Testing conflict: The Florida Association of District School Superintendents is objecting to the state’s plan to dump the Postsecondary Education Readiness Test for high school students as an alternative to the algebra I end-of course exam. The Department of Education says the PERT standard is too low, and is recommending the PSAT as the alternative. Superintendents say both the PSAT and PERT should be options until the state has studied the relative value of each. The group also opposes the state’s plan to increase the SAT score required to use as an alternative to the 10th grade language arts test, arguing the state’s proposal raises the level to college readiness. Gradebook.
Late report cards: A provision of the new state education law will delay the issuing of end-of-year report cards by several weeks in 2018. The law pushes back all state standardized testing into the final three weeks of the school year, which means the Department of Education now has until June 30 to deliver test results to districts. The districts then factor in the test results and issue report cards. The only exception will be for 3rd-graders’ language arts test results, which must be delivered to districts by May 31. Gradebook.
Lawsuit issues: The education bill, H.B. 7069, was written to allow specific provisions to be found unconstitutional without the whole law being invalidated. But a threatened lawsuit against the law could challenge it on the grounds that it violates the state constitution’s rule requiring laws to address a single subject. If that happens and is successful, it would threaten everything else in the bill, from an expansion of the Gardiner scholarships for students with special needs to mandatory daily recess for elementary students. Step Up For Students, which hosts this blog, helps administer the Gardiner scholarships for the state. redefinED.
Top teachers: Florida’s teacher of the year will be named Thursday night by the Florida Department of Education. The finalists are Katelyn Fiori, an elementary school teacher from Indian River County; Diego Fuentes, who teaches children with disabilities in Marion County; Tammy Jerkins, who teaches pre-calculus in Lake County; Vanessa Ko, a middle school math teacher in Pinellas County; and Michael Miller, a 5th grade teacher in Osceola County. The winner gets $25,000, a trip for four to New York City for the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade, and a year out of the classroom to be an education ambassador for the state. Orlando Sentinel.
District finances: Duval County school officials say they have $12 million less than they expected for the coming school year, and plan to tap the district’s reserves rather than cut the budget. School board members informally approved taking $9.67 million from reserves. The rest will be made up by moving $100,000 from the general fund and shifting some federal funds. The district’s budget is about $1.69 million, and the board’s policy has been to maintain a 5 percent reserve fund. Florida Times-Union.
School impact fees: Pasco County homebuilders and the school district reach an agreement on nearly doubling school impact fees over the next three years. The county commission meets today to discuss the agreement. Gradebook.
Unexcused absences: Unexcused absences skyrocketed in the first year that the Miami-Dade County School District banned out-of-school suspensions. Critics say those absences are simply a substitute for suspensions, and that they’re not being reported properly. WLRN.
Charter investigation: The Florida Department of Education is investigating the Paramount Charter School in Lauderhill for misappropriation of funds. The school is now closed but has left behind massive debt and a building that needed substantial renovation. A new charter school, Championship Academy of Distinction, is moving into the building. WPLG.
Open enrollment: More than 400 Palm Beach County students are moving from private or charter schools into traditional public schools, and officials attribute the change to the state’s new open enrollment law. About 2,700 students applied at 79 available schools under open enrollment, and more than 2,000 were accommodated. Palm Beach Post.
Narcan in schools: Advocates are lobbying Florida school districts to have the medication Narcan available to treat drug overdoses. WPTV. WPEC.
School cop honored: Demeika McClendon is named Florida school resource officer of the year by the Florida Association of School Resource Officers. She works at Niceville High School. Northwest Florida Daily News.
Personnel moves: Libby Hartwell, principal at Hawthorne Middle/High School, steps down after the school receives a D grade from the state for the third straight year. School officials have not decided what job Hartwell will move into. Gainesville Sun. The Hillsborough County School District hires Grayson Kamm as its communications director. Kamm, who was a TV reporter before becoming the public information officer at the Museum of Science and Industry, is the district’s fifth spokesperson in two years. Gradebook.
Food options: Broward County schools will add nutrient-packed snack items and a greater variety of salads for breakfast and lunch options at schools this year. Sun Sentinel.
School grades: More reports on state grades for school districts and schools. Florida Times-Union. St. Augustine Record.
Opinions on schools: The Pasco County Commission should approve the agreement between builders and the school district on an increase of the school impact fee, and be mindful that even this investment will not be enough to solve every overcrowding issue in every school. Tampa Bay Times.
Student enrichment: Seventeen Florida schools win Fred E. Rozelle Sportsmanship Awards for sportsmanship both on and off the athletic fields. Florida High School Athletic Association. A youth-led nonprofit, I’m A Star Foundation, is holding a celebrity basketball game to benefit homeless Duval County students. Among those playing will be interim superintendent Patricia Willis and school board member Paula Wright. Florida Times-Union. Charli and Jackson Ward, students at Holland Elementary School, raise $1,000 with a lemonade stand for a woman whose home caught on fire earlier this month. Florida Today. A Future Farmers of America program will resume at Hawthorne Middle/High School this fall after a five-year absence. Gainesville Sun.
