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Sen. Jack Latvala

Florida schools roundup: H.B. 7069, ESSA, school safety, recess and more

Compiled by redefinED staff August 8, 2017

H.B. 7069: According to recently revealed text messages, state Sen. Jack Latvala, R-Clearwater, worked behind the scenes to try to kill H.B. 7069, the education bill that provides money for a major expansion of charter schools in Florida. The messages show that Latvala worked with Sen. Gary Farmer, D-Fort Lauderdale, on a plan to derail the bill. Details of the plan were not discussed in the texts, and neither Latvala not Farmer responded to questions about it. Latvala, chairman of the Senate appropriations committee, is considering running for governor in 2018. Politico Florida.

ESSA proposal: A coalition of civil rights group is asking the Florida Department of Education to give due consideration to the needs of poor, at-risk children when it submits its federal education accountability plan under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). In a letter, the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights says it’s critical that the plan uphold the spirit of the law, which pledges to provide “all children significant opportunity to receive a fair, equitable, and high-quality education, and close educational achievement gaps.” The state has to submit its plan by Sept. 18. Gradebook.

School safety: Pasco County students are now being told to fight back against violent threats at their schools, instead of simply hiding. One of the key messages of the new approach is: “It is okay to do whatever you have to do to get away from Stranger Danger.” Superintendent Kurt Browning says “the decision to defend one’s self or others is a personal decision and will never be required.” But the district wants to give students options, he says, and to empower them “not to be victims.” Gradebook.

Recess rules: After hearing complaints from parents, Pinellas County school officials say they are reconsidering their idea to count student time in math and engineering centers toward the required 20 minutes a day for recess. Shana Rafalski, the county’s executive director for elementary education, acknowledged that “doesn’t necessarily reflect the spirit of (the law). … This probably is out of context in the teaching and learning handbook, and I’ll revisit this,” she says. Gradebook.

August 8, 2017 0 comment

Florida Schools Roundup

Florida schools roundup: Veto override, special session bickering and more

Compiled by redefinED staff June 8, 2017

Compiled by redefinED staff

Education bill: The Florida Senate votes to override Gov. Rick Scott’s veto of the K-12 education bill. Senate Appropriations chairman Jack Latvala, R-Clearwater, says the vote is “an insurance policy” to keep schools operating after June 30 in case no agreement can be reached on education spending during the special session. That seems increasingly possible, as Senate and House leaders continue to bicker over details of the bill and other issues. Miami Herald. Orlando Sentinel. Palm Beach Post. News Service of Florida. Florida Politics. Miami Herald. Associated Press. Politico Florida. Tallahassee Democrat. State Sen. David Simmons, R-Altamonte Springs, proposes using $215 million earmarked in H.B. 7069 for teacher bonuses and charter schools to increase funding for public schools. Miami Herald. Politico Florida. redefinED. School officials in Volusia, Flagler, Lee and Levy counties like some aspects of the education bill, but are urging Gov. Scott to veto it primarily because of the additional money that would go to charter schools. Daytona Beach News-Journal. Fort Myers News-Press. Cedar Key Beacon. Manatee County school officials worry about the education bill’s restrictions on how districts can spend federal Title I money. Bradenton Herald.

Early-release days: Brevard County school officials want to move early-release days from Wednesdays to Fridays. They say the proposal would help students who are dual-enrolled at Eastern Florida State College, which doesn’t hold classes on Fridays. The district and the teachers union must agree on the proposed change. Florida Today. WKMG.

Ex-principal defended: Pinellas County School Board member Linda Lerner defends a principal who made racially charged comments and has since retired. Lerner says Christine Hoffman, formerly the principal at the mostly black Campbell Park Elementary School in St. Petersburg, made a mistake by telling the staff working on student class assignments that the school’s “white students should be in the same class.” Lerner said: “Sometimes white people say something racially insensitive. … One mistake should not ruin a career.” Gradebook.

