Around the state: County school boards and charter schools must follow new requirements for notifying parents about bathroom and locker room policies under rules adopted by the state Board of Education, a book giveaway occurred in Escambia, Florida A&M University officials purchased an apartment complex to help student housing woes, school board races moved forward statewide and an analysis of swatting calls at schools. Here are details about those stories and other developments from the state's districts, private schools and colleges and universities:
Broward: Superintendent Vickie Cartwright has been on the job since February and has already faced evaluation from School Board members. School Board members voted to not support the "process" of the recent evaluation, saying it could be a precursor to the possibility Cartwright could be fired in coming weeks. WPLG. South Florida Sun Sentinel. A student at Cypress Bay High founded a club that has raised enough money to outfit every classroom in her high school with a medical Stop the Bleed kit. The idea was inspired by the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High in 2018. Miami Herald. The school district here is preparing for a recession. Staff requested for $7.7 million to be "realigned" from the general fund into the unassigned fund. South Florida Sun Sentinel. Parents are getting a say in next year's calendar. They have been emailed a survey link if they have a child enrolled in Broward's K-12 schools. South Florida Sun Sentinel.
Hillsborough: Some teachers move to charter schools — which are publicly funded but independently managed — after facing discipline elsewhere. But it's unclear how extensively charter schools review them. Tampa Bay Times. Meanwhile, an ongoing bus driver shortage issue is causing some parents frustration regarding when their children arrive late to school. WFLA.
Orange: Four candidates are vying in runoffs in the Orange County School Board election. In District 2, Heather Ashby is running against Maria Salamanca, and in District 3, Michael Daniels is running against Alicia Farrant.
Pinellas: Critics say candidate Dawn Peters, running for an at-large seat on the school board here, has a more extreme set of views than her campaign reveals. They have begun passing around screenshots from her social media accounts. Tampa Bay Times.
Lee: Education advocates have spoken out against a referendum here that would make the school superintendent position an election position. It has been an appointed position in Lee since 1974. WGCU.
Brevard: Two teachers will face off for the final Brevard School Board seat being contested this year. Florida Today.
Pasco: School Board hopeful Al Hernandez has suffered another legal blow in his fight to stay on the Nov. 8 ballot. After being declared ineligible for the general election by circuit court Judge Susan Barthle, Hernandez hired lawyers who wanted Barthle to put a stay on her order while he appealed, but Barthle refused. Tampa Bay Times. Students who attended Mittye P. Locke Elementary School in New Port Richey will attend different schools starting next fall. The school board on Tuesday unanimously agreed to shut down the school at the end of May and change it into a 10-classroom early education center that focuses on Head Start and prekindergarten. Tampa Bay Times.
Sarasota: At its first meeting since Hurricane Ian hit the southwest coast of the state, the School Board here convened to discuss damage from the storm along with other business. Sarasota Herald-Tribune.
Escambia: Students at Warrington Elementary received a gift Wednesday when "Two Men and a Truck" moving company partnered with "First Book" to give away books to students. WEAR.
Columbia: Two people were arrested after an incident that resulted in the lockdown of a Lake City area elementary school on Wednesday. Tyrese Bradley and Ja'Marion Terry were taken into custody by the Columbia County Sheriff's Office after fleeing on foot. First Coast News.
Rules adopted: The state Board of Education approved a wide array of rule changes on Wednesday that include a measure requiring school districts to inform parents about the presence of student bathrooms not separated by biological sex at birth. The Board also adopted a rule to prohibit lessons on sexual orientation or gender identity for students in kindergarten through third grade, and a rule regarding elementary school libraries. Teachers could lose their licenses for violating the rules. Orlando Sentinel. Tampa Bay Times. News 4 Jax. Florida Politics. Miami Herald. Pensacola News Journal.
Mental health: On the heels of a jury's recommendation last week to spare Nikolas Cruz the death penalty in connection to the 2018 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High, some wonder if mental health played into the killings. Florida Phoenix.
School refusal: Studies suggest that 1 to 2 percent of all students experience school refusal at some point in their school careers, and students with specific disabilities can be at particular risk in middle and high school. Education Week.
Student harassment: The majority of LBGTQ students who attended school in person during the 2020-21 academic year experienced some form of harassment or assault, according to a study. The 74th.
New preschool: The permitting phase is underway for construction to begin on a new preschool, which is slated to open in late spring 2023 in Ocala. The preschool is part of the new expansion program of the Florida Center for the Blind, and is funded by a $600,000 grant that was approved by the Marion County Commission in March of 2022 to purchase land. WUFT.
Swatting calls: At least 16 emergency calls across Florida on one day recently reported an active shooter at a school. Each call ended up being a hoax. Tampa Bay Times.
University and college news: Florida A&M University bought the 118-bed Light House at Brooklyn Yard apartment complex on Eugenia Street in an effort to assist with higher demand for on-campus housing. Aging residence halls are scheduled for demolition, and the university is planning to add up to 2,000 on-campus beds in the next few years. WFSU. The Florida Department of Juvenile Justice announced the appointment of Angela Garcia Falconetti, president of Polk State College, to the Juvenile Justice Delinquency Prevention State Advisory Group. Lakeland Ledger.
