Students out of schools: About 45,000 Florida students are missing school because of Hurricane Michael. Schools in five counties -- Bay, Calhoun, Gadsden, Jackson and Liberty -- remain closed until further notice. Four other districts have announced reopening plans. Holmes County teachers and staff return to work today, with students to follow Monday. Teachers and other staff return to Franklin County schools Monday and students Tuesday, Washington County has set a tentative return date of Tuesday for teachers and Wednesday for students, and Gulf County has tentatively set Nov. 5 as the day schools reopen. State officials say districts may need to hold classes during holidays or summer, or extend the length of school days to make sure students meet the state-required 180 days of classes. Pensacola News Journal. Panama City News Journal. WKMG. WJHG. Orlando Sentinel. Florida Department of Education. Apalachicola Times. Northwest Florida Daily News. Washington County News. WJHG. Foster Folly News. Photos and a video of damaged Bay County schools. Panama City News Herald. WKMG. Thirty-five counties are being allowed to use student counts taken before Hurricane Michael made landfall Oct. 10 in Bay County for enrollment figures. Florida Department of Education.
Frustrations of teachers: A day spent following around 15 American teachers, including middle science teacher Lori McLain of the Babcock Neighborhood School in Charlotte County, reveals the common frustrations they have with the job: the pressures for achievement, inadequate resources, low pay and, most of all, the lack of respect. It's taking a toll on them and on the future. For the first time in 50 years, a majority of Americans polled say they don't want their children to become teachers. USA Today. (more…)
ESSA plan approved: Florida's plan to comply with the federal Every Student Succeeds Act finally has won the approval of the U.S. Education Department. The state submitted five revisions of the accountability plan, including one this week, before Education Secretary Betsy DeVos gave her approval in a letter to Florida Education Commissioner Pam Stewart. Florida had resisted some ESSA requirements, such as assessments of English language learners and math testing for advanced students in middle schools. Florida's was the last of the 50 states to have its plan approved. Gradebook. Education Week.
Medical marijuana: School boards in Orange, Volusia and Clay counties are moving forward with policies that will permit students with prescriptions to receive medical marijuana treatments at schools from parents or caregivers, but not school personnel. The Orange County School Board approved the policy this week, and the Clay and Volusia boards will take final vote in October and November, respectively. Broward and Santa Rosa counties have adopted similar policies. Orlando Sentinel. Daytona Beach News-Journal. Clay Today. Orlando Weekly. (more…)
Redirection of funds rejected: Incoming legislative leaders reject Gov. Rick Scott's call to allow school districts to use $58 million in unspent funds for school security. Scott proposed uncommitted money from the armed guardian fund be divided up among the state's districts to hire more officers or use on other security measures. But House Speaker-elect Jose Oliva, R-Hialeah, and incoming Senate President-elect Bill Galvano, R-Bradenton, both say the money should stay in the armed guardian fund, and that the program needs time to grow. Many school districts favored school resource officers over arming school employees or security guards, and didn't apply for the guardian funds. Associated Press.
Top court gets Amendment 8: An appeal of a judge's decision this week to remove proposed constitutional Amendment 8 from the November ballot will skip the appeals process and be heard by the Florida Supreme Court. The state had appealed the decision to the First District Court of Appeal, which immediately passed it on to the top court because "involves a question of great public importance and requires immediate resolution." The court has asked the state to file its arguments by Monday. Amendment 8 would allow the state to create an entity that could authorize charter and public schools outside the jurisdiction of local school boards. It would also set term limits for school board members and require civics education. Monday, a Leon County judge ruled the proposal "fails to inform voters of the chief purpose and effect of this proposal.” Orlando Sentinel. Gradebook. Florida Phoenix. News Service of Florida. (more…)
Education budget: In his budget proposal, Gov. Rick Scott wants local school boards to keep property taxes at their current levels so rising property values can produce extra funds for school districts. Florida Education Secretary Pam Stewart concurs, saying it's the only way districts can get the extra funds they need. But the Florida House balked at that suggestion last year, calling it a tax hike, and is expected to resist again when the Legislature convenes next month. Stewart says the districts need the extra money to supplement what they get from the state and help pay for the influx of students from Puerto Rico and other islands that were devastated by hurricanes. “We’d find ourselves unable to do that (get to the $7,497 per-student spending called for in Scott's budget) if we didn’t leave the RLE (required local effort) at the current level," she told members of a Senate education panel. News Service of Florida. WFSU. Florida Politics.
