Around the state: Duval voters recommend renaming five schools that carry the names of Confederate figures, Miami-Dade’s school superintendent has reversed an announcement Tuesday that students and employees could go maskless outdoors with social distancing, protests against mandatory face masks continued in several districts, students around the state talk about their school year with the pandemic, a Polk County student’s determination helps bring more advanced courses to district schools, and the chancellor for the State University System said there’s no reason to pause the search for a new Florida State University president despite a concern that the process may have been tainted by an accreditation agency. Here are details about those stories and other developments from the state’s districts, private schools, and colleges and universities:
Miami-Dade, south Florida: Superintendent Alberto Carvalho has reversed a decision made Tuesday allowing students and employees to go without masks in outdoors activities as long as social distancing is observed after the teachers union said it was a violation of a letter of understanding between the district and the union. The decision was made at the district’s public health and medical expert task force meeting, and announced at a school board meeting where up to 80 people protested against the mask mandate, calling it child abuse. Carvalho also announced that a “conclusion and unanimous recommendation” from the task force meeting was that the “21-22 school year will be a mask-optional school year,” though some of the task force members said later that decision is not yet finalized. Miami Herald. WTVJ.
Broward, south Florida: Some south Florida students say they have been distracted, bored and unmotivated by the past school year, and many feel isolated and anxious. For Benjamin Mignola, a 15-year-old freshman at South Broward High School, online school feels “gloomy.” He used Paint 3D to illustrate, showing a desk and a chair beside a bedroom window with dark clouds and rain and lightning emerging from them. In big red letters, the computer screen warns: “99 assignments are missing.” The Monroe County district’s lead school counselor, Daliana Goins, said that animation reflects what she’s been hearing from students throughout the pandemic. “To say that our students have needed us now more than ever is definitely a tremendous understatement,” said Goins. WLRN. An administrative law judge said a Broward teacher was wrongly suspended by the district after being accused of physically and verbally abusing two special-needs students. Three videos that purportedly show abuse by Dania Elementary teacher Halyna Shvank were edited to make her actions look severe without the proper context. The school board will decide whether to accept the recommendation to rescind Shvank’s suspension and pay her for those three days. Sun Sentinel.
Hillsborough: The top 155 graduating seniors in the county are warning against letting up against the pandemic too soon, in essays penned for a contest. Most of the students agreed government involvement in fighting the pandemic is crucial, but many warn against authorities intruding into areas that are best left to parents and families. And many wished for a more consistent message from authorities on what to do, and how to push back against false information about vaccines. Tampa Bay Times. A Strawberry Crest High School history teacher has been arrested and accused of soliciting nude photos online from a detective who was posing as a 14-year-old boy. Deputies said Anthony Michael Peace, 37, who has worked at the school since 2006 and is also the former wrestling coach, started exchanging online messages in March. Peace allegedly asked for nude photos and sent the deputy explicit videos of himself. District officials said they have begun the process to fire Peace. Tampa Bay Times. WFLA. WFTS.
Palm Beach: A protest against the district’s face mask policies Wednesday spilled into the school board meeting, where about 100 people spoke during the time set aside for public comment. Most criticized the board and district for continuing to require face masks in schools. The meeting lasted more than seven hours. Superintendent Donald Fennoy had previously announced that the current policy will continue for the remainder of the school year. Wednesday, board members made no changes to the policy. WPTV. WPEC.
Duval: Voters have decided five schools that carry the names of Confederate officials should be renamed. Four other schools should not change their names, according to the vote totals announced Wednesday. The five schools that could get new names, and the proposed alternative that got the most votes: Robert E. Lee High School, which most voters want to change to Riverside High; Jefferson Davis Middle, to Westside Middle; J.E.B. Stuart Middle, with Westside Middle also being voters’ first choice; Stonewall Jackson Elementary, to Westside Academy; and Joseph Finegan Middle, to Anchor Academy. Schools that could retain their current names are Kirby-Smith Middle, Jean Ribault High, Jean Ribault Middle and Andrew Jackson High. The results, which are not binding, go to Superintendent Diana Greene, who will decide what to recommend to the school board by May 25. The board is expected to vote June 1. Florida Times-Union. WJXT. WJAX. WTLV.
