Children’s issues were in the spotlight during the 2014 legislative session, frequently contentious and ultimately a very mixed bag. Given the size of the $77.1 billion budget — the largest in state history — many advocates said lawmakers could and should have done more for kids.
Backgrounders
Supreme Court’s Decision Allowing Prayers at Government Meetings Reverberates Locally
The U.S. Supreme Court’s 5-4 decision today allowing explicitly religious prayers at local government meetings had two direct connections to Palm Coast and Bunnell. So the ruling had particular resonance locally—happily for some, not so happily for others.
Red-Light Cameras, Guns, Pot, Tax Cuts: Rating the 2014 Legislative Session
Florida lawmakers ended the 2014 legislative session after passing a budget and a flurry of other bills dealing with issues such as child welfare and school vouchers. But hundreds of bills died as lawmakers headed home to gear up for re-election campaigns. Here are 10 issues that passed during the session and 10 issues that failed.
Turned Down for a Job Outside the Classroom, a Teacher Rediscovers Her Mission
It’s a sad notion that administrators, school boards, human resources offices and so-called reformists have unfortunately inculcated in teachers over the years, this idea that if you want to be successful or be taken seriously, or make any sort of impact, that you must stop teaching to do so.
An Everlasting Horror Reenacted and Remembered as CRT Ends Season With 2 Holocaust Shows
Adam Fisher’s “An Everlasting Name” and Charlotte Raspanti “I Never Saw Another Butterfly” give voice to children and survivors of the Holocaust in a pair of productions ending City Repertory Theatre’s third season at City Market Place, starting this weekend.
As Florida House Opens Schools to Guns, Lawmaker Declares Gun-Free Zones “The Most Dangerous Places in America”
In a debate that showed sharp divisions about how best to protect children and teachers, the Florida House on Monday approved a bill, 71-44, that could lead to some public-school employees or volunteers carrying guns on campus.
Wings Over Flagler: Rockin’ the Runways Edition Flies In For Weekend of Roars
Some 30 plans and a half dozen musical acts will highlight the revived and renamed Wings Over Flagler event at Flagler County Airport Friday and Saturday. The event wasn’t held last year, but a new partnership between WNZF, the county and Wings organizers ensured that returned this spring.
Jacksonville Symphony Returns for Sunday Picnics and Pops Concert, With a Prayer to the Rain Gods
Last year’s Picnics and Pops concert in Palm Coast’s Central Park had to be cancelled because of rain. The Jacksonville Symphony is bringing essentially the same program that was rained out, under the direction of Morihiko Nakahara.
A Film Studio Grows in Palm Coast: 10th Voyage Nurtures Zombies and Ambitions
Operating from a plain-looking office complex in Palm Coast’s Hargrove Grade, 10th Voyage Studio is the creation of three young men–Patrick Appolonia, Scott Nance, and Lenny Mosco–who believe that the days of bigness in film-making are over: they’re poised to make technology and versatility pay in a city with little competition.
A Rabbi, a Priest and a Bible Walk Into a Seminar: An Interfaith Class in Palm Coast Delivers Weekly Punchlines
Every week since December at St. Thomas Church in Palm Coast, Rabbi Merrill Shapiro and Rev. Robert Elfvin have led an interfaith seminar, open to all, on the Bible as it is read through Jewish and Christian eyes. No ideas are out of bounds and some are off the wall, but participants find it bracing, eye-opening and overdue. Ezra Salkin reports.