by James Herzog

Sadly, if we hear even once about a tragedy like the Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings last week in Newtown, Conn., it is once too much. We all want answers to ensure parents can take their children to school each day and remain confident that learning will occur in a safe environment.

Yet our beloved Sunshine State – and every state in the nation – is not immune from seeing a similar tragedy in one of our own schools, though God forbid such a day happens again anywhere. As recently as March, we learned about a dedicated Episcopal high school administrator in Jacksonville, Fla. who was shot and killed by a disgruntled former teacher. The massacre at Columbine High School in Denver back in 1999 led to intense national scrutiny, followed by efforts like “Rachel’s Challenge” to promote a more civil society. (It was named in honor of Rachel Joy Scott, one of the slain students). These events show student safety is a top priority for public and nonpublic schools alike.

Against this backdrop, many news articles have suggested actions that should be considered by the Florida Legislature during the upcoming 2013 session. One idea which could be a “no brainer” for lawmakers is to secure final passage of a long-awaited “student safety/ notification” bill. It’s a non-controversial and bipartisan measure that has been under consideration for the past two sessions – and even passed unanimously from the Florida House floor – but fell short of final passage in the Senate.

During the 2012 session, Senate Bill 494 and House Bill 273 regarding student safety were based upon a key proposal reintroduced from the 2011 session. The proposal would require response agencies that already notify public school districts about local emergencies - such as bomb threats, natural disasters and fires - to also notify nonpublic schools. The bills provided an “opt-in” method for nonpublic schools to determine whether to receive such alerts. (more…)

Does Sen. Bullard, a teacher and local union rep, have a conflict of interest too?

I was a news reporter for 20 years. I appreciate what good journalists do. But I’m often perplexed by the selective scrutiny that permeates so much education coverage in Florida, particularly when it comes to school choice issues.

The latest example: An “investigation” by an Orlando TV station into the "cozy connections" between Florida state lawmakers and rapidly expanding charter schools. WFTV-Ch. 9 raised conflict-of-interest questions this week about lawmakers who work for charter schools and who have backed legislation that generally promotes charter expansion. It  singled out incoming House Speaker Will Weatherford, R-Wesley Chapel; Rep. Erik Fresen, R-Miami; and John Legg, R-New Port Richey, a state rep headed to the state senate.

First off, this is old news. The ties between all three lawmakers and charter schools have been well publicized. In fact, they were among a bigger handful of lawmakers cited last December in a front-page Tampa Bay Times piece on the same issue. Curiously, the TV station kicked off its story with the same anecdotal lead as the Times did, one involving Legg and the Pasco County School Board.

More important, the station neglected to mention that a number of other lawmakers have strong if not direct ties to school districts. Sen. Bill Montford, D-Tallahassee, heads the state superintendents association. Former state rep and now Sen. Dwight Bullard, D-Miami, is a public school teacher and local union rep. Two newly elected  Democratic state reps, Mark Danish in Tampa and Karen Castor Dentel in the Orlando area, also teach in district schools. Should teacher-lawmakers be voting on state budgets that could affect how much they’re paid? Should they vote on legislation that could impact how they’re evaluated? (more…)

Pity the parent trigger. Its political identity crisis never ends.

In Florida, the trigger erupted in a state House race this week, with a Democratic challenger accusing her Republican rival in an attack ad of voting last spring “to take control of our schools away from parents and teachers, and give it to out of state corporations instead.” This is no surprise, given how effectively Florida critics – including many Democrats – have portrayed the trigger as a spawn of the right.

But meanwhile, one of the progressive Democrats most closely associated with the parent trigger indicated in an op-ed that he couldn’t support a trigger proposal in Michigan. Why? Because it doesn’t bar for-profit charter schools from being among the parent-picked turnaround options. Ben Austin (pictured here), who leads Parent Revolution, went even further, writing, “Parents must have power over the education of their own children. Profit has no place in that education.”

This guy is a wild-eyed privatizer?

Austin’s comments drew a swift rebuke from the ed policy director at the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, which many would consider conservative: “While the notion that schools should be ‘above’ self-interest and the profit motive has a certain raw populist appeal, a moment’s reflection reveals it to be ridiculous,” wrote Michael Van Beek. “Should schools also purchase only textbooks produced on charitable printing presses? Should their cafeterias only serve food grown on government farms?”

Beek also criticized the trigger because it’s limited to parents in the poorest performing schools. All parents, he wrote, should have access to this power. (more…)

Florida expanded its virtual learning horizon today, even as it once again reminded us that age-old education boundaries won’t easily cede to global technology.

The bill that senators sent to Gov. Rick Scott, HB 7197, was a clear victory for online education, adding more public and private options. School districts will be required to give students access to at least three different providers for part-time and fulltime virtual programs. Florida Virtual School, the nation’s largest and most successful public virtual school, will be allowed to provide fulltime programs for all grade levels and part-time not only for high and middle school students but also for accelerated fourth- and fifth-graders. High school students will be required to take an online course for graduation. All providers will be held to similar academic accountability standards and will receive similar reimbursement.

Patricia Levesque, executive director of former Gov. Jeb Bush’s foundation and digital learning initiative, helped push the effort. “A decade ago, the idea of providing every student in Florida with a customized education was just a dream,” she said after the Senate vote. “But that dream can become reality through today’s technology. Increasing access to quality digital learning in our schools will bring Florida’s classrooms into the 21st century and prepare our students for success in today’s global market.”

The bill did contain reminders of the obstacles that remain. Legislative staff attorneys and education analysts refused to accept a broader strategy offered jointly by Florida Virtual and its private competitors that would have allowed both to operate statewide, giving simpler options to all students. They deemed, with some justification, that such an approach would be challenged and found unconstitutional. That’s because Florida’s constitution, like that of many states, apportions oversight of education based on the physical location of students and schools. That means school boards are in charge, even when they need not be. (more…)