Some scores are up and others down, but Florida students again are above average in all grades on reading and math tests used in national comparisons, according to results released Tuesday. ...more

May 28, 2008

Over the next couple of weeks, 28 public and more than a dozen private high school graduation ceremonies are scheduled across Hillsborough County. ...more

May 28, 2008

Over the next couple of weeks, 28 public and more than a dozen private high-school graduation ceremonies are scheduled across Hillsborough County. ...more

May 28, 2008

SEBRING (AP) — Highlands County ranked above national averages but trailed statewide on reading and math tests used in national comparisons, according to results released Tuesday. The norm-referenced tests are given along with the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test. But only the FCAT is used to grade schools and as a requirement for high school graduation and promotion from the third to fourth grades. State education officials last week released results from both tests for third-grade students. The remaining FCAT scores will not be released until at least next week. ...more

May 27, 2008

With graduation looming, officials are hoping efforts to boost high school graduation rates will pay off in the numbers. ...more

May 22, 2008

SEBRING – Broker Chip Boring, of RE/MAX Realty Plus of Sebring, and RE/MAX Realty Plus II of Lake Placid, will sponsor a hot air balloon to benefit the Boys and Girls Clubs of Highlands County's charity event May 30-31. Following last year's successful fundraiser, the second annual "Balloon Glow" will be Friday, May 30, and the "Lift Off Event" will be Saturday, May 31, at the entrance to the Sebring Raceway and Airport. "Young people who attend Boys and Girls Clubs in Florida show higher high school graduation rates and better behavior, resulting in increased lifetime earnings," said Florida Lt. Gov. Jeff Kottkamp. "An investment in our children is an investment in our future. The independent study's results are proof that Florida's Boys and Girls Clubs continue to influence our young people and our economy, both for the better." ...more

May 20, 2008

It has been widely thought that Hillsborough County School Superintendent MaryEllen Elia's contract gives her a hefty bonus for student achievement. She earned a $37,620 bonus this year alone, but look close and you will see it is only partly grounded in student gains. ...more

January 18, 2008

More than 30 Middleton High students walked across a stage to receive a diploma this week, a little early for high school graduation but not from a life-skills class. ...more

January 17, 2008

LAKE PLACID –– Dave Alden remembers his brother-in-law, Wendell, fondly, although he was only a child when his adopted sister married. It was partly because Wendell's life was a success story but more importantly he always made time for Dave. That mentoring of honesty and setting a good example made a lifetime impact. Born in Vermont, Alden retired in 1989 as a project engineer with Kennicott Copper. He and his wife, Marie, traveled the United States and Alaska for two years before the snowbirds decided to find a warm place in Florida to land. While zigzagging across the state, they discovered Lake Placid and fell in love with this town of murals and caladiums. Dave feels that their secret to being married 48 years –– besides luck –– is that they love each other and have the same goals. Marie was the type who wanted to help people and he was brought up the same way. ...more

December 31, 2007

Hillsborough County schools' graduation rate increased nearly 2 percentage points in 2006-07 over the previous school year with a slight improvement in the dropout rate, the state reported Friday. ...more

December 1, 2007