Teacher of the year: Joy Prescott, a 4th-grade math teacher at Pemayetv Emahakv Charter School in Glades County, is named Florida teacher of the year. She wins $20,000 and will be the state's Christa McAuliffe Ambassador for Education for the next year. The other finalists were Kyle Dencker, a computer science teacher at Timber Creek High School in Orange County; Samantha Neff, a math coach at Idyllwilde Elementary School in Seminole County; Patrick Farley, a 3rd- and 4th-grade gifted teacher at Crystal Lake Elementary School in Martin County; and Molly Winters Diallo, a social science teacher at Alonzo and Tracy Mourning Senior High School in Miami-Dade County. Each wins $15,000. Orlando Sentinel. Florida Department of Education.
School security: Only 35 of the 140 applicants for armed guardians jobs in Broward County schools pass the first screening test. The district says it needs to hire at least 80. Fort Lauderdale City Manager Lee Feldman says based on his experience with his city’s police department, only about five of those 35 candidates will survive further screenings. He says most candidates fail the psychological tests. Sun-Sentinel. Only 24 of the eventual 107 school safety assistants will be in Duval County classrooms when students return to schools Aug. 13 because of hiring and training delays, say district officials. Florida Times-Union. WJXT. Insuring each security guard the Brevard County School District will cost only $150 a year, says Mark Langdorf, director of risk management for the district. District officials say they need 28 guards, so the insurance premium will be $4,200. Florida Today. The Leon County School District's patchwork of protection for schools will test the state law demand that every school have an armed officer every day. Tallahassee Democrat. Lawrence Leon, the former chief of the Palm Beach County School District's police department, will keep his $137,732 salary even though his job now is patrolling Jupiter Farms Elementary School. Palm Beach Post. The city of North Miami Beach is partnering with the Miami-Dade County School District to place a resource officer in all schools located in the city. The agreement adds officers at the two elementary schools; the middle and high schools were already covered. WTVJ. Several of the 13 Manatee County charter schools still do not have a plan for school security. Bradenton Herald. (more…)
School security: As the Palm Beach County School District's police force welcomes a new chief, the previous two chiefs are still on the payroll. Frank Kitzerow was hired as the new chief last week, but the outgoing chief, Lawrence Leon, will remain in the department for at least another year and Jim Kelly, who preceded Leon, has been hired back as a consultant. Also to be sorted is how the district will provide armed officers in all schools. The expanded 160-member police force is at least 75 officers short of covering all schools, and the sheriff has refused to make deputies available on overtime. Palm Beach Post. The mother of one of the students killed in the shootings at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School is being reassigned to the job of director of school safety and security. April Schentrup, mother of Carmen, has been principal at Pembroke Pines Elementary School. Sun-Sentinel. Sheriff's officials don't believe the state mandate requiring an armed officer in all schools applies to summer school, but will provide some coverage. Citrus County Chronicle. The Monroe County School District is proposing to upgrade mental health services to students by hiring two fulltime social workers, expanding a contract with the Guidance Care Center to provide more mental health counselors, and reinstating a Medicaid specialist to seek reimbursements for services. Key West Citizen.
School board elections: School board races are set at districts around the state: Broward County, Miami-Dade, Palm Beach, Palm Beach, Seminole, Orange, Lake, Osceola, Pinellas, Hillsborough, Pasco, Hernando, Brevard, Lee, Sarasota, Manatee, Manatee, Leon, Alachua, Marion, Volusia, Flagler, St. Johns, Martin, St. Lucie, Indian River, Collier, Escambia, Santa Rosa, Walton, Okaloosa, Monroe, Citrus. Duval County School Board chairwoman Paula Wright will challenge incumbent Kim Daniels in the Democratic primary for the District 14 seat in the Florida House. Florida Times-Union.
