Maria Barbosa is a candidate for the Flagler County School Board, running against Myra Middleton Valentine in the Nov. 8 runoff. Barbosa’s largely plagiarized answers to her first interview, when she unsuccessfully ran in 2014, are reproduced here, as she declined to be interviewed for the current election.
flagler county school board
School Board Scraps Part of Thanksgiving Week Off: 2 Make-Up Days Scheduled That Week
Monday and Tuesday of Thanksgiving week, November 21 and 22, were to have been part of the week off. Now they’ll be make-up days for students in all Flagler County schools, as will days in March and April.
School Board’s Conklin “Willfully” Failed to File Disclosure, But Ethics Panel Stops Short of Removing Her From Office
Colleen Conklin took months to file a financial disclosure form and paid a $1,500 fine over it, but an ethics investigation found her failure had been “willful,” and the Florida Ethics Commission could have had grounds to remove Conklin from her Flagler County School Board seat.
At Rymfire Elementary, Response to a Child’s Scar Comes Unglued and Leads to a Lawsuit
A 1st-grader at Rymfire Elementary came home with a bleeding head from a scar that her mother claims was treated improperly by an unqualified staffer, while the school never called the parent to let her know her child was being treated.
Sharon Demers, Flagler County School Board Candidate: The Live Interview
Sharon Demers is a candidate for the Flagler County School Board, running against Paul Anderson, Maria Barbosa, and Myra Middleton-Valentine. All registered Flagler County voters may cast a ballot in the Aug. 30 primary in this non-partisan race regardless of party affiliation. The winner will be decided on Aug. 30.
Paul Anderson, Flagler County School Board Candidate: The Live Interview
Paul Anderson is a candidate for the Flagler County School Board, running against Sharon Demers, Maria Barbosa, and Myra Middleton-Valentine. All registered Flagler County voters may cast a ballot in the Aug. 30 primary in this non-partisan race regardless of party affiliation. The winner will be decided on Aug. 30.
Jason Sands, Flagler County School Board Candidate: The Live Interview
Jason Sands is a candidate for the Flagler County School Board, running against Colleen Conklin All registered Flagler County voters may cast a ballot in the Aug. 30 primary in this non-partisan race regardless of party affiliation. The winner will be decided on Aug. 30.
Colleen Conklin, Flagler County School Board Candidate: The Live Interview
Colleen Conklin is a candidate for the Flagler County School Board, running against Jason Sands All registered Flagler County voters may cast a ballot in the Aug. 30 primary in this non-partisan race regardless of party affiliation. The winner will be decided on Aug. 30.
Belle Terre Swim Club Advisory Group Violates School Policy as It Plods Into Political Forums
The Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club, created to help save the school board-owned facility, organized three political forums at the club without board permission, used a membership list to send out invitations in violation of board policy, and is not being charged the usual rate for use of facilities.
6 Local Unions Show Electoral Power as 16 Candidates For School Board, Palm Coast and County Match Mettle
The United Public Employees of Flagler County, representing 6 local public unions, hosted the largest simultaneous political forum in the county’s recent history, yielding a few insights into three races.
District and Palm Coast Will Redesign Some Bus Stops in 1st Step To Counter Crashes Involving Children
Some of the county’s 600 bus stops will be redesigned to include a $1,200 “pad” where students should wait for buses, while an education campaign will target students in elementary and middle schools.
FPC Will Launch a Firefighter-EMT Academy, Filling a Recruiting Gap for Fire Departments
The Fire Leadership Academy is designed to appeal to students who may be losing interest in school while giving the county’s and cities’ fire departments a reliable recruiting ground of new firefighter-EMTs.
School District’s Decision to Demolish Old ITT Building Triggers Upheaval Behind the Scenes
A board member pledged to call the attorney general over the improper end of the discussion surrounding the 3-2 vote last week, and the company picked to demolish the building lost the license enabling it to do so.
Call The Question! School Board Moves to Demolish Old ITT Building in “Awkward” Vote
The school board will spend $163,000 to demolish the iconic hulk on Palm Coast Parkway, but the 5-0 vote was marred and rushed by an improper maneuver by board member Sue Dickinson.
Proposal Would End Local Districts’ Oversight of Charter Schools in Favor Of State Power
The proposed constitutional amendment would set up a statewide entity with the power to approve charter schools anywhere in Florida, bypassing local school districts. The Legislature is expected to approve sending the proposal to the ballot.
