Some Florida school officials have taken offense at a new report from Johns Hopkins University which slammed the state for the high number of high schools it calls "dropout factories," schools where no more than 60 percent of those who start as freshmen complete their senior years and graduate. ...more

November 28, 2007

SEBRING — Beckie Townsend cuts a cardboard letter "N" that will have a noodle attached to it to help students at the Kindergarten Learning Center learn the alphabet. Next, she cuts a "B" that will be accompanied by a bean to also be used for a letter recognition exercise. One day a week Townsend volunteers in her 5-year-old daughter's class and reads stories and sings songs. She also makes copies and prepares materials in the teacher work area. As vice president of the school's parent teacher organization (PTO) and co-chair of the school advisory council (SAC) and volunteer, Townsend is a very involved school parent. But despite various efforts by school administrators to reach out to parents, many don't become actively involved in school events and functions. ...more

November 19, 2007

When asked Friday by an assistant principal, a sixth-grade Azalea Middle School student denied being told by a classmate that he would bring a gun and kill her, according to a St. Petersburg police report. ...more

November 14, 2007

When asked Friday by an assistant principal, a sixth-grade Azalea Middle School student denied being told by a classmate that he would bring a gun and kill her, according to a St. Petersburg Police Department report. At a news conference Monday, the 11-year-old girl, Hannah, told reporters she was afraid to go to back to school after a boy pulled off her hijab, an Islamic head scarf, and the next day threatened kill her. ...more

November 13, 2007

TAMPA - The Hillsborough County School Board on Tuesday suspended without pay Christina Butler, a Middleton High School teacher accused of having a sexual relationship with a 16-year-old male student. ...more

November 7, 2007

TAMPA - The Hillsborough County School Board on Tuesday suspended without pay Christina Butler, a Middleton High School teacher accused of having a sexual relationship with a 16-year-old male student. ...more

November 6, 2007

Florida Metropolitan University is changing its name to Everest University, just three months after the for-profit school settled with the state attorney general over concerns about its business practices. ...more

November 6, 2007

Florida Metropolitan University is changing its name to Everest University, just three months after the for-profit school settled with the state attorney general over concerns about its business practices. ...more

November 5, 2007

SEBRING — As of 2 p.m., Sebring Middle School opened its parking lot gates after someone alleged there was a weapon on campus, even though investigators determined there was no weapon, according to a memo from Principal Sandi Whidden. No weapon was found. ...more

October 30, 2007

TAMPA - Wednesday morning was dark and wet. Rain pelted the pavement at the corner of West Shore Boulevard and Montgomery Avenue. That's where Beulah May Lofts, in a gray crossing-guard shirt and green pants, was struck and critically injured. She had been at the intersection for only a few minutes. This morning, as Lofts lay in the intensive-care unit at Tampa General Hospital, classes continued at nearby Monroe Middle and Lanier Elementary schools, just a half-block from where the 76-year-old woman was struck. ...more

October 25, 2007