Reading scholarship rules: The Florida Department of Education releases draft rules for the new reading scholarship for struggling 3rd- and 4th-graders. Students who score below 3 in reading on their Florida Standards Assessments tests are eligible for up to $500 for tutoring or reading materials. Parents apply directly to the nonprofit scholarship-funding organization Step Up For Students, which hosts this blog, then pay for the tutoring or reading materials and seek reimbursement. redefinED. Gradebook.
School security: Two Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School students testify to the House Democratic Task Force on Gun Violence on Wednesday in Washington, D.C. Both plead for "meaningful" gun legislation. “There’s been a lot of talk, especially around here, about putting America first,” said Stoneman Douglas junior Alfonso Calderon. “I agree, let’s put America first and put the gun lobbies and the NRA second. I don’t understand why this is such a difficult conversation to have.” Sun-Sentinel. Escambia County school officials will conduct random metal detector screenings at schools. WEAR. Holmes Beach and Palmetto appear likely to help the Manatee County School District pay for school resource officers, and Bradenton is now considering the request. Manatee County has said it won't help. Bradenton Herald. Sarasota Herald-Tribune. The Volusia County School Board is told it would need to hire 44 armed guards to cover every school for 2018-2019. The presentation of the final plan is scheduled at the June 12 board meeting. Daytona Beach News-Journal. A ban on backpacks is extended to all Manatee County high schools and middle schools for the final three days of the school year. Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Several St. Johns County School Board members say they think it's law enforcement's responsibility to provide security at schools. The board meets with county officials June 6 to discuss the options. St. Augustine Record. (more…)
'Schools of hope': Just 11 struggling Florida schools are designated "schools of hope" by the Florida Board of Education. More than 50 schools applied, and the state's new education law set aside about $52 million to provide extra funding to as many as 25 schools. Each of the 11 schools will get $2,000 extra per student to provide such additional services as tutoring, counseling, more teacher coaches and salary supplements for teachers to run student clubs. The "schools of hope" are Lucille Moore and Springfield elementaries in Bay County; Homestead Middle, Lorah Park Elementary, Miami Carol City Senior High, West Homestead K-8 and Toussaint L'Ouverture Elementary in Miami-Dade; Gove Elementary, West Riviera Elementary and Palm Beach Lakes High in Palm Beach; and Idyllwilde Elementary in Seminole County. Education Commissioner Pam Stewart says she will allow the schools that didn't get chosen to amend and resubmit their applications. She said the next round will add no more than 14 schools to the program. News Service of Florida. Palm Beach Post. Gradebook. Politico Florida. WLRN. Florida Times-Union. State Board of Education member Gary Chartrand says the state needs to quickly complete its rules for implementing charter school legislation. The charter companies the state hopes to recruit are starting to make decisions now about where to open new schools, and need to know the rules before expanding into Florida. redefinED.
Waivers requested: The Central Florida School Boards Coalition, which represents 13 school districts, is asking the state to grant waivers for class size violations penalties because of the influx of students from the islands who were displaced by hurricanes. The coalition is also asking for more time to count students, more money to educate the displaced students and for "flexibility" on the state's school accountability rules. School districts in the coalition are Brevard, Highlands, Hillsborough, Lake, Manatee, Marion, Orange, Osceola, Pasco, Polk, Seminole, Sumter and Volusia counties. Orlando Sentinel.
'Schools without rules': An Orange County private school with a troubled past took in $5.6 million in state scholarship money in five years even as it falsified fire safety inspections, hired people with criminal records and didn’t pay some of its teachers. Last summer, the state finally banned Agape Christian Academy from the scholarship programs for 10 years. Orlando Sentinel. A private school operator in Brevard County continued to benefit from the state scholarships even after one of his three schools was closed when he was charged with felony lewd or lascivious molestation. Orlando Sentinel. Here's a list of private schools in Florida that have students who get scholarships from the state though the tax credit, Gardiner or McKay scholarship programs. Step Up For Students, which hosts this blog, helps administer the tax credit and Gardiner programs. Orlando Sentinel.
