Budget deal: The Florida Senate and House reach agreement on an $83 billion state budget. The agreement includes $200 million to attract specialized charter schools to the state to compete with persistently low-performing schools – the so-called “schools of hope” plan – and increases for teacher bonuses and higher education. But the Senate agreed to the House’s demand not to allow higher property taxes to increase K-12 per-student spending. The budget must be completed by Tuesday for the session to end as scheduled May 5. Miami Herald. Naples Daily News. News Service of Florida. Gradebook. redefinED. redefinED.
School and cancer: After a briefing about the suspicions of a cancer cluster at the old Bayshore High School property, Manatee County commissioners agree to meet with school board members within the next 30 days to discuss the community’s concerns. Bradenton Herald. Sarasota Herald-Tribune.
Financial situation dire: The financial outlook for the Hillsborough County School District is bleak, school officials tell school board members. Only about a quarter of the needed cuts have been made, while costs and enrollment are rising and public funds are increasingly scarce. Chief business officer Gretchen Saunders said the district may not even be able to honor its 2013 agreement with the teachers union to raise pay. Tampa Bay Times. The district is deficient in keeping its technology updated, according to a critique from its consultants. The student information system, for example, uses a computer language invented in 1959 and outdated hardware that costs about $1.5 million a year to maintain. Replacing technology will take years, says Patti Simmons, the district’s supervisor of data analysis. Tampa Bay Times. The board approves new start times for the 2018-2019 school year. WFLA.
Smaller campuses: The Orange County Commission approves a plan to allow the school district to build schools on smaller sites. The new rules allow elementary schools to be built on 7 to 11 acres instead of 15; middle and K-8 schools on 12 to 16 acres instead of 25; and high schools on 40 to 50 acres instead of 65. Orlando Sentinel.
High school rankings: More reports about where Florida high schools stand among among their U.S. peers in the 2017 U.S. News & World Report’s annual rankings. Associated Press. Florida Today. WJAX. Gradebook. Northwest Florida Daily News. Palm Beach Post. WPTV.
School remains open: The Polk County School Board declines to shut down McLaughlin Middle School and turn it over to the Lake Wales Charter Schools. Lakeland Ledger.
Campus signs: About 180 signs warning sex offenders to stay away are being placed on each of the Marion County School District’s 51 school campuses. Sheriff Billy Woods made the request for the signs, and the school board accepted the offer. Ocala Star Banner.
Rezoning case: A Pasco County resident challenging the school district’s rezoning process wants the county judge hearing the case removed for a conflict of interest. The judge, Declan Mansfield, is married to County Clerk Paula O’Neil, who twice conducted the swearing-in ceremony of Superintendent Kurt Browning. And the district’s attorney also represents the clerk’s office. Gradebook.
Rewriting pledge policy: Citrus County School Board members are not happy at having to rewrite the district’s Pledge of Allegiance policy to conform to state law that allows students to sit during the daily recitation of the pledge. “You stand out of respect, so this bothers me,” said board member Linda Powers. Citrus County Chronicle.
Teachers honored: Six Palm Beach County teachers win 2017 Dwyer Awards for Excellence in Education. Palm Beach Post.
Notable deaths: Edina Williams, a well-known teacher for years in the Virgin Islands and recently a tutor in the Orlando area, is killed in a car crash on the Florida Turnpike. Virgin Islands Consortium.
New school building: A $9 million student union building is opened at the Community School of Naples. The 35,635-square-foot building includes a dining hall, lecture hall and innovation lab. Naples Daily News.
School improvements: The St. Johns County School Board is considering adding several improvement projects to the work already being done at Allen D. Nease High School. The $12 million project would grow by $7 million if the board approves widening a road at the school to improve traffic, completing a new building, expanding a parking lot and relocating retention ponds. St. Augustine Record.
Schools getting computers: The Bay County School Board approves spending $638,000 to buy Chromebooks for students at Mowat and Merritt Brown middle schools. Panama City News Herald.
Principal’s removal: Pinellas County School Board members praise district school officials for their decisive handling of a principal who made racially insensitive comments. Christine Hoffman was removed from Campbell Park Elementary School in St. Petersburg last week after telling teachers that white students in the mostly black school should be kept together in next year’s classes. Tampa Bay Times.
AD stays suspended: The Polk County School Board backs Superintendent Jacqueline Byrd’s decision to fire Lakeland High School athletic director Justin Troller. Troller has requested a hearing, and will remain suspended without pay until then. Troller is accused of inappropriate conversations with a student, then trying to get the student into trouble. Lakeland Ledger.
Coach arrested: A volleyball coach at T. Dewitt Taylor Middle-High School in Pierson is arrested and accused of molesting a 14-year-old boy. Keyunta Murphy is charged with lewd and lascivious battery, using a computer to lure a child and unlawful use of a communication device. Orlando Sentinel.
School custodian arrested: A custodian at Seminole Springs Elementary School in Eustis is arrested and accused of trading nude photos with a 15-year-old boy. Matthew Benedict, 29, is charged with electronic transmission of material harmful to minors and possession of material containing sexual performance by a child. Daily Commercial.
Allegation investigation: Police are investigating an allegation that a staff member at Lincoln Middle School in Palmetto inappropriately touched a student. Bradenton Herald.
Student arrested: A 15-year-old Mosley High School student is arrested and accused of bringing an electronic weapon and alcohol to the school. Panama City News Herald.
Opinions on schools: If you think of book-banning, you might think of the 1920s fight to censor James Joyce’s Ulysses. Or Ray Bradbury’s 1953 work of fiction, Fahrenheit 451. Or, as it turns out, Florida right now … in 2017. Scott Maxwell, Orlando Sentinel. Maybe giving public schools a break on testing would seem to be the least the House can do. Given the way public education has been treated for years by the Legislature, take your victories where you can get them. Joe Henderson, SaintPetersBlog. I appreciate that many parents will get the services they need for their special-needs children in public schools, thanks to Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. But for those who don’t, it’s vital to have options such as the Gardiner scholarship. Ana Garcia, The 74. Educators know that children are at different places in skill development, have different learning styles and learn at different rates. One size does not fit all, and government mandates, however well-intended, have not produced the desired results. Gloria Strong Camp, Orlando Sentinel. If parents don’t want their kids exposed to various ideas and books at school, let them home school the kids — and just let them read “acceptable” books. Gary Stein, Sun-Sentinel. The Duval County School Board is faced with a significant challenge of finding a replacement for Superintendent Nikolai Vitti, a challenge that will define their tenure and the future of education in our city for years to come. Five Jacksonville area civic leaders, Florida Times-Union.
Student enrichment: Kindergarten students at Tara Elementary School in East Manatee prepare and serve lunch for district and school officials and parents at their school restaurant, the Banana Leaf. Bradenton Herald. Citrus County high school seniors are honored with Golden Citrus Scholar awards. Citrus County Chronicle.
