Growth. The Hillsborough district puts off plans for a new middle school to focus its resources on accommodating enrollment growth at high schools. Tampa Tribune. Manatee schools will have to add portable classrooms to accommodate enrollment growth next school year. Bradenton Herald.
School choice. An add for presidential candidate Jeb Bush features a former school choice student. First Cost News. A Tampa Tribune columnist looks at vouchers' track record over the years.
Budgets. Sarasota schools officials say they're getting less funding than they'd expected. Sarasota Herald-Tribune. What's in the state education budget? Gradebook. redefinED.
Superintendents. Alachua's Owen Roberts gets a positive evaluation. Gainesville Sun.
Job security. Hillsborough teachers who failed to pass a state certification exam are set to lose their jobs, and a majority of them are assigned to low-income schools. Tampa Bay Times. All but seven annual teacher contracts are renewed in Brevard County district schools. Florida Today.
Teacher pay. Palm Beach teachers and support staff approve a pay raise. Sun-Sentinel. (more…)
School choice. Add Voices for Choices to the list of school choice groups in Florida. redefinED. Duval County School District leaders propose a "Public Education Strong" marketing campaign to lure students back from charter and private schools. Florida Times Union. Sunshine State News's Nancy Smith says women are waiting to hear what Charlie Crist's position is on vouchers.
Magnet schools. The Broward County School District looks for ways to improve five F-rated magnet schools. South Florida Sun Sentinel.
Charter schools. The Palm Beach County Commission approves a $20 million financing deal for a new charter school. South Florida Sun Sentinel. The St. Johns County School Board considers a couple of applications. St. Augustine Record.
Teachers unions. More about new NEA President Lily Eskelsen Garcia, who visited South Florida last week. StateImpact Florida. Charlie Crist gets big money from the NEA. The Buzz.'
Technology. Low-income kids in the Pinellas County School District who were given laptops to take home last year outscore their peers without them. Gradebook.
Lawsuits. Members of the Bay County School Board, concerned about unfunded mandates, say they are considering joining the education funding/adequacy suit filed in 2009 by Fund Education Now and others. WJHG.
School spending. A school board member in the Manatee County School District raises concerns about the district's request for proposal regarding the hiring of security guards for elementary schools. Bradenton Herald. (Follow-up story here.) The Pinellas County School Board approves a $1.3 billion budget. Tampa Bay Times. The Hillsborough County School Board approves a $2.9 billion budget. Tampa Bay Times. The Marion County School Board approves a $475 million budget. Ocala Star Banner. The Leon County School Board approves a $530 million budget. Tallahassee Democrat. Guest columnists ask voters in Palm Beach County to reauthorize a property tax hike for education. Palm Beach Post.
Standardized testing. Complaints about a "toxic culture of testing" surface at a Brevard County School Board meeting. Florida Today. The Lee County School Board considers searching for ways to mitigate what it says is too much high-stakes testing. Fort Myers News Press. An Alachua County kindergarten teacher refuses to give her students standardized tests that are used for diagnostic purposes, putting her job at risk. Gainesville Sun.
Charter schools. The City of North Miami faces another setback in its bid to open a charter school. Miami Herald. A charter school funding study is disputed. StateImpact.
Pre-K. Pasco schools consider expanding their early learning offerings. Tampa Bay Times.
Tax credit scholarships. Orlando Sentinel Columnist Scott Maxwell cribs a zombie metaphor to rail against the program.
Testing. Education Commissioner Pam Stewart , PolitiFact and a Palm Beach Post column smack down a lawmaker's recent statement about the state's new standardized tests promoting homosexuality.
Merit pay. The Alachua County school board grapples with ways to implement a new pay system in the coming school year. Gainesville Sun.
Facilities. Hernando County officials pitch a one-cent sales tax that would help pay for school construction. Tampa Bay Times. Students at one Hernando elementary school will get to stay in their buildings as the school gets renovated, the Times reports.
Superintendents. A contract extension for Lee's superintendent is pushed back amid talk of a pay hike. Fort Myers News-Press. The St. Lucie superintendent apologizes to parents for other employees' misconduct. St. Lucie News Tribune.
Politics. An outspoken Orange County School Board member announces plans to run for a State Senate seat that will be vacated by Sen. Andy Gardiner. Sentinel School Zone.
Discipline. Pinellas plans changes to its code of conduct. Tampa Tribune.
Summer school. Pasco schools may expand their summer school programs. Tampa Bay Times.
