Do school sales tax holidays work? Dive into the data. | Florida Trend Education – Florida Trend
Do school-related sales tax holidays work? Dive into the data.
Shoppers in Florida can expect some savings during the current tax holiday, which ends Sunday. School supplies costing less than $50 and clothing under $100 are exempt from state sales tax. But the tax holidays are not without controversy. They typically do not offer consumers much in the way of savings and are essentially free advertising for politicians and major retailers, according to the Tax Foundation, a nonprofit policy analysis organization. (Source: Tampa Bay Times)
Given that teachers’ salaries are at the centre of consideration, the question arises as to how our teachers can afford accommodation.
Teachers in Florida have many concerns when it comes to educating the next generation and balancing the rest of their lives. One of the main issues for many is housing affordability. According to a recent study by real estate company Redfin, the average teacher in the United States can afford less than half of the rental housing within commuting distance of their school. When it comes to affording a home, that number drops dramatically. (Source: WTSP)
Florida’s private school vouchers are rising rapidly, raising concerns about the impact on public schools
The voucher program expanded in 2023 after Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a law allowing all families, regardless of income, to apply for a private school voucher. When vouchers were first introduced under then-Gov. Jeb Bush, scholarships were limited to students with disabilities and low-income students at failing schools. More from the Miami Herald and Spectrum News.
Here are the new school safety rules now in effect in Florida
Thousands of students across Florida are returning to school this week and may notice some changes to safety. School districts across the state adjusted their safety policies over the summer to comply with a new state law aimed at keeping students safe. More from WCJB and Click Orlando.
Critics say Florida’s pre-K budget neglects early childhood education, just as it has in past years
Florida is the only state where a child’s right to a “quality” preschool education is constitutionally protected. Yet its preschool program is one of the worst funded in the country, and the budget increase lawmakers passed this spring won’t change that. When Florida’s voluntary preschool program was created in 2005, it paid daycare centers $4.62 per hour per child, for a total of $2,500. The budget for the upcoming school year is just a dollar more per hour, which is well below the rate of inflation. (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:
› Florida Tech hopes space industry coalition will raise funds for research
Florida Tech is partnering with the University of Florida, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and Florida A&M University to form a consortium – the Center for Science, Research and Technology in Space, or C-STARS – to advance research in space manufacturing. And Florida Tech officials have big plans.
› USF education professor develops artificial intelligence for K-12 teachers
School is back in session for students in the Tampa Bay Area. This year, many classrooms are using artificial intelligence. A professor at the University of South Florida is trying to make using AI even easier for teachers. Zafer Unal, a professor at USF St. Petersburg, was curious about how teachers are using AI in the classroom. So he conducted a study of 140,000 to 12 teachers in Florida and Georgia and asked them how they use it.
› UWF records record enrollment, students return to classes
They came from across the city, South Florida and even the Midwest as the University of West Florida hosted move-in day for President’s Hall on Wednesday. Students and parents carried laptops, televisions, clothing, lamps, photos, room decor and other necessities in their hands, backpacks, boxes, plastic containers, wagons and even carts provided by UWF.
› At the request of the University of Florida’s interim president, Fuchs, Glover returns as provost
Joe Glover, the longtime University of Florida chancellor who retired in 2023 before taking the same position at the University of Arizona earlier this year, is returning to Gainesville. Glover, who had only been in the role since July 1, wrote in a post on the University of Arizona website that he is returning to the University of Florida as chancellor at the request of interim President Kent Fuchs.
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