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New Congressional Candidate
Pledging to be a leader who produces results for Florida's families in Congress, Paul Rancatore, a Lieutenant Colonel in the Air Force Reserves and a Captain with American Airlines, announced today that he is running to represent Florida's Fifteenth Congressional District in the United States Congress.

"I am running for Congress because seniors, veterans and working families on the Space Coast deserve a Congressman who will provide efficient, effective, and accountable leadership," said Rancatore. "After more than 12 years of Dave Weldon's failure to create job opportunities, protect our nation, strengthen social security and create a real energy policy, the Space Coast is ready for a change. I offer a record of proven leadership and will fight for the concerns of all Floridians in Congress."

Throughout his life, Paul Rancatore has demonstrated his commitment to serving his country. An active duty reserve officer, Rancatore has served in the Air Force for 27 years, including service in Operation Desert Shield/Storm. Rancatore currently serves at the Pentagon as the Director for Commercialization of Human Space Flight in the National Security and Space Office.

As a commercial pilot at American Airlines, Rancatore has taken a leadership role on aviation security issues. He was a former voting member of the Department of Homeland Security's Aviation Security Advisory Committee and the Transportation Security Administration's working group for Air Cargo Security.

Paul Rancatore and his wife Kathy live in Vero Beach, Florida.

contributors

From Larry E. Hughes, School Board

BPS-TV will broadcast the Education Today program every week during the legislative session. Starting Friday March 23rd, the show will air on BPS-TV at 12 noon They will also schedule a repeat of the Friday show at 5:30 pm on the following Sunday each week.

Mr. Jordan, Ms. Kershaw and I attended the kickoff of the Governor�s Sterling Award evaluation. This process will be invaluable to the district as an organizational assessment tool administered by an independent body.

Brevard welcomes 68 new National Board Certified Teachers from the Class of 2006. This brings Brevard to 490 NBCTs in the district with at least one in every school. We are now at 9.8% of our teachers with NBCT, among the highest in the nation and a goal of 15% by 2010. Thanks Pat Shelton and staff for an excellent job!

The National Civic Star Award recognizes exemplary school-community partnerships that represent effective practices in collaboration that add value to the education process. Brevard Public Schools was among the 27 2007 National Civic Star winners. Brevard was recognized because of the efforts of all 82 of our schools to help schools in Jackson County, Mississippi after Hurricane Katrina.

Congratulations to Coach Joe Scott and to Satellite High School on their 1st place award in the Ethics Competition at the Florida Institute of Technology.

Palm Bay High School Academy of Law & Public Safety will be holding an open house/registration on March 21, 2007 from 6:30 PM to 8:00 PM in the library. �This is an awesome opportunity for students and parents of Brevard County to learn about the program and meet staff. It is a follow up on the first open house that we had on February 28, Director Damian Wilson said.

The Merritt Island High Mustang Quarterback Club has begun a campaign to come to the aid of Alabama's Enterprise High School. This school was damaged by a devastating tornado that took the lives of 8 students on March 1. The Merritt Island Quarterback Club is launching a fund raiser to specifically replenish athletic equipment and uniforms that were lost. Mr. Gary Shiffrin, Merritt Island High School Principal said, "The young people of Enterprise High School certainly deserve our support during this very emotional and challenging time. Brevard County Schools have always come to the aid of those who have been the victims of natural disasters. The Merritt Island Quarterback Club hopes that this will continue as we reach out to help a fellow school." For additional information please contact Mr. Gary Shiffrin, Merritt Island High School Principal at 321-454-1009.

I still need volunteers from the cities of Palm Shores and Rockledge to serve as the School Board representatives to the Local Planning Agencies in those communities. The time commitment is minimal, training will be provided and it is a great way to understand how your local government works and to insure school needs are met in your neighborhood. Please contact your local School Board Member or Michael Gaffney (633-1000) for more information. Come on Rockledge maybe it would it help if I said it effects Little League?

Department of Education Offers New Resources for Tracking Teacher Misconduct. Education Commissioner Jeanine Blomberg recently announced that beginning in the next school year, parents will be able to search an online database to see if any disciplinary action has been taken against an educator's teaching certificate. The Web site (www.MyFloridaTeacher.com) is one of the new resources in development by the Department of Education to inform parents, school administrators and the general public about teacher certificate actions. Similar to other licensed professionals like physicians, accountants and pharmacists, teachers are subject to action against their certificate for wrongdoing. To view the resources now available to parents, teachers and school administrators, visit www.fldoe.org/edstandards. (The Core, March 9, 2007)

The Florida Senate unanimously passed Senate Bill 1226, sponsored by Senator Don Gaetz (R-Niceville). The bill creates the Merit Award Program, through which school districts can reward exceptional teachers. The bill gives school districts substantial local control to implement their own performance pay plans through collective bargaining. Merit Awards will be earned by teachers based on student learning gains and academic proficiency, measured by state, national, and international standardized tests as well as locally-determined forms of assessment, such as end-of-course exams. Local merit award plans will allow high-performing teachers and school-based administrators to earn a monetary award (in an amount equal to 5 percent of, and no greater than 10 percent of, the district's average teacher salary). "This legislation respects local control, relies on local innovation, and rewards those teachers who work the hardest and accomplish the most for their students, often under very difficult circumstances," Gaetz said. �There is nothing more important to securing Florida's future than better teaching, better student performance, and better schools.�

Growth Management Glitch. If growth management (SB 360) is to work, the Florida Department of Education must revise the Florida Information on School Houses (FISH) data base to reflect program capacity rather than design capacity. ESE, ESOL, speech and remediation require smaller class sizes by statute but no allowance is made in the FISH for those programs. As a result, it is mathematically impossible to reach 100% utilization in permanent facilities alone. Just as the Full Time Equivalent (FTE) student count is weighted for exceptionalities, the FISH facility capacity must be weighted to reflect program capacity.

My wife Marian was taking roll in her BCC class today, the first day of spring. One of her students was absent. "Cindy isn't here this afternoon?" Marian asked. "She went home to lay in the sun," a young woman in the front row answered. Trying to correct her grammar without embarrassing her in front of the class, Marian whispered, "Lie." Okay," the startled young woman replied, "Cindy got sick and went home."

Larry E. Hughes

Parent, Citizen

LarryHughes@ourflorida.info

(321) 724-4203

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Next School Board Meeting:5:30 on April 10th.