Corcoran chosen: Gov.-elect Ron DeSantis has officially nominated former House Speaker Richard Corcoran for the job of education commissioner. Corcoran is a staunch supporter of school choice, vouchers and charter schools, and former Senate president Don Gaetz says Corcoran could become the "most disruptive education reformer in our state's history." Politically liberal groups and traditional public schools advocates are reacting negatively. “Richard Corcoran has a terrible track record of putting private interests over the needs of Florida’s children,” says Scott McCoy, senior policy counsel for the Southern Poverty Law Center. The State Board of Education will have to approve the appointment. Associated Press. News Service of Florida. Orlando Sentinel. Tampa Bay Times. Politico Florida. WUSF. Florida Times-Union. Tallahassee Democrat. Florida Politics. WJXT. Florida Phoenix. DeSantis' 41-person education transition committee includes, among others, state Board of Education chairwoman Marva Johnson, Florida State University president John Thrasher, former Brevard superintendent Desmond Blackburn and John Kirtley, founder and chairman of Step Up For Students, which hosts this blog and helps administer several state K-12 scholarship programs. Sunshine State News. Florida Politics. Gradebook.
Spending on schools: Spending on K-12 schools across the United States increased for the third consecutive year, according to a report released Thursday by the National Center for Education Statistics. Across the country, $678.4 billion was collected and $596.1 billion was spent in the 2016 fiscal year. The average spent per student was $11,841, but the totals varied widely. The District of Columbia, for example, spent $27,067 per student, and New York spent $24,717, while Idaho spent $8,258 and Utah $8,408. Florida spent $9,176, which was almost identical to the two previous years and ranks 43rd among the states and D.C. Education Week.
College alternatives: Increasingly, rural students in Florida are choosing to learn a trade instead of going to college. Among the reasons for their choices: Practicality, price and even politics. “It’s all about practicality,” says Wakulla County School District Superintendent Robert Pearce. “The mindset is: What makes the most sense?” Tampa Bay Times.
Governor's race: Was race the primary reason Democrat Andrew Gillum lost the governor's race to Republican Ron DeSantis? While many Democrats think so, others aren't so sure. It wouldn't explain why Gillum received only 86 percent of the black vote, well below even the 90 percent white Democratic U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson got. One possible reason for the low black total for Gillum may have been his call to end tax credit scholarships, which allow low-income, mostly minority students to attend private schools. Tampa Bay Times. (more…)
Schools and the storm: School officials across north Florida are scrambling to get students back in school, but the devastation of Hurricane Michael is posing problems most of them have never faced before. Five school districts - Bay, Calhoun, Franklin, Gadsden, Jackson - are closed until further notice because of widespread power outages, closed and unsafe roadways, damaged schools and the need to continue using schools that aren't too damaged as emergency shelters, according to the governor's office. School administrators in Bay County, which was hardest hit by the storm, say it could be months before schools are reopened. Several other districts remain closed today but hope to open tomorrow. CNN. Washington Post. USA Today. Associated Press. WJHG. Panama City News Herald. Pensacola News Journal. Escambia, Santa Rosa and Okaloosa school officials say they can take in students whose schools aren't open. WKRG. Though Gadsden schools are closed, all teachers and staff are required to report to work today, according to a tweet from the district. Gadsden County School District. All Leon County schools reopen today and will have power. Tallahassee Democrat. WTXL. Experts say students need as much normalcy as possible and a sense of security after the trauma of an event such as Hurricane Michael. Naples Daily News.
New leaders at FEA: Joanne McCall is ousted after one term as president of the Florida Education Association, the state's largest teachers union. She lost a weekend election to Fed Ingram, a Miami-Dade County union official and FEA vice president. Also elected were Andrew Spar of Volusia County as vice president and Carole Gauronskas of St. Johns County as treasurer. "This organization, especially for the last three years in the legislative session, has been reactive instead of proactive," says Pasco teachers union official Don Peace. "You can't get big wins when you always arrive to the game late." Gradebook. Florida Politics. (more…)
Florida's ESSA plan: Florida has filed its fourth plan to comply with the federal Every Student Succeeds Act. The first three were rejected because they didn't meet the standards of the school accountability system. The latest attempt, filed Aug. 24, calls for the continuation of an exemption from grade-level math exams to students in high school who successfully completed the courses in middle school. The state also is declining to give tests in languages other than English, and does not want to change the way it sets proficiency standards for students still learning the language or how it reports the academic performance of demographic subgroups. In Gov. Rick Scott's letter to Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, he writes that "Florida's expectations is that our state is treated fairly and given full flexibility to provide the greatest return to our students." Florida is the only state whose plan has not been approved by the U.S. Department of Education. Gradebook. Education Week.
