Around the state: Mask debates continue in school districts around the state, yearbook refunds are offered to girls at a St. Johns County high school whose photos were edited to adhere to the dress code, the Escambia girl who fought off a would-be kidnapper at her school bus stop credits the TV show Law and Order: SVU for teaching her how to avoid becoming a victim, the Volusia school board concedes to a state order and approves a charter school application after rejecting it several times, and central Florida school districts are asking tens of thousands of students to attend summer school to get caught up. Here are details about those stories and other developments from the state’s districts, private schools, and colleges and universities:
Broward: The principal of a faith-based private Christian school talks about the steps it took to address the challenges of getting through a pandemic year when so many other schools did not. “We have survived,” said the Abundant Life Christian Academy’s Stacy Angier. “Most of our kids are back at school, and we’re going to make it.” redefinED.
Hillsborough: About 53 percent of parents said they don’t want students, employees and visitors to have to wear face masks when schools resume in the fall, according to a survey by the district. The poll was conducted by email, and nearly 32,000 people responded. The survey also indicated that 63 percent of parents said they are highly likely to send their children to school for in-person classes in the fall even if masks are made optional. Only 8 percent were highly unlikely to. The school board will soon hold a special meeting to consider its policies. Any changes will require a public hearing and a vote. Tampa Bay Times.
Orange, central Florida: Central Florida school districts have invited tens of thousands of students to attend summer school to try to recover some of the learning lost during the pandemic. Orange County is inviting 37,000, up from the typical 10,000, while Osceola has invited 9,000 and Lake 1,500. There will be plenty of math and reading for students, but also fun classes in art, music, business, poetry and more. Masks will be required in Orange and Seminole, but are optional in Lake. Osceola’s school board has yet to decide. Orlando Sentinel.
Palm Beach: Face masks are now optional for students and staff when they’re outdoors on playgrounds, in hallways and courtyards, and during physical education classes, the school board decided at the end of a marathon meeting this week. Masks remain mandatory in classes and on school buses.WPEC. WPTV. Palm Beach Post.
Osceola: An IT specialist with the school district has been arrested and accused of raping a child relative over a period of years. St. Cloud police said Phillip Knepper, 59, face charges of aggravated child abuse, sexual battery of a minor under 12 and lewd and lascivious molestation. Knepper, who has worked for the district since December 2008, has been placed on paid leave. Orlando Sentinel.
Volusia: School board members have approved the application of a charter school it had previously rejected several times. Florida East Coast Charter School in Ormond Beach appealed those rejections, and the state Board of Education eventually ordered the board to approve the application. The school board appealed but lost. “Now it’s time to open a school,” said John Gagne, chairman of the school’s governing board. “Now that we’ve gone through all of this — the disagreements and everything else — I’m putting that all aside. I want to be able to work with the school board.” The school will focus on STEM subjects and project-based instruction, and is scheduled to open in August 2022 with students in kindergarten through 2nd grade. Within five years it plans to expand through the 5th grade and have up to 600 students. Daytona Beach News-Journal.
St. Johns: Yearbook refunds are being offered to dozens of Bartram Trail High School female students whose photos were edited without their approval. Most of the altered photos covered portions of the student’s chest or shoulders because the portraits were thought to be in violation of the dress code. District officials said in previous years those photos were not included in the yearbook. This year, “the digital alterations were a solution to make sure all students were included in the yearbook,” said one official. The dress code came under fire in March when dozens of female students were taken out of class and told to go home and change or face a suspension. That provoked students to call for changes in the dress code. WJXT. WJAX. WTLV.
Marion: Face masks will be optional during summer, school board members unanimously decided at this week’s meeting. Summer learning begins June 1, and about 5,800 students have enrolled. Board members are expected to decide next month on the district’s mask policy for the fall. WKMG. WMFE.
Escambia: The 11-year-old girl who fought off a would-be kidnapper at her bus stop this week said she was inspired by the TV show Law and Order: SVU to fight back and smear blue slime on the man’s arms so he could be tied to the crime later. Her strategy worked when the man arrested eight hours later still had blue dye from the slime on his arms. Alyssa Bonal’s story, and citation of her inspiration, drew the attention of the show’s star, Mariska Hargitay, who wrote her a message on Instagram: “Alyssa, first and most important, I am so relieved and grateful to know that you are safe. And I am so honored to be part of your incredible story. You are one BRAVE, strong and smart young woman. I think the SVU squad might have to add slime to their crimefighting gear!” Pensacola News Journal. WEAR. WMBB. The school district has agreed to move the bus stop where Alyssa Bonal was nearly kidnapped so it will be more visible to people in the neighborhood. WEAR.
Indian River: Two Vero Beach High School students are suing the school board and various district officials for gender discrimination, harassment and bullying after they were dismissed from the girls soccer team. The lawsuit claims that the girls were denied due process when they were taken off the team after talking back to the soccer coach during a game. An attorney, Jasmine Rand, said similar behavior from boys would be tolerated. “There’s two rule books” at the school, she said, “one for girls and one for the boys.” TCPalm.
Jefferson: School board members have tabled consideration of a preliminary grant application for repairing the old high school gym on Water Street, a project that’s being pushed by the Police Athletic League. Board members have questions about what they’re being asked to agree to, and want county officials to attend a future meeting to explain why the school board would apply for the grant instead of the county. Jefferson County Journal.
Colleges and universities: The Gulf Coast State College Foundation has received a $200,000 from the St. Joe Community Foundation for scholarships for students from Bay, Gulf and Franklin counties. WMBB. Frances Kinne, who was a professor, dean, president and chancellor at Jacksonville University over six decades, is being memorialized with a statue at the school in a plaza that bears her name. She died last May at the age of 102, but the pandemic delayed plans for a memorial service. Florida Times-Union. WJXT. Former Miami city commissioner Marc Sarnoff has been reappointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis to the board of trustees at Florida International University. Sarnoff has been on the board since 2016. Florida Politics. DeSantis also appointed developer John Miklos as a trustee at the University of Central Florida. Florida Politics.
Around the nation: An analysis shows that most U.S. school districts are using money from the federal coronavirus relief bill to fill budget gaps, hire staff and give bonuses to teachers instead of expanding tutoring, extending the school year or financing other programs to help students catch up. The 74. The pandemic has made it more difficult for schools to find homeless students, which in turn makes it harder for schools to help them, Jennifer Erb-Downward, a senior research associate at Poverty Solutions at the University of Michigan, told a subcommittee of the House Education & Labor Committee this week. States Newsroom. A federal judge has ruled that Betsy DeVos, the former U.S. secretary of education, must testify in a class-action lawsuit about the way she handled student loan forgiveness claims. Politico.
Opinions on schools: As the black daughter of a 16-year-old mother raised in poverty in Jacksonville, I was delighted to see Jones High School create a great physics program. The school is an inspiration. But I was perplexed to see Jones’ success used to disparage the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship – a program that turned my life around. Denisha Merriweather, Orlando Sentinel. Every school – whether it is a traditional public school, a charter school or a private school – should give each one of its students the opportunity to fulfill their potential. That’s why what Jones High School has accomplished with its physics program is so important. Paul Cottle, Bridge to Tomorrow.
