Tax-credit scholarship advocates target FEA in massive rally

TALLAHASSEE — Several thousand supporters of tax-credit funded scholarships targeted the statewide teachers’ union in a massive rally near the Capitol on Tuesday. Black and Hispanic religious leaders and civil rights activists, including Martin Luther King III, implored the Florida Education Association to drop its lawsuit challenging the voucher-like program that serves about 75,000 students.…

Pre-emption, a question of who’s the boss

The state legislature is meeting until March 11 and that has local governments looking anxiously at the state capitol. Lawmakers have filed more than 20 bills seeking to pre-empt local authority on issues including oil and gas regulations, construction standards for abortion clinics and whether a town can declare itself a sanctuary city. Tallahassee City Commissioner…

Florida Legislature could discuss prayer at high school sports events

TALLAHASSEE – A state senator from St. Petersburg says he might wade into the controversial issue of prayer at high school athletic events during this legislative session. Republican Jeff Brandes’ interest in the topic stems from an incident in December when the Florida High School Athletic Association wouldn’t allow two Christian schools — Tampa’s Cambridge Christian School…

Education lawsuit nears trial

A lawsuit filed in 2009 alleging that Florida has failed in its most important duty — providing every student with a uniform and a high quality education — will finally go to trial in Tallahassee this March. To that end, the attorneys presenting the case are asking the community for financial help to ensure that…

Jeb Bush proposes sweeping education overhaul

Jeb Bush on Monday outlined a plan to overhaul education that seeks to diminish the federal role while providing more incentive for people to save. Coming on Martin Luther King Day, Bush said, “access to a quality education is the great civil rights challenge of our time.” Ideas include: Create Education Savings Accounts to replace 529 college savings…

Florida Senate moves ahead with “choice in sports” proposal

A sweeping proposal to bring “school choice” to Florida high school athletics and other extracurricular activities passed its first Senate committee Thursday, despite concerns that it could encourage rampant recruiting of student-athletes. Senate Bill 684 — approved unanimously by the Senate Pre-K-12 Education Committee — builds on lawmakers’ efforts in recent years to grant more flexibility for student-athletes…

FSBA #FridayFive – Week of Jan. 10, 2016

1.      Legislative session hopes to be peaceful:  http://www.sunshinestatenews.com/story/legislative-leaders-look-peaceful-session-start 2.      Daily updates posted:  https://fsba.org/2016-legislative-session-resource-center/ 3.      Florida school districts struggling with teacher shortage:  http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/education/fl-schools-teacher-shortage-20160113-story.html 4.      Kindergarten is the new first grade: http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2016/01/07/kindergarten-today-looks-like-first-grade-a-decade-ago 5.      Kids want Presidential Candidates to debate science:  http://www.theguardian.com/environment/climate-consensus-97-per-cent/2016/jan/14/kids-ask-us-presidential-candidates-to-debate-science