STATE NEWS

DeSantis limits restraint methods for disciplining disabled students

Gov. Ron DeSantis has signed a bill rewriting how schools can restrain students with disabilities. To avoid harm, the measure (HB 149), sponsored by House Democratic Co-Leader Bobby DuBose, revises requirements for the use of seclusion and restraint as punishments for a student with disabilities. Physical restraint of a student would be allowed only if needed to protect students or school personnel, but not as a disciplinary measure, and a student could be restrained only long enough to protect the student and others and only after all other options have been exhausted.

Florida Politics 

NATIONAL NEWS

Interior Secretary to address legacy of indigenous boarding schools

U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland and other federal officials are expected to announce steps that the federal government plans to take to reconcile the legacy of boarding school policies on Indigenous families and communities. Starting with the Indian Civilization Act of 1819, the U.S. enacted laws and policies to establish and support Indian boarding schools across the nation. For over 150 years, hundreds of thousands of Indigenous children were taken from their communities and forced into boarding schools that focused on assimilation. Ms Haaland cited statistics from the National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition, which reported that by 1926, more than 80% of Indigenous school-age children were attending boarding schools that were run either by the federal government or religious organizations. Besides providing resources and raising awareness, the coalition has been working to compile additional research on U.S. boarding schools and deaths that many say is sorely lacking. Ms Haaland has suggested that investments planned by the Biden administration and efforts to strengthen tribal sovereignty can help to heal the wrongs.

US News and World Report 

DISTRICTS

Leon County teachers working to close learning gaps

The Leon County School District's summer programs are expanding to make sure students are prepared for the next level come August. Hundreds of parents in Leon County decided to "Redshirt" their kindergartners, meaning those five-year-olds sat out their first year of school, so LCS is now preparing for 3,000 kindergartners, 600 more than the district normally see a year. This summer is a chance to really "get the ball rolling on their academic and social development" asserts Director of Early Childhood Programs Brooke Brunner. LCS is expanding its Voluntary Pre-K program, offering 72 seats this year for both of its campuses. That program gives children not yet old enough the chance to prepare for kindergarten so they're ready when the time comes.

Tallahassee News 

Runcie looking to the future

In what may be one of his final public appearances as Broward Public Schools Superintendent, Robert Runcie toured three schools Monday as the district kicked off its “Summer 2021 Experience.” With less than two months left on the job, he toured Hollywood Hills High, Bair Middle and Wilton Manors Elementary for the first day of the district’s summer program. Runcie, arrested in April and charged with perjury, says he's in conversations with organizations "across the country" and he does not want to leave education after his last day as superintendent on August 10. “The adult problems we have in education are the biggest challenges we have, the kids are easy,” he says.

CBS Miami 

Principal crafts personal notes for hundreds of graduates

Matanzas High School principal Jeff Reaves has spent the last months of the school year crafting personalized notes for each of the 459 graduates and left them on their seats to read before receiving their diplomas. The Flagler County school leader scoured through transcripts, emails and used his own personal memories to prepare the notes in time for graduation. “I want to be positive for our students, especially in a time where there’s a lot of negativity and turmoil in the world,” Reaves says, adding: “I wanted to shine some light on the students and encourage them as they begin their next journey in life.”

Fox 35 Orlando 

EARLY EDUCATION

Voluntary pre-kindergarten enrollment beginning to recover

VPK enrollment in Florida is now increasing, following declines during the pandemic. Hillsborough County Schools had about 300 students enrolled in the summer VPK program last summer, now some 500 students are already enrolled, with more than 1,000 expected to participate in the fall. Educators say VPK programs can help close learning gaps before students enter kindergarten. “What we’ve noticed is that students that come to our Pre-K programs, our Early Childhood programs, are better prepared. It’s just like anything else, the earlier you start with something, the faster you can master it,” said Kevin Kastner, Principal of West Tampa Elementary School.

Bay News 9 

LEGAL

SCOTUS backs college athletes in NCAA compensation fight

The U.S. Supreme Court unanimously rule on Monday that the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) may not bar payments to student-athletes. The decision, written by Justice Neil Gorsuch, clears the way for colleges to provide more school-related perks to students like computers, musical instruments and internships; it did not directly touch on the issue of whether athletes may earn money for the use of their names, images and likenesses, but some legal experts say the case could be a prelude to challenges aimed more broadly at compensation restrictions on college athletes.

The Hill  New York Times  Reuters 

LEGISLATION

Active shooter drills in the spotlight

A bipartisan bill has been reintroduced in the U.S. House, proposing funding to study the impact of active shooter drills on students. Reps. Ed Perlmutter (D-CO), Stephanie Murphy (D-FL) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) are backing the School Safety Drill Research Act, which would give the National Academy of Sciences $1m to research how to prepare for active shooters in ways that are effective and do not cause undue anxiety. “For a practice that is so widespread, we really should not be operating in the dark,” says Rob Wilcox, federal legal director for Everytown for Gun Safety.

Education Week 

TECHNOLOGY

Utilizing technology to assess student progress

In a piece for Education Week Seth Feldman, superintendent of the Bay Area Technology School in Oakland, California discusses how his school supported its students through the pandemic by gathering and acting on "forward-looking data." The district uses two tools, Lexplore and i-Ready, to gather data three times a year.  i-Ready is an adaptive assessment that takes 30-90 minutes each for math and reading to administer. Lexplore uses eye-tracking and artificial intelligence to assess reading skills in less than five minutes. It also provides information that a more traditional assessment simply can’t, such as fluency during silent reading and audio and video recordings of eye-tracking sessions. The tools create a data set to help understand where a student is, what they might be struggling with, and how they can be supported moving forward. 

Education Week 

OTHER

New book examines how school districts turned around their fortunes

The Washington Post takes a look at Districts That Succeed: Breaking the Correlation Between Race, Poverty, and Achievement, a new book from education writer Karin Chenoweth. The book uses six case studies to explain in detail how some educators have managed to defy low expectations, despite an undertow of routine in their schools. Ms Chenoweth offers five reasons for big jumps in achievement in unexpected places: Those districts had effective leaders, collaborative teachers, involved families, supportive environments and ambitious instruction.

Washington Post