High and middle school students will lose 45 minutes a day in instructional time, the equivalent of 21 days, and the 2 percent raise won’t make up for salary losses from higher pension and insurance costs and a shorter work year.
janet valentine
Flagler School Board Defends Its Own Budget Cutting, Batting Down Most Alternatives
The county’s teacher and service employee unions and the tea party all questioned the way the district went about preparing next year’s budget, but without changing the district’s direction.
Select Flagler School Seniors Receive 239 Scholarships Worth $240,000 at Ceremony
The annual ceremony hosted by the Flagler County Education Foundation celebrated its 25th year Tuesday as 108 organizations’ scholarships were presented to 138 seniors. See the full list.
Superintendent in Flight: Janet Valentine Gets Bird’s Eye View of Her Domain
School Superintendent Janet Valentine took a one-hour flight around the county with Jack Howell, director of Flagler’s Teens-in-Flight program. Howell wanted to thank Valentine for her support.
Youth Center II: Carver Gym Rises Again As School District Takes Over Management
South Bunnell’s Carver Gym, no longer on the endangered list, will be run like the Youth Center on FPC’s campus: with money from the county–and other sources–and staffing from the school district, along with new controls and programming.
Severe, $3.5 Million in School Cuts on the Way: 40 Teachers, Shorter Days, Shorter Calendar
The Flagler County School Board agreed to the cuts today, the result of federal stimulus aid running out and Gov. Rick Scott’s proposed cuts to the education budget. Many of the cuts must be negotiated with the unions.
Facing $3.5 Million Deficit, Flagler Schools Eye Shorter Calendar, Bus Routes, Reserves
School Superintendent Janet Valentine says many options are on the table as Gov. Rick Scott’s proposed budget cuts force additional reductions on top of the $7.5 million the district has cut since 2007.
More Power to Principals, Less Transparency as Board Kills Policy Inspired by Mockingbird
The rejected policy had called for supporting plays “that challenge, nurture and extend student skills” while respecting community sensibilities. Instead, the board retreated to more general “tweaks” of two existing policies.
Between Authority and Authoritarianism: Conklin and Pryor Clash Over Principal Power
The school board is debating a new policy and procedure controlling the staging of controversial plays. Matanzas Principal Chris Pryor doesn’t want to be “second-guessed.” Board member Conklin doesn’t want unilateral decision-making.
Revels Plan Would Resurrect Carver Gym—If It Can Surmount Buck-Passing
The county and the school board appear ready to commit their recurring share of Carver Gym’s annual bill. Bunnell, where the gym is located, and other groups are either less committed or less certain about their capabilities.
As Superintendent and School Board Now Urge Play’s Revival, Focus Shifts to Drama Teacher
Scripts of the Mockingbird controversy are being furiously re-written as the school district shifts to backing the play, but vague accusations and ugly slanders are now being directed at the Ed Koczergo, the drama teacher.
Tale of Two Recommendations: Valentine “Completely” Supports Staging of Mockingbird
The appeals committee’s original recommendation was re-written to more clearly reflect Mockingbird as an “appropriate” play to be staged by Flagler County school students.
Mockingbird‘s Fate Still Hanging as Appeals Panel, Endorsing the Work, Punts on the Play
A majority of the committee clearly wanted the play staged. But it’s recommendation goes no further than declaring Mockingbird “appropriate” for instruction–a matter never in doubt.
Live Recap: Mockingbird Appeals Committee’s Minute-By-Minute Deliberations
The nine-member appeals committee, meeting this morning at Matanzas High School, will recommend a fate for “To Kill a Mockingbird”–whether FPC’s students will stage it or not, and how. It’s up to Superintedent Valentine to make the final decision.
In Her Own Words, Please: A Friend of
Harper Lee’s Pleads the Case Against Censors
Jack Cowardin, the St. Augustine novelist, has been corresponding with Harper Lee for years. His take on the controversy over the staging of the play by FPC’s Drama Club: Let it go on unmolested by political correctness.
The National Coalition Against Censorship’s Letter to Janet Valentine
“We urge you to encourage student creativity and civic engagement, and to teach students the skills to discuss opposing views respectfully,” the NCAC writes. “We urge you to allow the students to perform the play.”
National Coalition Against Censorship Urges Valentine To Reverse Mockingbird Decision
The strongly-worded letter from a coalition representing 50 organizations of actors, writers, educators and clerics calls on Superintendent Valentine to enrich the conversation on race and culture, not restrict it.
