Education bill moving: The sweeping education bill that would, among other things, eliminate the waiting list for Florida Tax Credit Scholarships, is approved by the Senate Education Committee on a 5-3 party-line vote. S.B. 7070 would create the Family Empowerment Scholarship program with money from the Florida Education Finance Program, though at least one prominent Republican says taking the money from general revenue funds could pose a problem. The bill also would restructure the Best and Brightest Teacher and Principal Scholarship program for educator bonuses, the teacher certification process, and provide money for social services at public schools. About 13,000 students are on the FTC waiting list. Step Up For Students, which hosts this blog, helps administer the tax credit scholarship program. redefinED. Associated Press. News Service of Florida. Orlando Sentinel. Tampa Bay Times. Politico Florida. Florida Politics. WFSU. WFTS. WPTV.
Best & Brightest bonuses: More than 11,000 Florida teachers will receive bonuses of $7,200 through the state's Best and Brightest program, according to the Florida Department of Education. Those 11,286 teachers were rated as "highly effective" in their evaluations and posted ACT or SAT scores in the top 20 percent when they applied for college. About 81,000 other "highly effective" teachers will get $1,200 bonuses, 67,600 "effective" teachers will get $700 and 557 principals will get bonuses worth $4,000 or $5,000. Florida is spending $233 million on the bonuses, which will be paid by April 1. The Legislature is considering several proposals, including S.B. 7070, that would rework the bonuses program and eliminate the test score requirement. Orlando Sentinel. (more…)
