Around the state: A report concludes that eliminating property taxes would cost the Orange County School District 25% of its annual budget, the University of North Florida president is named the sole finalist for the University of South Florida presidency, a second Brevard teacher is under investigation for allowing a student to use a preferred name without parental consent, Manatee school officials reach a contract agreement with teachers, and students at a Volusia high school lose $400,000 raised for a trip overseas that was canceled. Here are details about those stories and others from the state’s districts, private schools, and colleges and universities:
Orange: If property taxes are eliminated by the state, as Gov. Ron DeSantis is proposing, the school district would lose $1.5 billion of its $5.8 billion budget, according to a Florida Policy Institute study. If those taxes were eliminated for only homesteaded properties, the district would lose $419 million. Property tax revenue mostly goes into the district's general fund and pays for teachers, bus drivers and school maintenance staff and other operational expenses. Orlando Sentinel. School board members approved the transfer of the historic Hungerford School property in Eatonville to the nonprofit Dr. Phillips Charities to be developed, even though some members of the town council had asked for a delay. Orlando Sentinel. Central Florida Public Media. WKMG.
Palm Beach: Police are investigating two threats made against school board member Edwin Ferguson after he called murdered conservative activist Charlie Kirk "a racist bigot." One caller said he would burn down Ferguson's house, and the second threatened to "blow your head off." Palm Beach Post. A special education teacher says she sent five e-mails warning Lake Worth High School administrators that having a single lunch period for all 2,517 students would lead to an increase in problems. On Sept. 18, a fight broke out in the cafeteria. A school resource officer used pepper spray to break it up, and 30 students were taken to the hospital for treatment. WPTV.
Duval, St. Johns: The number of unvaccinated kindergartners in Duval and St. Johns counties is on the rise. In 2011, 95.8% of Duval students in kindergarten were vaccinated, but that fell to 87.6% last year. In St. Johns, the drop was from 91.2% in 2011 to 89.8% last year. WJAX. An attorney for a Duval teacher who was removed from her classroom while the district investigates her conduct is calling on the district to quickly resolve the issue. Hope McMath, who teaches Advanced Placement art history classes at Douglas Anderson School of the Arts, was reassigned Sept. 11 after complaints were made about her social media posts. She posts frequently about racial issues, including the Confederacy and slavery, and has clashed online with city council member Rory Diamond. Florida Times-Union.
Brevard: A second Satellite High School teacher is under investigation by the Florida Department of Education for allegedly allowing a student to use a preferred name without parental approval. Florida Education Commissioner Anastasios Kamoutsas is seeking a suspension of Kerry Clapper's teaching license. Another Satellite teacher, Melissa Calhoun, was not rehired after admitting she used the student's chosen name. Florida Today. Construction began Tuesday on an expansion of the Pineapple Cove Classical Academy in Melbourne. New to the school will be a two-story 24-classroom building, a 400-seat performing arts center, a larger cafeteria, an art center, new athletic fields and additional parking. Space Coast Daily.
Osceola: A new alternative charter high school is now open. Vineland Lakes High School in Kissimmee works with the district to help students who have fallen behind to catch up on their credits so they can graduate. WKMG.
Volusia: An arrest warrant has been issued for a Massachusetts travel agent who allegedly defrauded more than 100 Seabreeze High School students and chaperones out of $400,000 they had raised for a nine-day class trip to Italy and Greece in 2024. The tour was canceled a month before it was scheduled when the Stone and Compass Travel agency e-mailed the students to say it was going out of business and there was no money to offer refunds. Daytona Beach News-Journal. WPEC. WKMG.
Manatee: A tentative contract agreement was reached Tuesday between the school district and the teachers union. Teachers will receive 4.75% pay raises plus a $9,537 supplement made possible by the referendum to improve salaries, while paraprofessionals will receive 60 cents an hour for each step on the salary schedule and $3,598 from the referendum. Teachers and the school board will have to approve the proposal. WWSB.
Leon: A former English teacher at Lincoln High School in Tallahassee recently was sentenced to eight years in prison after pleading no contest to a charge of misconduct with a student. Sophina Webb was arrested in 2021 after exchanging nearly 9,000 sexual text messages with a 15-year-old girl. Webb was 27 at the time. WCTV.
Bay: District officials say they will change a policy that prohibits formation of new clubs once the school year has begun. Prompting the change was a threat from Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier to take legal action against any districts or schools that prevented Turning Point USA clubs from forming on campuses. Conservative activist Charlie Kirk was the founder of the organization that advocates for conservative politics on high school and college campuses. WJHG.
Martin: A 15-year-old Martin County High School student was arrested Tuesday and accused of having a pellet gun that resembled a Glock handgun. Officers were tipped that the student was carrying a gun in his waistband, and he was arrested without incident. WPTV. WPEC. TCPalm.
Colleges and universities: University of North Florida president Moaz Limayem has been named the sole finalist for the University of South Florida presidency. Limayem has led UNF since 2022, and before that was the dean of USF’s Muma College of Business for 10 years. If approved by trustees and the Florida Board of Governors, he will take over for the retiring Rhea Law. Politico Florida. Tampa Bay Times. Florida Times-Union. Florida Phoenix. Florida's Cabinet voted Tuesday to turn over state property valued at $67 million in downtown Miami for the President Donald J. Trump Presidential Library. Miami Herald. Associated Press. Politico Florida.
Kirk comments lawsuit: The state's firing of a Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission employee for social media comments she reposted after Charlie Kirk was assassinated is being challenged in court. State biologist Brittney Brown is suing for wrongful termination, contending it violates her free speech rights. At least one Florida teacher, in Martin County, is facing firing for his social media comments, and several other teachers around the state have been suspended or are under investigation for their posts. USA Today Florida Network.
Grants for workforce programs: About $40 million in grants have been issued by the state for workforce education projects at 49 school districts and colleges. The Workforce Development Capitalization Incentive Grant Program has now awarded $240 million in grants since it was initiated in 2023. Florida Department of Education.
Around the nation: School bus wi-fi and Internet hotspot services will no longer be eligible for discounted service, the Federal Communications Commission decided Tuesday. During the past fiscal year, schools and districts requested $42.6 million for hotspots and $15.3 million for school bus wi-fi. K-12 Dive.
Opinions on schools: When guest teachers are integrated into your school culture from day one, when they’re equipped with the support and professional development they need, and when they’re part of a reliable system that puts students first, everyone wins. Johanna A. Tortosa Earsley, eSchool News.
