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Flagler County School Board

Proposal Would Lead to Surveillance Cameras in Every Classroom, and Teachers to Wear Microphones

December 30, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 28 Comments

surveillance classrooms

School districts could adopt policies that lead to installing cameras in classrooms and requiring teachers in the classrooms to wear microphones, under a Florida House proposal filed this week. Local school boards would have to vote on the proposal–and pay for it.

As Another Bogus TikTok Variant Stalks Schools Everywhere, Flagler District Urges Responsibility and Vigilance

December 17, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 12 Comments

tiktok threat

A threat, spread across the nation on TikTok, the faceless social media bullhorn, is not credible or specific to most locations, as police and school authorities keep saying, but a day rife with absenteeism even in the most normal of times may turn into an attendance rout even as officials urge reason.

Flagler School Board Attorney Kristy Gavin Survives ‘Witch Hunt’ as Board Votes 3-2 to Renew Contract

December 14, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 12 Comments

Kristy Gavin has been the Flagler County School Board's in-house attorney since 2010. (© FlaglerLive)

School Board Chairman Trevor Tucker joined members Colleen Conklin and Cheryl Massaro to rebuff an attempt by fellow-Board members Janet McDonald and Jill Woolbright to fire in-house attorney Kristy Gavin, who’s been with the district since 2006. The move to fire her was underscored ideological dissatisfaction and vague claims at variance with years of positive recommendations.

SAT Re-Takes Offered at No Cost Following School Board’s Janet McDonald’s Interference At Matanzas High School

December 9, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 36 Comments

Flagler County Scjhool Board member Janet McDonald's interference with an SAT testing site last Saturday caused the College Board to offer retakes to students, at no cost. (© FlaglerLive)

The College Board, the organization that offers college-entrance exams such as the SAT and Advanced Placement tests, is offering SAT retakes at no costs to students who took the test at Matanzas High School on Dec. 4. The re-take offer, which is voluntary, is a direct consequence of Flagler County School Board member Janet McDonald interfering with the process last Saturday, when she went to the school and urged students not to wear protective face masks, in direct violation of College Board rules.

‘Equity’ Returns to Flagler Schools’ Goals After Dubious Exile. Just Call It ‘Educational Equity.’

December 7, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 5 Comments

One of the illustrations in the school district's proposed strategic plan. (Flagler Schools)

After a brief, confusing exile for reasons never entirely explained, Equity is back in the Flagler County school district’s proposed strategic plan, or core goals. The school board at a workshop today agreed to restore the word, which had been replaced with “student support,” and set aside the controversy that had surrounded the word’s use only recently.

Banning LGBTQ-Themed Books From Flagler Schools Is an Attempt to Erase Students Like Me. We Will Not Stand For It.

December 7, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 47 Comments

Jack Petocz at the Nov. 16 demonstration he organized, holding a copy of "All Boys Aren't Blue." (© FlaglerLive)

Linking the vile and threatening language his student-led demonstration drew outside a school board meeting in November to the superintendent’s decision to ban an LGBTQ-themed book for now, Jack Petocz, a student at Flagler Palm Coast High School, calls on the superintendent to reconsider the decision and consider its consequences.

Superintendent’s Decision: ‘All Boys Aren’t Blue’ Banned for Now, Other Books Return to Library Shelves

December 7, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 23 Comments

Superintendent Cathy Mittelstadt sent the Flagler School Board a summary of a book committee's findings and her recommendations regarding four titles Board member Jill Woolbright had challenged. (© FlaglerLive)

Following the challenges of four titles by Flagler School Board member Jill Woolbright and a review by a book-challenge committee, the superintendent decided to return three of the four titles to their shelves but withhold a fourth pending new protocols that could still provide access.

