Around the state: An upcoming career fair in Citrus, help for children of domestic violence survivors in Pinellas, college open houses and STEM support for Black girls. Here are details about those stories and others from the state’s districts, private schools, and colleges and universities:

Pinellas: With summer break in full swing, a local organization is making it easier for students to head into the next school year. Casa Pinellas launched its Back to School Drive to provide support to children of domestic violence survivors in Pinellas, and neighboring counties. Donations will be accepted until Aug. 5. ABC Action News.

Collier: Susan MacManus won't be at the helm of Champions for Learning, a Collier county education foundation, for the first time in almost three decades. MacManus, who was a founding member of the Champions for Learning board in 1990, retired to pursue her own education. Naples Daily News.

Citrus: A career fair hosted by the Citrus County School District will be held from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on July 21 at the College of Central Florida Citrus Campus, 3800 S. Lecanto Highway in Lecanto. The career fair will offer chances for new and experienced teachers in all areas, from bus drivers to food and nutritional services for CCSD, which serves 15,000 students and 23 schools from preschool to grade 12. Citrus County Chronicle.

Civics initiative: Some educators in Florida say the state appears to be chipping away at separation of church and state, and creating a divide between teachers and students over gender identity. Teachers attending a recent Florida Department of Education training on a new civics initiative say the content pushed conservative ideologies over opposing views. WLRN.

University and college news: The College of Central Florida is inviting anyone considering college to an open house from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Thursday, July 14 in the Charles S. Dean Sr. Educational Center at the CF Citrus Campus. Students are encouraged to tour the campus and learn about more than 150 academic pathways that include job-training programs. Those who attend can also get help with financial aid and admission, and register for the fall semester that begins in August. Registration is encouraged. Citrus County Chronicle.  Only 63% of 2020 high school graduates or those who finished a high-school equivalent credential immediately enrolled in a two or four year college by October of the same year, data from the federal government found. The data comes from the annual "Condition of Education" report released by the National Center for Education Statistics within the U.S. Department of Education. Florida Phoenix. The Okaloosa County Extension Service, an outreach arm of the Institute of Food & Agricultural Sciences at the University of South Florida, is providing an FAA remote pilot training session on July 13. NWF Daily News.

Ethics complaints update: The investigation into ethics complaints against a former band director at Leesburg High School and a former guidance counselor is still ongoing after it was discovered that both violated the Standards of Ethical Conduct and should be fired. Members of the Lake County School Board accepted their resignations in lieu of termination and then forwarded the investigation to the Florida Department of Education. Their fate now lies with the FLDOE. Daily Commercial.

STEM support: Atiyah Harmon, founder of Black Girls Love Math, wants Black girls to get involved in the STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) field. She launched her organization in 2020, with the goal of fostering a fun and encouraging learning environment that allows Black girls from K-12 to develop the confidence to explore mathematical concepts, get involved in competitions and receive mentoring and other services in a culturally responsive manner. It's a new organization that is part of a 21st-century movement to foster an interest in STEM for Black girls, since only 2.9 % of Black women earn STEM degrees. The 74th.

Opinions on schools: There is a concerted effort to blur the line between religion and state and interpret the history of the United States through a conservative Christian lens that whitewashes our past of slavery and segregation. The Miami Herald's editorial board. A paper recently published in Physical Review Physics Education Research by West Virginia University researchers boils down to this: High school physics is very important for students who are considering majoring in a STEM field in college. Anyone who tells students and parents otherwise is harming them and should stop. Paul Cottle, Bridge to Tomorrow.

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District homework ban: Marion County School Superintendent Heidi Maier is banning daily homework for the district's 20,000 elementary school students. Instead, school officials are asking parents to read with their children for 20 minutes every night. Maier says the decision is based on research by Richard Allington, a University of Tennessee professor who found that reading to a child has more positive effects on children than homework. Ocala Star Banner.

Charter company charged: Newpoint Education Partners, a charter school management company, is indicted by a grand jury in Escambia County for alleged fraudulent billing of charter schools for computers, furniture and curriculum services, and concealing it by laundering the money through multiple bank accounts. Earlier this year the founder of Newpoint, Marcus May, and an associate were charged with fraud and racketeering in connection with the operation of 15 charter schools in Escambia, Bay, Broward, Duval, Hillsborough and Pinellas counties. WJXT, Associated Press. WFLA. Pensacola News Journal.

Safety for exchange students: Miami-Dade County School Superintendent Alberto Carvalho is calling on the federal government to tighten screening of potential hosts for foreign exchange students. A host parent, the husband of a district administrator, was arrested recently in Cutler Bay on charges of molesting an exchange student. He then killed himself. Miami Herald. WSVN.

