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Negotiators for the Pinellas County school district and the teachers union discuss salaries and benefits during bargaining on Sept. 27, 2023.
Contract talks progress amid teacher shortage across Florida
A roundup of Florida education news from around the state
Senator’s wife seeks Hillsborough school board seat
Nadia Combs, Hillsborough County School Board Chair, speaks during the yearly back-to-school news conference for Hillsborough County at Hillsborough High School on Friday, Aug. 4, in Tampa. She said she expects an expensive attempt by her political opposition to try to "paint me as someone I'm not."
Chairman Nadia Combs expects an expensive try “to paint me as someone I’m not.”
Top officials say Florida has no wait list for school vouchers
St. Paul Catholic School in St. Petersburg is one of hundreds of Florida schools to accept state-funded vouchers and tax credit scholarships. Expansion of the voucher program has led to funding delays.
A roundup of Florida education news from around the state
In Florida schools, parent permission now a must for many more activities
Students board waiting buses at Gulf High School in Pasco County in April 2022. Today, because of new state rules, Pasco students must get a parent's permission to participate in all activities and events, including football games.
Supporters say the change will boost parental involvement but others fear a drop in student participation.

Latest

  1. Contract talks progress amid teacher shortage across Florida
    6 minutes ago• Education
    Negotiators for the Pinellas County school district and the teachers union discuss salaries and benefits during bargaining on Sept. 27, 2023.
  2. Senator’s wife seeks Hillsborough school board seat
    Yesterday• Education
    Nadia Combs, Hillsborough County School Board Chair, speaks during the yearly back-to-school news conference for Hillsborough County at Hillsborough High School on Friday, Aug. 4, in Tampa. She said she expects an expensive attempt by her political opposition to try to "paint me as someone I'm not."
  3. Hillsborough school district and its teachers are close to a deal on pay
    Sept. 29• Education
    Negotiating teams for the Hillsborough County School District, left; and the Hillsborough Classroom Teachers Association, right, near the end of a long bargaining session on Sept. 28, 2023.
  5. Top officials say Florida has no wait list for school vouchers
    Sept. 29• Education
    St. Paul Catholic School in St. Petersburg is one of hundreds of Florida schools to accept state-funded vouchers and tax credit scholarships. Expansion of the voucher program has led to funding delays.
  6. Florida is funding vouchers as fast as it can, education commissioner says
    Sept. 28• Education
    Education commissioner Manny Diaz Jr. says the Florida Department of Education is attempting to make sure every student who has received a state voucher is funded as soon as possible.
  7. To opt in or opt out? The choice changes for parents in Florida schools
    Sept. 28• Education
    Some Florida school districts are requiring students to get parent permission to attend sporting events, join clubs and participate in other school related activities. Supporters say the opt-in move is an effort to ensure parents are informed and involved in their children's education.
  8. In Florida schools, parent permission now a must for many more activities
    Sept. 28• Education
    Students board waiting buses at Gulf High School in Pasco County in April 2022. Today, because of new state rules, Pasco students must get a parent's permission to participate in all activities and events, including football games.
  9. Florida struggles with school vouchers as program expands
    Sept. 27• Education
    Sagemont Prepatory School's lower school campus in Weston is shown on Monday Sept. 25, 2023. Gov. Ron DeSantis' office announced Friday evening that the school has 'direct ties to the Chinese Communist Party' and has been suspended from the state's school choice scholarship program.
  10. DeSantis’ office pledged to investigate bid-rigging case. It didn’t get far.
    Sept. 27• Politics
    Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, left, then-education commissioner Richard Corcoran and then-Speaker of the House Chris Sprowls as they address the audience during a news conference at St. Petersburg Collegiate High School on Tuesday, March 15, 2022, in St. Petersburg.
  11. Florida school voucher money is flowing again, but delays persist
    Sept. 26• Education
    Sen. Corey Simon, R-Tallahassee, urges senators to support HB 1, expanding Florida's school voucher program, during floor debate on March 23. The measure later passed and was signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis, but many families are having problems getting their voucher money this fall.
