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Tuesday, February 24, 2015

Commissioner Pam Stewart gives a big FU to public schools.

Sorry for the colorful letters but that was my first thought when I saw the list of participants of the newly created Keep Florida learning committee, which the Tampa Times describes as designed to review "deregulation opportunities" and identify more parental choice options in public schools, among other goals.

These are the members picked out of several thousand applicants.


2015 Florida Teacher of the Year: Christie Bassett, Polk County
Legislator: Representative Manny Díaz, Jr., a Hialeah Republican who works for a charter school firm and heads the House Choice and Innovation Committee
Principal: Dr. Margaret Fahringer, Miami-Dade County
Teacher: Doris Garcia, Orange County
Parent: Julia (Megan) Hendricks, Pasco County, a testing activist
School Board Member: Patty Hightower, Escambia County, president of the Florida School Boards Association
Higher Education Participant: Joe Pickens, Putnam County, president of St. Johns River State College and a former lawmaker
Superintendent: Dr. Owen Roberts, Alachua County
Legislator: Senator Kelli Stargel, a Lakeland Republican whose husband serves on a charter school board of directors 
Parent: Laura Zorc, Indian River County, a Common Core opponent
Two count them two obvious charter school proponents. Charter schools students make up less than ten percent of the students in the state but their representatives will now make up at least 20 percent of the committee.  The deck continues to be stacked against public teachers and the person that leads the states schools commissioner Pam Stewart is the one doing the shuffling.

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