Florida School Boards Association
Registering a student for public school involves submitting everything from proof of immunizations, health exams and birth certificates to details about gender, race, emergency contacts and more. But the newest registration requirement this upcoming school year is a little-noticed provision that is now drawing concern, confusion and criticism as administrators grapple with Florida’s new school…
The Florida Board of Education next week is expected to approve a rule outlining how a new scholarship program for bullied students will work. But while the Hope Scholarship program, approved by the Legislature and signed into law by Gov. Rick Scott earlier this year, begins with the new school year, there will not be…
Alternative student-discipline programs in Florida need an overhaul, according to the commission investigating the Parkland shooting. Commission members, meeting Tuesday in Sunrise, recommended reforms to school-diversion programs, created to shield students who commit low-risk, non-violent offenses from legal consequences. Read More
For years, education leaders in Florida have been ratcheting up standards and expectations for students in public schools. Policymakers have increased the passing scores on the state-mandated tests that determine whether students can graduate and the grades their schools receive. Just last month, they voted to hike the required scores for graduation for public school…
Now that private-school scholarships for bullied Florida students are a reality, public school district leaders want to know exactly who will qualify for the available funds. They made clear Wednesday their concerns that the program could be ripe for abuse by families more interested in getting vouchers than in protecting children who really were victimized.…
After the Parkland school shooting in February, the state’s mandate was simple and swift: Put an armed officer in every public school by August. But the new state requirement — passed three weeks after the February school massacre in the hopes of deterring future campus shootings — is proving difficult for schools to carry out…
After the Parkland school shooting, state and local leaders began making plans to enhance school security. The latest effort is a suspicious activity reporting application, to be launched by the Florida Department of Education and Attorney General’s Office. The agencies announced the idea to administrators and teachers on Friday. Fortify FL will allow people to…
Looking at the new requirements coming down to school districts this year as part of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act and the amount of funding coming from the state for those initiatives, the numbers, according to School Safety and Security Chief Mike Jones, just don’t add up. Read More
Donna Berghauser’s office at McLane Middle School is filled with inspirational pictures, quotes and fun posters designed to get students to open up. But the one kids relate to most is a poster that asks “How are you feeling today?” with pictures of faces displaying different emotions. There’s happy, sad, angry and right in the…
Once again, we’re talking about arming teachers as a solution to gun violence. After a student gunned down 10 people Friday at a high school in suburban Houston, some Texas elected officials are resurrecting the idea, which has been floated by President Trump and debated across the country since the Parkland, Florida, school shooting in…