School choice legislation. The Senate rewrites its plan for education savings accounts. redefinED. Sentinel School Zone. The move underscores the uncertain future of tax credit scholarship legislation. News Service of Florida. WFSU. Education historian Sherman Dorn offers his take on the politics, while Jeb Bush talks school choice with Cardinal Timothy Dolan of New York.
Charter schools. The Palm Beach County School Board votes to close a struggling, 16-year-old school. Palm Beach Post. Charter Schools USA backs away from plans to open a school in Pasco County. Gradebook.
Virtual school. A Florida Virtual School administrator is a finalist for a state award. Sentinel School Zone.
Teacher pay. Hernando County teachers reach a pay-raise deal that creates a structure for future performance-based increases. Tampa Bay Times.
School safety. Hillsborough County's superintendent didn't learn about a child's death until months after it happened. Tampa Bay Times. She tries to spread the word about pedestrian safety. Times. A bill allowing some school employees to carry guns keeps moving through the Legislature. Extra Credit. Associated Press. Bradenton Herald. Sarasota Herald-Tribune. (more…)
State tests: The end of the much-maligned FCAT is no cause for celebration by critics, writes the Palm Beach Post. Sen. John Legg correctly recognizes there are too many standardized tests in Florida's public schools, but his proposed solution of a test-free period around state-required tests is impractical, writes the Tampa Bay Times.
Common Core: A state senator has submitted legislation to stop the Common Core State Standards from taking effect in Florida. The Buzz. The new state standards place more emphasis on cursive writing, but not everyone is on board as technology takes over the classroom. Fort Myers News-Press. Studies find textbooks are a poor match for Common Core standards. StateImpact Florida.
Teacher evals: The publication of teacher performance scores this week resonate in Leon County Schools, drawing criticism from school board members and fueling recruitment efforts by the local teachers union. Tallahassee Democrat.
Special needs: The state teachers union releases a video showing Polk County school administrators giving a standardized test to a blind child in a persistent vegetative state. Herald/Times.
State grades: The state Board of Education should listen to parents and educators who want to put the brakes on the grading plan, writes The Ledger.
Pay raises: Pasco County's superintendent recommends new salary schedules for administrators and non-bargaining personnel that would increase their pay by 4 percent and 4.8 percent, respectively. Tampa Bay Times. The roughly 6,000 Palm Beach school district service employees like bus drivers, custodians and electricians will get a 4 percent raise under a new tentative labor agreement. Palm Beach Post.
School boards: Pinellas County School Board members vote unanimously to change the time allotted for public comments from the beginning of their meetings to the end, despite initial concerns the switch would discourage public participation. The Tampa Tribune. More from the Tampa Bay Times. The Palm Beach County school board hears some tough talk on a still-sparse budget for next school year. Palm Beach Post.
Vouchers: Standardized testing would threaten private-school appeal, writes the Orlando Sentinel. The president of the League of Women Voters of Florida says expanding private scholarships is a further abdication of the state's responsibility to provide a high quality education to Florida's children. Orlando Advocate.
Fundamental schools: Is St. Petersburg's fundamental school within a school working? Tampa Bay Times.
District schools: Escambia County's Warrington Middle School continues to fail its students - and improving the school will take a community-wide effort that must begin this week, writes the Pensacola News-Journal. Hillsborough County's Brandon High celebrates 100 years. The Tampa Tribune. A Duval County high school hosts a conversation about volunteerism, bridging disparities and the community roll of a historic African-American school. StateImpact Florida.
Teachers: Hundreds of thousands of Florida teacher evaluation scores that measure effectiveness on student learning are released after the Florida Times-Union wins lengthy legal battle. The Department of Education sends teachers a message about the release of records. Florida Times-Union. This Duval County teacher's class is all about goals. Florida Times-Union.
Ed leg: If the Legislature adjourns after its upcoming session without passing a single education-related bill, there will still be big changes coming to Florida classrooms this fall. Tallahassee Democrat. Pop-Tarts law is gun lobbying we don't need at school, writes Sue Carlton for the Tampa Bay Times.