June 8, 2017 0 comment

Florida Schools Roundup

Florida schools roundup: Education budget, a legislative to-do list and more

Compiled by redefinED staff May 1, 2017

Compiled by redefinED staff

Education budget: Leaders in the Florida Senate and House agree over the weekend to an increase of about 1.2 percent in K-12 per-student funding, from $7,196 to $7,220. They also agreed to provide $200 million to recruit charter school networks – the “schools of hope” plan – and $214 million for the teacher bonuses program. Legislators are expected to decide today what schools will get for construction projects. A tentative agreement would give about $69 million each to traditional public schools and charters for construction and maintenance. Universities would get $116.6 million for construction projects. Naples Daily News. Politico Florida. News Service of Florida. Associated Press. Miami Herald. Florida Politics. Legislators are considering adding money for social services at struggling traditional public schools to the “schools of hope” bill. Politico Florida. The Legislature begins its final week with such high-profile education issues as mandatory daily recess and standardized testing still on the list of things to do. Orlando Sentinel. Sarasota Herald-Tribune. The Miami arts high school that produced the creators of the Oscar-winning movie Moonlight and the Broadway hit Hamilton gets a reprieve when the Legislature reverses a decision to withhold state grant money. Originally, funding for the New World School of the Arts was slashed from the budget. After news of the cut was made public, $500,000 for the school was put back into the budget. That’s still $150,000 less than the school received this year. Miami Herald. House Speaker Richard Corcoran, R-Land O’Lakes, tweets that the problem getting mandatory daily recess in the state’s elementary schools rests with Gov. Rick Scott, not the Legislature. He did not elaborate, and a spokeswoman for Scott said she has “no idea what that tweet means. We have continued to say that we will review it if it passes.” Miami Herald.

Drug-testing students: The Monroe County School Board agrees to drug-test athletes and other students involved in extracurricular activities for a year. After the test, results will be reported to the board, which will decide if it wants to continue. Drug-testing of athletes was halted in 2014 after a parent complained that her daughter was pulled from class, taken to a drug-court facility and tested without her knowledge. Keynoter.

K-12 sexual assaults: There were about 17,000 reports of sexual assault in K-12 schools in the United States between 2011 and 2015, according to state education records and federal crime data. And that number is considered low because many students don’t report sexual assaults and some states don’t track them. Associated Press.

Teaching acceptance: Chris Ulmer, a special education teacher at Mainspring Academy in Jacksonville, is traveling the country filming interviews with children who have conditions such as autism and Down syndrome. He says each interview teaches an appreciation and acceptance for the differences in people. “No matter their level of communication, some are verbal, some are nonverbal, that doesn’t matter,” Ulmer says. “That’s not indicative of intelligence. Everybody is understanding the world in their own way and through these videos … You can see that in each one.” ABC News.

May 1, 2017 0 comment

Florida Schools Roundup

Florida schools roundup: Schools of hope, state budget, Title I and more

Compiled by redefinED staff April 27, 2017

Compiled by redefinED staff

Education bills: House leaders are considering changing the so-called “schools of hope” legislation to allow school districts to compete with charter school companies for part of the $200 million fund created by the bill. Originally, the bill was conceived as a way to recruit highly regarded charter companies to open schools in areas with persistently low-performing traditional public schools. “What we’re arguing for is an equitable playing field, where we would have the ability to be able to compete for the dollars that are set aside,” said Broward School Superintendent Robert Runcie, who helped pitch the plan to legislators. Politico Florida. A Senate committee spent just nine minutes to describe, amend and approve its version of the “schools of hope” bill. “These issues have been discussed around here, and we’re just putting them in the conference posture,” says Senate Appropriations chairman Jack Latvala, R-Clearwater. Miami Herald. School officials expect the “education train” bill to continue to morph in the final days of the legislative session, which could mean further changes to the state’s standardized testing. St. Augustine Record.

Budget discussions: Negotiations continue between Senate and House leaders on an $83 billion budget, and details are slowly emerging. The proposed deal allots $200 million for the “schools of hope” proposal and $200 million to expand the Best and Brightest teacher bonuses program, but won’t allow increases in property tax revenue for schools. Per-student spending would be increased only slightly. But, says Senate President Joe Negron, R-Stuart, “It would be a mistake to only count in the education budget what comes directly through the FEFP (Florida Education Finance Program, the formula that determine per-student spending). I think there are other educational opportunities that we’ll give to our constituents, and I think that improves the overall quality of our system.” Florida Politics. Politico Florida. News Service of Florida. The budget agreement comes only after extensive one-on-one talks between Negron and House Speaker Richard Corcoran, R-Land O’Lakes. Tampa Bay Times.