  12. Florida school board candidates make issue of library books
    Sept. 26• Education
    As school board races gain steam across Florida, candidates are talking about what types of books belong in classrooms and libraries. "And Tango Makes Three" has been among the titles challenged in some districts.
  13. Judge refuses to block Florida law banning paycheck deductions for union dues
    Sept. 26• Politics
    District Judge Mark Walker on Friday issued denied a preliminary injunction sought by the Florida Education Association, the United Faculty of Florida and unions representing employees of the Alachua County, Hernando County and Pinellas County school districts and the University of Florida.
  14. In Hillsborough school board races, book challenges are an early focus
    Sept. 25• Education
    Amanda Darrow with the Utah Pride Center poses on Dec. 16, 2021, with books that have been the subject of parent complaints in Salt Lake City. As the nationwide surge in book challenges continues, the issue has already become a major discussion point in the 2024 races for Hillsborough County School Board.
  15. Lawyers struggle to advise Florida schools on books
    Sept. 25• Education
    A string of email correspondence shows that school board lawyers have grappled with advising Florida school leaders about how to interpret new state laws on library book selection.
  16. DeSantis, citing China ties, drops 4 private school campuses from voucher programs
    Sept. 23• Education
    Republican presidential candidate Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks at the Iowa Faith & Freedom Coalition's fall banquet, Saturday, Sept. 16, 2023, in Des Moines, Iowa.
  17. Hillsborough schools data breach exposed information on over 250 students
    Sept. 22• Education
    From Hillsborough County school district headquarters in downtown Tampa on Friday, officials said a recent data breach exposed protected information on dozens students.
  18. Six weeks in, Florida families, schools have yet to see voucher money
    Sept. 22• Education
    Florida expanded its voucher program that helps families attend private schools this year. But many recipients say the state has not paid the first quarterly payment on time, pushing the survival of many small private schools to the brink.
  19. Florida leads the nation in school book bans. That should terrify us.
    Sept. 22• Opinion
    Education commissioner Manny Diaz Jr. speaks as Gov. Ron DeSantis looks on during an event put on by the governor’s office at State Attorney's Office 13th Judicial Circuit in Tampa on Wednesday, March 8, 2023.
  20. Corcoran, 2 others make their case to be New College’s next president
    Sept. 21• Education
    Richard Corcoran, left, speaks with David Rancourt, the dean of students at New College of Florida, on Thursday, Sept. 21, 2023 in Sarasota. The two were at a forum for faculty as part of the process to select the next president at New College, where Corcoran has served as interim president for six months. Corcoran is one of three candidates for the permanent job.
  21. Florida families say school vouchers are unpaid, causing major disruption
    Sept. 21• Education
    Gov. Ron DeSantis signs a bill to expand school vouchers across Florida during a news conference on March 27 in Miami. Six months later, many families say they have yet to get their first voucher installments paid, putting their children's education at risk.
  22. Effort to ban books with graphic public readings spreads in Florida
    Sept. 21• Education
    Attendees in a crowded chamber room wave cards of support for a speaker during the public comment portion of a meeting of the Seminole County School Board in Sanford on Tuesday evening, September 19, 2023. Many of the speakers were commenting on the subject of book bans.
  23. On campus with UF President Ben Sasse as he seeks a ‘north star’ beyond rankings
    Sept. 21• Education
    Erica McCray, left, an associate dean in the College of Education, meets University of Florida President Ben Sasse moments before Sasse shared his strategic vision for UF during a meeting with faculty on Aug. 25 in Gainesville.
  24. Florida university staff could be fired under proposed restroom policy
    Sept. 20• Education
    The Florida Board of Governors has proposed a policy to go with Florida's new law regulating who can use what restrooms at the state's public universities. Violators could face discipline, including dismissal.
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