State testing: Florida's students are getting ready to write the final chapter in a 17-year saga known as the FCAT. Sun Sentinel. FCAT season begins this week with a low-stakes writing assessment that over the years has seemed to have little purpose. TC Palm. Sen. John Legg aims to address over-testing in Florida public schools. Tampa Bay Times. This coming week marks the beginning of the end for the four most hated letters in Florida education: FCAT. Palm Beach Post.
Common Core: Why less is more for a rural Florida school preparing students for the new education standards. StateImpact Florida.
School boards: Hillsborough County School Board member April Griffin decides to seek a third term after all, citing issues within the school district’s transportation and special education departments that she believes have not been resolved. The Tampa Tribune. The Black Educators Caucus of Palm Beach County still backs the district superintendent, but wants progress report. Palm Beach Post. For Polk County's assistant superintendent, it's all about the kids. The Ledger.
Vouchers: Sen. President Don Gaetz says private school scholarship students should be required to take the same state assessments as other public school students, but StateImpact Florida notes the scholarship programs already require students take a national norm-referenced standardized test.
Charter schools: Pasco School Board attorneys craft contract language to satisfy board members who had serious questions about giving Pepin Academies a 15-year charter. Tampa Bay Times.
Private schools: A former Miami Country Day School student, now a sophomore at Barnard College in New York City, is creating an anti-bullying kit for Miami-Dade schools based on a play she wrote in ninth grade. Miami Herald.
Career centers: Students at Hillsborough's South County Career Center paint murals to help tell their school's story. The Tampa Tribune. Manatee Technical Institute and Sarasota County Technical Institute are the future of education, supporters say. Sarasota Herald-Tribune.
Legislators: Expanding pathways out of poverty through education is one of five items Sen. President Don Gaetz and state House Speaker Will Weatherford are emphasizing this session. Northwest Florida Daily News.
Biometrics: A key Senate committee votes to stop public school systems from collecting "biometric" data on students, despite warnings that unplugging the computerized systems will waste money and make it harder to move hundreds of kids through lunchroom lines. The Florida Current.
Common Core: The State Board of Education is expected to approve amendments to Student Performance Standards after reviewing some 19,000 public comments on the standards, known as the Next Generation Sunshine State Standards. Naples Daily News. More from The Tampa Tribune.
Vouchers: Sen. President Don Gaetz says he supports private school vouchers, but that students who participate in the program should be subject to the same or similar standardized tests that public school students take. Miami Herald. More from Orlando Sentinel. School choice is becoming more valuable for parents, who are turning to Step Up For Students and the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship for help in finding the right fit for their children. WEAR TV Channel 3.
Private schools: St. Thomas Episcopal in Miami gets on loan from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration a display of lunar rocks, soil and meteorites. Miami Herald.
Charter schools: Oasis High School, part of the Cape Coral charter school system, win 14 awards at the International Model UN conference hosted by Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Boston. Fort Myers News-Press. In Hillsborough County, more than half of the existing charter schools have banded together to create a choice fair for families to learn about their offerings. Tampa Bay Times. Palm Beach County School District officials are working with two local legislators to introduce a bill that would require new charter schools to put up a $250,000 performance bond before they can open. Palm Beach Post.
Magnet schools: Public school leaders in Miami and elsewhere are refocusing on magnet schools as traditional public schools come under increasing pressure from charter schools and vouchers for private schools. The New York Times.
District schools: Polk County principals work to bring improvement to local schools. The Ledger. With a new writing coach and weekly boot camps, Hernando schools hope to pull up state test scores. Tampa Bay Times.
Collegiate high schools: Sen. John Legg proposes a bill to expand collegiate high schools, and spur community and state colleges to make more of an effort to engage high-schoolers in college-level courses. The Tampa Tribune.
Eric Cantor: GOP House Majority Leader Eric Cantor visits Academy Prep Center of Tampa to stump for school choice. redefinED. The Republican congressman from Virginia said the private middle school, which serves children in low-income families, is an example of how school choice can succeed. The Tampa Tribune. More from the Tampa Bay Times.
