Charter schools: Included in the Florida Board of Education's budget wish list for the Legislature is a request for an extra $10 million for charter school construction. If it's approved, it would boost the amount available for charter schools to $155 million. The money comes from Public Education Capital Outlay (PECO), whose collection is expected to total $1.18 billion this year. But money is still tight because that total has to cover debt payments on bonds issued by public school districts and universities, universities have already requested an extra $64 million, and there are unfinished projects totaling $732 million. redefinED. A group of Okaloosa County parents are making plans to build a charter high school in Destin. "We are moving full steam ahead right now. We are looking for donations to actually put our money where our mouth is and get this school built," says Prebble Ramswell, a member of the committee. The anticipated opening is August 2020. WMBB.
Pregame prayer case: A federal appeals court will hear arguments Wednesday about the constitutionality of religious schools broadcasting a prayer on a stadium loudspeaker before playing a football game. Three years ago, before a state championship game between Tampa Cambridge Christian and Jacksonville’s University Christian School, Cambridge asked permission to use the public broadcast system to pray. The Florida High School Athletic Association denied the request, prompting a legal challenge from Cambridge Christian. Last year a federal judge backed the FHSAA, which argued state law did not require or permit the organization to promote a "sectarian prayer through its state-run public-address system.” Cambridge Christian argued the denial was a violation of its free speech rights. News Service of Florida. (more…)
School infrastructure: The Florida Department of Education releases the total funds districts will receive from the state in the Public Education Capital Outlay. The state is spreading $50 million among the districts for school construction and maintenance. Districts must apply to the state for release of their shares, and must have the projects under contract by January 2020 or risk losing the money. Gradebook. The Hillsborough County School District spends less on building maintenance and operations than any school district in Florida, according to state records. The district has had ongoing problems with air-conditioning, and is facing significant infrastructure needs. Tampa Bay Times.
Funding formula: The Volusia County School Board is expected tonight to approve a resolution urging legislators to change the district cost differential portion of the state's K-12 education funding formula. The DCD provides extra money to about a dozen districts that have a higher cost of living. Volusia and more than 50 other districts contend they've lost millions since the formula was initiated in 2004. “I’m hoping that other districts ... would join us in our fight to get what the Legislature appropriated,” says board member Carl Persis. Daytona Beach News-Journal.
Gender reading gap: A group of Pinellas County school principals create a "gender equity self-reflection" rubric for teachers to try to close the elementary school reading gap between girls and boys. Girls outperformed boys by 4 to 9 percentage points in the 2017 state assessment tests for 3rd, 4th and 5th graders. "It was noticeable enough that we wanted to address it," says Sutherland Elementary School principal Kristy Cantu. Tampa Bay Times.
Solar eclipse: Students around the state get an astronomy lesson during Monday's solar eclipse. Miami Herald. Sun-Sentinel. Palm Beach Post. Fort Myers News-Press. Naples Daily News. Tampa Bay Times. Tampa Bay Times. Gradebook. WFTS. Lakeland Ledger. Bradenton Herald. Bradenton Herald. Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Tallahassee Democrat. Daytona Beach News-Journal. Panama City News Herald. WJAX. WPTV.
School construction funds: Florida will be $36 million short for school construction funding in the next year if legislators do not agree to borrow money. The latest revenue estimates suggest the Public Education Capital Outlay revenue for the 2017-2018 school year will be $337 million. But state education officials have requested $373 million for projects. Gov. Rick Scott has historically been averse to such borrowing, and House Speaker Richard Corcoran, R-Land O’ Lakes, has spoken out against new PECO bonding. Senate President Joe Negron, R-Stuart, has said he is open to a “reasonable” amount of bonding. News Service of Florida.
Bright Futures: A House education subcommittee approves a higher education bill that is substantially different than the one approved by the Senate. But both bills expand Bright Futures scholarships by covering full tuition and fees for qualifying students plus $300 for textbooks and other costs. Both would also allow recipients to use scholarship money for summer classes, though the Senate version restricts use to "academic scholars" while the House bill offers it for all Bright Futures recipients. Politico Florida. News Service of Florida.
Making tests available: The House PreK-12 Quality subcommittee approves a bill that would require the Florida Department of Education to post state assessment exams online after they are taken. "So much is driven around these tests," says Rep. Randy Fine, R-Palm Bay. "I think it makes sense for us to know what we're evaluating." The committee also approved a bill that would allow students to satisfy graduation requirements for an arts or elective credit with a trade apprenticeship. Gradebook. Politico Florida.
PTA praises Scott budget: The Florida PTA jumps into the legislative battle over education budgets by praising Gov. Rick Scott's. In a statement, PTA officials said: "Florida PTA applauds the governor's request to increase total funding for K-12 education to $20.99 million, and state funding to $11.55 million, both historic highs. We likewise consider his proposed record $7420.99 in per-pupil funding a good first step toward bringing Florida closer to the national average. Equally welcome is the governor's commitment to increasing the budgets for early learning, voluntary pre-kindergarten, and school readiness." Gradebook. (more…)
Top Florida senators say they're prepared to create a stable, predictable funding source for charter school facilities.