Puerto Rican migration: Quality education is one of the primary motivations for Puerto Rican families moving into Florida, and particularly central Florida, according to Orlando real estate consultant Jose Hoyos. "They say, 'I am here because these public schools are like the private schools in Puerto Rico,’ " he says. "They don't mind working here for $10 an hour because their children are getting a good education." The number of Puerto Ricans in five central Florida counties (Orange, Osceola, Hillsborough, Polk and Seminole) grew by more than 115,000 between 2010 and 2016, U.S. Census reports show. Orlando Sentinel.
Reporting sexual abuse: The Miami-Dade County School Board approves a program to help students at all grade levels to spot inappropriate sexual behavior, and how to report it, and to help parents spot signs of sexual abuse in their children. The board sets a February deadline for having a completed plan on classes and communication. Miami Herald.
Finding gifted students: Educators from Washington state are looking to the Miami-Dade School District as a model for increasing and diversifying the students who are accepted into gifted programs. Miami-Dade uses a two-tier system to determine gifted eligibility: middle-class and affluent students need IQ scores of at least 130, while low-income children or English-learners can get in with scores of 117 if they demonstrate creativity and academic achievement. Plan B was approved by the Florida Legislature in 1991, though not many districts use it because of the expense. Seattle Times.
H.B. 7069 suit filed: The lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the new state education law, H.B. 7069, has been filed in a Leon County circuit court. Thirteen school districts are suing over the law, which requires districts to share local property tax money with charter schools but limits the authority local boards have over those schools. School boards in Alachua, Bay, Broward, Clay, Duval, Hamilton, Lee, Orange, Pinellas, Polk, St. Lucie, Volusia and Wakulla counties voted to join the suit. Palm Beach County also is suing over the law, but in a separate case. Orlando Sentinel. Naples Herald. WBBH. WLRN.
Constitution and education: Dozens of education proposals are among the 700 changes suggested during meetings of the state's Constitution Revision Commission, which convenes every 20 years to take a look at and potentially amend the constitution. Some of the proposals deal with every angle of an issue. For example, there are proposals to make all school superintendents elected, to make them appointed, or to do away with them altogether. There are amendments about charters, class sizes, funding and mandates, proposed both by commissioners and the public. Proposals must be approved by a majority of the commission by Dec. 14 to get onto the November 2018 ballot. Then, 60 percent of voters must approve the amendments for them to be added to the constitution. Tampa Bay Times.
Jewish school safety: Gov. Rick Scott says he will propose $1 million in the state budget to improve security at Jewish schools. There has been a wave of threats against Jewish schools and community centers in the past year, and the Legislature put $654,000 into a pool earlier this year for those schools for bulletproof glass, fencing and video cameras. “I know many Floridians have been horrified by the threats against our Jewish schools and communities,” says Scott. “We have absolutely zero tolerance for these hateful and anti-Semitic acts.” The proposal has other religious groups wondering why they aren't being offered funds. Miami Herald. Sun-Sentinel. Palm Beach Post. WQAM. Sunshine State News. Tallahassee Democrat. WPEC.
Financial emergency: The Jefferson County School District is in a financial emergency, the Florida Department of Education declares. The state requires districts to have a 3 percent reserve fund, and the district's is now under 2 percent. The state has asked for and received two financial improvement plans, but Education Commissioner Pam Stewart says neither is adequate. Tallahassee Democrat. Gradebook.
Lawsuit hearing: A Leon County judge schedules a hearing today to consider a request for an injunction against the state's retention policy for third-graders. A group of 14 parents is suing the state and several school districts over the policy, which calls for retention of third-graders who do poorly on the Florida Standards Assessments reading test or opt out of it. Gradebook. The Sarasota County School District relents and promotes one of the 14 students whose parents are suing the state. The 9-year-old boy had opted out of the FSAT and declined to take any approved alternative tests, and was detained. After the announcement, the Sarasota district was dropped from the suit. Sarasota Herald-Tribune.
Zika and schools: Gov. Rick Scott is launching a statewide Zika awareness campaign for schools and students. He told the 67 district superintendents that the state will produce posters and other educational materials for school display and to be sent to parents. The state also is producing classroom materials that can be worked into science courses. Tampa Bay Times. Palm Beach Post. Miami Herald. Highlands Today.
Top high schools: A Florida high school, Stanton College Preparatory School of Jacksonville, is ranked the sixth-best in the United States, and it and nine other state schools are listed among the top 500 in the country in a magazine's annual ratings. Last year, 23 Florida schools made the top 500. The ratings are compiled from graduation rates, college enrollment, standardized test scores and other factors. Newsweek. (more…)