Mockingbird Appeals Committee’s Challenge: Loyalty to “Protocol” vs. Free Expression
Interviews with appeals committee members reveal a divide between instinctive revulsion of censorship and hesitancy over second-guessing a principal’s decision even as the facts of the case continue to be muddled by unspecified generalities.
Before School Censors: When Mockingbird‘s Harper Lee Spoke Proudly of Flagler County
In 2002, Harper Lee addressed Flagler County proudly when her book was the centerpiece of county-wide events. The school district’s censoring of the play this month contrasts sharply with that progressive history.
Citing Vague Fears, School District Suppresses Stage Production of To Kill a Mockingbird
Students and faculty had no issues with the production’s use of the word “nigger,” as in the book and the movie. A Palm Coast city councilman and other unnamed “community members” did, leading FPC Principal and Superintendent Janet Valentine to censor the play.
In Palm Coast, Another Dud Turnout At School Tax Town Hall
School officials had thought (and feared) that the tea party throngs would turn up at Monday’s town hall on the proposed $0.25 mill school tax referendum. They didn’t. What those tea leaves say is not clear.
Superintendent Janet Valentine: Why You Should Vote For the .25 Mill School Tax Levy
School Superintendent Janet Valentine makes the case for the 25-cent-per-$1,000 property tax levy on November’s ballot, the continuation of a tax homeowners have been paying all along.
All Maya All the Time: How the Government Building in Bunnell Became Archeology Central
The four-day Maya at the Playa Conference at the county and school building gathered the leading experts in Maya archeology and history from nine countries and 29 states, drawing some 160 participants.
Battling Referendums: School Tax Will Compete With Building Tax in November
In the wost of times, voters will be asked to approve a tax levy to continue existing funding on top of a new tax favored by the chamber of commerce for building commercial properties.
Move Over, Delbrugge: How Janet Valentine Shifted the School Board on a Tax Levy
New School Superintendent Janet Valentine quietly showed her political and parliamentary skills when she turned the board from opposing to approving a school tax referendum.
“It Stinks That Flagler County Is Losing You”: School Board Bids Delbrugge Farewell
In an emotional half hour that mixed bawdy humor with Hallmark-quality sorrow, the School Board said goodbye to Superintendent Bill Delbrugge Tuesday evening.
School Board Quietly Hires
In-House Attorney for the First Time
The district was not interested in anyone other than Kristy Gavin for the $85,000 to $125,000-a-year position.
Transition in Style: It’s Janet Valentine’s School District Now as Delbrugge Exits
Janet Valentine this week began filling Bill Delbrugge’s shoes amid high expectations and some concerns.
School Board: Closing Carver Gym Not an Option; How Bunnell Killed Carver Housing
The school district is adding its voice to a chorus of protest and damning history against closing Carver Gym.
Pressing for Raises, Teachers’ Union Holding District Hostage Over Class-Size Compromise
The union would approve a district plan to comply with class-size requirements in exchange for $2.4 million in raises.
Class-Size Limits: How Flagler Schools Are Scrambling to Fit in Costly Strait-Jacket
The Flagler school district will spend upwards of $600,000 (to start) to comply with constitutionally required class-size reductions that have no appreciable effect on quality education.
Tax-Averse Parents Send Per-Student Spending Tumbling in Flagler Schools
Per-student funding has risen and fallen over the year, but today it’s identical to what it was in 1996, even as the student population, academic expectations and administrative burdens have multiplied.
Brain Drain: School Board Retires 36 (and 745 Years of Experience)
Some of the school district’s most familiar names took their last bows Tuesday, including Michele Crosby, Hanneke Jevons, Myra Middleton and Rebecca Dunn.
Flagler Schools Bracing for Dismal
Fiscal (and Oil Spill) Impact
Budget shortfalls, new financial burdens and disappearing sources of money are all converging on the Flagler school district at the same time, setting up a potential funding crisis in the next two years.
4-Year, $168,600 Contract for Superintendent Janet Valentine
Janet Valentine will replace Bill Delbrugge on July 1, when Delbrugge heads to a new job and life in Cairo, Egypt.
Shellenberger, Steadying Voice for 8 Years, Will Not Run Again for School Board
After eight years on the school board and 41 years in education, Evie Shellenberger, 64, is looking for more leisure and less politics.