FLORIDA STANDARDS ASSESSMENT Considerable disagreements continue over standardized testing for Florida’s K-12 students. As a response to ongoing questions, state lawmakers ordered an independent study to test the validity of the process and the test. The findings, released this week, acknowledged the first year test included questions inaccurately reflecting the standards adopted by the State. Read more about Issues of Interest[…]
COLLEGE PERFORMANCE FUNDING On July 23rd, the State Board of Education approved a new plan to allocate $40 million appropriated by the Legislature for state college performance based funding initiatives. Colleges will be scored based on four categories: completion rates of students; retention rates of students; job placement and continuing education for graduates; and the Read more about Items of Interest[…]
BP OIL SPILL SETTLEMENT Florida’s share of the $18.5 billion multi-state federal settlement from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster is $3.25 billion. This is new money for economic damages and restoration projects beyond what Florida has already received from the 2012 RESTORE Act. A legislatively created non-profit organization, Triumph Gulf Coast, Inc., will manage the majority Read more about Items of Interest[…]
Congratulations to the City of Saint Augustine as the Legislature proclaimed September 8, 2015 as “Founder’s Day”. The City of St. Augustine was founded 450 years ago and events are planned this September to commemorate the occasion. Please visit http://staugustine-450.com/ for details of the celebration.
FAMU- FSU ENGINEERING SCHOOL Last year, then-Senator John Thrasher proposed ending the marriage of the FAMU-FSU School of Engineering. The measure ultimately failed amid complaints from both FAMU and FSU leadership and the estimated $1 billion price tag to fund the separate schools. Last week, the Florida Board of Governors voted to keep the engineering school Read more about Items of Interest[…]