Education bills: The Florida Senate Budget Committee passes two broadly drawn Senate education bills. SB 524 deals with teacher bonuses, charter facilities financing, competency-based pilot programs and giving principals greater authority to make changes at struggling schools. SB 1166 would allow open enrollment for any student to attend any school with an opening, allow athletes to transfer and play immediately, and more closely define charter school accountability. An attempt to add an amendment requiring recess every day in elementary schools was withdrawn. Miami Herald. Politico Florida. News Service of Florida. WFSU.
Help for deaf: A Senate committee passes a bill that would help mainstream children who are deaf or hard of hearing into regular education. The bill would increase state funds for school programs that use hearing devices to aid spoken communication. Sarasota Herald-Tribune.
District, police split: The Pasco County School District and the Zephyrhills Police Department are ending their contract for resource officers at two schools. The relationship deteriorated when Zephyrhills High School fired football coach Reggie Roberts, who is a police sergeant. Pasco County deputies will take over the contract. Tampa Tribune. Gradebook.
Success story: Lake Wales High School has doubled students' college acceptance rate in five years, cut chronic absenteeism and has the highest graduation rate in Polk County. Much of the credit goes to Principal Donna Dunson, who has instituted new rules since starting at the school in 2010. Among them: An 8:30 a.m. start time, extending lunches from 23 minutes to an hour, requiring teachers to let students retake tests, and more. Lakeland Ledger. (more…)
