Hurricane Ian forecasts continue to worsen for both sides of Florida, with a Category 3 or more landfall in Tampa Bay and a path bringing a tropical storm to Flagler by Friday. Evacuation orders for parts of Flagler are imminent, schools are closed starting Wednesday.
Schools
Hurricane Ian’s 2-Day Stall Off Tampa Could Bring Flooding Rains and Wind to Flagler
Hurricane Ian is expected to nearly stall as a major hurricane off the coast of Tampa Bay, lashing the northeast of Florida with torrential rain and raising the potential for floods in addition to some tropical storm-force winds. Flagler governments are beginning to shut down regular operations and declare states of emergency.
At Flagler Public Library, Freedom Readers’ Club and Other Page-Turners Boldly Defy Book Bans
Freedom Readers, a book club for teens focused on banned and challenged books, emerged at the Flagler County Public Library in response to the book-banning controversies at the Flagler school board last fall. The club is one of several initiatives countering “what feels like a lot of repression,” in the words of Youth Services Librarian Gemma Rose.
Armed Employees or Guards in Flagler Schools Would Cost $150,000 to $600,000 in 1st Year
The Flagler County School board would have to pay initial annual costs of over $150,000 to nearly $600,000 for any of three options to have armed staffers or guards on its nine campuses, in addition to the $1 million it is paying annually to the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office.
Flagler District Pays $6 Million for 685 Students to Attend Private Schools, Many Out of County, or Homeschooled
A new state law requires the Flagler County school district this year to pay just over $6 million to underwrite the private-school education of 685 students, including at parochial and out-of-county schools. The money also goes to families home-schooling their children.
Palm Coast’s Garry Lubi Re-Appointed to Daytona State College Board of Trustees
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis announced the appointment of Kelly Kwiatek and the reappointment of Garry Lubi and Dr. Randall Howard to the Daytona State College District Board of Trustees. Two current members, Sarah Dougherty and Bob Davis, are departing the Board.
Flagler Schools Just Barely Set New Enrollment Record, Matanzas High Exceeds 2,000 Students
While the Flagler County school district set an enrollment record for the first time in 13 years, it is still not the substantial growth that the district has been speaking of for the past year and a half, or the sort of growth that might have been expected to parallel the ongoing building boom in Palm Coast and the rest of the county.
Stetson Ranked in Top 5 Regional Universities by U.S. News & World Report
Stetson University moved up higher in the Top 5 of Best Regional Universities (South) in the 2023 rankings by U.S. News & World Report. Stetson ranked No. 4, up from No. 5 last year, on the list of Best Regional Universities (South), which includes 135 schools.
Three High School Teachers Arrested in Testing Scheme for Students
Teachers Harold “Jim” Martin, Robert Herrington and Kathleen Troutman allegedly ran a scheme that involved the teachers taking the exams together and later providing what were essentially exact copies as “study guides” to students.
Federal Judge Clears UCF Prof Robert Cassanello to Sue Over DeSantis’s ‘Stop Woke Act’
Cassanello, a history professor at UCF, and other plaintiffs, including public-school teachers and a student, filed the lawsuit in April after DeSantis signed the law (HB 7), arguing that it violated First Amendment rights and was unconstitutionally vague.