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Budget conference: Budget heads agree to kill business rent tax, make back-to-school tax holiday
Budget conference: Budget heads agree to kill business rent tax, make back-to-school tax holiday

By Jacob Ogles Legislative budget leaders unrolled a final tax relief package that eliminates the business rent tax and sets a back-to-school sales tax holiday. In total, proposed tax cuts add up to $1.29 billion in cuts. But after arguments about sales and property tax cuts pushed lawmakers... Continue Reading

Date posted06/16/2025


Florida schools face alarming rise in student absences since pandemic
Florida schools face alarming rise in student absences since pandemic

By Steven Walker , Leslie Postal , Scott Travis Ivan Flores didn’t love school before the pandemic hit, but his views soured more when he did ninth grade online and off campus. “I was just at home doing nothing, waking up late, missing assignments,” he said. When he... Continue Reading

Date posted06/6/2025


Budget conference: Chambers differ on funding public-to-classical school conversion in Miami-Dade
Budget conference: Chambers differ on funding public-to-classical school conversion in Miami-Dade

By Jesse Scheckner State lawmakers haven’t yet agreed on whether to fund a Miami-Dade County Public Schools (MDCPS) project that would transform a traditional public school into one offering classical education programming. The House is insisting on apportioning $500,000 in non-recurring... Continue Reading

Date posted06/6/2025


Federal appeals court upholds order blocking Education Department closure
Federal appeals court upholds order blocking Education Department closure

A federal appeals court late Wednesday upheld a lower court’s order requiring the U.S. Education Department to reinstate more than 1,300 fired employees and blocking an executive order to dismantle the department and a directive to transfer some services to other federal agencies. The... Continue Reading

Date posted06/6/2025


Florida lawmakers getting closer on budget for vouchers, teacher pay
Florida lawmakers getting closer on budget for vouchers, teacher pay

By Jeffrey S. Solochek State House and Senate negotiators continued to edge closer to an education budget agreement on Wednesday, while remaining separated on some key details. The House accepted the Senate’s proposal to create a special fund to support advanced and technical... Continue Reading

Date posted06/6/2025


Who is Anastasios Kamoutsas? State panel OKs DeSantis pick for Education Commissioner
Who is Anastasios Kamoutsas? State panel OKs DeSantis pick for Education Commissioner

By C. A. Bridges Gov. Ron DeSantis didn't look far for his pick to be the new Florida commissioner of education. On June 3, he recommended one of his top aides, deputy chief of staff Anastasios "Stasi" Kamoutsas, to replace Commissioner Manny Diaz Jr., who was elected a week prior to be... Continue Reading

Date posted06/5/2025


Budget conference: House proposes covering AP, IB, AICE credits with a categorical grant
Budget conference: House proposes covering AP, IB, AICE credits with a categorical grant

By Jacob Ogles The House wants to fully fund accelerated credit hours for students taking college level courses in high school. But it remains unclear if the Senate will match that dollar amount. The latest offer from the House PreK-12 Budget Subcommittee meeting includes funding for Advanced... Continue Reading

Date posted06/5/2025


5 Pasco schools get new principals, but more vacancies remain
5 Pasco schools get new principals, but more vacancies remain

By Jeffrey S. Solochek The Pasco County school district continues to shift its school leaders amid year-end retirements, resignations and promotions. Pasco High School’s next leader will be Mark Feldman, who will be promoted from his post as an assistant principal at Fivay High... Continue Reading

Date posted06/5/2025


Destin Middle School student named champion of Florida’s 2025 National Civics Bee
Destin Middle School student named champion of Florida’s 2025 National Civics Bee

by: Abby Yankle A Destin Middle School student has earned first place in the 2025 National Civics Bee and is moving forward to the National Finals. According to an Okaloosa County Schools news release, eighth-grader Noah Finkler began his Civics journey in early March at the Greater Fort... Continue Reading

Date posted06/5/2025


Mission Statements Are Mission-Critical
Mission Statements Are Mission-Critical

By Debbie E. Bennett Before becoming a middle school associate principal, I was an elementary principal. Because of the size of my school, I didn’t have an assistant principal; sometimes I felt like I was doing the job of three people. With delegation and organization, however, my staff... Continue Reading

Date posted06/5/2025


DeSantis recommends top aide to become commissioner of education
DeSantis recommends top aide to become commissioner of education

By: Jackie Llanos Gov. Ron DeSantis recommended one of his top aides as the state’s education commissioner, replacing Manny Diaz Jr. following his appointment as interim president of the University of West Florida. The Board of Education is scheduled to vote on Diaz’s replacement... Continue Reading

Date posted06/4/2025


Federal judge blocks Florida from enforcing social media ban for kids while lawsuit continues
Federal judge blocks Florida from enforcing social media ban for kids while lawsuit continues

By Kate Payne A federal judge has barred state officials from enforcing a Florida law that would ban social media accounts for young children, while a legal challenge against the law plays out. U.S. District Judge Mark Walker issued the order Tuesday, blocking portions of the law from taking... Continue Reading

Date posted06/4/2025