Boxed in Between Flagler School Board and Builders, County Corrects the Record on Impact Fees

December 6, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 6 Comments

Assistant County Attorney Sean Moylan and Adam Mengel, the county's planning director, issued a memo to the Flagler County Commission that may forge the way out of a seeming impasse on school board impact fees. (© FlaglerLive via Flagler County TV)

The Flagler County administration issued a tightly argued and at times caustic memo that draws a line between facts and polemics and between legal and speculative arguments in the ongoing debate over school impact fees,. While it corrects the school district  in no uncertain terms on several points of law–or math–it also comes close to ridiculing the Flagler Home Builders Association’s arguments as simplistic. It also appears to forge a way out of the impasse for the County Commission.

Violating Facilities and College Board Agreements, School Board’s McDonald Peddles More Masking Falsehoods at SAT Testing Site

December 6, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 46 Comments

Flagler County School Board member Janet McDonald interfered with a College Board SAT testing siute at Matanzas High School over the weekend, where she had no jurisdiction nor authorization to be, and where she pushed more false information about masks. (© FlaglerLive)

Flagler County School Board member Janet McDonald stood guard at a Matanzas High School SAT testing site Saturday, where she had no jurisdiction and was not authorized to be, countering College Board requirements that students must wear masks while testing. The College Board is investigating.

American Library Association Condemns Broad Censorship of Books on Race and LGBTQ in Schools and Libraries

December 1, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 4 Comments

As in the rest of the country, the books targeted for bans by Flagler County School Board member Jill Woolbright are by or about marginalized people. (© FlaglerLive)

Some individuals and officials say the voices of the marginalized have no place on library shelves. Including in Flagler, they have launched campaigns demanding the censorship of books and resources that mirror the lives of those who are gay, queer, or transgender, or that tell the stories of persons who are Black, Indigenous or persons of color.

FPC Teacher Forced Out: He’d Paid Student $5,569, Had Relationship With Her, and Lied on Job Application

November 29, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 20 Comments

timothy whitfield investigation

Timothy Whitfield, a 44-year-old resident of Palm Coast hired as a history teacher at Flagler Palm Coast High School last year, was effectively fired two months ago following sheriff’s and district investigations that uncovered grave ethical improprieties but no criminal findings. Whitfield had maintained a relationship with a female student, paid her nearly $6,000 through 127 cash-app transactions, and lied on his job application.

Flagler School Libraries Face Chilling Dangers Beyond Book Bans

November 27, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 16 Comments

If disingenuous were an undiscovered continent, Flagler County School Board member Jill Woolbright, above, would be its Columbus. (© FlaglerLive)

Book-banning doesn’t really exist: ban a book, and it gains more notoriety than ever. The danger ahead in Flagler schools is Board members Jill Woolbright’s and Janet McDonald’s attempt to keep certain books from even reaching library shelves before they’re bought, thus eliminating the glare of controversy. That kind of self-censorship is far more damaging to diversity on Flagler’s library shelves.

On Book Bans, ‘Equity’ and the School District’s Duty to Honor Student Diversity: The Students’ Perspective

November 22, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 8 Comments

Karissa Jackson, left, and Kaylee Briggs are student board members on the Flagler County School Board. Jackson represents Matanzas High School. Briggs represents Flagler Palm Coast High School. (© FlaglerLive)

Karissa Jackson and Kaylee Briggs are among the more outspoken student board members who have served on the Flagler County School Board. They both addressed the ongoing attempt by Board members Jill Woolbright and Janet McDonald to remove or review books from school libraries.

Closing Inquiry, Sheriff Rebuffs Charge of ‘Crime’ in Book Controversy; Woolbright Wants ‘All Young Adult Books Checked’

November 19, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 36 Comments

The Flagler County School Board's Jill Woolbright and Janet McDonald on Tuesday. the books to the right were McDonald's. (© FlaglerLive)

The Flagler County Sheriff’s Office found no grounds for a criminal inquiry into School Board member Jill Woolbright’s charge that making “All Boys Aren’t Blue” available to students was a “crime.” The sheriff was sharply critical of having been brought into a position of making judgments he said are the responsibility of the board and its processes. The inquiry also dismissed claims that Woolbright faced any immediate threat, as had been claimed.

