Yesterday, a Florida appeals court handed a charter school group a partial victory.
Some legal complications remain for the Florida Charter Educational Foundation, but it prevailed on the key constitutional question — whether the state has the authority to overturn local school board decisions on charter school applications.
The 4th District Court of Appeal's decision upholding charter school appeals is a big deal. National business and education reform organizations had gotten involved in the case. A statement issued this morning by the National Alliance for Public Charter schools explains what was at stake.
There are many reasons a charter school can be denied their application at the local level – reasons ranging from legitimate concerns to political interests that benefit adults, not students. We are pleased that Florida has upheld the constitutionality of the pathway which allows charter schools that have been denied their application to appeal to the State Board of Education. It is imperative that Florida’s students, and all students, have access to high-quality public school options – and that political interests don’t prevent these options. The State Board of Education will provide an expert and supervisory eye to such appeals processes, and ensure decisions are truly being made with the best interests of students in mind.
STEM. Florida's science results on the Nation's Report Card improve, and beat the national average. Orlando Sentinel.
Tax credit scholarships. Florida Today's Matt Reed examines the lawsuit against the state's tax credit scholarship program in a video segment. Step Up For Students, which publishes this blog, helps administer the scholarships.
Time suck. Palm Beach teachers miss hours of class time sitting in meetings. Palm Beach Post.
Dress code. The ACLU backs one student's protest. Tampa Bay Times.
Digital learning. St. Johns County school officials grapple with the state's new digital classrooms law. St. Augustine Record.
Class size. A key lawmaker wants to examine school districts' use of a choice loophole in the state's class size law. Tampa Bay Times. Sentinel School Zone. redefinED.
Digital learning. EdTech magazine spotlights Miami-Dade in its look at districts with innovative practices.
Facilities. The head of a troubled Houston school facilities department may be in line for a Broward job. Sun-Sentinel.
School grades. Pasco's superintendent wants them suspended this year. Gradebook.
Community schools. A Leon County project faces hiccups. Tallahassee Democrat.
Administration. A principal who mishandled a threat is suspended. Tampa Bay Times. Palm Beach schools might spend hundreds of thousands on a consultant's deep dive into the district. Palm Beach Post.
Children play outside on Franklin Academy's new campus in sunrise, Fla.
Sophia Salazar tried for nearly two decades to get her children into one of Broward County's most sought-after school choice programs.
Her oldest, now 26, didn't win the lottery for the district's Nova schools. She sent her second-oldest to private school. But when one of her children finally gained admission to the district's highly regarded partnership with Nova Southeastern University, she'd found a new first choice.
She started sending her three youngest children — a first grader, a fourth-grader and a sixth-grader — to the newest Franklin Academy charter school, which opened this fall in Sunrise, Fla.
"Franklin gave them a little more," Salazar said. She drives he children daily from Hollywood, in southeastern Broward, to the suburb near the western edge of the county. The commute, she said, is worth it. "If my kids are happy to wake up in the morning and be the first one here, that's how I know."
At a time when national charter school advocates are wondering how their movement can attract more suburbanites, Franklin Academy charter schools managed to thrive in the already-choice-heavy school systems of South Florida. In five years, the network overseen by the Florida Charter Foundation has grown to enroll more than 6,000 students on five campuses in Broward and Palm Beach Counties. Its combined waiting lists stretch into the thousands. Plans are in the works to add a sixth campus — its first for high school grades — and to roll out International Baccalaureate programs.
The relatively young charter school network has gotten some high-profile help, including a facilities investment backed by retired tennis star Andre Agassi. It's caught on in part because it hits a sweet spot for parents like Salazar, providing a private-school feel with public-school oversight.
Daniel Sandberg, the principal at the new Sunrise campus, said parents come looking for one thing above all else.
"They're looking for rigor," he said. Sometimes, he added, they tell him: "School seems a lot harder here." (more…)
The new school district chief in Palm Beach County has had some interesting things to say since he took the job in June, talking about the appeal of charter schools and his desire to expand in-demand choice programs.
More recently, Superintendent Robert Avossa has become the latest Florida district leader to seek greater freedom from state regulations for schools his district runs. As reported by the Palm Beach Post, he told the school board last week that he wants to seek some of the same autonomy available to charter schools.
His district might be in a position to take advantage of an existing, relatively new and so far unused state program intended to give school districts some charter-like flexibility.
The Post reports:
A key state lawmaker expressed skepticism about Avossa’s plan Thursday, saying that state law already permits school systems to get around many regulations by declaring certain schools “schools of innovation.”
“What’s in the existing statute that doesn’t allow you to do those things already?” said state Sen. John Legg, R-Lutz, chairman of the Senate’s education committee and a charter school operator. “When superintendents ask those questions and we probe a little bit, they’re often not asking for what they pretend to be asking for.”
A state law passed in 2013 allows districts to create Innovation Schools of Technology, which share some features with charter schools. Districts have to apply to the state Board of Education to create them, and they have to enter performance contracts. In exchange, the schools can receive exemptions from a host of state education rules and statutes. (more…)
STEM. Students in Orlando's Pine Hills neighborhood experiment with growing bioluminescent mushrooms. Orlando Sentinel. These 20 public elementary schools excel in science instruction for disadvantaged students. Bridge to Tomorrow. Students at a Lakeland Christian school learn about robotics during a summer workshop. Lakeland Ledger.
Budgets. Miami-Dade school officials plan to lower the property tax rate slightly. Miami Herald. Local districts await state information on property tax revenues for schools. Tallahassee Democrat.
Private schools. A Bradenton Montessori school plans to expand into a new location. Bradenton Herald.
