Florida Department of Education

Parents were split almost evenly on whether they will send their students to Manatee elementary schools wearing masks.

The fifth-grade teacher at Eisenhower Elementary School in Clearwater was cited for her "passion and enthusiasm for learning."

Federal education officials questioned state leaders about teacher bonuses and holding back COVID-19 relief funds from school districts.

None of the stops, designed to get public input, will be held in the greater Tampa Bay region. Online comments are being accepted before the State Board of Education considers the proposal on June 10.

A little more than half of students attending the state’s VPK programs are deemed ready for kindergarten.

Because of a legally required 72-hour “cooling off” period, the budget is required to be finalized and printed Tuesday for the annual legislative session to end on time Friday.

Florida lawmakers will deal with the pandemic’s impact on education when they reconvene in Tallahassee in March. Among the issues: a steep drop in student attendance, growing concerns about learning losses and a Republican effort to consolidate the state’s school choice programs.

Schools are worried their grades could fall, triggering consequences as severe as closure.

Among other things, the proposal would expand school vouchers and allow parents to use education savings accounts to pay for private schools and other costs.

Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran went head-to-head with Board of Education member Michael Olenick over the role of teachers union leaders in the state's school reopening case.

The state Department of Education will direct the money to 18 districts that have lower rates of internet connectivity and limited access to health professionals.

Gov. Ron DeSantis and state education officials on Thursday released a plan to reopen public schools at full capacity in August, saying that vulnerable…