Buddy Taylor’s Cara Cronk and Indian Trails’ Amy Neuenfeldt Are Flagler Schools’ Top Administrators of the Year

November 19, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 1 Comment

Amy Neuenfeldt, left, and Cara Cronk. (Flagler Schools)

Cara Cronk, principal at Buddy Taylor Middle School is the Flagler Schools Principal of the Year. She’s held her current position since last year. Amy Neuenfeldt is the Flagler Schools Assistant Principal of the Year. She has been an assistant principal at Indian Trails Middle School since 2017.

School Board’s Cheryl Massaro Reverses Against Dropping ‘Equity’ in District Goals’ Language

November 18, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 5 Comments

Flagler County School Board member Cheryl Massaro. (© FlaglerLive)

Cheryl Massaro had previously joined three other board members on Nov. 2 in directing Superintendent Cathy Mittelstadt to drop the word “equity” from the district’s upcoming Strategic Plan. Tuesday, she said she wanted the matter brought back up for discussion, and that she was no longer in favor of dropping the word.

Trevor Tucker Is Re-Elected Flagler School Board Chair in Nomination Reflecting Guile Behind Deep Divisions

November 18, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 1 Comment

County Judge Melissa Distler, right, signing papers ratifying the elections of Trevor Tucker, center, Chairman of the School Board, and Colleen Conklin, second from left, vice chair. Superintendent Cathy Mittelstadt is to the left. (© FlaglerLive)

Trevor Tucker was unanimously re-elected chairman of the Flagler County School Board board, with Colleen Conklin re-elected vice-chair. The unanimity of the Tucker vote hides deep divisions on the board that were reflected both in the Conklin vote and the nomination of Tucker.

Why All Boys Aren’t Blue Belongs in High School Libraries: A Response to Brian McMillan

November 18, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 38 Comments

books stacks

Palm Coast Observer Editor Brian McMillan would restrict the book at the center of a controversy from high school libraries, even though he doesn’t find it pornographic. His argument and his prescription are untenable, because they rest on an analogy that has no application to George Johnson’s “All Boys Aren’t Blue.” A school district committee is currently reviewing the book’s status.

Help Make Flagler County Known for Progress, Tolerance and Growth Instead of Ignorance and Hate

November 17, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 28 Comments

Courtney Hildreth addressing the Flagler County Scvhool Board Tuesday evening. (© FlaglerLive via Flagler Schools TV)

Offering the perspective of a parent, Palm Coast resident Courtney Hildreth calls on the Flagler School Board to re-focus on academic and intellectual freedom, ensuring access to age-appropriate literature, filling classroom vacancies, and preserving principles of equity and acceptance.

Student Protesters Face Hail of Vile Obscenities, Taunts and Threats From Group Claiming to Speak For Children

November 17, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 30 Comments

Students and parents protesting against a potential book ban in school libraries were confronted with a loose band of counter-protesters at the Government Services Building Tuesday evening, some of them in camouflage, taunting the students and parents with obscenities. (© FlaglerLive)

Students and parents protesting against a potential book ban in school libraries were confronted with a loose band of counter-protesters at the Government Services Building Tuesday evening, some of them in camouflage and body armor, taunting with obscenities, homophobic slurs and threats even as they claimed to object to “obscene” books. Sheriff’s deputies kept the taunts from escalating beyond the verbal.

Potential Book Ban in Schools Galvanizes 2 Sides in Day of Highs and Lows as Sheriff Recoils at Criminal Complaint

November 16, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 41 Comments

A student-led demonstration in defense of book titles under review for potential bans by the district, with stacks of the books, all of them donated for distribution, at the ready. The demonstration was organized by Jack Petcocz, a student at Flagler Palm Coast High School. (© FlaglerLive)

the Flagler County School Board today contended with the fallout of a criminal complaint and call for a book ban filed by Board member Jill Woolbright, and did so for 10 hours, from a lengthy and at times ugly workshop to a student-led demonstration marred by harassment and insults by detractors to an evening meeting that stretched past 11 p.m.

