TALLAHASSEE – How Florida gives state money to organizations that provide after-school care, such as Big Brothers Big Sisters and the Boys & Girls Clubs, won’t change anytime soon. The 2016-17 budget that Gov. Rick Scott signed Thursday maintains a decades-old funding structure that designates money to a handful of prominent organizations — which means an…
Education funding trial began this week: http://www.chron.com/news/article/Failing-grade-Trial-over-Florida-s-schools-6889498.php Prayer at School Board Meetings issue now in U.S. District Court of Appeals: http://www.dailybulletin.com/social-affairs/20160304/chino-valley-unified-to-appeal-ruling-on-praying Concerns raised about school mock elections this year: http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/farina-worried-bullying-schools-hold-mock-election-article-1.2567081 John B. King confirmed as U.S. Secretary of Education: http://time.com/4258604/senate-confirm-education-secretary/ Teen inventors from Intel’s Science Talent Search: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/education/wp/2016/03/16/meet-the-teen-who-just-won-150000-for-inventing-a-device-to-diagnose-lung-disease/
Charlotte, Florida — The Florida legislative session is over. Anyone following the Legislature knows it finished on time with the House and Senate working remarkably well together. The Legislature agreed on an $82 billion budget that increased education funding by one percent. It returned $400 million in tax cuts, far short of the $1 billion Gov.…
PENSACOLA — State higher education officials on Wednesday afternoon debated whether public university students should be required to learn about U.S. history, government and politics, as some members lamented what they saw as a disheartening lack of civic understanding among young adults. The day after Florida’s presidential primary, Alan Levine, a member of the State…
TALLAHASSEE — A showdown over Florida’s public schools that began Monday in a Tallahassee courtroom is expected to delve into whether the changes pushed by Republican governors and a GOP-controlled Legislature over the past two decades helped or hurt the state’s school children. Education groups and parents from Duval and Pasco counties filed a lawsuit…
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – It’s primary election day in Florida, but since not all the state’s registered voters get to participate, some folks believe it’s time to vote for a change in the system. Florida is one of only a handful of states that has a completely closed primary – meaning that people can only cast…
TALLAHASSEE — Gov. Rick Scott surprised many observers on Tuesday when he announced plans to veto $256 million in projects, a much smaller list than expected after lawmakers blocked some of his top legislative priorities. While it’s more than $200 million larger than the veto list last year, which sparked anger among many members who…
Many high school voters will be casting their ballots for the first time this Tuesday. Historically, most 18 year olds don’t participate in elections. And the 2014 midterm election was no exception. About one in four 18 year olds registered; 12.5 percent reported voting, according to U.S. Census Bureau statistics. Even during the last presidential election, only one-third…
TALLAHASSEE — The Legislature sent a massive omnibus education bill to Gov. Rick Scott’s desk on Friday after spending the final hours of the 2016 legislative session negotiating privately and trading several amendments that were each more than a hundred pages long. The House voted 82-33 on Friday to pass a heavily amended HB 7029, a…
A wide-ranging education bill dealing with everything from funding for high-performing universities to high-school membership in athletic associations made it through the final day of the legislative session Friday, despite the long odds that such policy “trains” often face. But in the process, lawmakers cut a provision aimed at ensuring that taxpayer-provided construction dollars for…