An expansion of Florida's newest parental choice program for special needs students may be among the casualties of the standoff between the state House and Senate, despite versions of the bill passing both chambers unanimously.

The Senate today rejected the House's version of legislation expanding access to Personal Learning Scholarship Accounts for special needs students, sending a revised version back to the other chamber, which has already adjourned for the current session. The state's usual 60-day session is expected to end on Friday.

Sponsor Sen. Don Gaetz, R-Niceville objected to changes the House made to the scholarship account bill the Senate passed earlier this month. Among other things, the revisions would have removed auditing provisions the Senate supported and deleted language intended to help families use the accounts to fund their Florida Prepaid College plans.

Gaetz said the House amendment could have resulted in administrative costs for the program being deducted from scholarships, rather than funded separately, as they were in the version the Senate approved. He said those changes did not meet the "moral standard" set by the upper chamber.
The fees would allow organizations like Step Up For Students, which co-hosts this blog and employs the author of this post, to cover their costs administering the program.

“We believe that a student should receive 100 percent of his or her PLSA scholarship to access necessary educational supports that are tailored specifically to his or her needs and academic success,” Senate President Gardiner, a supporter of the program, said in a statement released afterward. “Returning to the Senate’s version of the language ensures that the administrative fee is not taken from a child’s funds.”

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The South Florida Sun-Sentinel recently reported, the Palm Beach County school board is considering new rules for charter schools.

Some appear to make sense.

The proposed changes, discussed at a workshop Wednesday, include conducting more thorough background checks on charter school applicants and requiring new charter schools to offer an innovative curriculum that fills a niche in the county. Charters also would have to comply with school district investigations, allow district officials access to their records and develop a plan for an orderly closure if they are unsuccessful.

Background checks and orderly closure procedures might help prevent uprooting students, losing taxpayer money, or allowing low-quality charter schools to proliferate. As the results of a recent CREDO study showed, Palm Beach County, and West Palm Beach in particular, don't need more poor-performing charter operators.

It's the requirement that charters be "innovative" — as determined by their main competitors, the school district — that gets a little dicey.

No one's saying charter schools should not be innovative. The issue is who gets to decide what that means. As Rick Hess of the American Enterprise Institute has mused, the term "innovation," as used in education circles, appears to connote "whatever you're not doing at the moment, whatever got profiled recently in Education Week, or anything that involves an iPad."

The Sun-Sentinel notes the Palm Beach school board aims to overcome this problem by consulting with national experts on a definition. It has already used such a requirement to turn down a proposed school by Charter Schools USA.

On Thursday, a Florida Senate panel aired the pitfalls of such a rule, when Sen. Dwight Bullard, D-Miami, proposed adding to state law a requirement that charters "meet a specific instructional need ... which the local school district does not provide." (more…)

It was an emotional day in the Florida Senate, as lawmakers approved a suite of bills aimed at creating what Senate President Andy Gardiner described as a "pathway to economic independence" for children with special needs.

Part of the package, approved unanimously today, would expand the state's newest educational choice program.

SB 602 would allow 3- and 4-year-olds, children with muscular dystrophy, and more children with conditions on the autistic spectrum to qualify for Personal Learning Scholarship Accounts (or PLSAs).

The accounts are administered by scholarship funding organizations like Step Up For Students, which co-hosts this blog and employs the author of this post.

As with several other bills in the package, all members of the Senate signed on to the PLSA legislation as co-sponsors.

Other bills passed by the Senate would expand higher education options for special needs children, increase their employment opportunities, and allow families to create tax-free savings accounts to help people with disabilities cover living expenses. (more…)

Raise the bar for charter schools that want to open in Florida, and give them access to predictable funding for facilities.

That was the bargain school district and charter school leaders suggested to the state Senate's main budget panel on Thursday, but questions remain about the best ways to achieve both of those things.

The Legislature is working on bills that, among other things, would give districts clearer authority to screen prospective charter school operations based on their academic and financial history.

District superintendents, including Kurt Browning of Pasco County, suggested further measures to the Senate Appropriations Committee, like having the state keep a database tracking how various charter operators perform, which of their schools shut down, and why.

Robert Runcie, Broward County's superintendent, told the panel that new charter schools should also be required to show proof that they have found a suitable building well before classes begin.