The County Commission’s Choice Tonight: Filth or Statesmanship

November 15, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 29 Comments

County Commissioners Don O'Brien and Dave Sullivan, with their Svengali, Joe Mullins. (© FlaglerLive)

The Flagler County Commission this evening is set to elect a new chairman, with Joe Mullins in line for the job, unless fellow-commissioners think better than to choose a bigot to represent them and the county. The School Board elects a chair Tuesday evening, with its own dilemmas.

Cheryl Massaro Rebukes Fellow School Board Member Woolbright Over ‘Rogue’ Attacks on Books and Superintendent

November 14, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 29 Comments

School Board member Cheryl Massaro left, rebuked Jill Woolbright over Woolbright's attack on the superintendent in an attempt to ban books. Massaro did so in a sharply worded statement issued Sunday night. (© FlaglerLive)

In a statement issued Sunday night, School Board member Cheryl Massaro said fellow-Board member Jill Woolbright “crossed the line when she filed a criminal complaint against the Flagler Schools’ Superintendent and Attorney” over Woolbright’s attempt to ban books. Massaro sharply rebuked the attempted censorship of books and said Woolbright doesn’t speak for the board.

The Live Interview: Author George M. Johnson Speaks to Those Who Want Book Banned From Flagler Schools

November 13, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 42 Comments

george m. johnson interview

George M. Johnson, author of “All Boys Aren’t Blue, one of the books School Board member Jill Woolbright calls a “crime” to have in schools and wants banned, speaks to FlaglerLive about frequent experiences with “the purity brigade,” differences between porn and sex, the orchestration behind current book bans and what Johnson would tell the district committee reviewing the book.

The Flagler School Board’s Shameless War on Equity

November 13, 2021 | Pierre Tristam | 34 Comments

war on equity

The Flagler school board doesn’t believe in equality anymore. The administration, out of fear and misplaced pragmatism, is abandoning the word “equity” and replacing it with a bromide of a euphemism–“student success”–in appeasement of a faction led by School Board members Jill Woolbright and Janet McDonald, the same board members targeting books and instructional materials with anti-racism and other minority-oriented themes.

Bowing to Vague Pressures, Flagler County School Board Removes ‘Equity’ From Its Goals’ Language

November 13, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 57 Comments

Just don't mention 'equity.' (Flagler Schools)

In a move that left one school board member stunned and others agreeing to a change that seemed almost entirely the result of vague, polemical attacks on the word on social media and in charged but limited national discussions, the Flagler County School Board on Tuesday agreed to drop the word “equity” from its goals. The word will be replaced with “student success.”

Jill Woolbright Wants 4 Books Banned Over Anti-Racism, LGBTQ, Police Violence and Rape Themes; District Removes Them Pending Review

November 11, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 64 Comments

Flagler County School Board member considers it a "crime" that "All Boys Aren't Blue" is allowed in Flagler school libraries. (Farrar, Straus and Giroux and © FlaglerLive)

Copycatting a tactic developing across the country and targeting the same books, Flagler County School Board member Jill Woolbright wants four books removed. The books, award winners and critically acclaimed, deal with LGBTQ themes, anti-racism, police shootings, and the trauma of rape. Three are by Black authors.

2 Flagler School Board Members Object to Black Lives Matter Language and a ‘Hate Group’ Trolls District’s Library Books

November 5, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 64 Comments

A detail from the cover of a booklet called "The U.S. Constitution: Then and Now," used in fifth grade reading classrooms in Flagler schools. A parent found parts of the booklet objectionable and is seeking to have it removed. Two school board members are receptive.

The Flagler County School Board is not banning books–yet. But two board members–Jill Woolbright and Janet McDonald–are on the warpath, playing up isolated complaints about materials they find objectional on ideological grounds and mirroring similar attempts in other districts where a few voices have capitalized on largely manufactured controversies. The board members’ moves parallel a national extremist organization’s inquiry in Flagler and other Florida counties about the district’s book holdings, especially targeting racially-conscious and LGBTQ-themed books. 

