Florida education commissioner says distance learning will continue into next year
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Florida students will be able to continue to learn remotely through the second half of the school year as the state grapples with the COVID-19 pandemic, Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran said Wednesday. The Florida Education Association teachers union sued the state in July after Corcoran ordered school districts to offer in-person instruction when the 2020-2021 school year began. Corcoran told the state education board Wednesday that he expects to release another order addressing the pandemic by the end of this month. The Florida Education Association is asking the full court to reconsider the ruling, even as schools across the state have resumed in-person instruction. “We have not yet made that determination,” said Jason Wheeler, Community Information Specialist for Flagler County Schools.
First Lady Casey DeSantis makes case for in-person learning
Florida’s First Lady Casey DeSantis used this week’s Children and Youth Cabinet to lay out the case for a full return to classroom learning. DeSantis says the science supports the move to bring students back to school. “The CDC released data showing that children ages 19 and younger have a 99.997 percent survivability rate,” DeSantis said. When schools were closed in April, Florida’s Child Abuse Hotline saw a 38-percent decline in calls. “She took me home and met my mom and saw the situation," Adams said.