Torres is a reporter for the Florida Center on Investigative Reporting. Since the economy collapsed in 2008, Florida’s student population has become poorer each year — with almost all school districts in the state experiencing spikes in the number of kids who qualify for subsidized meals. Children have become homeless at alarming numbers as well. […]
Two Seminole County students living in a truck became the face of the Great Recession thanks to Sunday’s ’60 Minutes’ profile. Stetson University put on its white hat and rode to their rescue Thursday. The DeLand school offered Arielle, 15, and Austin Metzger, 13, full scholarships. School president Wendy Libby told the Orlando Sentinel the […]
State economists are counting the contents of Florida’s piggy bank this morning to see how much money the state will have for its budget beginning July 1. Earlier this year it looked like Florida might have a very small surplus. Estimates last week suggested the state economy has slowed and lawmakers could now face a […]
Florida’s education budget cuts were the sixth-largest in the nation since 2008, according to a Center on Budget and Policy Priorities report released Friday. Florida spends 18.1 percent less per K-12 student in state money than when the recession began in 2008, once figures are adjusted for inflation, according to the report.That means Florida is […]
Florida schools will have little construction money next year after state economists reduced their estimate by 70 percent Monday. Schools will have about $113 million available, down from the $380 million initially expected for the budget year beginning July 1, 2012. Utility taxes provide much of the school construction fund, but economists said fewer people […]
Influential state Sen. J.D. Alexander made his pitch for a separate Polk County university to the State University System Board of Governors Thursday. Alexander, R-Polk and chairman of the Senate budget committee, wants the University of South Florida Polytechnic to split from the USF system. WUSF radio’s Steve Newborn reports: So far, the site of […]
Florida students’ math skills rank just below Latvia and slightly better than Lithuania, according to a new state-by-state comparison of international math and reading tests. The U.S. ranks 17th in the world on the Program for International Student Assessment tests, according to the analysis by Harvard University’s Program on Educational Policy and Governance. Florida students […]
In an effort to help bridge the so-called “digital divide” among low-income students, internet provider Comcast is making some big promises: Vouchers for home computers Three years of internet service for $9.95 a month Every student who is eligible for free meals under the National School Lunch Program will qualify. And Florida has one of […]
Florida education leaders are meeting in Tampa today to discuss school funding, but do not expect the panel to endorse more money for schools. Roberto Martinez, the state Board of Education member who pushed for the budget discussion, said his goal is to brainstorm ideas that would help schools do more with the resources they […]
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