Herculean Effort More Than Doubles Memberships at Belle Terre Swim Club, Dimming Talk of Closure
The Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club’s supporters have managed to increase memberships to more than 300 and close an $80,000 budget gap ahead of a Feb. 2 deadline when the school board will decide the club’s fate.
Belle Terre Swim Club 161 Members Short of Goal as Drop-Dead Decision Time Nears
Though making progress, the Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club now has 239 annual members, still short of the 400 it must have by the first week of February, when the school board will decide the club’s fate for good.
Flagler School Enrollment Flat For 8th Straight Year Even as Population Continues to Grow
Most of those moving into Flagler and Palm Coast are retired or non-working, while not enough working-age families with children are moving in to replace those moving out.
Artless Censors: The Flagler’s School Board’s Misplaced Allegiance to “Staff”
The Flagler school board shirked its responsibility when it chose to be a cheerleader for a principal instead of offering guidance and oversight after a student’s art work was censored at FPC.
Denied Belle Terre Swim Club, Innovative Soccer Academy Turns to Permanent Palm Coast Roots
The 57 students enrolled at Palm Coast’s Professional Sports Pathways are part of a growing trend of hybrid specialty school-skill training programs that also serve as magnets for families looking for specific educational opportunities.
Ethics Commission Orders School Board’s Colleen Conklin to Pay $1,500 Fine Over Mail Flub
The issue started as a $25-a-day fine over a late financial disclosure form that was itself never in question, that School Board Chairman Colleen Conklin never made sure had reached the commission.
Next School Year’s Calendar Will Start on Aug. 10 and Restore Full Thanksgiving Week Off
Flagler schools’ 2016-17 calendar will start at its earliest date in recent memory, a full month before Labor Day, and end the day before Memorial Day.
Belle Terre Swim Club Gets a $25,000 Annual County Lifeline and Nears Membership Goal
County government’s annual contribution will make it more difficult for the school board to close the troubled Swim and Racquet Club, as will an advisory group’s campaign that has netted some 250 new memberships, or just 150 short of the goal the board set for January.
Transgenders in Flagler Schools: District Takes It Case By Case as State Scrutinizes More Than Nurtures
The state and, to some extent, Flagler County, have a long way to go to ensure that transgender students are treated not only fairly and equitably, but that the environment they face is more respectful than questioning, more welcoming than inhibiting.
Stillbirth: FPC Art Student May Show His Class Work at a Gallery, But Not At His Own School
A provocative painting by Patrick Conklin, a senior at FPC, was banned from display at his school but allowed at an art gallery, triggering a broad discussion on the lines between expression, censorship, fear and propriety.
Bottom Line Cost of Demolishing and Paying Off School Board’s Old ITT Property: $1.27 Million
The district bought the building in 2002 for $3.5 million. It will spend $200,000 to demolish it, $770,000 to pay off the mortgage, and $300,000 to renovate another location that will accommodate operations currently at the Corporate One property.
The Live Profile
Jim Guines, Smokin’ Shock to the System and Now 83, Will Be Celebrated Sunday
Jim Guines, the forceful and unpredictable member of the Flagler County School Board for 11 years until 2007, will be at the center of a community tribute Sunday at Flagler Palm Coast High School, at 3 p.m.
No Longer State of the Art, Flagler Auditorium Seeks School Board Support for Improvements
A joint meeting between the school board and the auditorium board revealed a wish-list of costly needs that would require the district to shift dollars and priorities toward the auditorium. First, school board members want more clarity on those needs.
Belle Terre Swim Club Has Until January to Find 400 Members or Close, Absent Savior
A divided Flagler County School Board voted 3-2 for a drop-dead date, relying on current members to build their ranks while leaving out, for now, a sports academy that sought to run the facility. But board members said such talks can continue.
Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Advisory Club Committee: Why We Should Run the Facility
The Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club Advisory Committee makes the case to run the Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club, ahead of next Tuesday’s decision by the Flagler County School Board on the fate of the facility.
Professional Pathways: Why We Should Run the Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club
Professional Sports Pathways, a private sports academy that runs the Center for Excellence soccer school in Palm Coast, makes the case to run the Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club.
Child’s Death at Bus Stop Prompts Creation of Joint School-City Safety Committee
Palm Coast City Council member Andy Dance and School Board member Andy Dance formed the joint committee with administrators from both agencies to explore safety improvements at bus stops.
Soccer Academy Takes the Pitch in Stepped-Up Bid for Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club
Pro-Pathways Center of Excellence, a private Palm Coast academy that mixes soccer and academics, wants to run the Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club, having outgrown its facility in the Palm Harbor shopping zone.
