Florida school districts received another round of state test results on Friday, even as an independent contractor reviews the validity of the exams. The state Department of Education publicly released the passing rates for two tests that stand as graduation requirements — Algebra I and 10th-grade language arts — along with individual student information to…
TAMPA — The State Board of Education took steps Wednesday to prevent charter school applicants with poor past performance from opening new schools. Saying the state should not “pass the trash” from one district to another, board members unanimously approved a rule to require applicants to disclose their past charter school affiliations for the most…
The backlash against public use of Confederate flags has built quickly since nine parishioners were gunned down inside a South Carolina church last week. Alabama removed the flag from its state capitol grounds Wednesday, and political leaders in Virginia, Maryland, Tennessee and North Carolina have moved to remove Confederate flag symbols from their state license…
Achievement is the expectation for students enrolled in Dunbar High School’s Academy for Technology Excellence, and students continue to make that expectation a reality each day. Recent graduate Ian Sexton took 1st place in the Excel 2010 category at the Microsoft Office National Championship last week, earning a spot to compete at the upcoming worldwide…
Because of the unusual schedule of the regular 2015 Legislative Session and the subsequent special session to craft a state budget, FSBA revised how we conduct our popular Legislative Session Review Workshops. In place of some of our usual on-site workshops, we have offered a series of webinars to provide this information. Last month, we conducted…
This morning, Governor Scott signed the state budget after vetoing more than $461 million in spending – reportedly a record amount in total vetoes. The Governor’s lengthy veto message began with an overview of the state budget highlights, followed by a description and rationale for each item vetoed. Governor Scott DID not veto any funding…
More than 40 years of research shows — no matter a family’s income or socioeconomic background — family engagement in education is essential for student success. Students whose families are involved attend school more regularly, earn better grades, enroll in higher-level programs and have higher graduation rates. Research also shows that family engagement is critical…
The Legislature is on track to approve the state budget this evening, bringing to a conclusion a long, and sometimes quarrelsome, legislative season. During the regular and special session, we did your best to keep you informed of the legislature’s progress in crafting the budget and to provide you with more specific information on the status of…
$15.4 million of federal funding is headed to Florida to support K-12 education. That money will be paired with state contributions to support nearly 700 Americorps volunteers in three major Florida cities. Jacksonville, Orlando and Miami are receiving a large influx of Americorps volunteers for education. Wendy Spencer heads up the Corporation for National and…
Florida lawmakers have a cooling off period to review their proposed 2015-16 spending plan before voting on it. The details are many, tucked away in pages of text. To get a good understanding of the education budget, it’s best to look at three key documents — the FEFP conference report, the implementing bill and the budget bill conference report,…