School infrastructure: The Florida Department of Education releases the total funds districts will receive from the state in the Public Education Capital Outlay. The state is spreading $50 million among the districts for school construction and maintenance. Districts must apply to the state for release of their shares, and must have the projects under contract by January 2020 or risk losing the money. Gradebook. The Hillsborough County School District spends less on building maintenance and operations than any school district in Florida, according to state records. The district has had ongoing problems with air-conditioning, and is facing significant infrastructure needs. Tampa Bay Times.
Funding formula: The Volusia County School Board is expected tonight to approve a resolution urging legislators to change the district cost differential portion of the state’s K-12 education funding formula. The DCD provides extra money to about a dozen districts that have a higher cost of living. Volusia and more than 50 other districts contend they’ve lost millions since the formula was initiated in 2004. “I’m hoping that other districts … would join us in our fight to get what the Legislature appropriated,” says board member Carl Persis. Daytona Beach News-Journal.
Gender reading gap: A group of Pinellas County school principals create a “gender equity self-reflection” rubric for teachers to try to close the elementary school reading gap between girls and boys. Girls outperformed boys by 4 to 9 percentage points in the 2017 state assessment tests for 3rd, 4th and 5th graders. “It was noticeable enough that we wanted to address it,” says Sutherland Elementary School principal Kristy Cantu. Tampa Bay Times.
Solar eclipse: Students around the state get an astronomy lesson during Monday’s solar eclipse. Miami Herald. Sun-Sentinel. Palm Beach Post. Fort Myers News-Press. Naples Daily News. Tampa Bay Times. Tampa Bay Times. Gradebook. WFTS. Lakeland Ledger. Bradenton Herald. Bradenton Herald. Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Tallahassee Democrat. Daytona Beach News-Journal. Panama City News Herald. WJAX. WPTV.
Back to school: Students return to schools in Miami-Dade and Broward counties. WTVJ. WSVN. Miami Herald. Sun-Sentinel.
Software deal lawsuit: The Brevard County School District is suing Harris School Solutions over a failed software system that cost the district $5.9 million. The district contends the software provided by Educational Data Resources never worked as it was supposed to, and not everything the district bought was delivered. The software was meant to replace the district’s software for managing payroll, human resources, finances and contracts. Florida Today.
New statue proposed: State Sen. Perry Thurston, D-Fort Lauderdale, proposes a bill for the 2018 Florida legislative session that urges the Joint Committee on the Library of Congress to replace to the statue of Confederate General Edmund Kirby Smith in the National Statuary Hall Collection with a statue of educator Mary McLeod Bethune. News Service of Florida. Florida Politics. WFSU.
Coding for languages: State Sen. Jeff Brandes, R-St. Petersburg, files a bill that would allow students who take computer coding classes to use the credits to cover foreign language requirements by the 2020-2021 school year. News Service of Florida.
Lobbyists’ payday: The lobbying firm Tripp Scott PA could collect up to $226,000 this quarter for the work it did during the legislative session on behalf of charter schools. The new education law, which is expected to be challenged in court by school districts around the state, provides a share of local property taxes from districts for charter schools and offers financial incentives for charters to open in areas with persistently low-performing schools. Florida Politics.
New school: Pasco County School Superintendent Kurt Browning says he expects a new middle school school to be built in the Wesley Chapel area in time to open for the 2019-2020 school year. Tampa Bay Times.
District’s new logo: The Lake County School District unveils its new logo that shows a sun rising out of the pages of a book. School officials say it represents the district’s hope to become a destination for parents who want their children to get an excellent education. Daily Commercial.
Pot shop near school: The principal of a Lake Worth high school thinks she’s found a way to keep a medical marijuana dispensary from opening across the street. Renatta Espinoza, principal at the Academy for Positive Learning, says no interior construction work has been done at the dispensary, and she believes that means it falls under the recent law that bans pot dispensaries from opening within 500 feet of a school. Lake Worth City Commissioner Andy Amoroso says, “It’s going to have to be a decision for the courts.” WPEC.
New sports complex: Mount Dora Christian Academy opens its new $4.5 million sports stadium this week. It’s the only Lake County high school with artificial turf. Orlando Sentinel.
Pool refinishing: After being cited by the Florida Department of Health, the Charlotte County School District is making plans to refurbish school swimming pools. Charlotte Sun.
Students hurt in crash: Six students are hospitalized when a car collides with a private school van in Miami. None of the students from Terra Environmental Research School, a Miami-Dade magnet school, were believed to be seriously injured. Miami Herald. Sun-Sentinel.
Student’s stun gun: An 18-year-old West Palm Beach girl is arrested and accused of shooting a stun gun at a Park Vista High School football game. Palm Beach Post.
Opinions on schools: Some school districts are so terrified of innovation that they are spending your tax dollars to deny your child school choice, hope and opportunity. House Speaker Richard Corcoran, Sun-Sentinel.
Student enrichment: A dozen students graduate from the Miami-Dade Police Department’s first Teen Citizen’s Police Academy program. Miami Herald.