35% Short of Needed Bus Drivers, School District Agrees to $15/hr Pay, Plus Incentive, as Part of Raises for All Service Employees

November 4, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 10 Comments

The Flagler County school district has 62 buses and only 55 drivers, and finds itself 32 drivers short of where it needs to be. (© FlaglerLive)

Members of the Flagler Educational Support Professional Association, the union that represents Flagler schools’ 800-some service employees, are voting today on what may amount to the largest pay increase in nearly 20 years, though bus drivers and paraprofessionals will see larger increases than all others.

Learning Is for Commie-Pinko Wokesters and We Don’t Need Any of It Around Here

November 3, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 22 Comments

crt critical race theory moms

Praise Jesus, here in Florida our governor has decreed that there will be no “The 1619 Project,” and none of that Critical Race Theory making our sweet white children hate themselves, their mamas and daddies, and their great-great-grandparents, who happened to belong to the Ku Klux Klan.

County Commission Again Delays Decision on School Impact Fees As Disputed Numbers Strain Trust on Both Sides

November 2, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 5 Comments

The Flagler County School District made its case again to the County Commission this evening for higher impact fees. From left, Superintendent Cathy Mittelstadt, coordinator of Planning and Intergovernmental Relations, and School Board Attorney Kristy Gavin. (© FlaglerLive via Flagler County TV)

The Flagler County Commission voted to delay for two months a decision on the school board’s request to double its impact fees following a two-and-a-half hour meeting Tuesday evening. The county is not trusting the school board’s numbers, and the school board is frustrated over the county’s resistance to what the district considers an emergency request.

On Flagler School Board, Even Procedures Are Weaponized as Aftershocks of Bitter Meetings Still Rankle

October 25, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 8 Comments

The Flagler County School Board in its workshop room, in a quieter moment. (© FlaglerLive)

What would under most circumstances been a five-minute discussion, if that, turned into a rehash of prosecutorial accusations, recriminations and seemingly vain explanations that underscored how far board members now diverge from each other, whether on matters of fact or perception.

Serious as a Heart Attack: For FPC and Matanzas High School Athletes, Voluntary ECG Screenings May Become Mandatory

October 22, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 8 Comments

A life-saver. (© FlaglerLive)

In an effort to stem heart attacks in young athletes–about 3 percent of athletes are at risk–AdventHealth is sponsoring the first free ECG screening for local high school athletes next week, and will ask the Flagler County School Board to make the screenings mandatory by next year. There are some 900 athletes participating in dozens of sports in the two high schools.

Marion Gavins Jr., Who Murdered FPC’s Curtis Gray, 18, Is Sentenced to 45 Years in Prison in Plea

October 22, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 17 Comments

Marion Gavins Jr., right entering the courtroom this morning before his plea and sentencing. (© FlaglerLive)

Marion Leo Gavins Jr., 20, pleaded guilty today and was sentenced to 45 years in prison for the murder of Curtis Gray, 18, in April 2019 outside a smoke shop in Palm Coast, a killing that shook the Flagler Palm Coast High and Matanzas High communities and that led his mother to create an enduring non-profit in Gray’s name.

U.S. School Boards Association Asks Biden for Better Security at Meetings. Florida Association Says Count Us Out.

October 12, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 7 Comments

Far-right extremists, some in camouflage, some belonging to the Three Percenters, the anti-government militia, preparing to enter the Flagler County School Board meeting last month in Bunnell. (© FlaglerLive)

The Florida School Boards Association is refusing to pay membership dues to the National School Boards Association after the Washington, D.C.-based organization wrote in a letter to President Joe Biden’s administration that the country’s “public schools and its education leaders are under an immediate threat.”

We’re Losing Our Humanity: Cruelty and Hostility From School Boards to Vaccination Centers

October 10, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 22 Comments

A scene at the Aug. 17 school board meeting in Bunnell. The meeting had to be recessed for half an hour because of hostility and chaos. (© FlaglerLive)

It’s not just Flagler County, and certainly not just at the Flagler school board: The stories of cruel, seemingly irrational and sometimes-violent conflicts over coronavirus regulations across the country have become lingering symptoms of the pandemic as it drags through its second year.

