Scholarships appeal: Three judges of the First District Court of Appeal hold a 50-minute hearing to consider whether the Florida Education Association and others have standing to challenge the constitutionality of the state’s tax-credit scholarship program. The judges also must decide if there is a specific harm to public schools. No ruling was issued. The… Read more »
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Florida schools roundup: Scholarships appeal, magnets, test cuts and more
Appeal over scholarships: The Florida Education Association and other groups will try to convince an appeals court today that it has the standing to challenge the constitutionality of the state’s tax-credit scholarship program. A Leon County Circuit Court judge dismissed the case last May. Step Up For Students, which hosts this blog, administers tax-credit scholarships for… Read more »
Florida schools roundup: Teacher turnover, top teacher finalist and more
Teacher turnover: School districts in west-central Florida are struggling to find teachers willing to work in low-income and low-rated schools. Incentive money alone is not working. “It’s working conditions above anything else that determines whether teachers stay or go,” says Sonja Santelises, vice president of K-12 policy at the Education Trust, whose group has researched schools in… Read more »
This week in school choice: Organize!
We should all be paying attention to a charter school referendum in Massachusetts. In short, Bay State charters, particularly those in Boston, are among the best in the nation at raising student achievement. But a legislative cap prevents them from growing to serve the tens of thousands of students on their waiting lists. Now a… Read more »
The school choice scoreboard
More states are creating educational choice programs, more students are using them, and lawsuits taking aim at them failed more often than they succeeded. That’s the state of the school choice movement in 2016, according to the American Federation for Children, an advocacy group that issued its annual yearbook last week. Here’s a quick breakdown some… Read more »
Florida schools roundup: Charter indicted, top teacher finalist and more
Charter company indicted: Newpoint Education Partners and three other companies are indicted for grand theft, money laundering and aggravated white collar crime by an Escambia County grand jury. Newpoint managed charter schools for 21st Century Academy of Pensacola. The indictment alleges that Newpoint and its vendors fraudulently billed the academy hundreds of thousands of dollars for supplies,… Read more »
Florida schools roundup: Sensors for helmets, top teacher finalists and more
New helmet technology: The Flagler County School District is purchasing new helmet-based impact technology that monitors hits to the heads of high school football players. It’s the first district in Florida to buy the Riddell InSite Impact Response System, which electronically alerts coaches and athletic trainers on the sidelines when a player takes a significant hit. Sensors… Read more »
Florida schools roundup: Fewer tests, top teacher finalist, choice and more
Testing cutbacks: Hillsborough County elementary students will have fewer tests next school year, and principals and teachers will have more say on what tests are given and when, and how to use the results. Parents and teachers have long complained about the district’s “formative tests,” which measure what children know early in the year, followed by end-of-the-year tests. Tampa… Read more »
Florida schools roundup: Test scores, building costs, nonfiction out and more
Test scores stall: Tests scores have stagnated nationally and in Florida, and some experts now think there won’t be any significant improvement without radical changes in the focus of education. Orlando Sentinel. Flawed estimates? Some Broward County School Board members think the district is using a flawed method to calculate the cost of construction projects for… Read more »
Florida schools roundup: Florida Prepaid, school spending and more
Florida Prepaid: The Florida Prepaid College Board removes the minimum contribution level for a Florida 529 Savings Plan. Starting in May, a 529 account can be opened at any amount, and with no application fees. Gradebook. Spending cuts: The Hillsborough County School District is limiting all discretionary spending in the central administration office and requiring schools… Read more »
