Education bill: The Senate Education Committee unanimously approves a major rewrite of the House's omnibus education bill, H.B. 7055. The Senate version would put armed law enforcement officers at every school in the state, make state scholarships available to bullied students with substantiated claims, boost oversight of private school choice programs, require charter schools to return facilities to districts if they close, and create a comprehensive mental health program for schools, among other things. It also removes the provision that would decertify teachers unions if membership falls below half of the members represented. The revised bill now moves on to the Senate Appropriations Committee. redefinED. Associated Press. Gradebook. Politico Florida. Florida Politics. News Service of Florida.
Parkland and politics: The Florida House overwhelmingly rejects a proposal to ban assault weapons and high-capacity ammunition magazines as about 100 students from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School look on. The vote was 71-36 against H.B. 219, Students say the shootings have changed them, and vow to continue fighting for school safety. Miami Herald. Sun-Sentinel. Palm Beach Post. Politico Florida. Tallahassee Democrat. After meetings with superintendents and law enforcement officials, Gov. Rick Scott says he will have a plan of action in response to the shootings in Parkland to take to legislators by Friday. “We have two weeks left in session at that point, and my goal is to get something accomplished," says Scott. Politico Florida. WKMG. News Service of Florida. Florida Politics. Sarasota Herald-Tribune. A Senate hearing on a bill that would allow designated people to carry concealed weapons at schools is postponed Tuesday. Miami Herald. President Donald Trump calls on the Justice Department to ban all devices like bump stocks, an attachment that can turn a semi-automatic weapon into an automatic one. Associated Press. New York Times. The Broward County Charter Review Commission says it will consider giving voters the chance to decide what guns should be permitted in the county. Sun-Sentinel. Pinellas County School Board member Linda Lerner wants the board to officially support a ban on assault weapons. Gradebook. Leon County School Superintendent Rocky Hanna is criticized by the chairman of the county's Republican Party for giving excused absences to students who wanted to join a rally at the Capitol. Tallahassee Democrat.
H.B. 7055 debate: The Florida House begins debate this afternoon on its omnibus education bill, H.B. 7055. The nearly 200-page bill incorporates multiple topics, from the creation of scholarships for bullied students to the imposition of requirements on teachers unions, and is such a priority for House leaders that they have tied the per-student funding language for all public schools to the passage of this bill or similar legislation. Gradebook.
CRC hearing: Several speakers criticize a proposal to provide state funding for religious schools at the first Constitution Revision Commission public hearing in Davie. “This will resegregate our schools, not by race but by religion,” said Daniel Cook, a board member of the Broward chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union. Among the other topics that got attention from the hundreds of people in attendance were proposed abortion restrictions and amendments on greyhound racing and privacy rights. The next hearing is Feb. 19 in Melbourne, followed by Feb. 20 in Jacksonville, Feb. 27 in Pensacola and March 13 in St. Petersburg. Sun-Sentinel.
Replacing Avossa: Several Palm Beach County School Board members say they'll look within the district to replace Superintendent Robert Avossa, who is resigning June 12 to work for a Palm Beach Gardens publishing company. Among the internal candidates: David Christiansen, deputy superintendent and chief of schools; Keith Oswald, chief academic officer; and Donald Fennoy, chief operating officer. And four other candidates for the job when Avossa was hired in 2015 still work for the district and could be considered. The board is expected to discuss the search at its meeting Feb. 14. Sun-Sentinel. Palm Beach Post.
Still absent: The Seminole County School Board member who hasn't been to a meeting or done any board work since Feb. 28, 2017, missed a pair of meetings Tuesday despite agreeing to call in to participate. Board members directed Superintendent Walt Griffin to send yet another letter to Jeffrey Bauer asking him “whether your resignation is the right thing to do for all involved.” Bauer, 49, had a stroke in 2016 and reportedly has had other health issues since then. Orlando Sentinel.
Budget and Bright Futures: Florida House leaders introduce what they call an austere state budget of about $85 billion, which is about $2.5 billion less than Gov. Rick Scott has proposed. One of the areas the House would cut back on is higher education spending, in part by not expanding the coverage to 75 percent of tuition and fees for "medallion scholars" in the Bright Futures program, which the Senate has approved. Rep. Larry Ahern, R-Seminole, says the cuts are intended to force colleges and universities to use their stockpiles of unspent funds. News Service of Florida. Tampa Bay Times. Politico Florida. The proposed House budget also includes a spending boost of $100 per K-12 student, a provision that would eliminate a requirement that the 300 lowest-performing schools use the extra funding they get from the state to add an hour per day of reading instruction, and would allow any district in the state to participate in the principal autonomy program. Gradebook. Politico Florida. redefinED. The House budget includes a specific cut of $381,000 for Broward College that is directly related to the college's decision to pay the outgoing president his $381,000 salary for a year after he leaves, calling it a paid sabbatical. WLRN.
Motto at schools: The motto "In God We Trust" would have to be prominently displayed on every school building in Florida under a bill that receives unanimous approval from the House PreK-12 Innovation Subcommittee. The measure was filed by Rep. Kimberly Daniels, D-Jacksonville, and Rep. Mel Ponder, R-Destin. The phrase became part of the seal on the state flag in 1868, and was adopted as the state motto by legislators in 2006. News Service of Florida. Associated Press. WCTV. Gradebook.
Personalized learning: A bill that would make the personalized learning pilot program available to all state school districts is approved by the House PreK-12 Innovation Subcommittee. If approved by the Legislature, the bill would broaden the use of the mastery-based learning method, which allows students to advance to higher levels in subjects when they can demonstrate mastery of a topic. The bill would also give districts the freedom to decide how to award course credits. redefinED.
No end to board pay: The Constitution Revision Commission rejects a proposal to end pay for members of local school boards. A majority of the members expressed concerns that ending pay would limit the diversity of candidates, especially in poor and rural counties. "If you cannot work for free, you cannot be a school board member with this proposal," St. Johns County Superintendent Tim Forson argued. Eight other proposed amendments will be discussed and voted on at a future meeting. Gradebook. Politico Florida.
Charter school authorizers: A proposed amendment to create charter school authorizers other than local school boards is changed to allow outside entities to also start public schools. By state law, that authority to start free public schools largely rests with local school boards. Commission member Erika Donalds, who introduced the original proposal, backs the amendment, which was brought by Patricia Levesque. redefinED.
Blaine Amendment: Former Florida Supreme Court Justice Raoul Cantero urges the Constitution Revision Commission to support a proposal that would end the prohibition against state money going to religious institutions, including schools. Citing a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision, Cantero says the Blaine Amendment is likely to be declared unconstitutional. redefinED. News Service of Florida.
Flu concerns: The flu virus is sweeping the state with 107 outbreaks already reported. Ninety-four percent of those reports are from schools and health-care facilities. Baker, Bradford and Holmes counties have had elevated activity, according to the Florida Department of Health, and 46 of the state's 67 counties are reporting increasing flu activity. Only Jackson County has reported no cases. Several school districts have sent warnings home to parents. Tampa Bay Times. WOKV. Keynoter. Gainesville Sun.