What a Difference an R-Section Makes: New, Limited School Rezoning Proposal Draws Near-Empty Hall

October 7, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 1 Comment

That was all the audience there was at a "listening session" at the Indian Trails Middle School cafeteria Wednesday evening, a contrast with previous listening sessions, when the rezoning proposal was much broader. (© FlaglerLive)

In contrast with two previous “listening sessions” on school rezoning, which drew dozens and reflected sharp if concentrated opposition to the proposal at the time, the session the Flagler school district held at Indian Trails Middle School’s cafeteria Wednesday evening drew at most five people, not counting double that number in district staffers, including Superintendent Cathy Mittelstadt.

James Egan Jr., 64, a Flagler School Bus Driver, Is Killed in Motorcycle Wreck on Belle Terre and Ponce de Leon

October 6, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 44 Comments

jim egan motorcycle crash

James Egan Jr., a 64-year-old Palm Coast resident and school bus driver with the Flagler County school district since 2016, was killed in a motorcycle crash at Belle Terre Parkway and Ponce De Leon Drive Tuesday evening.

Why is the Flagler County Commission Holding New School Construction Hostage?

September 30, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 12 Comments

The Flagler County Commission is posing an unexpected and unnecessary challenge for Cathy Mittelstadt, the Flagler Schools superintendent. (© FlaglerLive)

Pandering to home builders, the Flagler County Commission is rashly scuttling the school district’s plan to double impact fees on new construction for the first time since 2005, even though the county is doubling its own impact fees. It’s an unjustified and hypocritical assault on district planning and future student needs.

State School Board Will Meet to Police 11 School Districts’ Compliance with Ban on Mask Mandate

September 30, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 3 Comments

Masking the masks: Brevard County public school students earlier this month. (Facebook)

The board will meet Oct. 7 and focus on the school districts in Alachua, Brevard, Broward, Duval, Hillsborough, Indian River, Leon, Miami-Dade, Orange, Palm Beach and Sarasota counties, according to a notice published Wednesday in the Florida Administrative Register.

County Goes Over Redistricting Boundaries in ‘Numbers Game’ That Will Barely Affect Voters, Maps or the Elected

September 27, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 2 Comments

Flagler County's current districts, which apply both to the county commission and the school board.

The process is formal and obviously important as a reflection of fairness in elections and representation. But at the local level, it is far less consequential than at the state and federal level, especially in counties like Flagler, where school board and county commissioners serve at-large–meaning they are elected by voters across the county, not just by voters in their districts.

Stop Yelling. Have a Point: Advice for School Board Meeting Disrupters from Someone Who’s Been There.

September 23, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 23 Comments

Randy Bertrand addressing the Flagler County School Board at a meeting last year.

In the wake of two turbulent school board meetings, Randall Bertrand was left wondering what all the sound and fury was about since many speakers’ loud and disruptive message was already made moot by school board votes or state policy.

After Parents Object to ‘Equity’ and Race-Driven Balance, Rezoning Plan Now Limits Impact to Palm Coast’s R-Section

September 22, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 9 Comments

Steven Furnari, right, addresses the Flagler school board on behalf of a citizens' group opposed to the district's original rezoning plan. (© FlaglerLive)

After facing a relatively small but angry group of parents who accused the district of wanting to balance school populations in part based on racial and socio-economic equity, the Flagler County school administration on Tuesday announced it was drastically scaling back what would have been a county-wide rezoning plan set for next year. The district is opting instead for rezoning that will affect only the two middle schools, the two high schools and the entirety of Palm Coast’s R-Section and parts of west Flagler, but none other. 

