now ready for a vote of the full chamber. Initiating the process would fall to parents with children in the schools instead of district officials. Florida Politics. Teachers who commit crimes would have to self-report them to the district, which would have to remove the educator within 48 hours and file a report to the state under a bill approved by the Senate. Florida Politics. A bill that would raise the cap on the maximum amounts school boards and other government agencies would pay in lawsuits was approved in the House. News Service of Florida. Florida Politics.
Opinions on schools: By committing to fewer, more purposeful assessments, school districts can lighten the load on educators and sharpen their focus on student outcomes systemwide. The solution isn’t more tests, it’s the right tests. That’s how to give teachers the insights they need and students the learning they deserve. Michelle Odemwingie and Jennifer Vranek, The 74. A proposal in Sarasota could provide a blueprint for creating workforce housing for school district employees while also placing those residents in close proximity to a program hub offering resources and services for students, families, community partners and teachers. Jennifer Vigne, Florida Politics.
