HELPING BLACK MALES: The Pinellas school district will launch a pilot program aimed at improving the academic performance of black boys. (Photo from Urban League of Greater Miami)

BOUNDARY BATTLE: Hernando school officials prepare new attendance zones to accommodate a K-8 school rising in Weeki Wachee.

FACING FINES: South Florida school districts hope to stave off multimillion-dollar class size penalties, the Miami Herald reports.

NO SMOKING: State College of Florida bans all tobacco use on all its campuses, at off-campus events and in college vehicles, the Bradenton Herald reports.

LOOKING FOR LEADERS: Indian River is competing with Collier and Lee in the hunt for a new superintendent, the Vero Beach Press-Journal reports.

TAKE THIS CUP ... Escambia schools are poised to adopt a policy allowing random drug testing of students who participate in sports or extracurriculars or who park on campus, the Pensacola News-Journal reports.

CHANGING AP: The College Board plans major revisions of the Advanced Placement course curricula, focusing on the content as well as the tests, the NY Times reports.

ANOTHER TACK: Moving in the opposite direction of Florida, new California Gov. Jerry Brown sacks state education board members who are pro-charter and pro-teacher accountability, the LA Times reports. 

Visit the Gradebook at noon for an interview with Pinellas Classroom Teachers Association president Kim Black.