Polk: A student’s four-year campaign to increase the number of challenging courses offered at Tenoroc High School in Lakeland has paid off. The number of Advanced Placement courses at the school has nearly doubled to 13 since a determined Xavier Hobbs began questioning why there were so few options when he arrived as a freshman for the 2017-2018 school year. His push will probably help future students more than it helped him. He figures he missed out on a chance to take seven AP classes that weren’t offered. In addition to now offering 13 AP courses, Tenoroc is home to a Cambridge Advanced International Certificate of Education program. Hobbs, who has a 4.574 grade point average, is on track to be the school’s valedictorian and will attend Worchester Polytechnic in Massachusetts on a full scholarship to study computer science or robotics engineering. Lakeland Ledger.
Lee: The district’s newest school, Gateway High, opens in August with academies for carpentry, veterinary science, nursing and cybersecurity, a 900-seat theater that can be configured for other uses, and enhanced safety features. About 1,200 students are expected, though the school can take up to 2,000 and can be expanded in the future. Fort Myers News-Press. WINK. WBBH. The city of Cape Coral is installing more flashing traffic signs for the city’s school zones. “We want drivers to pay attention,” said police Sgt. Patrick O’Grady. “We don’t want to have to issue them fines. We would rather educate them, let them see the signs before they make a mistake and possibly take a life.” WINK.
Brevard: School board members will meet in a special session Friday to discuss the district’s face mask policy. Last week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said fully vaccinated people could stop wearing masks outdoors and in most indoor situations. But two days later, the CDC issued a “clarified” recommendation that schools should continue to require students and employees to wear face masks in schools and maintain social distancing for the rest of the academic year. The board has not indicated if it will make masks optional for summer school and the next school year. Florida Today. Space Coast Daily. School officials are considering using about $18 million in federal coronavirus relief funds to buy electronic devices for every middle school student this fall, and touch-enabled devices for K-2 students in certain schools. Florida Today.
Osceola: An FDLE investigation into the actions of a school resource officer while he was breaking up a fight has been turned over to the Orange-Osceola State Attorney’s Office. In January, deputy Ethan Fournier was caught on camera body-slamming a 16-year-old girl at Liberty High School. The incident drew national attention, and Fournier was placed on administrative leave. Orlando Sentinel. A 19-year-old substitute teacher has been arrested and accused of distributing child pornography. Joshua Merced-Trychta, who had subbed at seven Osceola County schools, has been fired, according to district officials. WKMG. WFTV. WESH.
Manatee: The school district has announced the hiring of three administrators and the appointments of 11 assistant principals. Daniel Evans, who has worked at the Pinellas district as the executive director for assessment, accountability and research since 2015, has been named deputy superintendent of instructional services. Joseph A. Ranaldi, the executive director of operations for Seminole County Schools since 2014, has been hired as chief operations officer. And William Horton, a former senior project manager for NDC Construction Co., is the district’s new construction director. Bradenton Herald.
Escambia: The 11-year-old girl who fought off a would-be kidnapper at her bus stop this week had been approached less than a month ago at the same location. She told a teacher, who notified the principal at West Pensacola Elementary School. The principal decided against calling law enforcement and instead notified the girl’s mother. “Now it’s easy to say, yeah we should have gone the extra step here, but we never would have envisioned this to have happened,” said Superintendent Tim Smith. WEAR. Pensacola News Journal.