District's computers hacked: A cyberattack forces the Monroe County School District to shut down its computer systems this week. Officials say the hacker used ransomware called "GandCrab," with the goal of encrypting files in the system and then demanding a payment to unlock them. The district’s Internet security provider, Symantec, took the system down Sunday after the threat was detected and created a patch that was applied Tuesday. But the problems persisted and the system was shut down again. Keynoter. Key West Citizen. WLRN. (more…)
No sharing with charters: The Pasco County School Board decides not to share any of its capital funding with charter schools, rejecting a plan proposed by district administrators to share money for maintenance and facilities expenses based on student demographics and performance. Pasco is one of three state counties not required to share capital funding because of their high construction debt ratios. "Our budget changes every year," says board member Steve Luikart. "We can't guarantee something that is not guaranteed to us." Gradebook.
Funds for displaced students: Fifty-two Florida school districts will share $46.8 million in federal aid as reimbursement for educating thousands of students from Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands who were displaced by hurricanes. Orange County, which took in 4,000 students, will receive about $12 million. Osceola County will get about $5 million, Broward $4.4 million, Miami-Dade $4.2 million and Collier $3.1 million. The state will retain $47.7 million. Orlando Sentinel. Florida Politics.
District budgets: The Manatee County School Board approves an $889.4 million budget. The general fund portion, which pays for daily expenses such as teacher salaries and utility bills, is up 12.05 percent over last year. “The increased funding will allow the district to continue on the path to financial resiliency, educate 48,686 students, fill 210 vacancies, and further improve upon the educational experience for all students,” interim superintendent Cynthia Saunders wrote in a letter to the board. Bradenton Herald. Sarasota Herald-Tribune. An analysis of the Indian River County School District's budget discloses that a projected $2.3 million budget shortfall was simply an accounting error. Superintendent Mark Rendell says he plans to hire an outside auditor to review the $291 million budget. TCPalm. (more…)
School funding: Gov. Rick Scott and the Florida House appear headed for conflict over education funding when the Legislature convenes next Tuesday. Scott wants to boost education spending by allowing local districts to collect more in taxes as property values increase. House leaders say that's a tax hike, and they won't let it happen. Ten years ago, the state provided 62 percent of public education funding. That slipped to 52 percent in 2007-2008 and is at 57 percent now. That 5 percentage point difference would have added $1 billion to the $20.6 billion spent on education this year. Gradebook.
Cold-weather cancellations: Alachua County schools remain closed today, but most others are open although some continue to curtail extracurricular activities. WEAR. Florida Times-Union. Gainesville Sun. Ocala Star-Banner. Daily Commercial. WFSU. WJAX. WKMG.
Education court fight: The legal battle between school districts and the state over H.B. 7069 is one of five potentially far-reaching Florida court fights that may be decided this year. News Service of Florida.
Textbook challenges: A bill is filed that would expand the law allowing anyone to challenge materials used in public school classrooms. H.B. 827, filed by state Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Naples, would give challengers the right to challenge books and also suggest replacements to both local school boards and the State Board of Education. Those boards would then be required to ask publishers of the suggested alternatives if they wanted to make a pitch for public school business. Right now, nearly every state school district buys textbooks for core courses from a state-approved list that is reviewed by teachers and experts hired by the Florida Department of Education. Orlando Sentinel.
School tax hike: The Palm Beach County School District is considering asking voters to raise their property taxes so the district can boost teacher salaries. School officials say the only way experienced teachers can expect significant raises is if voters agree to boost the current $25 tax per $100,000 of assessed property value to $45. That tax was approved in 2010 to provide money to hire teachers for arts, music, physical education and specialized choice programs, and generated about $43 million last year. The tax is up for renewal next November. Palm Beach Post.
Schools of Hope: House Speaker Richard Corcoran, R-Land O'Lakes, says charter schools opening under the state's "Schools of Hope" legislation must be innovative and go to the areas with the greatest needs. “For our movement, we need to be careful and continue to go out there and innovate and have the success … rather than go out there and there is money to be made opening up in this nice neighborhood,” Corcoran said at the Foundation for Excellence in Education’s national meeting in Nashville last week. redefinED.
Teaching science: State Sen. Dennis Baxley, R-Ocala, files a bill that would require school districts to teach “controversial theories and concepts" of science "in a factual, objective and balanced manner.” The bill would also allow local districts to adopt their own academic standards as long as they're as vigorous as the state's. In 2008, when the current standards were adopted, Baxley, then the executive director Christian Coalition of Florida, wanted the state to "leave the door open a little bit" for consideration of theories other than evolution about how life on Earth developed. Orlando Sentinel.
Homeschooling bill: A bill is filed that would limit the amount of information parents would have to provide to their school district if they intend to homeschool their child. The bill, filed by Sen. Dennis Baxley, R-Ocala, would require only the student's name, birth date and address. Some districts ask for more. redefinED.
Test waivers: Miami-Dade County School Superintendent Alberto Carvalho says he will ask the state to exempt students displaced by hurricanes from taking exams that are required for high school graduation. Education Week.
Tax bill and charter schools: Charter school operators warn that the tax bill under consideration in Congress would eliminate a variety of tax-exempt programs the companies use to borrow money to build schools. “This is devastating to charter schools, which often struggle to find space and lack the amenities of district schools,” says National Alliance President and CEO Nina Rees. Without the tax breaks, she says schools will have to take money from instruction to use for construction. The 74.