Title I concerns: School officials and educational consultants have concerns about the way the Florida House education bill would distribute federal Title I funds, which are intended to help low-income students. The House bill calls for Title I funds to be spread more evenly among schools, including charters. Cheryl Sattler, a Tallahassee consultant on federal education funding, says the bill would mean fewer dollars for children in low-income schools and fewer resources for preschools. “Low-achieving schools couldn’t expect help,” she says, “so they will stay low-performing.” Gradebook.

Financial literacy: The Senate passes a bill requiring Florida students to take a financial literacy course to graduate from high school. Senators name it the “Dorothy L. Hukill Financial Literacy Education Act” to honor the Republican senator from Port Orange, who has missed the session as she has undergoes cancer treatment. “This has been a bill that Sen. Hukill’s worked on since the day she came to the Florida Senate. I can’t even count the number of conversations that I have had with her about this bill since she’s been here with us,” said Sen. Jack Latvala. Florida Politics. WFTV. News Service of Florida.

April 27, 2017 0 comment

Florida Schools Roundup

Florida schools roundup: Budget woes, charter lawsuit, address fraud and more

Compiled by redefinED staff December 16, 2016

Compiled by redefinED staff

Budget problems: State Sen. Jack Latvala, R-Clearwater, who is chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, says Florida schools are probably going to have to raise local property taxes to close a $426 million gap in funding. Latvala said the state is unlikely to close that financial gap with state funds for a second year in a row. Latvala’s position contradicts House Speaker Richard Corcoran’s. The Land O’Lakes Republican has vowed not to raise taxes for schools. Naples Daily News. News Service of Florida.

Charter suit dismissed: A lawsuit challenging the state’s rule that withholds money for construction and repairs from charter schools that got consecutive D grades from the state has been dismissed. The case was ruled moot when the state withdrew the rule last week. But just days after that rule was dropped, another was adopted that kept the restrictions but delayed implementation for a year. Charter school advocates say they will fight the revised rule. redefinED.

Fake address query: An investigation into address fraud at Calusa Elementary School in Boca Raton is concluding, and school officials say they have found at least 11 students whose families may have lied about where they live so the students could attend the school. Final checks are being made, but officials say there won’t be enough changes to avoid the proposed rezoning that would move 372 Calusa students to other schools next year. Sun-Sentinel.

Class sizes: Lake County is the only school district in central Florida to violate the class-sizes rules, and it missed the standard by just two students. Lake officials say they will appeal the Department of Education findings. Orlando Sentinel.

December 16, 2016 0 comment

Florida Schools Roundup

Florida schools roundup: Tuition fight, better grades, charter boost and more

Compiled by redefinED staff December 5, 2016

Compiled by redefinED staff

In-state tuition fight: State Sen. Jack Latvala, R-Clearwater, is unhappy that newly elected Sen. Greg Steube, R-Sarasota, has introduced a bill that would prohibit undocumented immigrant students from receiving in-state tuition for college. Latvala, who is the House appropriations chairman, was one of the backers of that measure. “The final chapter hasn’t been played on that,” Latvala vows. Gradebook.

Grade improvements: Only 51 of the 3,333 Florida schools improved their grades from an F to a C or better last year, according to the state Department of Education. Six of those were in Duval County. Officials there credit new principals and teachers, and a focus on the needs of individual students through small-group instruction. Florida Times-Union.

Boost for charters: The wave of school choice election winners should be a boost to the charter school industry, say political analysts. They think Florida lawmakers are likely to reduce school boards’ control over approval of charter schools, give struggling neighborhoods the freedom to form “educational success zones” and bring in for-profit charter companies, and give more tax money for construction to charter schools. Palm Beach Post.

Teacher shortages: Mid-year resignations have left schools in Indian River, Martin and St. Lucie counties with more teaching vacancies now than when school started. Those districts still have 52 teaching openings, up from 39 in August. TCPalm. More than half of the 200-plus classroom vacancies in Hillsborough County have been filled by redeploying subject coaches, resource teachers and some assistant principals. Only about 80 jobs have yet to be filled. Gradebook.

Appointed superintendent: A drive begins to turn the Leon County school superintendent’s job into an appointed one. Organizers hope to get the initiative on the ballot in 2018. If it passes, the school board would start hiring the superintendent in 2020. Tallahassee Democrat.

December 5, 2016 0 comment