Author
COVID-19 infections at schools have been climbing; nearly 15,500 cases in all since Sept. 6
The Florida Department of Health reported more than 2,600 new COVID-19 infections related to Florida public and private K-12 schools, colleges, and universities during the week of Oct. 25 through Oct. 31 — part of a steep rise in cases spanning just two months. Leading up to election week, the department reported 15,498 COVID-19 cases […]
Election Day in-person voting was mostly smooth, but tensions have been rising
Throughout Election Day, Florida voters have had a relatively calm experience at the polls — but tensions have been brewing over myriad complications: U.S Department of Justice staffers are in Florida to monitor for violations of federal voting rights law involving six counties: Broward, Duval, Hillsborough, Miami-Dade, Orange and Palm Beach; A federal judge instructed […]
National teacher union on last push to invigorate citizens to vote; ends tour Sunday in FL’s swing state
A multistate push to vote from the nationwide American Federation of Teachers will end its 14-state bus tour this weekend in Florida’s swing state and through South Florida. When the tour started on September 30 in Los Angeles on the West Coast, AFT President Randi Weingarten said the effort will “be urging people to use […]
Is it worth it to pursue a lawsuit, when all brick-and-mortar schools are now open and kids are in classes?
At the start of the 2020-21 school year, Gov. Ron DeSantis, Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran and other officials found themselves in a legal tug-of-war with a statewide teacher union about an emergency order that mandated the reopening of Florida schools during the COVID-19 pandemic. A decision made at the First District Court of Appeal allowed […]
More than 600,000 low-income FL families could have access to free internet over next five years
When schools shut down in mid-March during the initial surge of the COVID-19 crisis, many Florida students went back to houses without easy access to computers and internet connection — which are necessities for online classes. What’s more, some students just didn’t log on to their distance-learning classes. And some families didn’t have internet or […]
More than 2,000 new COVID-19 cases related to FL schools; 12,660 cases in all since early September
COVID-19 infections at Florida schools continue to rise, with more than 2,000 new cases between Oct. 18 and Oct. 24, according to the Florida Department of Health. The cases encompass K-12 schools and colleges and universities, both public and private, as well as students, teachers, staff and other unknown cases. The state data reported 2,226 […]
Young voters may play a big role in the upcoming election — but will they turn out?
Bradley Gay, 25, is a second grade teacher assistant at a private school in Tallahassee. As a young voter, he sees his generation as a key demographic in shaping the future of Florida and national politics. “I think the youth vote will have a lot to do with that in this election,” said Gay in […]
Tropical Storm Zeta forecast to approach the northern Gulf Coast ‘at or near hurricane strength’
Update: Late afternoon Monday, NOAA announced that Zeta had strengthened into a Category 1 hurricane. Data from an Air Force Reserve hurricane hunter plane indicated that “Zeta has become a hurricane, with maximum sustained winds near 80 mph (130 km/h) with higher gusts,” NOAA reported. === Forecasts project that Tropical Storm Zeta might hit a […]
Update: More than 10,000 cases of COVID-19 related to FL schools, with university data included
The Florida Department of Health data shows 10,317 cases of COVID-19 related to Florida public and private schools, colleges, and universities since September 6. The number includes students, teachers, staff, and other cases related to Florida schools. During the week of October 11 to October 17, there were 2,102 new cases from Florida public and […]
1,306 new COVID cases related to FL schools; state data on universities is sparse this week
New state data show 1,306 COVID-19 cases related to Florida public and private K-12 schools and colleges from October 11 through October 17, including students, faculty and staff. However, four-year public universities did not appear to be in the data for this particular week, or showed very minimal data. Meanwhile, Gov. Ron DeSantis continues to […]
Some FL school districts wary about relaxing COVID safety rules; others are considering changes
As North Florida’s Hamilton County School District completes its second month of brick-and-mortar classroom instruction, Supt. Rex Mitchell says schools will keep current COVID-19 precautions for the foreseeable future. “Even though the governor opened the state up, we have not relaxed any of our procedures,” Mitchell said. “Right now we just feel like we need […]
Jewish lawmakers condemn school board’s rehiring of an administrator over Holocaust outcry
Members of the the Florida Jewish Caucus in the Legislature have condemned the rehiring of a former Palm Beach County principal who refused to say that the Holocaust is a factual, historical event. He has been assigned to another position in the district. The incident in 2019 led to an outcry that became a national […]