Seminole County could turn classroom thermostats all the way up and athletes may have to pay to wear their school’s uniform. The wife of a Polk County Tea Party congressman led a failed effort to raise money for college counselors whose positions were eliminated. Many students can no longer walk to catch the bus after […]
Education-related bill are stacking up in Tallahassee, four months before lawmakers return for the 2012 session. Yesterday we wrote about Sen. Joe Negron’s bill that would allow voters to once again choose the state education commissioner. Here are other topics that will be on the calendar come January. School Funding At the top of the […]
Voters would once again choose Florida’s top education official if a bill proposed by a state senator becomes law. Stuart Republican Sen. Joe Negron introduced the constitutional amendment to elect the Commissioner of Education Monday. The commissioner has been appointed since voters amended the state constitution in 1998. Negron’s bill would also dissolve the state […]
Education or health care? That’s a choice Florida budget writers face, according to state Rep. Jeff Brandes, a Pinellas County Republican. Brandes told WUSF’s Florida Matters that growth in Medicaid, the state-run health care program for the poor and disabled, was limiting the state’s ability to spend more on education. Medicaid has grown to 30.7 […]
Technology could provide low-cost solutions for school districts struggling with tight budgets. That’s what Pinellas County state Rep. Jeff Brandes, a Republican, said at a taping of WUSF’s Florida Matters this week. The show is looking at school issues as students head back to class. Brandes believes schools can use technology to stretch their budgets. […]
The best Miami-Dade teachers could buy a new car with their bonuses this year while most of their colleagues may only be able to replace an alternator with their bonuses. The difference in the size of those checks is an attempt to pay teachers based on their performance and that of their students, also known […]
A new law designed to collect more information on college students is having an unintended effect – it could prevent some undocumented students from receiving the state’s Bright Futures scholarship. And as Sarah Gonzalez of StateImpact Florida discovered, the new policy could also discourage U.S. citizens from applying for the merit-based scholarship. Read the full […]
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 […]
Why are Broward County schools cutting 2,400 jobs — mostly teachers — and requiring unpaid leave when other district proposed budgets avoid layoffs? The South Florida Sun-Sentinel has posted a Q&A about Broward’s budget problems. One answer: Broward could not sit on federal stimulus money like Miami-Dade or Palm Beach counties. “Both those counties set […]
Teachers are saying they have had enough of the politicization of their profession and are retiring in numbers this year, a trend reported across the state in recent weeks. Palm Beach County teacher Margot Collins told the Palm Beach Post why she is leaving after 32 years: “The whole thing is just overwhelming me these […]
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