After repeatedly saying he was against raising tuition at Florida’s colleges and universities, Gov. Rick Scott on Friday vetoed a bill that would have allowed the state’s top two universities to hike tuition at will.
The state already allows public institutions to raise tuition up to 15 percent a year. But Florida State University in Tallahassee and University of Florida in Gainesville would have been able to raise fees even more in an effort to bring costs in line with the country’s other top tier research institutions.
In his veto letter, Scott noted the difficulty many students and families already have paying for higher education. Continue Reading →
We’ve talked about bullying several times this week. As the movie “Bully” opens in theatres, students in South Florida are sharing their own painful experiences.
We also heard about the suicide of a teenager who classmates say was a victim of bullying and harassment at school. The New Jersey teen was a family friend of Port Richey Rep. John Legg. Legg was so moved by the tragedy he wrote a letter to Florida Education Commissioner Gerard Robinson encouraging aggressive action against such behavior. “No child should feel this threatened anywhere,” he wrote.
Readers were particularly interested in John O’Connor’s story about whether bullying is really an epidemic. Continue Reading →
Before Florida students take the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test this month, the Florida Department of Education wants them to take a pledge. The pledge says they agree not to cheat, and they should understand that doing so will invalidate their test results. Students are not required to sign the pledge.
While there doesn’t appear to be an abundance of cheating in the state, FDOE decided to jump on the bandwagon with other states that have crafted such a pledge.The adults aren’t being asked to take the pledge.
The pressure is high for teachers and administrators. FCAT scores play heavily into the merit pay system that’s being crafted for them.
Port Richey Republican Representative John Legg was moved enough by the tragedy to send a letter to Florida Education Commissioner Gerard Robinson. He wrote about 15-year-old Lennon Baldwin, who “committed suicide last week as a result of being harassed at school.”
Legg, a father of five who is also an administrator and teacher, asked Robinson for assistance dealing with what he said is a growing problem everywhere: school bullying and harassment. Continue Reading →
As the legislative session approaches the midway point, education will take a prominent place in the Florida Legislature this week amid budget talk and proposed tuition increases.
The Florida House has announced its budget proposal; now it’s the Senate’s turn. Senate President Mike Haridopolos has scheduled a series of budget subcommittee meetings as the chamber tries to craft a spending plan.
A legal challenge is being waged over a contract with the Florida Department of Education. A rejected vendor is protesting DOE’s selection of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (HMH) to develop test items and more under the “Florida Interim Assessment Item Bank and Test Platform.” The funding is provided by a Race to the Top grant from the U.S. government.
CTB/McGraw-Hill contends the state’s negotiation team goofed in their assessment of the bids. DOE issued an Invitation to Negotiate and received bids from eight vendors. The bids were narrowed down to five companies, then two. CTB and HMH were the two finalists. Now, the rejected company has filed a formal protest with the state. At issue is a contract worth nearly $37 million for HMH.
The New Year will bring consideration of a four-day school week in a suburban Tampa district. It’s been the goal of Pasco County School Board member Steve Luikart since he came on the job a year ago.
Luikart is a Pasco native who spent several decades as a teacher and administrator before running for a seat on the board. He now chairs a task force that is researching four-day weeks as a way of saving money while making sure student needs are met.
The task force had its first meeting in September. Members are examining an array of possible scenarios beginning with the 2012-2013 school year, like closing all schools and district buildings on Mondays or Fridays. Initial estimates several years ago suggested Pasco could save $3.2 million annually.
When Florida voters implemented the class size amendment in 2002, they mandated that public schools limit the number of students in core classes like math and science. The limit varies depending on the grade level. Schools were given until the 2010-2011 school year to be in full compliance.
Since 2002, districts have been striving to hit the magic numbers: no more than 18 students per core class through grade 3, 22 students in grades 4 through 8, and 25 students in grades 9 through 12. Districts were given gradual caps to follow on their way to full compliance. But as the recession pulled money away from education funding, it became easier for districts to pay fines for violating the amendment rather than pay what it costs to follow the rules.
The FAMU Marching 100 drum major who died last month in Orlando was a homicide victim, according to the Orange-Osceola Medical Examiner‘s Office. The information was released Friday after a meeting between Governor Rick Scott and Florida A&M University President James Ammons. It also came shortly after we learned of a reported molestation at FAMU’s K-12 school last May.
Governor Scott announced Thursday that he wanted Ammons suspended immediately and indefinitely. The governor said the decision is based on information from FDLE agents investigating 26-year-old Robert Champion’s death. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement has been on the case since shortly after Champion died last month in Orlando. The Orange County Sheriff’s Office is also investigating the death, which is believed to have involved hazing by members of FAMU’s Marching 100 band.
Scott was briefed on the investigation as he traveled home from a trade mission overseas. He told reporters at the airport in Tallahassee Thursday that FDLE is expanding the investigation because of financial irregularities at FAMU.
Legislation filed in the Florida House of Representatives would require all Florida public schools to teach students about the events surrounding the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks and the impact of those events on the country.
Representatives Joseph Abruzzo (D-Wellington) and Lori Berman (D-Delray Beach) filed the legislation this week, known as House Bill 1027. “The best defense of our nation is through the education of our children. We must teach the history of 9/11 to avoid a recurrence of these tragic events,” said Abruzzo in a written statement.
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