A Ben Carson Reading Room at Old Kings Elementary: What’s the School Board Smoking?
The school board this week approved a privately funded $15,000 Ben Carson Reading Room for Old Kings Elementary, dismissing Carson’s political candidacy as a non-issue and ignoring his Islamophobia. It’s a serious mistake.
Belle Terre Swim Club Pulled From Brink as School Board Turns to Community Group
In a remarkable turn-around for club supporters, the Flagler school board agreed to extend the life of the Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club by turning over membership responsibilities to a community group and shortening hours of operation.
Buddy Taylor Student Struck by School Bus This Morning on Parkview Drive
The student was treated for minor injuries at Florida Hospital Flagler, and by just after noon, had been released. The driver was cited for failing to yield, and is on administrative leave.
At Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Fundraiser, It Felt Like the 1980s Again. That’s The Problem.
Even though a sizable crowd turned up for the fundraiser Sunday, the effort still falls significantly short of keeping the club going or convincing the school board that the group leading the effort can lease the property and make it work as a club again.
Worrisome Study in Hand, Lawmakers Question Tying Teacher Salaries to Test Scores
The study supported the use of the Florida Standards Assessment for school grades and teacher evaluations but said that “the FSA scores for some students will be suspect” because of the computer glitches.
Palm Coast Manager Apologizes for Ordering Work Without School Board Approval First
City Manager Jim Landon ordered utility work to proceed without securing an easement from the Flagler County School Board, though he’s been critical of the county over a similar issue.
“Somber” Board Severely Cuts Flagler’s Adults With Disabilities Program So It Can Survive
The program served 85 mostly full-time clients until it lost half a million dollars in state aid, forcing staff cuts and deep reductions in services. But unlike other districts, Flagler chose to keep its program going.
With YMCA Talks Dead, District Looks For Belle Terre Swim Club Savior in Final Effort
With the YMCA, Palm Coast and the county uninterested in supporting it, the days of the Belle Terre Swim Club as a public facility will end this fall if no bidder is found by early October.
Getting Past Cheap Praise: Superintendent Challenges Teachers to Adopt More Perceptive Mindsets
Speaking to 1,000 faculty members in a packed Flagler Auditorium this morning, Superintendent Jacob Oliva outlined the coming year’s objective the way savvy tech companies roll out new products.
School Bus Depot Building Behind FPC Briefly Evacuated After Worker Reaction from Mysterious 55-Gallon Drums
The large hangar at the school bus depot behind Flagler Palm Coast High School was briefly evacuated shortly after noon today when an employee there was indisposed after catching a whiff from an undetermined liquid in one of nine barrels behind the hangar.
School District Likely to Close Belle Terre Swim and Racquet to the Public in September
The Flagler County School Board, which runs the facility, may close it to the public as early as September as its losses this year totaled $137,000.
Board Reverts Back to Old Rule: Middle and High School Students Must Wear ID at All Times After All
After the School Board agreed in June to ease the policy and let students only produce IDs on request, it decided this evening to go back to the original policy: all IDs must be worn at all times, or else the student will be subject to a visit to the dean’s office.
Flagler School Taxes Going Up About 4%, Heralding Season of Steeper Government Levies
The typical Palm Coast house valued at $150,000 will pay roughly $50 more in school taxes for the year even as the tax rate goes down slightly.
Say Goodbye: Old ITT Landmark and School Board Clunker to Be Demolished By Year’s End
The Flagler School Board got no bids on its 54,000-square foot building in pring, which it’ll pay $200,000 to demolish, after paying off a $770,000 debt on it.
School Board Hears Good and Bad of New Budget and Agrees to 3-Month Patch for Disabilities Program
The $2.5 percent state-funded budget increase falls short of restoring the money lost last year. The board agreed to a $120,000 band aid for the adults with disabilities program run by FTI, which lost its state funding this month.
With 11 Jobs and Life Skills for 85 Disabled Adults at Stake, School Board Scrambles for Lost Money
The Flagler school board lost $535,000 for two essential programs for adults with disabilities when the Legislature slashed $10 million from its budget for that program. On Tuesday, board members will look for a patch on the way to a solution to keep the program from closing.
Phoenix Will Close as All But Handful of Students Sign Up for Wadsworth’s New STEM Academy
An open house to introduce Phoenix Parents to Wadsworth’s new STEM Academy, and sell them on enrolling their children, was hugely successful Wednesday evening, sealing the fate of Phoenix for good.