For retired Air Force Sgt. Greg Parmer, having a K-8 charter school at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Fla., would give military families more and better options for middle school.
For Amanda Madden, who lives on the base with her husband, a technical sergeant, and two sons, such a school would also be an opportunity for something better at the elementary school level.
“I’m more trusting of a school on base as opposed to a public (district) school,” she said.
Quality, convenience, a better fit for military families – supporters of a proposed charter school at MacDill have raised those points repeatedly in recent months as one of the best-known military bases in the country squares off against one of the nation’s biggest school districts. But conspicuously absent from the debate has been the voices of military families themselves.
In interviews with redefinED, Parmer and Madden echoed many of the concerns that other supporters have already raised. At the same time, they offered more detail about frustrations they say led them – and perhaps other military families – to consider the possibility of a charter school.
Greg Parmer, far right, poses with his family and Col. Barry Roeper, far left, recently at MacDill Air Force Base. Parmer is among supporters of a proposed charter school on the base. PHOTO provided by family.
“Most of our families live in Brandon and Riverview (on the other side of town),’’ said Parmer, a father of three who lives near the base. Having a K-8 on base would be a huge plus for them, he said.
The proposed MacDill Charter Academy would serve up to 875 students and is being considered as the base expands housing to accommodate 600 new families. The Hillsborough County School Board voted down the academy application in December, citing problems with the school’s governing structure and other issues. But the school’s backers have appealed, with the state Charter School AppealCommission set to consider the matter on Feb. 24.
Parmer’s concerns focus on middle school options.
MacDill families have few complaints about Tinker Elementary, the A-rated elementary school that’s run by the district on base. But there is some grumbling about Monroe Middle School, which is near the base and earned a C grade from the state this year.
Parmer said he and his wife, Kimberly, who works as a secretary on the base, weren’t necessarily expecting a private-school atmosphere when they learned their daughter and son, and a nephew who lives with the family, would attend Monroe in 2011. But the school turned out to be culture shock for the Parmer kids, who had gone to U.S. Department of Defense schools in Germany and Japan. (more…)
Charter schools: The Franklin Academy charter school is opening a second campus next fall in Palm Beach Gardens. Palm Beach Post. The Leon County School district could soon be running a charter school on one of its existing campuses. Tallahassee Democrat. Lee County school officials are seeking $99,793 from Richard Milburn Academy of Florida Inc., which ran three charter high schools until closing for financial reasons. Fort Myers News-Press. Woodmont Charter School, an F-rated elementary and middle school run by Charter Schools USA, is advertising on television for more students - but not mentioning its state grade. Tampa Bay Times. A Pasco charter school approval may hit some snags. Tampa Bay Times.
Gender specific: Hoping to score public funding to create single-gender schools, Duval County's superintendent gives Rep. Erik Fresen, chairman of the House Education Appropriations Subcommittee, a tour of a local middle school with classes that separate boys and girls. Florida Times-Union.
Private schools: Tampa's Berkeley Prep plans to build a 75,000-square-foot arts and sciences center that will feature classrooms equipped with the latest technology, college-level laboratories and performance studios, as well as an art gallery, study areas, a recital hall and meeting spaces. The Tampa Tribune.
District schools: Pinellas County public schools are closer to securing a Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation grant that Superintendent Michael Grego says would “totally transform the school district.” The Tampa Tribune. A Pinellas County "turnaround'' school takes its best shot at academic success. Tampa Bay Times.
Charlie Crist: An opinion on charter-school funding by then-Republican Attorney General Charlie Crist is at odds with a portion of the Democratic base whose help he now needs to become the next governor. Florida Times-Union.
School vouchers: House Speaker Will Weatherford is among Republicans looking to expand school choice efforts this year, including beefing up the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship program. Palm Beach Post.
Charter schools: A new state law that requires a "model" contract between school districts and charter operators is not stopping Orange County from requiring new charters to meet performance standards. Orlando Sentinel.
