So Socks what happened?

00289 03/22/02 HOUSE Died in Committee on Education Appropriations (FRC)

I thought that was probably the case. Next year!!

Beth

next year??! next session…:-)

Which is when? Can’t believe I was a poli sci undergrad. I have my head so much in the sand these days.

Beth

special session 2002D April 2nd.

TALLAHASSEE - Gov. Jeb Bush formally announced a special legislative session starting April 2 to complete a massive rewrite of the rules that govern public education.
The school code was one of three major issues that lawmakers did not finish before ending their regular session Friday. Under Bush’s order Tuesday, the Legislature will deal strictly with the school rules when they return Tuesday for the four-day session.

“This is the first time the entire Florida code has been addressed like this,” said Lt. Gov. Frank Brogan, who has been Gov. Jeb Bush’s point person on the legislation. “It streamlines a large number of the laws. It eliminates others. It makes it 21st-century appropriate.”

The rewrite deals with 19 current chapters of laws dealing with all aspects of education from public schools to community colleges to universities.

One of the key changes would be to increase the authority of local Boards of Trustees at each of the state’s 11 state universities. The trustees were created last year as part of the education reorganization pushed by Bush and the Republican-led Legislature.

Bush said after the session that lawmakers were “as close as you can get” to agreeing on an 1,800-page bill (SB 1564) overhauling the school code.

“The irony is there are no sticking points,” Bush said Tuesday. ”(On) the substantive policy issues, there is broad agreement.”

Brogan said one reason an agreement wasn’t reached before the regular session ended was Senate had only reviewed 75 percent of the school code. The House had reviewed the entire code and the Senate needed time to look at those changes.

“We’re going to go through every page of the 1,800 pages and make sure we’re up to speed on it,” Brogan said.

After next week’s special session, the governor is expected to call lawmakers back to Tallahassee to complete the state’s budget and a reorganization of Florida’s Cabinet. No dates had been announced as of Tuesday.

Call those SENATORS!!!!!

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OK Socks. So the HB is part of this rewriting the education code? When I called I got the secretaries and was told (I called Monday) that it was out of session and that only budget stuff was considered in the next session.

Should I call back and leave a message? Wait until the session starts? I have written letters but never called. I hate to be such a ditz but I want my efforts to be useful.

Beth

Because of all the budget talking they didn’t even get to this bill. They will be talking about it. Make sure they know your position on the FCAT accomodations. The DOE has apparently been meeting,with legislators,
not seeking parent opinions.( Big surprise, I know) A big issue within this bill is having a board of people, parents and advocates included, making decisions about allowable accomodations. The last analysis voiced a concern that students would be simply exempt rather then the educators making sure they learned to read,etc. Or that instead of being taught to read be read to through out their educational career. Fat chance that this would happen! Of course we would like to think that the FCAT is used to gauge how well our kids are being taught,unfortunately it is just showing the kids being taught how to pass the test instead. The biggest kicker in all of this; the state DOE doesn’t even count the ESE students in the school wide grades. It would obviously bring the over all school grade down. Again,no accountability to expect ESE students to learn,then they turn around and say well you didn’t pass the test you can’t recieve a reg high school diploma. What,I am sure,and just came back from discussing this with a lobbyist,is they either change this law,or they will be in court soon enough. It is looking more and more like violating the civil rights of thousands of disabled students in the state of Florida.