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In the aftermath of the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting that left 11 people dead, key Florida lawmakers are looking to increase security at both public and private schools in this state.

Rep. Randy Fine, R-Palm Bay, says he wants to introduce legislation allowing private schools to participate in the Coach Aaron Feis Guardian Program. That program currently provides law enforcement training to public school staffers who want to carry a gun on campus.

“We created a program for public schools that said if they could choose to send their staff members to get special training, the state would pay for it and they could be armed guardians in public schools,” said Fine. “There is no reason we shouldn’t open that program to private schools.”

So far, only 25 out of 67 school districts are participating in the guardian program, according to the Florida Department of Education. (more…)

A Florida Senate panel advanced a proposal to create a new educational choice scholarship for victims of violence, harassment or bullying.

The sponsor, Sen. Bill Galvano, R-Bradenton, made changes to SB 1172 that would address some concerns opponents raised when the House advanced its Hope Scholarship legislation in November.

Public-school principals would have 30 days to investigate incident reports from parents. If the charges were "substantiated," victims would become eligible for a scholarship to a private school*, or a transfer to a public school of their choice.

Still, some critics argued lawmakers should focus on toughening up the state's existing anti-bullying policies, rather than create a new scholarship program.

"Wouldn't removing the bully make the school safer for all students ... as opposed to removing that individual who was bullied?" asked Sen. Perry Thurston, D-Fort Lauderdale. (more…)

Florida's virtual education system could see more funding changes under one of the competing spending plans proposed by lawmakers.

The House and Senate last week released rival budget proposals that would increase funding for K-12 public schools.

The Senate plan would alter the way Florida funds its virtual education programs, including Florida Virtual School, FLVS's local school district-run franchises, and the state's virtual charter schools.

The plan released this week by Sen. Bill Galvano, R-Bradenton, would do away with the virtual education contribution, a $27 million slice of the education budget that pads funding for virtual schools.

Instead, it would allow virtual schools to receive portions of state funding that have not been available to them in the past.

Galvano said the proposed revamp of the funding formula is intended to push virtual schools to offer more courses that lead to college credit or industry certifications.

The virtual education contribution supplants some of the funding streams that flow to brick-and-mortar schools, including the extra funding that gets attached to students in Advanced Placement and career education courses. It is intended to keep virtual school funding at about $5,200 per full-time student.

Without the virtual education contribution, per-student funding for many courses could fall below that amount. But funding could increase for courses that carry extra weight in the state's funding formula - such as AP and career education courses - which Galvano said is part of his goal. (more…)

Tax credit scholarships. Tampa Bay Times columnist Robyn Blumner doesn't like U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio's proposal for federal scholarships.

Charter schools. Tampa Bay Times columnist John Romano bemoans the number of charter schools that close because of low enrollment (but curiously doesn't mention traditional public schools that don't get closed despite the same problem). The Cape Coral City Council will consider a resolution asking the Lee County School Board to share capital funding with the city's  charter schools, reports the Cape Coral Daily Breeze. More from the Fort Myers News Press.

Virtual schools. Expanding digital education is a top issue in the coming legislative session. The Florida Current.

Jeb Bush. In education, "he has a record of making messes," the Palm Beach Post editorializes (just days after two more credible, independent reports find Florida students leading the country in progress).

Parental engagement. Duval Superintendent Nikolai Vitti wants to import a Parents Academy program similar to one he worked with in Miami-Dade. Florida Times Union.

Education leadership. The Sarasota Herald-Tribune profiles Sen. Bill Galvano, R-Bradenton, the chair of the Senate Education Appropriations Subcommittee.

Teacher evaluations. The first year of statewide teacher evaluation data using the complicated the VAM formula shows the big difference in progress for students with the highest-rated teachers versus the lowest-rated teachers. StateImpact Florida.

Teacher testimony. Megan Allen, Florida's 2010 Teacher of the Year,  testifies movingly before Congress about the impact that budget cuts will have on high-needs students. Answer Sheet. (more…)

Tutoring oversight. In the first part of a two-part series on a requirement initially mandated by No Child Left Behind, a  Tampa Bay Times investigation finds at least 36 of 456 tutoring companies in Florida are headed by people with criminal records. In part two, the Times traces last year's last-minute legislative push to keep the mandate in place.

Educator oversight. Sarasota Herald Tribune: "As Bradenton police investigate allegations that a Manatee High School assistant football coach groped a female student, they are also trying to determine who knew about the girl's claims and why no one notified law enforcement as required by law."

Teacher bashing? A StateImpact Florida story headlined "Teachers Question Why Proposed Pay Raises Come Before Teacher Evaluations" quotes a single teacher who says, “For a while now we’ve been hearing how bad we are. [That] we need to weed out bad teachers, there’s so many bad teachers.” Ocala Star Banner editorial page editor Brad Rogers writes in this column: "There are so many wildly talented, caring and dedicated teachers in Marion County’s schools that unfairly take abuse and blame and criticism for what is wrong with our schools and our society, when in truth they represent what is most right and bright and promising about our schools and our society."

Teacher pay. Sen. Bill Galvano, chair of the Senate Education Appropriations Committee, suggests Gov. Rick Scott's proposal for across-the-board raises clashes with performance pay, reports the Florida Current. The South Florida Sun Sentinel also writes up the debate over proposals for higher teacher pay.

Strange bedfellows. The Florida Education Association plans to join the Florida Department of Education in fighting the Florida Times-Union's request for teacher evaluation data.

Tony Bennett. He talks to North Florida superintendents about teacher evals and notes he encouraged his daughter to become a teacher: "“I don’t want it written on my headstone: ‘Here lies the man that ruined the career his daughter chose.’ ” Tallahassee Democrat.

Teachers unions. The United Teachers of Dade will elect a new leader this week. Miami Herald. (more…)