Alachua: School board members have approved revised job descriptions requested by Superintendent Carlee Simon as the first step in her reorganization of the district’s administration. Simon will present her plan to the board June 2. WCJB. It’s prom season for Alachua high schools, with masks required and social distancing rules in effect that preclude slow dancing. But most students are just happy the proms have returned. Isabella Eury, a junior at Gainesville High School, said, “I personally don’t think it’s that big of a sacrifice to abide by wearing a mask, filling out a screening and following the rules so it’s as safe as it can be.” Gainesville Sun.
Bay: School officials said many teachers decided to leave the district after voters rejected a proposal to raise property taxes that would have allowed the district to boost salaries. School board member Brenda Ruthven said 28 instructors, as well as 15 fulltime and 22 part-time support workers, are leaving the district. “And they are resigning, not retiring,” she said. Arnold High School principal Britt Smith said one upper-level math teacher resigned in search of better economic opportunities. An AP teacher said her family could no longer afford to live in Panama City, and another teacher said he would rather clean condos because of his poor pay. Panama City News Herald. Valedictorians and salutatorians reflect on dealing with twin catastrophes – Hurricane Michael in 2018 and the coronavirus pandemic – during their high school years. Panama City News Herald.
Flagler: School board members are considering whether to sell or lease the Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club, close the club to members and restrict the pool’s use to district students, or continue its use as a swim club but double membership fees to cover projected deficits. The managers of the club have asked the district to subsidize operations, which some board members are reluctant to do, prompting the discussion about the club’s future. District staff have been asked to collect more information about the options that can be discussed at a future meeting. Flagler Live.
Monroe: The school district is planning on a budget for the 2021-2022 fiscal year that’s $167,000 higher than this year’s $86 million spending plan. The executive director of finance, Beverly Anders, told school board members there will be money for teacher raises and that the per-student funding will go up $39. In other action, the board will consider paying $600,000 for an access road to a 20-unit housing project for district employees at Sugarloaf School if the developers can lower the projected rents. The topic will be discussed again in July. Florida Keys Weekly. A 13-year-old 8th-grader at the Sugarloaf School has been arrested after deputies said he shoved a school resource officer, resisted arrest and made threats while creating a disturbance in the school gym. The SRO was treated at a hospital and released after suffering a medical incident during the scuffle. Key West Citizen.
Gulf: A former officer of the Port St. Joe High School band boosters has been arrested and accused of stealing more than $9,000 from the organization. Sheriff Mike Harrison said more charges could be filed against Andrea S. Kennington, 45. Port St. Joe Star.
Colleges and universities: There’s no reason to pause the search for a new Florida State University president, State University System Chancellor Marshall Criser III said Wednesday in a letter to Board of Governors member Alan Levine. Levine had said the process should be halted because an accreditation agency inferred that FSU could lose its accreditation if it considered Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran for the job. Tallahassee Democrat.
Gardiner spending: A new report on state spending on Gardiner scholarships for students with special needs shows that more than half of the $117 million given to parents during the 2019-2020 school year was spent on private school tuition. More than $50 million was used for services that are not covered by other traditional tuition-based scholarships. A new law rolls the Gardiner scholarship into the Family Empowerment Scholarship (FES) beginning in July and the McKay Scholarship into the FES in 2022. Step Up For Students, which hosts this blog, helps administer the scholarships. redefinED.
Education podcasts: State Sen. Manny Diaz, R-Hialeah, talks with Step Up For Students president Doug Tuthill about education savings accounts, the impact of H.B. 7045 on public education, the future of education choice and more. redefinED.
Opinions on schools: Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran is not Florida State University president material. FSU is a public institution. Corcoran’s an enemy of public education. Diane Roberts, Florida Phoenix. Colleges and universities are places of robust intellectual debate and discussion, not training grounds for liberal minions. While some students go off to college and become more progressive, just as many leave college with more conservative viewpoints. Brandon T. Jett, Fort Myers News-Press. More than three years after 17 people died in the shootings at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, the bureaucracies are still dodging accountability. Sun Sentinel.
