Arming school employees: Gov. Ron DeSantis says he supports having the option of arming willing employees, including teachers, to help protect schools, as proposed by the state commission that investigated the shooting deaths of 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School last February. DeSantis says no one would be forced to be armed, but that "if you're somebody who is working at a school and you are somebody who is trained and has the ability to do it, then you shouldn't be precluded ..." News Service of Florida.
Teacher certification: Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran has reorganized his staff to try to cut the waiting time to process applications for teacher certifications. The increased waiting time since 2017 has corresponded with a decline in educator certificates issued from 70,166 in the 2016-2017 school year to 31,397 in 2017-2018. WFTS. Gradebook. News Service of Florida. The Pasco County School District is turning to lively Facebook videos with catchy jingles in an attempt to recruit teachers. Gradebook. (more…)
School shooting report: The Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Commission approves a 458-page final report that calls on the state to arm willing teachers, provide more money to add school resource officers and harden school buildings and campuses, and streamline communications between schools and law enforcement agencies, among the dozens of recommendations. The report now goes to Gov. Rick Scott, Gov.-elect Ron DeSantis and Senate President Bill Galvano, R-Bradenton. Sun Sentinel. Miami Herald. Associated Press. News Service of Florida. Gradebook. WJCT. WTVJ. WTLV. Capitolist. Florida Politics. DeSantis says he'll decide soon whether to suspend Broward Sheriff Scott Israel for the agency's failures during the shooting at the Parkland school Feb. 14. Sun Sentinel.
Education and Legislature: State Rep. Chris Latvala, R-Clearwater, the chair of the PreK-12 Appropriations committee and vice chair of the education committee, says the Legislature is likely to tweak the significant education bills passed in 2017 and 2018, but probably won't have any single bill that "will dramatically change the education system, as we've done the past few years." Gradebook. (more…)