Charter schools. Palm Beach's new superintendent plans a forum for charter school parents. Sun-Sentinel.
Digital learning. Florida schools seem likely to to receive state digital classrooms funding despite uncertainty caused by a line-item veto. Tampa Bay Times. A parent writes an open letter to Palm Beach's superintendent on digital learning. Context Florida.
International Baccalaureate. A St. Petersburg student gets rare perfect scores on her college-credit exams. Tampa Bay Times. (more…)
STEM. Two charters and one magnet school do especially well getting disadvantaged students to pass state science tests. Bridge to Tomorrow.
Teacher evaluations. A teachers union lawsuit against Florida's evaluation system stumbles in federal court. Gradebook. Sentinel School Zone.
School choice. A Polk County school will now only be open to students assigned to its zone. Lakeland Ledger.
Testing. The state's testing validity study remains a work in progress. Gradebook.
TFA. Teach for America hires a new leader in Jacksonville. Florida Times-Union.
Budgets. Palm Beach's new superintendent talks about the need for "strategic shedding" of unnecessary budget items. Palm Beach Post. The Alachua school district and sheriff's office debate funding for school resource officers. Gainesville Sun.
Uniforms. A Lake County elementary school plans to make school uniforms mandatory next school year. Leesburg Daily Commercial.
Career education. Tampa Bay counties work with German companies to run apprenticeship programs. StateImpact. (more…)
Community. Early learning and college scholarships help fuel the revitalization of an Orlando community. New York Times.
Charter schools. The Florida Times-Union takes a deep dive into Acclaim Academy charters' implosion. The Palm Beach school district gears up for a court battle over charter schools. Sun-Sentinel.
Virtual education. Virtual schools give students more options. Panama City News Herald.
Lawsuits. The Sun-Sentinel editorial board critiques a ruling dismissing a lawsuit challenging Florida's tax credit scholarship program. Step Up For Students, which co-hosts this blog and employs the author of this post, helps administer the program.
Testing. Students are surprised to learn their end-of-course exams won't count as expected. Tampa Bay Times. School officials field concerns about students' personal information. Lakeland Ledger. Tampa Bay Times columnist John Romano tees off on testing and accountability.
Funding. School districts, teachers unions and others call for funding to accommodate growing student enrollment. Gradebook. Palm Beach Post.
Jobs. A Miami-Dade teachers union leader is quoted in a New York Times article on a decline of public-sector employment and its impact on the black community. The Marion County school district aims to diversity in its hiring. Ocala Star-Banner.
Poverty. Teachers report on the toll of poverty in school district surveys. Tampa Bay Times.
Changes. many community groups say they support a planned reshuffling of East Gainesville schools. Gainesville Sun.
Magnet schools. Orange County schools prepare to expand their magnet programs. Orlando Sentinel.
Reading. Does an extra hour of reading help student achievement? Palm Beach Post.
STEM. Communication skills matter too, a Palm Beach Post guest column argues.
Disparity. A task force prepares to analyze academic gaps faced by Black and Hispanic students. Palm Beach Post.
Superintendents. Brevard school board members consider hiring a "non-traditional" chief. Florida Today. Manatee weighs a national search against hiring from within. Bradenton Herald.
Athletics. School officials hope an overhaul of high school sports regualtions remains sidelined in the Legislature. WTSP. They're likely to get their wish. Northwest Florida Daily News.
Testing. Miami-Dade dramatically scales back required assessments. Miami Herald. WPLG. StateImpact. Answer Sheet. Sunshine State News. Marion County considers seeking a state waiver from testing. Ocala Star-Banner.
School choice. Opportunity scholarships, one of Florida's least-used school forms of school choice, won't be available to new students next year. Gradebook. Charter school provisions are added to school choice legislation. redefinED. Gradebook. Scripps/Tribune.
Charter schools. Two Palm Beach charter schools, including one that is well-regarded, get bad marks from auditors. Palm Beach Post. Sun-Sentinel. The district could place strict requirements on new charter schools. Palm Beach Post. The County Commission there makes way for a new charter on farmland. Sun-Sentinel. Southwest Florida's WBBH investigates Lee County charter school bus inspection records and finds not every school keeps them.
Elections. A Hillsborough school board member plans to seek re-election. Tampa Tribune. A Tallahassee city commissioner announces plans to run to lead a district in turmoil. Tallahassee Democrat.
Tax credit scholarships. The Ocala Star-Banner and Pensacola News-Journal take in-depth looks at the growth and impact of the program. Florida's tax credit scholarships are administered by organizations like Step Up For Students, which co-hosts this blog and employs the author of this post.
Busing. Race, discipline, cultural competency, school integration and magnet schools converge in this Tampa Bay Times examination of a Brandon middle school.
Charter schools. Several high-performing Duval charters are set to expand, and school board member calls for a "needs assessment."
Florida Times-Union. A South Florida charter school breaks ground after acquiring land. South Florida Business Journal. The state attorney's office in Pensacola is investigating possible wrongdoing at an Escambia charter school. Pensacola News-Journal. Parents weigh in here.
Class size. Changes to Florida's class size limits advance in the Legislature. Times/Herald.
Lobbying. Times/Herald stories on citizen lobbyists and interest groups reference education issues from school accountability to Personal Learning Scholarship Accounts.
Superintendents. More than 70 apply to be Palm Beach's next school superintendent, with Hillsborough's ousted MaryEllen Elia among them. Palm Beach Post. Sun-Sentinel. Tampa Bay Times.
Reading. An extra hour of instruction appears to be helping struggling schools. Tampa Tribune.