But the road to get there remains uncertain, even after a second Senate panel voted today to advance a measure that would require school districts to share local property tax revenue with charters.
Charter schools in Florida receive the same operational funding as traditional public schools. But when it comes to money for facilities, they rely on annual appropriations from the Legislature. That funding has stagnated even as charters continue to grow, and it's far below what traditional public schools receive.
On Tuesday, Senate President Joe Negron told reporters that's unacceptable.
Education funding should follow the child to whatever public school they attend, he said. And the era of funding charter school construction through annual appropriations in the state budget — primarily through the dwindling Public Education Capital Outlay — must end.
"It's competing with other dollars that, to me, should be for universities and community colleges and schools in other areas," he said.
Senate bill 376, approved this morning by the panel in charge of education spending, would require school districts to give charter schools a proportionate share of their local property tax revenue reserved for capital projects. (more…)
Capital spending: A reduction of the state's school capital tax and the near evaporation of the state's Public Education Capital Outlay fund has put many school districts dangerously behind on school repairs. Since 2008, the state's 67 school districts have lost about $6 billion in capital revenue. Twenty-six of those counties have passed sales tax increases to pay for repairs and construction, but the other 41 are having problems keeping up with basic school maintenance. Ocala Star Banner.
Stewart on ESSA: In a letter to U.S. Education Secretary John King, Florida Education Commissioner Pam Stewart questions the reach of the federal government in the Every Student Succeeds Act, the timeline implementation, the proposal to differentiate grading and the language required to explain school grades. Gradebook.
Achievement gap: Despite several years of emphasis and changes, the achievement gap between the races in Duval County continues. While 68 percent of Asians and 62 percent of whites pass the state reading tests, just 31 percent of black students and 42 percent of Hispanics do. Superintendent Nikolai Vitti says it takes more than two or three years to close those gaps. Florida Times-Union.
Funding decline: Federal funding for disabled students is declining in Florida, which ranks 49th nationally in state education funding per pupil. Funds for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act were a victim of the 2013 compromise to end the federal government’s budget standoff. In 2012, funding was $1,954 per student. This year it's $1,301, and some districts are digging into general revenues to pay for the federally required programs. Sarasota Herald-Tribune. (more…)
Florida's virtual schools could see a slight funding boost, while charter schools would receive less money for facilities than they did last year, under budget agreements reached by state lawmakers.
House and Senate negotiators met until about midnight on Monday, reaching agreement on budget fine print and their last remaining spending items, including a total of $75 million in capital funding for charter schools and a larger amount for school districts.
Budget negotiators had previously agreed not to overhaul the state's funding for virtual education programs as proposed by the Senate. Instead, their agreement includes a slight increase in the funding supplement for virtual schools, known as the virtual education contribution.
Florida Virtual School is the largest recipient of funds from the virtual education contribution. The money also supports virtual charter schools and virtual education programs run by school districts, and is intended to bring virtual programs' funding to the equivalent of $5,200 per full-time student. The new state budget would lift that amount slightly next year, to $5,230.
Star Kraschinsky, FLVS' director for external affairs, said the slight increase in the virtual education contribution is based on the bonus funding that brick-and-mortar schools receive for students who earn industry certifications and college credits, which virtual schools don't currently receive.
She said the increase could provide Florida Virtual School with an estimated $1 million in additional revenue, which she said it plans to invest in developing more career-education courses, which legislative leaders like Senate President Don Gaetz have pushed to expand.
That would be an increase of less than 1 percent, but in a year that follows funding changes that cost FLVS tens of millions of dollars, Kraschinsky said the outcome of this year's budget talks was "very positive" for the award-winning program.
On Monday, budget negotiators also agreed to provide charter schools with $75 million for capital expenditures like leases, construction costs and technology, a reduction of nearly $15 million from what they received last year. They also earmarked $4.8 million for university lab schools, which have also received funding through the charter school capital outlay.
School districts, meanwhile, would receive more than $110 million in state capital funding, the first substantial sum they've received in four years. More than half of that total is earmarked for specific construction projects in a handful of rural school districts. (more…)
Kenny
The two-day Florida Charter School Conference officially opens Thursday with keynote speaker Deborah Kenny, founder and chief executive officer of the successful New York charter schools, Harlem Village Academies.
But a pre-conference schedule the day before offers sessions on starting a charter school and networking for principals, along with a three-hour town hall meeting featuring school leaders and legislators scheduled to talk about the future of charters in Florida.
No confirmations, yet, on the roster for that meeting. But look for discussions about charter school funding, especially calls for more oversight in light of the recent discovery of an Orlando charter school that paid its principal $800,000 last school year before the school shut down.
There might also be discussions on PECO funds – Public Education Capital Outlay dollars dedicated to school construction costs. Last year, lawmakers designated $55 million for charter schools and none for traditional public schools.
The rationale? Traditional schools can levy property taxes to build and maintain schools; charters don’t have that luxury. With 574 charter schools in 44 districts and more anticipated, expect debate about the public dollars in 2013.
Although the conference features a separate breakout session Friday on the Charter School Growth Fund, lawmakers might offer some details during the town hall meeting on how that money is used. The fund is made up of $20 million in Race To The Top dollars and $10 million in private donations. (more…)
