Around the state: Disappointing NAEP math scores have lawmakers and educators searching for ways to improve student performance, the Senate and House bills governing college presidential searches still have significant differences, Orange school officials are expecting an enrollment decline of 3,100 in the fall that would also mean a $27.8 million cut in state funding, Escambia schools say enrollment is down 4,227 since the pandemic, a four-day school week is being considered in Glades County, and a transgender teacher is suing the Pinellas school district over the rules it enacted after the state passed a law restricting the use of preferred pronouns. Here are details about those stories and others from the state’s districts, private schools, and colleges and universities:
Broward: County commissioners are considering placing speed-detection cameras in school zones outside Dillard High School in Fort Lauderdale and Meadowbrook Elementary in Broadview Park after a study showed 20% of drivers were seen traveling more than 10 mph over the speed limit through the zones. Offenders would be fined $100 plus fees. Commissioners are expected to vote today. Sun Sentinel.
Orange: District officials expect a 3,100-student decline in enrollment next fall and a corresponding drop of $27.8 million in funding from the state, according to a memo recently sent to employees. All district departments will have to cut their budgets by 2%. Spokesman Scott Howat said the district’s goal is to retain all teachers. “We need as many teachers as we can get,” he said. Orlando Sentinel. A former music teacher at Hunters Creek Middle School has pleaded guilty to federal charges of enticement of a minor and production of child pornography. Italo Raphael Brett Bonini faces a minimum of 10 years in prison for the enticement charge and 15 for the child porn charge. WFTV. WOFL.
Pinellas: A transgender teacher is suing the school district, claiming he was forced to resign after a state law took effect that restricted the use of preferred pronouns. Toby Tobin contends the district refused to call him Mr. Tobin, and insisted he be referred to as Ms. Tobin. Tobin, who worked as a 5th-grade math and science teacher at Cross Bayou Elementary, said, “I can either just stay quiet and just let it happen, or I can show my son there’s always another way, there’s always another option.” Tampa Bay Times.
Brevard: Multiple Satellite High School teachers were investigated by the district for allegedly using a student’s chosen name without parental consent, according to a district spokesperson. Only one, Melissa Calhoun, was reprimanded for knowingly violating state law, and her contract was not renewed. Florida Today. Summer camps will be opened to public school students as well as those who attend private schools or are home-schooled. Initially the district announced that only public school students would be eligible to attend. Officials did not say why they changed course. Florida Today.
Volusia: School board members are expected to vote today on a proposal to spend $8.4 million on two potential sites for schools that the DeBary City Council said are incompatible with the city’s comprehensive plan. District staffers say the board obligated itself to buy the Spring Vista sites in 2024, before the council made its determination. If the board does not buy the land, it will have to pay the developer $300,000. Daytona Beach News-Journal.
Manatee: A former teacher at G.D. Rogers Garden-Bullock Elementary School in Bradenton has been sentenced to six months of community control and 12 months of probation after pleading guilty to false imprisonment. Police said Carina Chindamo, 32, tied up a 7-year-old non-verbal student during recess in 2024. Two other former school employees also face charges of false imprisonment. Bradenton Herald.
Lake: Restoration work has begun on the Okahumpka Rosenwald School built in 1929 near Leesburg for black children. Philanthropist Julius Rosenwald built about 5,000 schools between 1917 and 1932 to educate black kids who were barred from attending white schools. Work is projected to be completed this year, along with a new community center named for civil rights pioneer Virgil Hawkins. Central Florida Public Media.
St. Lucie: Sheriff Richard Del Toro has ordered increased police presence in and around schools. No specific threat prompted the order, but a sheriff’s spokesman cited “recent and senseless acts of violence at schools across our nation” for the added protection for the “forseeable future.” WPTV. WPEC.
Escambia: Enrollment is down by 4,227 since 2020, school officials said in a recent report to school board members, and another 614 are expected to leave the district next fall. In that same time period, the number of students using the state’s Family Empowerment Scholarship to leave public schools has grown from 791 to a projected 6,234 by the fall. “We’ve had the equivalent of four elementaries, one middle and a high school – since 2020 – operating without any students, fully staffed, fully operating. That’s where we’re at and it’s very serious. We’re seeing the effects of it,” said assistant superintendent Terry St. Cyr. Pensacola News Journal.
Alachua: Whitney Davis, the family liaison at the Rawlings Center for the Fine Arts, has been chosen as the school district’s school-related employee of the year. Gainesville Sun. Mainstreet Daily News.
Hendry: A substitute teacher at LaBelle Middle School has been arrested and accused of encouraging her students to fight each other. Police said Ty’Asia Holmes has been charged with child neglect and contributing to the delinquency of a minor. WOFL. WINK.
Glades: Escalating absenteeism is one of the factors prompting the school district to consider a four-day week starting next fall. Superintendent Alice Beth Barfield said the district has had 663 students missing 10 or more days of school, and 54 that have been absent 30 or more times. She said teacher recruitment and retention could improve under a four-day week. WINK. Glades County School District.
A math problem: Disappointing math scores on the National Assessment of Educational Progress tests have lawmakers searching for ways to make improvements. Some of the suggestions include making more teacher training available, creating a state math office and addressing students’ attitudes toward math. “Math is the course where kids learn to problem solve,” said Gail Stewart, a high school math supervisor for Hillsborough County schools. “We can’t be okay with only half our kids demonstrating proficiency on these tests.” Tampa Bay Times.
Presidential search bills: A Senate committee advanced a bill on Monday that makes changes to the way colleges conduct searches for new presidents, but the bill has two significant differences with the one already approved by the House: the Senate doesn’t repeal a public records exemption for presidential searches, and it would not prohibit the governor and other officials from discussing leadership vacancies. Politico Florida. News Service of Florida. Florida Politics. WJXT.
Also in the Legislature: Senators tabled a bill Monday that would allow students and other workers who are in a work-study, internship or apprenticeship program to voluntarily opt for lower-than-minimum wages. Florida Politics. A bill calling for more training of school employees on how to respond to anaphylaxis emergencies was approved Monday by a Senate committee and is ready for a vote on the floor of the chamber. Florida Politics. A proposal adding instruction on life skills such as financial literacy, home economics and career readiness to the requirements for graduation is floundering in the Senate. Florida Politics. Another bill that appears to be going nowhere in the Senate is one adding cursive writing instruction for students in grades 2-5. WLRN.
Around the nation: Student loans in default will be turned over to debt collectors, U.S. Education Department officials said Monday. That’s about 5.3 million borrowers. No student loans have been referred for default since the pandemic began five years ago. “American taxpayers will no longer be forced to serve as collateral for irresponsible student loan policies,” said Education Secretary Linda McMahon. Associated Press.
Opinions on schools: The combination of decreased self-driving costs and the modernization of antiquated student transportation policies might just happen. Alas, it is not going to happen on our preferred timeline (yesterday). Matthew Ladner, NextSteps. Florida’s public schools are not failing due to local mismanagement; they are struggling because of chronic underfunding and years of state-level policy decisions that have diverted resources away from our classrooms. State Rep. Ashley Gantt, Florida Politics.