Foreign languages: About 21 percent of Florida K-12 students studied a foreign language during the 2014-2015 school year, according to a report from the American Councils for International Education. The national average is 19.66 percent. More than 80 percent of the Florida students take Spanish, and about 10 percent take French. Education Week. (more…)

Florida State University is on a well-known quest to reach the top 25 in national academic rankings of public universities.

That helps explain why its new president, John Thrasher, was listening to students at the Orlando Science School as they talked about spending Saturdays in the robotics lab, and doing experiments with self-heating polymers and RFID transmitters.

During a visit to the school last week, Thrasher said the university's plan calls for strengthening its STEM programs.

That behooves it to attract students with solid foundations in math and science who might be interested in undergraduate research, or in pursuing careers in well-paying fields like engineering — the kind of students who have gravitated to the Central Florida charter school.

"This is an amazing school," he told a group of upperclassman packed into the school's media center. "You all are getting an opportunity that's pretty exclusive, and I hope you make the best of it."

Thrasher, a former state lawmaker now nearly five months into his presidency, accompanied Paul Cottle, an FSU physics professor who makes the rounds at schools across the state, promoting the high-level math and science courses he says are crucial to success in college.

Each year, as Cottle has shown on his blog, thousands of Florida students graduate high school without taking courses like physics and calculus. Research has found disparities in high school preparation hinder the progress of black and Hispanic students in science, technology, engineering and math. Around the state, he has found are pockets of success where schools have made science a priority.

Yalcin Akin, the Orlando school's founder, said he had seen a need for more STEM-focused public schools since he was working toward his Ph.D. in materials engineering at Florida State.

Since the school was first profiled by redefinED, it has grown to enroll more than 1,000 students at its elementary and secondary campuses. It celebrated its first graduating class, boasting that all its alumni were accepted into college. Next school year, it is set to expand into neighboring Seminole County.

Last year, the school also won its third-straight state title at the Science Olympiad. It typically fields multiple teams in the science competitions, which basically enjoy the status of a varsity sport.

"FSU has a football team," Akin said. "We have Science Olympiad."

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More on school security in Newtown aftermath. Miami Herald. South Florida Sun Sentinel. Orlando Sentinel. Florida Times Union. Florida Today. Pensacola News Journal. In Pinellas, rumors of coming violence prompt Superintendent Mike Grego to email principals, and in Hillsborough, bullets on buses, reports Tampa Bay Times here and here.

School district image. A review by an outside agency suggests the Palm Beach County school district needs to a better job communicating and marketing itself, according to the Palm Beach Post. (As far as I know, no response yet from either the district or the Post to this EAG report last week on questionable district spending.)

More school district image. The Clay County School Board approves the hiring of a second public relations officer – a family friend and supporter of new Superintendent Charlie Van Zant Jr., reports the Florida Times Union.

Superintendent search. In Polk. Lakeland Ledger.

STEM. It’ll take guts and resources for state education leaders to finally make science education a priority, writes FSU physics professor Paul Cottle in this op-ed for the Orlando Sentinel.

Charter teacher pay. Trustees for Lake Wales Charter Schools want better pay and benefits to retain teachers, reports the News Chief.

Can’t fire her. The Sarasota school district loses its third bid to fire a teacher found not guilty of abusing developmentally disabled students, reports the Sarasota Herald Tribune.

Teacher evals. Alachua County teachers raise their concerns at a forum with three lawmakers, reports the Gainesville Sun.

On his blog, Bridge to Tomorrow, Florida State University physics professor Paul Cottle laments that students aren’t getting the push they need from parents, guidance counselors and teachers to take tougher math and sciences classes in middle and high school.

The result: fewer students completing degrees in STEM fields, those high-tech, lucrative jobs in science, technology, engineering and math that both presidential candidates in Tuesday night’s debate deemed necessary to get the economy back on its feet and competitive with the rest of the world. So Cottle created what he calls the “antidote’’ - Future Physicists of Florida. And interestingly enough, the launching pad for his new program is built on traditional, magnet and charter schools.

Cottle said he doesn’t favor one type of school over another. The mix is really accidental. Once science teachers heard about the program, they reached out to him.

“We’re trying to find any way we can to get kids to take on these academic programs,’’ Cottle said. “I’m looking for great teachers anywhere.’’

And there are great teachers in all kinds of schools, he said.

Cottle’s program officially begins next month with an induction ceremony in Tallahassee. It will offer middle school students and their parents advice on which high school courses better prepare students for physical sciences and engineering majors in college.

“We know what students need to do to give them the best opportunities in STEM fields,’’ said Cottle, who was among the educators who helped craft Florida’s K-12 science standards.

He cites a 2007 University of South Florida study that found students who take physics in high school are twice as likely to earn a bachelor’s degree in a STEM field as those taking only chemistry. Such a degree will likely translate into a high-paying job upon graduation with some occupations, such as chemical engineering, commanding starting annual salaries of $70,000 or more.

Six public schools, including three charters, are taking part in the Future Physicists program. (more…)