That would be easier to manage if they also had dedicated funding for buildings, which Runcie said should be structured in a way that avoids pitting charters and districts against each other. Right now, a shortage of facilities funding is a major cause of the revenue gap between charters and other public schools.

"Charters probably do need some source of capital funding," Runcie said. "It needs to be a dedicated source that does not impact traditional schools."

When charter schools don't have access to dedicated funding for buildings, they might have to raid operational funds that could otherwise pay for things like teacher salaries.

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Parents of three- and four-year-olds with special needs would be able to enroll their children in Florida's newest educational choice program for special needs students under changes approved by a legislative panel on Wednesday.

The state Senate's education budget committee approved tweaks to legislation expanding the state's new Personal Learning Scholarship Accounts after hearing emotional testimony to the mother of a child with autism.

Katie Swingle told the panel that she and her husband had scraped together money to afford therapies and private school tuition for their son, who is now seven years old, and attends Woodland Hall Academy in Tallahassee with the help of a scholarship account.

He has progressed from being told he would not be able to talk to learning to write in cursive, Swingle said. The younger children are when they start to receive services, she said, the faster their progress tends to be, but parents often struggle to cover the cost.

"When you get these bills, it's frightening," she said. "You just want to see you're child succeed and you just want to see them do well and be happy, and I see that."

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A Florida Senate panel on Wednesday unanimously approved legislation making tweaks to the state's second-in-the-nation program that provides scholarship accounts for students with special needs.

Key changes in SB 602 would make Personal Learning Scholarship Accounts, which were signed into law eight months ago, available to more children with conditions on the autistic spectrum and speed the flow of money into the accounts.

The bill's sponsor, Sen. Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, indicated more changes could be ahead, like requiring more detailed reporting on the program's results.

Several Democrats who supported the legislation sought other changes to the program. Sen. Dwight Bullard, D-Miami, wanted assurances that parents, especially those of children with the most severe conditions, would be informed about the program so that "everyone will have access, especially those with greatest need." He also proposed an amendment requiring annual reports on the program's effectiveness.

"We know it's helping those students who are probably most in need, but it would be amazing if we have (more transparency and) some level of reporting done," Bullard said. (more…)

Add Florida Senate President Don Gaetz to the list of legislative leaders who are stepping up criticism of the Florida School Boards Association for filing suit against the state's tax credit scholarship program, and potentially forcing 60,000-plus low-income students back into public schools.

During last spring's legislative session, Gaetz was among the program's toughest critics, initially pushing for scholarship students to take the same standardized tests as their public school peers and insisting on more oversight for scholarship funding organizations like Step Up For Students, which co-hosts this blog.

But in an op-ed over the weekend for the Northwest Florida Daily News, his hometown newspaper, Gaetz takes even stronger aim at the FSBA for attacking a "a national model  of voluntary school choice" that "gives lower-income children what we all want for our children - a chance to learn and succeed."

"This is what angers the plaintiffs in this lawsuit the most," he wrote, "that families are in charge of their own children, that caring parents willing to make sacrifices can choose their children's schools and, most troublesome of all, that resources follow not the needs of educrats but the interests of children."

Florida's 13-year-old tax credit scholarship program is the largest private school choice program in the country, with more than 67,000 students enrolled this fall, nearly 70 percent black or Hispanic. The FSBA, Florida Education Association, Florida PTA and other groups filed suit against it on Aug. 28, sparking fear among scholarship parents and outrage from school choice supporters throughout Florida and beyond.

In his op-ed, Gaetz noted the oversight changes made to the program in SB 850, which the Legislature passed last spring, and the financial repercussions if scholarship students are "forced back into traditional public schools at twice the cost to taxpayers." He also noted that, "As a former school board member, I'm ashamed of the Florida School Boards Association." Read his full op-ed here.

Campaigns. Gubernatorial challenger Charlie Crist campaigns with a national teachers union leader. WSVN. Miami Times. School board candidates spar over Common Core. Bradenton Herald.

Turnarounds. Pinellas schools rush to expand a pilot program aimed at helping struggling schools improve. Tampa Bay Times.

Budgets. Broward schools propose a five-year, $1.4 billion school improvement plan. Sun-Sentinel. The Brevard school district signs off on a budget with historically low tax rates. Florida Today.