Security task force: Almost four months after 17 people were shot to death at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, a Broward County school safety task force recommends 100 ways to improve security for schools. Among them: installing portable metal detectors at Stoneman Douglas this fall and considering them for all schools, putting coverings over windows in doors, keeping classroom doors locked at all times, increasing the height of all outdoor fences, requiring ID badges for all students and staff, and reviewing the Promise program, which was created in 2013 as a way to offer alternatives to arresting students. The committee members also joined local officials in calling on the Legislature to boost funding for school safety. Sun-Sentinel. Miami Herald. WSVN. Politico Florida. WLRN.
A cop reflects: Scot Peterson, a Stoneman Douglas resource officer who did not enter the building where confessed shooter Nikolas Cruz was killing 17 people on Feb. 14, is haunted by that day, at times justifying his decisions ("How can they keep saying I did nothing?") and at times questioning them ("Why didn’t I know to go in?"). He has considered changing his name or moving out of state, but knows there's no escaping the infamy. "It’s haunting," Peterson says. "I’ve cut that day up a thousand ways with a million different what-if scenarios, but the bottom line is I was there to protect, and I lost 17." Still, he believes there is little or nothing more he could have done. Washington Post. Parents of students killed at Stoneman Douglas express outrage at Peterson's comments. “I’m tired of him trying to paint himself as the victim,” says one, Fred Guttenberg, the father of 14-year-old Jaime Guttenberg. “He is not a victim. He created victims. He keeps referring to them as his kids. They are not your kids, Scot Peterson! You let them die!” Miami Herald. (more…)
Teacher wins a Tony: Melody Herzfeld, the one-person drama department at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School who saved 65 students during the shooting rampage at the school Feb. 14 by barricading them in a closet, wins a special Tony award for educators. The award is given annually to U.S. teachers who have "demonstrated monumental impact on the lives of students and who embodies the highest standards of the profession." She wins $10,000 and a pair of tickets to the Tony ceremony and gala. Sun-Sentinel. New York Times. Associated Press.
National spelling bee: Two Florida students spell their way into Thursday's finals at the Scripps Howard National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C, before being eliminated. Simone Kaplan, a 12-year-old 6th-grader from Davie who attends St. Bonaventure Catholic School in Broward County, was eliminated in the ninth round when she spelled the word carmagnole as carmagnol. Marisa Langley, a 14-year-old home-schooled 8th-grader from Tallahassee, was eliminated in the eighth round when she spelled the word hausen as housen. The champion is Karthik Nemmani of McKinney, Texas. The 519 spellers who started the competition included 31 students from Florida. Associated Press. Scripps Howard Spelling Bee. Miami Herald. Sun-Sentinel. Palm Beach Post. TCPalm. (more…)
Storm-watching: Many Florida school districts close in preparation for the arrival of Hurricane Matthew. Governor's office. Associated Press. Romper. Miami Herald. Orlando Sentinel. Sun-Sentinel. Palm Beach Post. Florida Times-Union. Florida Today. Lakeland Ledger. WUSF. WTSP. Daily Commercial. Fort Myers News-Press. Naples Daily News. Gainesville Sun. Ocala Star Banner. Daytona Beach News-Journal. St. Augustine Record. Citrus County Chronicle. Palm Beach County School Superintendent Robert Avossa defends his decision to keep schools open for a half-day Wednesday as scheduled. Palm Beach Post.
Charter school capital: An association of independent charter schools will get an administrative hearing on its challenge to the Florida Board of Education's rule that low-rated charter schools cannot get state money for construction and maintenance. The Florida Association of Independent Public Schools and two Miami charter schools argue that the rules discriminate against charter schools that serve low-income students. redefinED. Politico Florida. News Service of Florida.
Charter oversight: An internal audit criticizes the U.S. Department of Education's oversight of charter schools. Twenty-two of the 33 charter schools studied in Florida and five other states had financial and performance risks, conflicts of interest due to close relationships between charter school boards and their management companies, and a lack of accountability on federal funds, according to the audit. Answer Sheet, Washington Post. (more…)