Charter schools. In an innovative arrangement, a new Miami-Dade charter school will be built with private funds but managed by the school district. Miami Herald. WPLG. A Pasco County charter for poor children with Autism is at risk of closing. Tampa Bay Times. Charter Schools USA faces a multimillion dollar verdict in a sexual abuse case. Herald. WPLG. The Duval County School Board might not renew some charter contracts. Florida Times-Union.
Tax credit scholarships. The program "is an asset to public education," an administrator at St. Petersburg Christian School writes in the Tampa Bay Times. "It should be imperative" for students in the program to take state standardized tests, former Sen. Paula Dockery writes in an opinion column.
Common core. The standards bring debate to the Hillsborough County School Board. Tampa Tribune.
Facilities. The Lee County School Board looks for ways to address enrollment growth. Fort Myers News-Press. Maintenance money is scarce, but a Hernando County elementary school is looking ways to repair its roof. Tampa Bay Times.
Single-gender schools. Scripps/Tribune writes up pending legislation creating new guidelines for the programs.
Teachers unions. The head of Orange County's teachers union is re-elected as it gears up for an impasse hearing with the school district. Orlando Sentinel.
Tax credit scholarships. The House passes legislation expanding access to the program to students with higher incomes. Associated Press. News Service of Florida. It's among a host of issues lawmakers expect to tackle after a week-long holiday break. Sarasota Herald-Tribune. The Daytona Beach News-Journal scrutinizes the program in an article that states, incorrectly, that a failed 2012 state constitutional amendment would have "cleared the way" for private school vouchers. A second article also deals with religious schools. The program is administered by Step Up for Students, which co-hosts this blog.
Testing. Parents complain that FCAT conflicts with Passover. Tampa Bay Times. Students prepare to tackle the test one last time in English and math. StateImpact. Lakeland Ledger. Daytona Beach News-Journal. Tampa Tribune. Palm Beach Post. The stakes are high at an F-rated Miami-Dade middle school. Miami Herald. Collier schools are in a race against time to create new end of course exams. Naples Daily News. Lawmakers should get an earful from constituents on testing, including for students on tax-credit scholarships, Orlando Sentinel columnist Scott Maxwell writes.
Virtual schools. A new blended learning model debuts in West Boynton Beach. Sun-Sentinel.
Magnet schools. A Montessori magnet in Fort Lauderdale marks a milestone. Sun-Sentinel. What was once a last-chance home for struggling students is now a career-education magnet program. Gainesville Sun.
Textbooks. A bill aimed at paring back the state's role in adopting instructional materials survives a narrow vote in the Senate. Associated Press. News Service of Florida. Gainesville Sun. Gradebook. Scripps/Tribune.
Student Privacy. A bill banning the collection of biometric data and other sensitive information is headed to Gov. Rick Scott. Scripps/Tribune. Ocala Star-Banner. Associated Press.
Charter schools. An all-boys charter is set to open next month in Bradenton. Bradenton Herald.
Teacher of the year. It's Dorina Sackman, an ESOL teacher at Westridge Middle School in Orange County. Orlando Sentinel, Associated Press. The Florida Times Union has coverage on finalist Apryl Shackelford from Duval; the Fort Myers News Press on finalist Patricia Gair from Lee; the Sarasota Herald Tribune on finalist Katrin Rudge from Sarasota County.
Ed reform. Lloyd Brown at Sunshine State News: "When public education was hijacked by liberals it began a downward spiral."
School grades. Tony Bennett might wait until next week to offer his take on possible revisions. Gradebook. Add the Tampa Tribune to the list of papers reporting on districts bracing for bad news.
School spending. Schools need more training and more central control to get a better handle on cash-handling problems, say members of a district auditing committee in Palm Beach County. Palm Beach Post.
School discipline. Alachua school board members and others meet to discuss alternatives to out-of-school suspensions, which top more than 100 a year at some schools. Gainesville Sun. Three Pinellas teens are arrested for beating up a 13-year-old on a bus, reportedly breaking his arm. Tampa Tribune.
Cheating. A former teacher at a district-run charter in Miami-Dade makes the claim, leading to an investigation by district police. Miami Herald.
ESOL. The future is grim for ESOL students because of Florida's school accountability policies. Daniel Shoer Roth.
Bullying/cyberbullying. A Pasco student in a highly publicized case who beat up another on a school bus, while yet another filmed it, gets 270 days probation. Tampa Bay Times.
