Around the state: A charter school company has identified more district schools where it wants space for its own operations under the state’s new Schools of Hope law, legislators are trying to understand how $47 million in state funding didn’t get to the school districts or scholarship students as intended, eight Bay County school employees are cautioned but not suspended or fired over their social media remarks about murdered conservative activist Charlie Kirk, and the first public school chaplain in the state is now working in Hernando County. Here are details about those stories and others from the state’s districts, private schools, and colleges and universities:
Broward: The Miami-based charter school company Mater Academy Inc. has informed the school district that it wants to open business rent-free by 2027 in 27 schools. It cites the new state Schools of Hope law that requires districts to allow select charter companies to open in or near low-performing schools that have space available. District spokesman John Sullivan said the district is “analyzing which schools might potentially qualify under the criteria,” but that “we already know that several schools will not be eligible, either because they do not meet one of the rule’s criteria or because they lack available space.” Sun Sentinel. Twelve students were hospitalized Thursday after being pepper-sprayed during a fight at Blanche Ely High School in Pompano Beach. The spray was used by one of the students. Sun Sentinel. Miami Herald.
Tampa Bay area: Mater Academy also notified the Hillsborough, Pinellas and Pasco school districts that it wants space to start programs in nearly 50 schools by 2027: nearly 30 in Hillsborough, more than a dozen in Pinellas and six in Pasco. Tampa Bay Times. A 16-year-old student at Riverview High School in Hillsborough County was arrested Friday and accused of having a knife on campus. Deputies said the boy threatened a classmate with it after they argued over a girl. WTSP.
Orange: An altercation between two students at Oak Ridge High School in Orlando carried over Thursday to a nearby park, where a 16-year-old student died after being shot and killed by a 15-year-old classmate. It began when one bumped into the other and refused to apologize, and they agreed to move the argument to the park. WESH.
Palm Beach: Contract negotiations between the district and teachers have stalled over pay. Union officials have asked for a 5% raise, while the district has countered with increases ranging from 1.05% for new teachers to 1.8% for those rated highly effective. The average boost of 1.5% would be the smallest raise in at least a decade. District officials say a decline in enrollment and state funding make it impossible to offer more. Another bargaining session is expected Oct. 21. Palm Beach Post.
Duval: Superintendent Christopher Bernier said the school board’s rejection last week of a deal to sell the district headquarters and buy a replacement building doesn’t mean the idea of a sale is dead. “Our real estate agent … will work with both the buyers and the person who is selling to try to find, based upon the board vote, where we are, and then we will be making some recommendations next week to the board,” he said. WJXT. Terrie Brady, the former president of the teachers union, could get 70 years in prison after pleading guilty last week to stealing more than $1 million from the union. Florida Times-Union. Jacksonville Today. WTLV.
Brevard: Closing Cape View Elementary School in Cape Canaveral because of declining enrollment and the district’s financial problems is now under consideration by the school board. Cape View has room for 600 students, but just 270 are enrolled. A formal proposal could go before the board next month, with a decision possible by January. Parents and members of the community have begun to organize a protest. Florida Today.
Seminole: Some parents are calling on Gov. Ron DeSantis to remove Superintendent Serita Beamon because they think she didn’t inform them quickly enough after a paraprofessional at Sabal Point Elementary School told a school resource officer that he thought about killing a 6-year-old student and committing a shooting at the school. School board members will meet this week with Sabal staff and sheriff’s officials to see how the communication process can be improved. Spectrum News 13. WKMG. Florida’s Voice.
Manatee: The Mater Academy charter company also has notified the school district that it wants to use space in Lincoln Memorial Middle School and the Sara Scott Harllee Center to start schools under the state’s Schools of Hope program. School board member Heather Felton says, “Over my dead body are they going to take that building (the Harllee Center).” Bradenton Herald. WWSB. WTSP. Six students from Fort Pierce Central High School in St. Lucie County were hospitalized Saturday night when three school buses transporting a school band from a competition in Bradenton crashed. A vehicle ran into the back of one of the buses, pushing it into the second and then into a third. None of the injuries is thought to be life-threatening. Manatee’s school district provided buses to take the rest of the students home. Bradenton Herald. Sarasota Herald-Tribune. WPTV. WFLA. WWSB. WTSP. WPEC.
