Florida parent takes fight for school rights to court

The big story: Several school districts across Florida have policies allowing their superintendents to move students out of schools, without room for appeal, if “circumstances” dictate.

Few ever use it.

In 10 years as Pasco County superintendent, Kurt Browning has invoked the rule once. The family involved sued in federal court, saying their constitutional rights were violated.

Now it looks like things are about to change. Read the latest story here.

The fight over parent rights in Florida schools has popped up in several school districts lately. Among the other instances:

• Sarasota County School Board member Bridget Ziegler, a founding Moms for Liberty member, criticized a school for allowing a group to publicize QueerCon to students, the North Port Sun reports. She said schools are not the proper place to promote cultural and political activities, which should be decided upon by parents.

• The Escambia County school district dropped its Student Rights and Responsibilities Handbook test. It faced heavy criticism from parents over what they saw as inappropriate content, the Pensacola News-Journal reports.

Other hot topics

Book challenges: School districts across Florida and the nation have experienced increases in book challenges over the past year, mainly from coordinated conservative groups, WJXT reports. Florida was second to Texas in the number of bans, Florida Politics reports.

Enrollment: Flagler County school population has hit a new record high, but doesn’t appear to reflect the actual growth in the community, Flagler Live reports.

Security: The Miami-Dade County school district has hired a new director to oversee school safety mandates. He’s the husband of Broward County’s superintendent, who lately came under fire from state officials, the Miami Herald reports.

Taxes: Supporters of Charlotte County’s school property tax referendum have started campaigning for renewal of the measure in November, the Port Charlotte Sun reports.

Teacher shortfalls: Palm Beach County schools have begun looking internationally for educators to fill teaching vacancies, WPTV reports. • State education commissioner Manny Diaz Jr. invited New York teachers who’ve been fired because of being unvaccinated to come find jobs in Florida, Florida’s Voice reports.

From the police blotter ... A deputy accidentally fired a gun inside a Martin County school, WPEC reports. No one was injured.

From the court docket ... The judge in the Parkland school shooting case declined to step down, the Sun-Sentinel reports. • Lawyers for the state have appealed a ruling that blocked implementation of a new law restricting diversity training in workplaces and schools, the News Service of Florida reports.

Don’t miss a story. Here’s the link to yesterday’s roundup.

Before you go ... This kid is such a crackup. Have you seen him in The Adam Project on Netflix?

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