IMPROVING TEACHER QUALITY: Hillsborough celebrates winning a $100 million grant to reform teacher evaluations, pay, preparation and other aspects of the job from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. (Times photo, Edmund Fountain)

SPEAKING OF TEACHER QUALITY: Someone has to prepare them, and the Florida Department of Education has decided to rate Florida's teacher preparation programs.

NINE CANDIDATES: Hernando has pared its list of superintendent hopefuls to nine, with interviews to come in January.

TEMPEST, WITH A TWIST: Dunedin High's production of the Shakespeare classic includes puppets, computer graphics and all sorts of different effect.

TOP SUPERINTENDENT: Broward's Jim Notter wins superintendent of the year honors from the state's coalition of education foundations, the Miami Herald reports.

FCAT REWARDS: Osceola schools will give prizes to students who log in to FCAT Explorer over the winter break, the Orlando Sentinel reports.

TEACHING CONTRACEPTION: Collier revamps its sex education curriculum to be clear about the consequences and how to prevent them, the Naples Daily News reports.

COLLEGE COMMITMENT: The first group of students completing Duval's AVID program see the value in pursuing higher education, the Florida Times-Union reports.

CITIES CONCERNED: Broward city leaders want to prevent major school boundary changes that could affect their residents, the Sun-Sentinel reports.

JUST FOR SCHOOLS: Seminole considers going solo in its request for a local sales tax after the County Commission signals its unwillingness to join the effort, the Orlando Sentinel reports.

PARTY ALL THE TIME: UF president Bernie Machen says the school has room to add rigor after a survey shows students feel like they party more than they study, the Gainesville Sun reports.