St. Lucie, Martin, Indian River: All three of the Treasure Coast’s three school districts have now reached contract agreements with teachers. Starting teachers will be paid $51,300 in Martin County, $49,160 in St. Lucie and $48,583 in Indian River County. But St. Lucie and Martin also pay teachers a supplement from a voter-approved additional property-tax millage. TCPalm. A policy in Martin County that doesn’t permit grades under 50% even if assignments aren’t completed is being questioned by some school board members, teachers and parents. It’s been a policy for three years, but had been loosely enforced until recently. WPTV.
Alachua: Gainesville city commissioners have voted to offer the Citizens Field football stadium to the school board to purchase. District officials have expressed an interest in buying the stadium, which is used for high school football games. No price has been disclosed, but the school board would be required to continue using it for games and to build a new stadium by 2028. WCJB. A “little unicorn of a school” started 51 years ago in the small community of Archer is still offering students what their parents call a “magical” and “whimsical” learning experience. Jordan Glen School has a traditional academic profile, with core classes, standardized testing, grades, and sports. But it also integrates time in the outdoors and emphasizes character education, and has grown to more than 100 students in grades PreK-8. NextSteps.
Bay: Eight of the nine school district employees who were under investigation for social media comments they made about murdered conservative activist Charlie Kirk will receive letters of professional guidance instead of being suspended or fired, according to district officials, though one will be referred to the Department of Education’s Office of Professional Practices. The ninth was cleared after the allegations were determined to be unfounded. WJHG. WMBB.
Hernando: The first public school chaplain in the state now works in the district to offer “support, services, and programs” to students who ask for it under a recently enacted state program. Rev. Jack Martin, a clergy under the Christian Life Assembly of God church, is a supporter of conservative politicians and causes, but says his motivation is “not anything political, it’s not to proselytize; it’s to help kids.” Florida Phoenix.
Highlands: A former Lake Placid High School teacher and coach recently had his teaching certificate permanently revoked by the state Education Practices Commission. Juan Merlo had been accused of having a sexual relationship with a student from 2006 to 2008. The relationship was not reported until 2024, and Merlo resigned shortly after the district investigated. Highlands News-Sun.
Putnam: A 9-year-old student at Middleton-Burney Elementary School in Crescent City was arrested last week during recess. Deputies said he pulled a knife and threatened a classmate. He was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon without intent to kill. WCJB. WJXT.
Gulf: William Bailey, a 43-year-old engineer for Consolidated Communications in Port St. Joe, has been appointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis to the vacant District 1 seat on the school board. He will finish the term started by Dennis McGlon, who resigned in January, which ends in November 2026. Port St. Joe Star. WJHG. Florida Politics.
Scholarship tracking issues: About 23,000 Florida students received state scholarships but attended public schools during the 2024-2025 school year, leading to $47 million in funding not getting to school districts or to students who were approved for the vouchers. That was the finding reported last week at a legislative hearing, and lawmakers are trying to figure out why it happened before considering reforms to the process. A Department of Education official told the House’s PreK-12 Budget Subcommittee that it might be able to resolve 4,700 of the 23,000 cases. Politico Florida.
Also in the Legislature: Rules and timelines for how school districts evaluate and support disabilities would be changed under a bill filed for the legislative session that starts Jan. 13. Florida’s Voice. State Rep. Sam Garrison, R-Fleming Island, has been confirmed as the speaker-designate of the Florida House for the 2027 and 2028 legislative sessions. WFSU. Clay Today.
Opinions on schools: Our ability to pay teachers a higher wage is handcuffed by the operation of too many under-capacity schools caused by the popularity of school choice vouchers and scholarships, well-performing charter schools and shifting population demographics. Leon County School Board member Alva Smith, Tallahassee Democrat.
