School security: A St. Petersburg Police Department spokeswoman says officers are being pulled off the street to comply with the new state law requiring a resource officer in every school. "I have no choice," says chief Tony Holloway. "Kids’ safety is first." Tampa Bay Times. WTSP. Lake County School Board member Bill Mathias suggests that a temporary increase of a half-cent in the sales tax should be considered to help pay for security upgrades at the county's public schools. He estimates the tax, which would have to be approved by voters, would raise about $15 million a year. Daily Commercial. The Sarasota and North Port police departments agree with the sheriff's office that the Sarasota County School District should pay the full cost for school resource officers. Sarasota Herald-Tribune. The Hendry County School Board says it wants further study and input from the community before deciding whether to go ahead with the Legislature's school security plan to arm school personnel. WBBH. Legislators and Brevard County residents clash at a town forum over the issue of arming school employees. Florida Today. A panel of students, teachers and activists discusses school shootings and security at a town meeting in Sarasota. Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Forty-three percent of all U.S. schools now have armed guards, up from 31 percent from 10 years ago, according to a survey conducted by the National Center for Education Statistics. Associated Press.
Community schools: The Leon County School District is moving ahead with a plan to turn Sable Palm Elementary into a community school, which combines academic, health and social services in an effort to boost student performance. Partners in the project are the school district, Florida State University, the Children’s Home Society and Florida A&M University’s College of Education. WFSU. Wilkinson Junior High School will become Clay County's first community school. The school district is collaborating with the Children's Home Society, St. Johns River State College and Baptist Health and Wolfson Children's Hospital. WOKV.
