Gov. Charlie Crist backs easing class-size rules - South Florida - MiamiHerald.com

Gov. Charlie Crist backs easing class-size rules - South Florida - MiamiHerald.com:

"TALLAHASSEE -- Having already spent $16 billion to reduce class sizes -- and facing a multibillion-dollar budget deficit -- leading Republicans including Gov. Charlie Crist want voters to reconsider their 2002 vote in favor of smaller classes.

Crist, who in the past has opposed tinkering with the class-size amendment, said Monday he now supports essentially freezing it where it is now -- with mandated caps calculated as school-wide averages.

State Sen. Don Gaetz, a former Panhandle schools superintendent, and Rep. Will Weatherford plan to unveil such a proposal in the coming days as a new constitutional amendment that would be put before voters in November if the Legislature approves it."