GOP Bill Raises Academic Bar, Not Funding

By CATHERINE DOLINSKI

Published: March 18, 2009

TALLAHASSEE - High-school students would have to pass the FCAT and higher-level math and science courses to receive diplomas under a plan Republicans are pushing in the state House and Senate.

The legislation, which gets its first committee hearing today, would require freshmen entering high school in fall 2010 to pass algebra I, geometry and biology before receiving a high-school diploma. They also would have to pass the 10th-grade Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test.

"The bar, for too many years, has been far too low for our students," said Senate sponsor Thad Altman, R-Melbourne.

Phase 2 would take effect for freshmen in fall 2012, who also would have to pass algebra II and chemistry before graduating. In both phases, the new criteria would be requirements for winning a Bright Futures scholarship.

Florida recently flunked "college readiness" on its annual report card from the newspaper Education Week, said House sponsor Erik Fresen. Internationally, testing shows that U.S. students are falling behind in science and math.

If Florida does not raise its standards, it is "putting our children at a competitive disadvantage to the global community," said Fresen, R-Miami.

Fresen and Altman's versions differ substantially in the details, though Altman said he plans to follow the House's lead.

Neither version calls for extra funding. Asked about the potential cost of implementing the changes - such as the need for more teachers - the sponsors said they did not think there would be one.

Democrats, who were promoting their own plan Tuesday to boost school spending with a penny increase of the sales tax, slammed Republicans for proposing to improve high schools without money.

"We can't have the conversation about increased standards and not begin to address the ... issues in and around increasing the funding or providing revenue that will help alleviate the burdens of teachers, administrators, school boards, school systems, et cetera.," said Rep. Dwight Bullard, D-Miami, who teaches 11th-grade American history.

The Democrats' proposal, from Bullard and Sen. Ted Deutch, would increase the sales tax by a penny for three years, generating $3.5 billion for schools.

Asked about the dueling proposals, Gov. Charlie Crist said the Republicans' proposal sounds reasonable, but he would not stake a position on the sales tax increase, which faces a tough road in both Republican-controlled chambers.

Altman, who runs the committee to which the Democrats' bill has been referred first in the Senate, said he considers a sales tax hike an "absolute last-case scenario."

Deutch, D-Delray Beach, said he would be happy not to raise the sales tax if the Legislature would find another way to shield K-12 education from more budget cuts.

House Majority Leader Adam Hasner of Delray Beach, who backs the standards bill, said his chamber can't commit to that, given the latest dire predictions that state revenue might fall short more than $6 billion in 2010.

Hillsborough County public schools welcome a more rigorous high school curriculum, which the district has worked to beef up, lobbyist Connie Milito said.

But such change requires time, training and staff - and the school district already is talking about furloughs and staff reassignments as it braces for potential budget cuts exceeding $200 million, she said.

"While we absolutely agree that parts of this bill need to happen, our biggest concern is that implementing this properly will take manpower. It's going to be hard to do this at a time when our energy is focused on ... the cuts in our budget."
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