Opinions on schools: The state's secretive new university presidential search law is a colossal failure and a greater insult to the public than expected. South Florida Sun Sentinel.
Around the state: School board races heat up, teacher shortages statewide, a boost in spending on school safety in St. Johns, resignations at a high school in Pinellas and new presidents at Saint Leo University and University of North Florida. Here are details about those stories and others from the state’s districts, private schools, and colleges and universities:
Broward: Citing almost a dozen mass shootings that occurred over the Fourth of July holiday, Broward County school teacher and gun violence prevention activist Tracy Merlin said she will use her new role with the Florida Commission on the Status of Women to amplify demands for common sense gun laws. Florida Phoenix.
Palm Beach: Three candidates are vying for the lone school board seat here that's not guarded by an incumbent. Debra Robinson, a school board member for more than 20 years, decided not to run for re-election, opening the door for Edwin Ferguson, Christopher Persaud and Corey Michael Smith. Candidates will face off on Aug. 23 in a primary election. If no one receives 50% of the vote, the top two vote-getters will face off in the general election on Nov. 8. Palm Beach Post.
Pinellas: Four assistant principals resigned from Tarpon Springs High School over the past year, with the latest being a week ago. Three of them began the 2021-22 academic year at the campus. One joined in January as a replacement. In addition, about two dozen teachers departed, including the current Teacher of the Year. Tampa Bay Times.
Duval: The number of teachers entering classrooms in Florida this school year continues to dwindle, including in Duval. A new survey released by the Florida Education Association shows over 9,500 teaching and staffing vacancies statewide. This time last year, the FEA reported about 5,000 shortages. As of this week, Duval County Public Schools reported 529 vacancies for certified teachers, which is up 23% compared to the start of last school year. The vacancies are are almost double the number Duval saw at the beginning of the 2020-21 school year. The Florida Times-Union.
Volusia: There are hundreds of openings here, and the teachers union presidents say with the level of shortage they're facing this close to the start of the school year, there won't be enough teachers for the number of enrolled students. That also means there could be more students this year per classroom. There are currently 365 openings for teachers. The county raised the base pay for new hires to $47,500, but there hasn't been an increase in the state budget for those who are already working. WKMG.
Pasco: The Pasco County School Board has three of its five seats up or consideration. Steve Meisman (District 1), Matt Geiger (District 3) and Charles Touseull (District 5) share talking points on issues that include their opposition to the district's property tax referendum and what they call "woke" curriculum. Two incumbents, Cynthia Armstrong (District 3) and Megan Harding (District 5), are defending their records on the school board. Allen Altman retired after four terms in District 1. Meanwhile, newcomers Al Hernandez and James Washington are vying for Altman's spot. Tampa Bay Times.
Collier: A new high school will be opening in North Naples in 2023. Parents, meanwhile, have been pushing for more information — specifically on zoning. The school district plans to hold meetings for naming the school in September. Naples Daily News.
St. Johns: Officials here are boosting spending on school safety. A plan presented on Tuesday morning to the school board calls for more than $1 million more than last year to be allocated toward protecting schools, which includes increasing pay for armed guards. The increases will cost the school district a total of around $4.7 million. With state assistance, the district only has to pay $1.9 million, officials said. That's a district budget increase of more than $668,000, compared to last year. All 43 schools in St. Johns will have an armed guard on campus when the new school year starts in the fall. Some high schools, when available, will have two guards available. News4Jax.
University and college news: A professor at the University of South Florida is studying whether college students diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD, can use a technology called "brain painting" to improve attention spans and reduce the need for prescription drugs. Tampa Bay Times. Saint Leo University announced a new president on its website this week. Edward Dadez, formerly the school's provost, was selected by the board of trustees to succeed Jeffrey Senese. Tampa Bay Times. Meanwhile, the University of North Florida has also lined up its next president. The Board of Governors approved Moez Limayem, a former USF business college dean, as University of North Florida's seventh president. Florida Times-Union. For the third year in a row, the University of West Florida led the state in finding success after school. UWF had more combined success at finding additional academic opportunities or employment during their first year out of college than did graduates from any other university within the Florida State University System. More than 72% of the UWF students who graduated at the conclusion of the 2020-21 school year are now furthering their education or are employed. Pensacola News Journal.
Attacks increase: About one in three school leaders noticed an uptick in student fights or physical attacks this past school year that are believed to be brought on by the pandemic and its lingering effects, new federal data shows. Also, more than half of school leaders reported an increase in classroom disruptions from student misconduct for the same reason. Chalkbeat.
Opinions on schools: Defenders of discrimination in education received a well-deserved comeuppance last month. The first was a lesson in constitutional law, while the second was the creation of expansive opportunities for parents to choose how and where their children learn. This combination will define K-12 education for the next century. reimaginED. The Catholic school movement has been advocating for the position that the court finally endorsed in Carson v Makin, which is that you can't exclude a religious school from public benefit programs like school voucher programs because they're religious. There is a long history of Catholic schools seeking public resources and being rebuked both politically and legally. reimaginED.
