General surgeon Dr. Jessica Marshall has joined AdventHealth Medical Group and will perform procedures at AdventHealth Palm Coast.
Health & Society
Law Requiring Later School Start Times Is Causing Significant Push-Back from Local Boards
Several members of the Flagler County school board as elsewhere in Florida districts are not thrilled by the late start time for middle schools, or the earlier start for elementary schools. Opposition is focused on expected additional costs.
Covid’s Total Cost to US Economy: $14 Trillion by Year’s End
The economic toll of the Covid-19 pandemic in the U.S. will reach US$14 trillion by the end of 2023, a team of economists, public policy researchers and other experts have estimated.
Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody Wants Supreme Court to Kill Recreational Pot Initiative
Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody has submitted ballot language to the Florida Supreme Court for a proposed 2024 constitutional amendment to legalize recreational cannabis in Florida. She also informed the court that she opposes the measure.
The Student Protesters Were Arrested. The Man Who Got Violent in the Parking Lot Wasn’t.
College students arrested. A parking lot altercation. A retired teacher waking up to a broken window. Events at a school district in Conway, Arkansas, illustrate the alarming trend of unrest at school board meetings across the country.
Jeannette Simmons on Mental Health Month
The City recently collaborated with Jeannette Simmons, a Licensed Mental Health counselor and Chief Innovation Officer of local non-profit organization Flagler Cares, to highlight some of the most important mental health issues in our area.
Rick Scott Wants Full-Time Armed Security in Every School in the Country
Sen. Rick Scott has filed federal legislation that would create a block grant program to be run through the Department of Justice to support hiring law enforcement officers to provide full-time security at every K-12 school in the country.
Later Start Time for Middle and High School Students in Flagler Means Earlier Start for Younger Ones
A bill awaiting the governor’s signature would ban school start times before 8:30 a.m. for high schools and 8 a.m. for middle schools, starting in the 2026-27 school year. The Flagler County School Board had been reconsidering its own start times–but in the other direction. Now, it may be faced with making tough choices regarding elementary-school start times, which would go from latest to earliest starting times in the county.
4-Day School Week Is Gaining Popularity, But Not Among State Lawmakers
Nationwide, the number of four-day schools has increased by 600% over the past two decades, now numbering more than 1,600 in 24 states. Many four-day schools report higher test scores, fewer discipline problems and strong support from parents.
End Language that Dehumanizes Immigrants
Sensationalizing, stigmatizing, and misleading imagery and rhetoric surrounding immigration leads to near-constant use of the term “illegal” or “unlawful” to describe unauthorized crossings. An advocate for immigrant survivors of domestic violence, sexual violence, and trafficking is alarmed by the use of this language to describe a migrant’s attempt to survive.