Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush is expected to become a Republican presidential candidate Monday.
Education has been a signature issue for Bush. He helped start Florida’s first charter school. He says schools and teachers should be judged on student performance. He pushed for vouchers for private schools.
And he spent most of his time since leaving the Florida governor’s office advocating for his brand of school reform.
Gage Skidmore / Flickr
Former Governor Jeb Bush of Florida speaking at the 2013 Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in National Harbor, Maryland.
Bush will ensure education is a top issue in the 2016 presidential race. But he’s not the only candidate with a strong record on schools.
“You have a roster of candidates that are quite strong on this issue from the Republican side,” said Michael Petrilli, president of the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, a conservative education think tank which generally supports Bush’s version of education reform.
“It did not get much airtime in 2008 or 2012 and I think it’s going to be different this time around. And for those of us that care about education and schools, I think that’s a good thing. It’s better to have the country engaged on these issues.”
Bush is the 800-pound gorilla in the GOP field. His family has already produced two U.S. presidents. He has been raising tens of millions over the past few months as he explores a presidential bid. And he has an 8-year record as Florida governor.
Eight times Brandon Lewis has taken Florida’s Algebra I end-of-course exam. And eight times he’s failed it, once coming just two points short of passing.
Lewis is a junior at Miami’s Dr. Michael M. Krop High School. Lewis passed the class his first year, but Florida also requires that students pass a state exam in a handful of key courses, including Algebra I. He’s worried the test will keep him from graduating.
“It hurts when you’re isolated from the other group of kids,” Lewis says, “and you feel like you’re slow and that you can’t do anything to, like, pass that test.”
St. Petersburg Museium of Fine Arts docent Tina Douglass shares the story behind an African elephant mask with sixth graders from Clearwater's Oak Grove Middle School.
It’s just a few dozen yards from the charter buses to the stately columns of the St. Petersburg Museum of Fine Arts entrance.
Dozens of energetic 12- and 13-year-olds jump off the bus after a 25-minute ride from their Clearwater’s Oak Grove Middle School.
Volunteer docents scramble to sort out small groups by color, and hand out clipboards and pencils.
“Purple, nice straight line!” one docent yells from the top of the steps.
“Green group over here,” another barks.
“Guys heads up,” says another volunteer at the front door. “Do you have gum? You need to put it in the garbage can when we go in.”
Broward schools superintendent Robert Runcie, with American Federation of Teachers president Randi Weingarten, left, and Broward Teachers Union president Sharon Glickman, right.
The superintendents of Florida two largest school district say it is less likely they’ll make students repeat third grade next year because of low state reading test scores.
State law requires that students earning the lowest score on the reading exam have to repeat third grade unless they are granted an exemption. About 16,000 students across the state were held back last year.
But Florida has switched to a new statewide test this year, the Florida Standards Assessments, and educators aren’t sure they can trust the results.
“I think teachers and principals will err on the side of caution and will want to do no harm to students,” said Miami-Dade schools superintendent Alberto Carvalho, who believes this year’s test results should have no consequences.
The state has hired an outside firm to make sure the test is valid. But the means results won’t be back until after the new school year has started — long after schools have decided which students should move on or not.
Gov. Rick Scott spoke at a Miami elementary school to urge lawmakers to increase school funding.
Gov. Rick Scott visited a Miami elementary school Monday to ask lawmakers to meet his request for school funding.
Lawmakers return to Tallahassee today to finish the budget. The big disagreement is how to pay for health care. And that could affect how much money is left for education.
“We have a $1.8 billion dollar surplus,” Scott says. “A $1.8 billion dollar surplus. Ok. We can invest. We can have record funding for K-12 education. We can do the tax cuts. We will continue to get, keep continuing our economy. And we can make sure we have all the safety nets we need.”
But Senate Education chairman John Legg says that isn’t true.
Ashley Jean has enrolled in a global studies program at Long Island University. Now she's trying to raise money to help pay for travel costs.
Ashley Jean is graduating from Miami’s iPrep Academy this week. And then she’s planning to travel the world.
Jean will start a global studies program through Long Island University that will eventually take her to places like Costa Rica, Australia, Bali and Spain.
That’s a lot of plane tickets.
“I don’t want money to be a reason why I can’t change my life,” Jean says, “so I have to work hard to do what I can to get this program.”
Like a growing number of college students, Jean is turning to crowdfunding sites to help her raise money for college. The sites let users search by location or topic and donate directly to causes they like.
It’s just a fraction of the total cost of the program – but every bit helps. She says gofundme lets her make the pitch her way.
“I put orange because that’s my favorite color,” she says of her page. “Usually the photo or video it usually enhances — they require you to have a photo because it makes it [easier] for you to get more money and stuff.”
The entrance to Enterprise High School, a charter school in Pinellas County for students at risk for not completing their educations.
Of the more than 600 charter schools in Florida. Some focus on the arts, some on sciences. Others are high schools that help students who are at risk for not finishing or dropping out completely.
At the crossroads of busy four lane highway in Clearwater, students have to make their way through the noise and exhaust of heavy traffic to get to their high school classes.
Tucked in the back of of a strip mall is Enterprise High School. The 5-year-old charter school focuses on just one kind of student, those at risk for not finishing high school at all.
You may have one a lot like it very close by and not even know it.
Donna Hulbert, Director of the school says Enterprise gives its student free bus passes, eliminating one obstacle to getting here on time.
“We are located here, really, for one purpose only. We have four bus stops on the corners of our intersection.”
Stewart says she has met the top three goals set out for her by the State Board of Education:
Improve rates of learning and students achievement.
Improve graduation and completion rates.
Complete a positive transition to new K-12 standards and assessments and to improved K-16 accountability systems.
The evaluation cites a list of achievements to prove Stewart’s case: The state’s top-10 ranking for academic efforts in Education Week’s annual report card; rising high school graduation rates; improved performance of Florida’s black and Hispanic students on national exams, particularly compared to white classmates; the number and rate of students taking and passing Advanced Placement exams.
Former Miami Dade College dean Madeline Pumariega will lead the Florida College System.
A former dean at Miami Dade College has been selected to lead the Florida College System.
Florida Education Commissioner Pam Stewart chose Madeline Pumariega to be chancellor of the state’s system of community colleges.
Pumariega worked for more than a decade at Miami Dade College, including serving as Dean of Students at the Wolfson Campus. She has been the president and CEO of Take Stock in Children since 2013.
The statewide non-profit takes students at risk of dropping out of high school and helps them complete college.
Stewart says Pumariega will maintain the progress Florida’s college system has made.
“With Madeline’s extensive background in higher education and commitment to helping Florida’s students thrive,” Stewart said in a statement, “she is the right choice to ensure we continue our positive direction.”
Pumareiga follows Randy Hanna, who announced he was leaving the post last year.
The Florida College System enrolls more than 800,000 students at 28 schools across Florida. At many campuses, students can earn two-year or four-year degrees.
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