Teacher bonuses program: The chairman of the Florida Senate K-12 education appropriations subcommittee says he wants to rewrite the bill authorizing teacher bonuses. Sen. David Simmons, R-Altamonte Springs, would remove the use of teachers' SAT or ACT scores from the formula for granting bonuses and replace it with a different measure of performance. He also said principals could get more authority in parceling out bonuses, and bonuses could be used to get better teachers to work in poorer schools. Officials hope these and other reforms will help recruit and retain teachers. Orlando Sentinel. Sun-Sentinel. Gradebook. Politico Florida. WFSU.
Achievement gap: Two Polk County legislators file bills that would approve a study to find out why the state's middle schools are performing significantly worse than elementary schools in reading and math. The bills are S.B. 360, filed by Sen. Kelli Stargel, R-Lakeland, and H.B. 293, filed by Rep. Colleen Burton, R-Lakeland. Bridge to Tomorrow.
School arrests: Nearly 70,000 U.S. students were arrested in the 2013-2014 school year, and in 43 states and the District of Columbia black students were arrested at disproportionately high levels, according to an Education Week analysis of federal data. Florida was 11th in the number of arrests, with 1,768. About 39 percent of the arrests were of black students, who made up just under 23 percent of the student population. Education Week.
Unequal treatment? An assistant principal who was demoted when she became pregnant in 2010, then won a $350,000 settlement against the Palm Beach County School District, questions why the man who demoted her was never disciplined, reprimanded or even investigated by the school district. Anne Williams Dorsey says the continued employment of Darren Edgecomb, now principal of Palm Beach Central High School in Wellington, "raises eyebrows, to put it politely.” Palm Beach Post. (more…)
Coincidence or not, an impressive roster of superstar professional athletes with strong Florida ties have become major league champions for school choice. Tim Tebow was homeschooled outside Jacksonville. Derrick Brooks of Pensacola co-founded a charter school in Tampa. Andre Agassi, who trained in Bradenton, did the same in Las Vegas. And Jorge Posada, who lives in Tampa (or did until recently), put his name behind the Lake Worth-based Hispanic Council for Reform and Educational Options.
The latest to step up: Deion "Prime Time" Sanders, a Fort Myers native who starred at Florida State before going on to electrify pro football and baseball.
Sanders is starting two charter schools in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. The Prime Prep Academy schools, set to open this fall, will feature a technology-heavy curriculum aimed at inner-city kids.
"It's been a 3-year process," Sanders told the Forth Worth Star-Telegram Feb. 20. "Nothing I have ever done compares to this. We are going to have the best teachers and coaches. These schools will have no color and no boundaries. We plan to educate and influence kids to go and make a true difference in their community." (more…)
