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Florida education news: Tuition, graduation, discrimination and more

Sat, 18 May 2013 07:21:53 EDT

JUST SAY NO: Gov. Rick Scott asks Florida's university presidents for their support in his opposition to increased tuition rates.

University presidents balk at Scott's request to co-sign tuition veto

Fri, 17 May 2013 21:18:06 EDT

University presidents expect Gov. Rick Scott to veto the tuition increase that lawmakers included in the budget. But they didn't expect to be put in the middle of the debate.Here is an excerpt from a story in Saturday's paper about the governor's request that university presidents sign a letter saying they don't want any additional …

Pinellas cuts 100 to 115 ESE classroom aides

Fri, 17 May 2013 16:06:34 EDT
Superintendent Mike Grego announced in late April that he was changing staffing levels in special education because Pinellas County Schools spends far more, on average, than other schools districts.

Hillsborough will launch ESE focus groups

Fri, 17 May 2013 15:40:08 EDT

The Hillsborough County school district will conduct focus groups this summer about exceptional student education, the district's new ESE chief told an advisory council on Friday.

Principals and assistant principals, parents, teachers and students will take part in the directed discussions.

"What we're hoping to see is a thread among all the stakeholders of some of the goals and places where we need to go," Maryann Parks, general director of ESE, told the Superintendent's Advisory Council for the Education of Students with Disabilities.

Now on the job a month, Parks said she also is trying to get ideas from other districts about how to get more ESE parents involved at the school level. "We have to look at what our peers are doing and learn from them," she said. She expects to return to the council with more information about both efforts.

In addition to the normal end-of-the-year responsibilities of a department that serves 29,000 students, Parks is implementing safety improvements that come about in the aftermath of two student deaths in 2012.

Among them: ESE paraprofessionals will all be given formal training before the new school year begins, consistent throughout the district. The sessions will last two days, with each paraprofessional attending a half-day. A national speaker will take part in the training, Parks said. Then when school begins, sessions will be given to all employees on safety and "taking ownership of all the students."

At Friday's meeting, the board also elected new officers. Mary Merryday will become the new president, replacing longtime president Ana Sanders. Merryday is a parent liaison for the district. Glenda Koshy, supervisor for the districts' autism spectrum disorder program, will be vice president. Rob Rose, the parent of two children with autism, will be secretary.

Pinellas puts out list of principal reappointments

Fri, 17 May 2013 12:04:06 EDT
The Pinellas County School Board is expected to sign off on a slew of principal reappointments at its meeting next week.

Some Pinellas administrators still looking for positions

Fri, 17 May 2013 09:30:40 EDT
Pinellas County school superintendent Mike Grego announced in April that he would cut 13 jobs in the administration. Of the 13 jobs he planned to eliminate, five were administrators. Three were "professional/technical/supervisory" and five were support positions.

Florida education news: Budget vetoes, teacher layoffs, STEM lessons and more

Fri, 17 May 2013 06:26:11 EDT
GOBBLE, GOBBLE: Gov. Rick Scott faces pressure over what to leave in the state budget and what to veto. More from dismissal of one of its lawsuits challenging the state's merit pay law sitting down.

Time for annual release of FCAT results to begin

Thu, 16 May 2013 12:39:08 EDT
In what has become an annual rite of spring, the Florida Department of Education has scheduled its media briefing on how to translate FCAT results for next week Monday, meaning the actual results won't be far behind. Not Monday, we've been told, because of the 11 a.m. press call, and not Tuesday because the State Board of Education meets. But …