Principal kills fund-raiser: A Parent Teacher Student Association's idea to raise money by allowing students to skip the lunch line if their parents make a $100 donation has been killed by the principal after some parents protested. Brian Andrews, principal at Lawton Chiles Middle Academy in Lakeland, said in an email to parents that “I do not approve of any donation that is tied to any student advantage or privilege on campus. ... Nobody’s a second-class citizen here.” Jil Bevis, president of the PTSA, says "due to a clerical error, the form was inadvertently included in the orientation packets.” Lakeland Ledger. WFLA.
Back to school: Thursday was the first day of school for many Florida districts, and some others start next week. Florida Today. Orlando Sentinel. Tampa Bay Times. Fort Myers News-Press. Lehigh Acres Citizen. Ocala Star-Banner. Lakeland Ledger. Bradenton Herald. Gainesville Sun. Daytona Beach News-Journal. Northwest Florida Daily News. Daily Commercial. Keynoter. Citrus County Chronicle. Charlotte Sun. WFLA. Tampa Bay Times. Hillsborough County shows a slight decline in Day 1 attendance, 196,822 this year compared with 197,064 last year. Tampa Bay Times. More than 130 Manatee County students who opted to leave their low-performing school for a better option discover the buses they were supposed to get won't be running until Sept. 4. “Unfortunately, the state was late in informing our district as to the identity of those students,” deputy superintendent for operations Ron Ciranna told his staff. “Therefore, bus transportation will not be available for these students until transportation hubs can be established.” Bradenton Herald. Hundreds of Martin County students lost their bus privileges because they live within 2 miles of their school, but the school district has no plans to add crossing guards to help them get to school safely. School starts Tuesday. TCPalm.
School start times: The Palm Beach County School Board agrees to research school start times for next year to better accommodate the needs of students and parents. Board member Debra Robinson says the subject has come up before, but that “it’s a conversation worth having again. I’d like to see a smorgasbord of choices for parents to include a choice of start times.” Most high schools start at 7:30 a.m., elementary schools at 8 and most middle schools at 9:30. Sun-Sentinel.
Legislative bills: More education bills are filed for consideration in this year's legislative session, which begins in March. Among them are a bill to require Bright Futures recipients to do community service to renew their scholarships, have the Florida Department of Education commission a study of other states with high-performing middle school students in reading and math, and an expansion of charter schools' ability to enter into financial arrangements. Politico Florida. Gradebook.
Absentee students: Almost 13 percent of Pinellas County students miss 21 or more days of school every year, well above the state average of 9.7 percent and highest among the state's largest school districts. The numbers prompted the district to launch an attendance awareness campaign, and officials say the early results are promising. Tampa Bay Times.
Homeless students: The number of homeless students in St. Johns County is rising. School officials blame damage caused by Hurricane Matthew in October. There are almost 700 homeless now, and district officials expect to end the school year with more than last year's 807. St. Augustine Record.
Magnet process: Two Marion County magnet elementary schools will begin filling seats through a lottery system, school officials announce. Admission to Dr. N.H. Jones Elementary School and Madison Street Academy had been determined by test scores and race. School officials are changing the process to meet state and federal requirements. Ocala Star Banner.
