In Lawsuit Over School Vouchers, Crist Sides With Teachers Union Over Black Ministers.

In Lawsuit Over School Vouchers, Crist Sides With Teachers Union Over Black Ministers.

The Miami Herald (9/11, Caputo) reports that ex-Gov. Charlie Crist (D) “has made education policy a centerpiece of his” 2014 bid to oust Gov. Rick Scott (R), “but it’s also a wedge issue dividing two Democratic constituencies: teacher unions and black ministers who support school vouchers.” On Wednesday, the Rev. H.K. Matthews, “a major Panhandle civil-rights leader,” called on Crist “to ‘publicly denounce’ a new teacher union-led lawsuit that seeks to dismantle the major school-choice program.” However, Crist said, “I’m not going to do that. They have the right to sue for that if they want to.” Matthews noted that he stood “with Crist at the state Capitol in 2010 when the then-Republican governor expanded and pledged to support the” state’s school -choice program. Today, Crist “is standing by a lawsuit that could undo that very program.”

Florida Kindergarten Teacher Refuses To Administer Standardized Tests.

The AP (9/10, AP) reports Alachua County’s Susan Bowles, a Chiles Elementary kindergarten teacher, is risking her job to refuse administering standardized tests to her students, such as FAIR, a thrice annual predictor of reading success for all public school students. Because the test is now computerized, teachers will lose six weeks of instruction time to administer the test one-on-one. While to board members have offered support, Bowles has requested a meeting with the superintendent.