Quarantining for Asymptomatic Students Is Now Optional as Florida Issues New Rules Further Limiting Safety Measures

September 22, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 9 Comments

Flagler County School Board member Jill Woolbright, seen here at a workshop last week, complained Tuesday evening during a board meeting that asymptomatic children deemed close contacts to known infections were having to quarantine. (© FlaglerLive)

Pointing to a need to “minimize the amount of time students are removed from in-person learning,” the Florida Department of Health on Wednesday issued a revised rule that gives parents more authority to decide whether children go to school after being exposed to people who have covid-19. The new rule replicates the same standard in effect for masking: it’s permissible, but only at parents’ discretion.

Anti-Maskers Turn Another Flagler School Board Meeting Into Virulent, at Times Bigoted and Threatening Spectacle

September 21, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 53 Comments

Members of the Flagler County School Board in a huddle with Flagler County Sheriff's deputies before this evening's meeting as they were being cautioned--and directed--on following deputies' directions in case the meeting turned chaotic. It was an unprecedented caution. (© FlaglerLive)

Even though there was no chance of a mask mandate, the Flagler County School Board meeting Tuesday evening again devolved into an ugly spectacle of anti-mask militancy that at times turned threatening, homophobic, Islamophobic and covid-denying, and required the meeting again to be briefly recessed and board members sent to a safe room.

Flagler District Prepares to Re-Zone Schools for the First Time in Over a Decade in Face of Some Sharp Objections

September 20, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 3 Comments

A hallway at Indian Trails Middle School, where, along with Buddy Taylor Middle, sixth graders will be attending starting next year. The shift is making the two middle schools the front runners in the district's rezoning. (© FlaglerLive)

The Flagler County School Board will vote on a rezoning plan in December, and on Tuesday will hear an updated, phased-in approach that will focus on the two middle schools first, where sixth graders will be shifted starting next year. Localized but intense opposition to rezoning plans compelled the administration to propose a more phased-in approach than a county-wide rezoning.

Flagler School Board’s ‘Retreat’ Unravels in Rancor and Accusations as Deep Dysfunctions Are Laid Bare

September 17, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 19 Comments

The Flagler County School Board at its 'retreat' on Sept. 9: it has a long way to go to scale the eight pillars of trust. (© FlaglerLive)

The Flagler County School Board’s day-long “retreat” on Sept. 9, designed to hone leadership and cohesion skills, was a grueling, at times a shocking display of mistrust, dysfunction, dissembling and exasperation by the board members as the fallout from recent issues revealed deep fissures. Whether the board can bridge huge gaps of mistrust remains uncertain.

School District’s Request to Double Impact Fees Turns Into Hostile Inquisition by County Commission and Builders

September 16, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 11 Comments

School Board Chairman Trevor Tucker, seen here in a different context, was left pleading last Tuesday with members of the County Commission to grant the district's request for a new schedule of impact fees. He did not get a warm reception. (© FlaglerLive)

In an unexpected turn, what the Flagler County school district thought was a mere formality before the County Commission turned into a 90-minute grilling by commissioners and a parade of doubt by builders who consider the district’s request to double impact fees ill-thought and ill-timed.

Volusia and Other School Districts Are Backtracking on Mask Policies and Broadening Opt-Outs at Parents’ Discretion

September 16, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 1 Comment

Volusia County’s school board votes to allow parental opt-out of mask policy, backtracking on a previous decision to only allow students to opt-out for medical reasons. Source: Volusia County school board YouTube channel

At least two school districts — Volusia and Lee — that previously adopted strict mask mandates have decided to allow parents to opt their students out of the policy for any reason, while a third, Indian River, now requires masks only at certain times when Covid-19 surges in isolated schools.

Set in Tallahassee, Flagler School Tax Rate Declines for 7th Year in a Row, and to Another Historic Low

September 10, 2021 | FlaglerLive | 3 Comments

The local school district's tax rate is set by lawmakers in Tallahassee. It has declined almost every year for two and a half decades. (© FlaglerLive)

The Flagler County School Board on Sept. 7 adopted its property tax rate and $212 million budget for 2021-22. The tax rate, set by lawmakers in Tallahassee, continues a two-and-a-half decade downward trend, to $5.865 per $1,000 in taxable value, down from $6 last year.

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