Superintendents. Joseph Joyner gets top ratings from the St. Johns County School Board. Florida Times Union.
Charter schools. A Palm Beach County School Board member questions whether it's appropriate to allow a charter school to stay in a district building that needs millions of dollars in renovations. Extra Credit.
Career education. Manatee students make a splash in two national competitions - one in technology, and the other for career and technical students. Bradenton Herald.
Rick Scott. A new web ad from the Republican Party of Florida highlights teachers who praise Rick Scott. StateImpact Florida, Gradebook.
School zoning. Alachua is looking for better ways to communicate with parents about exceptions that allow students to attend schools other than their zoned schools. Gainesville Sun.
School schedules. South Florida Sun Sentinel: "High school schedules in Broward County won't change next year despite an arbitrator's ruling this week that seven-period schedules violated a contract with the teacher's union." More from the Miami Herald.
School spending. Polk's athletic budget has been cut 22 percent since 2007. Lakeland Ledger.
School food. Districts respond to a federal crackdown on yummy stuff. Sarasota Herald Tribune. (more…)
School grades. Low grades create more teacher turnover, a teacher columnist argues. StateImpact Florida.
Turnaround schools. Pushback in Pasco yields some flexibility from the state. Tampa Bay Times.
Charter schools. The League of Women Voters ask questions in Polk. Lakeland Ledger.
Common Core. Administrators are training for Common Core too. StateImpact Florida.
GPAs. A proposed change in how they're calculated in Pasco stirs debate. Tampa Bay Times.
Principals. St. Lucie will have 13 new ones in August. TCPalm.com.
Superintendents. Duval board members evaluate Superintendent Nikolai Vitti, reports the Florida Times Union. Alachua Superintendent Dan Boyd wins the Florida School Boards Association's President's Award, reports the Gainesville Sun. New Lee Superintendent Nancy Graham starts shaking up administrative staff, reports the Fort Myers News Press. More from the Naples Daily News.
School safety. A third custodian is considered a suspect in the shooting deaths of two custodians at a West Palm Beach high school. Palm Beach Post.
School spending. A Marion school board member suggests some controversial cost-savings ideas to save teacher jobs, including having staff clean their own schools and either shutting down or charging students to attend IB programs. Ocala Star Banner.
Reading. More than 100 residents turn out to kick off a reading mentoring program for kids in Fort Meade. Lakeland Ledger.
Charter schools. A circuit judge denies a Pasco charter school's expansion plan. Tampa Bay Times.
Virtual schools. A Fort Myers charter tells parents, wrongly, that they must pay $425 if their kids fail to complete Florida Virtual School classes. Associated Press.
Class size amendment. Students down, teachers up. Intercepts.
Ed schools. Florida State College at Jacksonville, one of five state schools rated substandard in NCTQ's new report, says the group got it wrong. StateImpact Florida.
Science. Florida should adopt science standards from California and/or Washington D.C. (and not the Next Generation Science Standards), says state Board of Education member John Padget. Gradebook.
Tech. Broward says it only has $16 million for $59 million worth of technology needs, reports the South Florida Sun Sentinel. Miami-Dade adopts a $63 million plan to ensure every student has access to a digital device by 2015, reports the Miami Herald.
Teacher conduct. A Hernando teacher is suspended for 10 days without pay for allegedly yelling at a student for several minutes, making disparaging racial remarks and throwing a backpack at his chest, reports the Tampa Bay Times. A Venice charter school principal accused of intimidation and bullying has resigned, reports the Sarasota Herald Tribune.
Tutors. Alachua opts to stop giving low-income parents the ability to choose private tutors. Gainesville Sun. (more…)
Common Core. Tony Bennett promises the most aggressive deployment of Common Core in the country. StateImpact Florida.
Teacher raises. Guidance from the governor's office, reports Gradebook. Alachua teachers are getting a 2 percent raise., reports the Gainesville Sun.
Teacher conduct. Snoozing teacher, two day suspension. South Florida Sun Sentinel.
Teacher evals. Needs tweaking, says a panel that includes Duval Superintendent Nikolai Vitti. Florida Times Union.
School spending. StateImpact Florida takes a closer look at the state ed budget. The Broward school board decides to outsource most of the facilities department, reports the South Florida Sun Sentinel. More from the Miami Herald. Pasco's still looking for ways to fill a projected $26.4 million deficit, reports the Tampa Bay Times. Flagler's decision to eliminate some paraprofessionals draws criticism, reports the Daytona Beach News Journal. (more…)