Faith-based schools: Parents are shocked after learning a Palm Beach County Presbyterian church is closing its school. Palm Beach Post. Hundreds of low-income students at Duval County private or parochial schools will likely lose tutoring and other academic help because the federal money paying for it is drying up. Florida Times-Union.
School choice: The city of Hollywood is pushing its public schools to better market themselves this year, in hopes of luring new students — and new families. Sun Sentinel. Pasco County students and parents face a broader array of education options as the district's 2014-15 school choice application window opens. Tampa Bay Times.
Digital learning: A proposed bill to expand school technology could lead to more tablets and computers, more professional development for teachers and more opportunities for K-12 students to take classes in subjects like computer programming. The Tampa Tribune. More from Tampa Bay Times. StateImact Florida asks teachers how they learned to connect technology to learning.
Education budget: While Gov. Rick Scott's suggested a $542 million bump in K-12 funding is no small chunk of change, few people believe it’s anywhere near enough to meet the ever-growing demands of the state’s public schools, writes Rick Christie for the Palm Beach Post.
Private schools: A Broward County private K-12 welcomes Animal Planet's "Gator Boys'' to help open the school's $600,000 center that provides students with an outdoor classroom. Sun Sentinel.
District schools: A Brevard County elementary school wins a statewide contest for a video that promotes reading. Florida Today. Plans for a cell tower at a Naples elementary school campus are on hold. Naples Daily News. It’s the time of year when thousands of children and parents in Lee County make a decision on which school they want to attend. Fort Myers News-Press. An internal auditor reviews Pasco County schools and suggests looking more closely at the way money flows inside the campuses. Tampa Bay Times.
Charter schools: A new report looks at the lasting impacts charters have on students and whether the schools help determine paychecks later in life. The answer, in a word, is yes, writes Collin Hitt for Jay P. Greene's blog.
Florida Virtual School: For the first time, FLVS offers an opportunity for online students outside of the state to earn their high school diploma through a virtual school. GettingSmart. The state Supreme Court will hear arguments April 28 in a dispute about whether Florida Virtual School can sue K12 Inc. for alleged trademark infringement. News Service of Florida.
Mental health: Sandy Pines Residential Treatment Center in Palm Beach County opens with three dozen new beds to fill the growing need for more mental health care for children. Palm Beach Post.
School safety: The ACLU responds to Hillsborough County's security proposal with a letter that contends the more guards you put in the schools, the more likely you are to criminalize behavior that could better be corrected without exposing the child to the criminal justice system. Tampa Bay Times.
Jeb Bush: The former Florida governor addresses ideas about immigration, education and the plight of youths in a speech at the Times-Union Center for the Performing Arts. Florida Times-Union. (more…)
Charter schools: The Legislature considers proposals that would make it easier for the nontraditional public schools to open and provide more oversight. Sun Sentinel. Renaissance Charter Inc., one of the largest charter school operators in the country, is growing in North Florida despite a mixed record of achievement. Florida Times-Union. Lawmakers look at changes to the charter school process, including state review of applications. The Tampa Tribune.
Magnet schools: Turning three Polk County schools into magnet schools next fall leaves some students traveling farther to a new school. The Ledger.
Same-sex schools: WLRN in Miami looks at the latest legislative proposal to create more single-gender classrooms in Florida.
Teachers: In a year when Florida's public school teachers are getting substantial raises, substitutes will see no bump in their paychecks. Orlando Sentinel.
School safety: St. Lucie County School District students will see new deputies in their schools, thanks to a national grant allowing the school resource officer program to expand. TC Palm. School mental health workers grapple with the best way to offer students such services in a patchwork, underfunded system. Daytona Beach News-Journal.
Common Core: Republican Party of Florida activists vote to oppose the Common Core education standards in a sign of growing anger over the national school benchmarks. News Service of Florida. Gov. Rick Scott says the state will unveil its revisions to the standards next week. News Service of Florida. More from The Florida Current.
