Scathing Purple Musings
Color me purple in Florida ALL Week
Erik Fresen’s Claim of a “Pent-Up Demand” for Florida Vouchers Cannot Be Verified
Step Up for Students, the organization which administrates Florida’s voucher program watched Friday’s hearing in the House Appropriations Education Subcommittee and realized that Democrats wanted numbers that Rep. Erik Freseen (R-Miami) couldn’t provide. They must have cringed when Fresen said that there was “pent-up demand” for vouchers. SUFS immediately went to work to get out in front of this.
YESTERDAY
Why Voucher Expansion Really Died in the Florida Senate
The following is Bob Sikes’ Context Florida piece that was published on March 24. Sen. Bill Galvano, R-Bradenton, explained away the withdrawal of his Senate version of voucher expansion with “there just wasn’t enough time to develop accountability provisions that everybody could agree on.” Sure. Galvano had no such qualms in voting through SB 1642, a bill that confirms Florida’s continuing accoun
Florida Charter School Scheme Unmasked in Standard Contract Bid
Rep. Manny Diaz (R-Miami) went first in the House Education Committee yesterday and announced a “postponement” of HB 7083. Among other things, Diaz bill provided for standard charter school contracts, the mandatory sharing of public school buildings and would further ease restrictions for so-called “high-performing charter schools.” What happened? Miami Herald reporter Kathleen McGrory may have th
MAR 27
Manny Diaz Bogus Charter School Task Force
Two days ago, Scathing Purple Musings reported on Rep. Manny Diaz (R-Miami) curious deflection of questions from House colleagues on his charter school bill with references to a task force. On at least three occasions during yesterday’s house subcommittee (Diaz) deflected colleagues questions about his charter school expansion bill with references to a “task force” that was working on details. Di
The Desperate Attempt to Save Voucher Expansion Begins
Miami republican Erik Fresen “tweaked” voucher expansion. From Kathleen McGrory in the Miami Herald: ….late Wednesday, Rep. Erik Fresen combined the voucher language with a separate bill creating education savings accounts for special-needs children. That bill (HB 1503, now PCB EDAS 14-03) has a counterpart in the Senate (SB 1512), and is thus still in play. Fresen, R-Miami, said it made sense to
MAR 26
Florida Legislature Has “No Business” Telling School Boards “How to Negotiate Contracts”
In yesterday’s surprising Senate rebuke of the House on in its rewrite of standard charter school contract legislation, a new narrative may have emerged. Arek Sarkissian writes in the Florida Current: Sen. John Legg, R-Lutz, filed an amendment to SB 1528 that would place any dispute between a charter school and a school district before a judge with the state Department of Administrative Hearings,
MAR 25
Florida’s Most Obvious Charter School Conflict of Interest to Date
Did Rep. Manny Diaz (R-Hialeah) know something that everyone else didn’t yesterday? On at least three occasions during yesterday’s house subcommittee he deflected colleagues questions about his charter school expansion bill with references to a “task force” that was working on details. Diaz references to this task force in queries about lease agreements and the proposed state standard contracts
Janet Adkins’ False Testimony on Common Core and Raw Hypocricy on Accountability
Rep. Janet Adkins (R-Fernandina Beach) heard the applause from the gallery after a public school teacher’s testimony against Florida’s continued devotion to high-stakes tests. It was the only time anyone drew such a reaction during Monday’s House Education Appropriations hearing on Adkin’s HB 7117 which establishes a one-year delay in “holding schools harmless’ for school grades. The change was pr
MAR 24
About Those Teachers in Jeb Bush’s TV Spots
StateImpact’s John O’Connor reported on the start of a new TV advertising campaign from one of Jeb Bush’s foundations to promote Common Core Standards: The education foundation founded by former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush has launched a new web site and advertising campaign to support the Common Core math and language arts standards facing criticism in many states. The campaign by the Foundation For Ex
Islamic Schools Already Participating in Florida’s Voucher Program
Bob Stover, the executive editor of Florida Today, uncovered something that many Floridians will find troubling. Stover writes this in his piece critical of Rep. Ritch Workman’s (R-Melbourne) position on voucher expansion: To appreciate the Islamic connection, you have to remember that before this school year started, Workman put on his crusader armor and complained loudly to the school board abou
MAR 23
AIR’s Connections to Florida’s “Miserable” VAM Scores
Lakeland Ledger columnist Glenn Marston dug deeper into Florida’s new testing contractor: More concerning about AIR’s Florida connections is the miserable teacher-grading program it created for the state, known as the value-added model. The inconclusive teacher evaluations are useless. The Tampa Bay Times reported March 1 that teachers of the year and finalists for teacher of the year in Central F
MAR 22
Jeb Bush Calls Common Core a “Truth Serum”
Miami Herald political reporter Marc Caputo was in attendance this week when Jeb Bush spoke to 900 business leaders in Broward county. Bush made these comments on education policy: Aside from immigration, Bush’s advocacy for Common Core State Standards has earned him enmity on the right. Bush has repeatedly explained the standards, implemented and controlled by the states, are designed to make the