Florida education news: First Amendment rights, flu shots and another superintendents struggles – Tampa Bay Times

PUBLIC SPACES: Pasco County schools superintendent Kurt Browning takes some heat on his social media accounts, and blocks one of his toughest critics. He reverses himself after being reminded that because he uses the accounts for public business, he cant block the public. The Manatee County School Board faces accusations of discrimination after having a black man removed from its business meeting for refusing to sit down, the Herald-Tribune reports. Video from the Bradenton Herald.

LET THEM PRAY: A federal appeals court reinstates the First Amendment-related lawsuit in which Tampas Cambridge Christian School sued after it was not allowed to use the public address system for prayer at a state high school football championship game, the News Service of Florida reports.

SEEKING SUBSTITUTES: With its substitute teacher fill rate down, the Pasco County school district proposes to increase its pay rate.

FLU SEASON: Hillsborough County schools are experiencing an early outbreak of the flu.

TOP PRINCIPAL: Pasco eSchool founding administrator JoAnne Glenn is named Pasco County 2020 Principal of the Year.

TENSIONS MOUNT: The Marion County School Board will ask Gov. Ron DeSantis to review a report on how superintendent Heidi Maier treated a whistleblower, with an eye toward removing Maier, the Ocala Star-Banner reports. The board and Maier, whose term expires in November 2020, have been fighting an escalating power battle for several months.

FIX IT: Manatee Countys aging Witt Elementary School will get a complete renovation, despite some calls to raze and replace it, the Bradenton Herald reports.

READING RESULTS: The Sarasota County school district releases its latest promotion and retention report, indicating about two-thirds of students were on grade level for reading, the Herald-Tribune reports.

GROWING STRONG: The Santa Rosa County Commission instructs its staff to begin drafting an ordinance to impose school impact fees, just months after saying it didnt have enough information to justify such a move, the Pensacola News-Journal reports. The Lee County school district breaks ground on a new high school as it launches a series of projects to address rising enrollment, the Fort Myers News-Press reports.

MAINTENANCE NEEDS: During a battle over a school district sales tax request, Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry asked Duval County school employees to tell him about classroom maintenance needs so he could get them fixed. The ideas came, but no work got done, the Florida Times-Union reports.

SCHOOL DAYS: An Orange County school district survey indicates most parents do not want to have later high school start times, the Orlando Sentinel reports.

TEACHER PAY: Some Alachua County teachers say their salaries dont allow for a stable lifestyle, and a 2 percent raise will do little to help, WUFT reports.

FOOD INSECURITY: The Miami Super Bowl host committee donates breakfast carts to several south Florida schools to help get meals to needing children, the Miami Times reports.

MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES: Citrus County School Board members express dismay with the length of time its taking to get counselors into the schools, the Citrus County Chronicle reports.

SCIENCE LESSONS: Sixth graders at a Lake County middle school will help NASA collect data for a study on airplane contrails, the Daily Commercial reports.

SUPERINTENDENTS EVALUATION: The Polk County School Board says its very satisfied with superintendent Jacqueline Byrd, the Ledger reports.

CHARTER SCHOOLS: A Monroe County charter school prepares to relocate as its lease expires, the Key West Citizen reports.

ON BOARD: Miami-Dade County superintendent Alberto Carvalho is reappointed to the National Assessment Governing Board, Florida Politics reports.

MEDICAL MARIJUANA: The Gulf County school district is the latest to adopt a required medical marijuana usage policy, the Northwest Florida Daily News reports.

BAD ACTS: An Orange County charter schools administrator is arrested on accusations he took videos under the skirts of several females at the school, Fox 35 reports.

TODAY: House PreK-12 Appropriations, 9 a.m.

ICYMI: Yesterdays Florida education news roundup

Read the original here:
Florida education news: First Amendment rights, flu shots and another superintendents struggles - Tampa Bay Times