Education court challenge: Florida Supreme Court justices heard oral arguments Thursday in a nearly 10-year-old case that claims the state's education system is inadequate and therefore a violation of 1998 constitutional amendment that calls for "uniform, efficient, safe, secure, and high quality system of public schools.” A trial court and an appeals court have rejected the challenge. Now lawyers for the plaintiffs, Citizens for Strong Schools, want the case sent back to the trial court. “We had 670,000 children that are failing reading," said attorney Jodi Siegel. "So this is not a child or two. This is a systemic failure.” Rocco Testani, an attorney for the state, says the state has made significant improvements in the past 20 years. “It has been successful, it has worked,” he said of the public education system. “It is not a system that anyone should be concerned is broken.” The justices gave no indication when a decision might be issued, though they often take months. You can watch the arguments here. News Service of Florida. Gradebook. Orlando Sentinel. Politico Florida. WFSU.
Sharing with charters: Eight Florida school districts will be receiving an influx of revenue after voters approved sales tax or property tax increases. But will the district share any of it with charter schools? And if they do, how much? About half the districts say they will share, though they aren't saying how much. Charter officials believe their schools are entitled to some of the funds, since they're part of the public districts. They also worry that the proposed salary increases from the extra money will make it harder for them to compete for the services of good teachers. redefinED. (more…)
Charter school closings: A watchdog organization reports that 38 percent of charters schools in Florida have closed since 2000, a failure rate that's 7 percentage points higher than the national average. Of the 1,091 charter schools that have opened in Florida since 2000, 491 have closed (the state Department of Education disputes that number and says 389 have closed). David Armiak, a researcher for the Center For Media and Democracy in Wisconsin, calls the closure rate "alarming." He says it raises questions about accountability for charter schools, which get funding from the state but have greater operational freedom than traditional public schools. Armiak also noted that the closures disproportionately affected minority students. Gradebook.
Effects of teacher turnover: A new study concludes that midyear teacher turnover has a negative impact on student learning, especially in schools that have large proportions of minority and low-income students. “While it is possible for turnover to be beneficial for school systems, an extensive body of research points to the ways that teacher turnover disrupts … the continuity of a child’s learning experiences, particularly in underserved schools,” write study authors Christopher Redding of the University of Florida and Gary Henry of Vanderbilt. The researchers studied data from 2008 to 2014 collected from of North Carolina schools. Chalkbeat. (more…)
Schools plan to reopen: Schools in the Florida Panhandle are announcing plans to reopen for students. Eight of the nine districts that have been closed since Hurricane Michael landed at Mexico Beach on Oct. 10 now have scheduled return dates. Gulf County employees are back in schools today, with students to follow Tuesday. Holmes and Gadsden students return Monday. Franklin employees are back in schools Monday, and students Tuesday. Teachers are back in Washington County schools Tuesday, and students return Wednesday. Liberty has plans to welcome staff back Wednesday, and students on Monday, Oct. 29. Calhoun sets an Oct. 29 date for staff to return to work, with students coming back Thursday, Nov. 1. Bay County, hit the hardest, is planning to open no later than Nov. 12 by using 200 or more portable classrooms. Only Jackson County has not announced a schedule to resume classes. Panama City News Herald. Florida Department of Education. Associated Press. Bay County School District officials are asking for donations from the public to help rebuild the district. The campaign is asking for school supplies, clothing and jackets for students, and supplies and gift cards for teachers. Panama City News Herald. Private schools in the Panhandle also took a hit from Hurricane Michael. redefinED. Student victims of the storm are looking for structure and routine. Pensacola News Journal.
Tax referendum: Several schools in the Miami-based charter network Academica are posting fliers on social media sites to let parents know that the Miami-Dade County School District's property referendum will not benefit their schools. The fliers do not directly oppose the tax hike, but do read, “the School Board has not committed to share this money with your child’s school, or any other public charter school, at this time,” as well as pointing out that charter schools are public schools and that 1 in 5 county students attend them. Miami Herald. (more…)
Board's budget request: The Florida Board of Education's formal budget request to the Legislature asks for a $673 million boost in funding for the 67 school districts that includes $200 more in per-student funding and a $100 million increase in the safe schools initiative. Of that total, $170 million would be new funding from the state and the rest would come from increases in local school property tax collections. The board also is asking for $67.5 million for the school guardian program, and ignored one member's call to let districts use unspent funds from the program for other security measures. The budget request now goes to the Legislature for consideration. News Service of Florida. Politico Florida. Gradebook. Meanwhile, the Joint Legislative Budget Commission officially rejects requests to make $58 million in unused funds from last year's school guardian program available for districts to spend for resource officers and other security measures. TCPalm.
Charter rejection overturned: The Florida Board of Education overturns the Leon County School Board's rejection of a charter school's application. The decision means the Tallahassee Classical School will be allowed to open in the 2019-2020 school year. Leon school board members unanimously denied the charter's application because they felt the school did not reflect the community's diversity and that it would discriminate against disabled students. But the state BOE sided with the Florida Department of Education's Charter School Appeal Commission, which ruled that the Leon board did not have good cause to reject the application. It's the second time this summer that the board has overruled local decisions to deny charter schools' applications. redefinED. (more…)
