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Hillsborough County School Board member Stacy Hahn, shown at a 2023 meeting, says the district should maintain reserves of at least 7% in order to flexibly manage any financial pressures that come its way.
Hillsborough schools seek financial stability by doubling reserves
A roundup of Florida education news from around the state
DeSantis wants New College to take over the USF Sarasota-Manatee campus. Could that happen?
A recent Gov. Ron DeSantis budget proposal asks that the University of South Florida's Sarasota-Manatee campus is transferred to New College of Florida.
The Governor’s plan for the USF Sarasota-Manatee campus to transfer to New College still needs to move through the state Legislature.
Pasco schools aim to put teeth behind student attendance rules
Dr. John Legg, Superintendent of Pasco County Schools, shown at a November school board meeting, wants to take more dramatic steps to enforce state and district student attendance rules.
Superintendent John Legg wants to send the most egregious cases to circuit court
Want school library information? Florida’s $15M site has yet to take off.
Students read in the Westgate Elementary School library during a summer reading camp. The state has touted a portal for parents to learn more about the materials in school libraries. So far only two counties are participating.
A roundup of Florida education news from around the state

Latest

  1. Hillsborough schools seek financial stability by doubling reserves
    • Education
    Hillsborough County School Board member Stacy Hahn, shown at a 2023 meeting, says the district should maintain reserves of at least 7% in order to flexibly manage any financial pressures that come its way.
  2. Want school library information? Florida’s $15M site has yet to take off.
    • Education
    Students read in the Westgate Elementary School library during a summer reading camp. The state has touted a portal for parents to learn more about the materials in school libraries. So far only two counties are participating.
  3. DeSantis wants New College to take over the USF Sarasota-Manatee campus. Could that happen?
    • Education
    A recent Gov. Ron DeSantis budget proposal asks that the University of South Florida's Sarasota-Manatee campus is transferred to New College of Florida.
  5. Pasco schools aim to put teeth behind student attendance rules
    • Education
    Dr. John Legg, Superintendent of Pasco County Schools, shown at a November school board meeting, wants to take more dramatic steps to enforce state and district student attendance rules.
  6. Two Pasco schools get new principals
    • Education
    Watergrass Elementary School in Wesley Chapel
  7. Pasco schools make gains in bus driver hiring. Is it enough?
    • Education
    Pasco County Schools’ buses are seen at the South Compound in 2022. The school district says its new incentive pay program is helping reduce its driver vacancies.
  8. Pinellas school board OK’s raises for all remaining employees
    • Education
    Pinellas County School Board member Laura Hine, shown at a March workshop, says employee raises would be negligible if voters had not approved the district's local-option property tax referendum.
  9. Florida ponders AI rules in schools, despite Trump executive order
    • Education
    Gov. Ron DeSantis at a May 6, 2025, press conference in Miami.
  10. Got shots? Florida moves to eliminate some mandatory student vaccinations.
    • Education
    The Florida Department of Health is no longer publishing school-level vaccination data, leaving parents without a key piece of information as state leaders seek to end vaccine mandates
  11. Florida confirms Moez Limayem as USF president
    • Education
    Moez Limayem was confirmed by the Florida Board of Governors on Dec. 12 in a Zoom meeting.
  12. Want funding? Head Start centers told not to use words such as ‘belong’
    • Education
    Lifeguard Grayson Brody guides children with Edison Elementary School’s Head Start program into Roy Jenkins Pool before participating in a beginner’s swim lesson in 2024. To continue getting federal funding, Head Start programs have been told to avoid using certain words associated with diversity, equity and inclusion.
  13. Supply firm claims Hillsborough school district violated transparency laws
    • Education
    A cleaning supplies company is suing the district, claiming they have not followed sunshine law. CHRIS URSO/STAFF
  14. Pasco, Hillsborough delay decisions on Schools of Hope requests
    • Education
    Schools of Hope charter operator Mater Academy has asked to occupy space in Pasco County's Cox Elementary and five other sites in the district.
  15. DeSantis touts teacher raises in his final Florida budget proposal
    • Education
    Florida Governor Ron DeSantis speaks with reporters after delivering his State of the State address during the first day of the legislative session at the Florida State Capitol on Tuesday, March 4, 2025, in Tallahassee, Fla.
  16. Two Hillsborough schools get new principals
    • Education
    A school bus drops off children on the first day of school in Tampa.
  17. Lawmakers take step toward fixing Florida’s school voucher funding woes
    • Education
    State Sen. Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, presents legislation to overhaul Florida's education voucher spending system during a meeting of the Senate Appropriations Committee on Wednesday. The bill passed unanimously.
  18. Florida school locks down as AI weapons detection system tags clarinet
    • Education
    A Florida middle school went into lockdown after its AI weapons detection system detected a student holding a clarinet as if it were a rifle.
  19. Pinellas schools to tighten volunteer background checks, for a fee
    • Education
    Students make their way to class between first and second period on the first day of school at Lakewood High School in St. Petersburg on Aug. 11. Starting in January, Pinellas school district will begin requiring anyone who has direct unsupervised contact with students undergo what’s called a Level 2 screening.
  20. Florida’s schools chief has lost the locker room | Column
    • Viewpoints
    Florida Education Commissioner Anastasios Kamoutsas speaks at the Florida School Boards Association's conference in Tampa on Dec. 4.
  21. Hillsborough school board calls on Florida to change Schools of Hope law
    • Education
    Department of Education Commissioner Anastasios Kamoutsas speaks during a roundtable conference at the Hillsborough Academy of Math and Science on July 30 in Tampa.
  22. Florida teacher training programs lack diversity, report says
    • Education
    New teachers introduce themselves to each other while participating in Pasco County's 2024 orientation program. A new report indicates a need for more diversity in Florida's rising teacher ranks.
  23. Pasco schools want parent feedback on what’s working, what’s not
    • Education
    Parents and children receive direction from Principal Julie Marks, right, while arriving at Kirkland Ranch K-8 in Wesley Chapel during the first day of school 2024. The Pasco school district wants more input from parents about how the system is performing.
  24. Former Nova Southeastern interim AD accused of defrauding school of nearly $60K
    • Crime
    The campus of Nova Southeastern University in Davie is shown in this photo from May. The former interim athletic director at the school has been charged with fraud.

About the Tampa Bay Times Education Hub

The Tampa Bay Times Education Hub is Florida's go-to source for coverage of the state's sprawling education system, from preschool to high school to college and graduate school. Our team is dedicated to clear and comprehensive reporting on the campus and classroom policies that directly impact millions of students, parents, teachers and taxpayers. Through fearless, fact-based journalism, we hold leaders and institutions accountable and empower readers with the knowledge they need to take action.

Initial funding for the hub was provided by Open Campus and The Parallel Foundation.

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