Discipline. A Duval civil rights attorney argues too many Jacksonville students face criminal penalties for problems at school. Florida Times-Union.

Superintendents. Okaloosa's school chief spars with former superintedent and outgoing Senate President Don Gaetz. Northwest Florida Daily News.

Crowding. Enrollment falls in Hernando, but some schools are still short on space for students. Tampa Bay Times.

Nutrition. The Panama City News Herald looks at the quality of school lunches.

Employee conduct. A teacher of a child with autism who died as a result of child abuse faces faces professional sanctions for failing to report signs of neglect. Sarasota Herald-Tribune.

Teachers unions. United School Employees of Pasco complains employees are barred from gathering signatures for a grievance petition during their work day. Gradebook.

School boards. The Marion County School Board perpares to hire a staff attorney. Ocala Star-Banner.

Transportation. A Hillsborough bus driver takes a special needs student to the wrong school. Tampa Bay Times.

Textbooks. Books that did not arrive in time for the start of the school year show up in Hernando. Tampa Bay Times.

Charter schools. Pinellas plans to review charter contracts after a back to school "calamity" at one school. Tampa Bay Times. The Tampa Tribune editorializes in favor of a charter at MacDill Air Force Base. The first vote is coming soon on a planned municipal charter in West Palm Beach. Palm Beach Post. Charters are expected to enroll nearly 10 percent of the Palm Beach district's students in the new school year, the Post reports.

School choice. Miami-Dade's superintendent says the district is riding a "tsunami' of choice. Miami-Herald.

Dual enrollment. Daytona State College looks to boost the number of high school students taking classes. Daytona Beach News-Journal.

Technology. An unexpected enrollment spike means there won't be an iPad for every student at one Lake County high school. Orlando Sentinel.

Home education. It's not back to school season for Florida's 'unschoolers.' Tampa Bay Times.

Facilities. Lee County's new lobbyist says he plans to wring more money, especially capital funding. out of the Legislature. Fort Myers News-Press.

Turnarounds. The Pinellas school district wants to expand a program that aims to increase parent involvement at struggling schools. Tampa Bay Times.

Campaigns. The Tampa Bay Times asks gubernatorial challenger Charlie Crist about education policies, including charters and choice, during a recent bus tour. It might not have been legal for him to campaign in a real school bus. Tampa Tribune. The Bradenton Herald looks at a group that aims to shake up the Manatee school board.

Superintendents. Senate President Don Gaetz debates industry certfications with the current Okaloosa County schools superintendent. Northwest Florida Daily News. More here. The Clay County Commission faces a lawsuit from the school board over an effort to switch to an appointed superintendent. Florida Times-Union. An emergency meeting on the issue is planned for today.

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Tax credit scholarships. Students with higher incomes can now qualify for partial scholarships through Florida's program, but how does that compare nationally? EdWeek. More on the Legislation from the South Florida Times. GTN News.

Common Core. Parents sound off on the standards in Hillsborough. Tampa Tribune.

Facilities. Two Broward charter schools can stay open after providing the district certificates of occupancy for their buildings. Sun-Sentinel. The Hernando school board votes to patch a leaky roof. Tampa Bay Times.

Magnet schools. The Palm Beach County school district reopens applications for an art and music program. Palm Beach Post.

Career education. Outgoing Senate President Don Gaetz laments that his hometown school district, where CAPE initiatives were born, has slipped to the "middle of the pack" in issuing industry certificates. Northwest Florida Daily News.

Summer. A new Hillsborough program helps students who fall behind catch up to their peers. Tampa Tribune. The Pinellas Summer Bridge program is aimed at helping struggling students avoid learning loss while school's out. Tampa Bay Times.

Transportation. The Bay County schools superintendent learns a "valuable lesson in securing our buses" after one is stolen by a 12-year-old. Panama City News Herald.

Employee conduct. A teacher is suspended after being accused of improperly restraining a special needs student. Fort Myers News-Press. An assistant principal acquitted for failing to report child abuse fights for his job. Bradenton Herald.

Unions. The Sun-Sentinel writes up the lawsuit in the Palm Beach teachers union election.

Graduation. Some Pasco students won't have DVDs of their high school graduation. Tampa Bay Times.