The stage is set for the third act of a 14-year old ideological battle pitting traditional public education supporters against proponents of competition to improve schools.
“I think with or without legislative involvement there is a disruptive intervention coming to our education system: higher ed and K-12,” said House Speaker Will Weatherford, R-Wesley Chapel, who sees opportunities to improve education through the use of digital technology.
“It’s like a frontier; we know there’s something great there and we’re going after it,” Weatherford said this week. “Schools and universities are going to be able to take advantage of the tremendous opportunity that technology brings. We have an opportunity to get ahead of the curve.”
The House is working on a proposal, CIS 3, from the Choice and Innovation Subcommittee, to allow more providers to offer online K-12 education. It includes a pilot program that would allow districts to launch schools offering virtual education.
“That idea has some merits, certainly,” said Rep. Mark Pafford, D-West Palm Beach, the Democrats' policy chairman. “But you don’t want that component of education -- the digital learning or whatever we are going to call it -- beginning to displace your traditional education in a school setting because it is cheaper.”
Spending on the Florida Virtual School program, a statewide online elementary through high school program has increased from $8 million in 2003 to $214 million this year.
Pafford sees interest in using the Internet to replace classrooms and proposals to expand charter as part of a long-running battle that began with debates over former Gov. Jeb Bush's A+ grading plan for public schools. Act 2 was the uproar created by SB 6 three years ago, a teacher merit pay bill that ended tenure. Former Gov.Charlie Crist vetoed the measure, resigned from the Republican Party and the next year newly elected Gov. Rick Scott signed SB 736, SB 6’s replacement.
Now, Pafford expects 2013 to feature the opening skirmishes of Act 3, the debate over how far will Florida adopt virtual learning as oppose to brick-and-mortar schools and how big it will allow the charter school industry to grow. One proposal in the House would require school districts to let charter schools use any building that is below 50 percent capacity.
“There definitely is an ideological discussion on the differences with the way the state treats charter schools and online schools and traditional neighborhood schools,” said Mark Pudlow, spokesman for the Florida Education Association. “More and more we’re seeing charter schools and virtual schools getting more resources at the expense of our underfunded neighborhood public schools, while not being required to use the same measurements and meet the same requirements.”
Here’s a breakdown of the education issues before the Legislature:
HIGHER EDUCATION
Description: The Governor’s Higher Education package includes $1.1 billion for state colleges and $3.85 billion for universities. The proposal calls for a $118 million base funding increase and 167 million tied to performance incentives for the university system. It includes $15 million for the University of Florida to achieve a national ranking in the top 10.
Outlook: Scott has embraced education as a means to a better life. Some may find his references to his modest if not stark upbringing as politically motivated but he consistently credits education for the successes he has achieved. Expect him to stand firm while lawmakers shape his proposal to their liking. Florida State University alums will try to match the $15 million UF grant for their alma mater.
K-12
Description: Scott recommends $10.7 billion in state spending for public schools and an additional $1 billion in early learning funds. The package includes a teacher pay raise, $100 million for digital learning initiatives, $74.9 million for school safety programs and more money for teachers to purchase classroom supplies.
Outlook: Lawmakers fret about backing away from performance-based raises for teachers and whether the state has the $480 million to spend on teacher raises. They will tinker with the figures in each silo but expect the Gov.’s proposal to form the basis of what finally emerges at the end of session for education.
CHARTER SCHOOLS
There are at least four proposals filed in each chamber regarding the creation, regulation and expansion of charter schools, independent public schools operated by a nonprofit organization. Charters control their own finances and sometimes contract with a for-profit management company.
SB 862, The Parent Empowerment Act by Sen. Kelli Stargelwould let parents of students in low-performing schools call for a private-management company to take over. A similar parent trigger bill died last year in the Senate on a 20-20 vote. Proponents think that with the new makeup of the Senate they have the votes this year to pass the bill.
SB 744 by Sens. David Simmons, R-Maitland, and Bill Montford, D-Tallahassee, would require an applicant wanting to establish a charter school to submit information on annual employee compensation and to demonstrate financial capability to open, operate and maintain a high-quality charter school.
SB 780 and HB 373, Regulates contracts charter schools can sign and compensation for employees, and provides for closing a charter school under certain circumstances.
CIS 1 out of the House Choice and Innovation Subcommittee would require school districts to let charter schools use any building that is below 50 percent capacity.
Key Players:
Gov. Rick Scott, in the words of Rep. Pafford, has done a 180-degree turn on education funding. “He’s discovering the importance of teachers,” Pafford said.
Senate President Don Gaetz is a former Okaloosa County school superintendent. He is proposing expansion of the 2007 CAPE Act, which he helped pioneer as superintendent. He calls the proposal historic and concedes it may take two years to pass.
Sen. John Legg, a charter school administrator, helped shape Florida education policies during eight years in the House. He believes in harnessing technology and performance-based evaluations of schools and teachers.
Speaker Will Weatherford embraces digital technology and said it will revolutionize how people learn and educators teach. “I think the state has to figure out how to leverage technology to give more Floridians access to higher quality education, sitting in the comfort of their living rooms,“ he said.
Key Committees:
House Education Committee
House Choice and Innovation Subcommittee
House Higher Education and Workforce Subcommittee
House K-12 Subcommittee
Senate Education Committee
House Education Appropriations Subcommittee
