Florida
Emotions fly in debate over Florida teacher preparation
The heated story: The education topic that riled emotions in Floridaâs Legislature on Thursday was teacher preparation.
The bill sponsors aimed to remove âidentity politicsâ and âtheories of systemic racismâ from any lessons that colleges and universities provide students learning to become teachers. They said itâs important to teach about history and other important events without distortion.
Several Democratic lawmakers took issue with the proposal, contending it was an effort by the Republican majority to erase the truth about Black history. Tempers flared and some tears were shed during the intense debate over several amendments â none of which passed â aimed at muting the bill.
Speaker pro tempore Rep. Chuck Clemons repeatedly reminded members to turn the heat down and keep things civil. He specifically chastised the use of the word âgarbageâ to describe othersâ viewpoints, suggesting the lawmakers expand their lexicon to become more eloquent.
After rolling the bill to final reading, Clemons had everyone return to their seats, and pointed to the bracelet he received from Democratic Rep. Christine Hunchofsky. It says, âkindness.â Clemons asked everyone to use a little as they continue to the end of session, which comes March 8. He received a round of applause. Read more from News Service of Florida.
More Tallahassee action
Vouchers: State lawmakers are holding firm in their proposal to reduce the permitted uses of education voucher funds, despite familiesâ pleas to keep the expense list broad enough to include art supplies and musical instruments. Hereâs why.
Social media: Senate President Kathleen Passidomo said she expects Gov. Ron DeSantis to veto HB 1 barring minors from social media, Florida Politics reports. Lawmakers are gearing up to revise HB 3 on limits to internet pornography access to take its place, USA Today Florida Network reports.
Deregulation: The House passed a second bill to reduce regulations placed on public schools and sent it back to the Senate. It removed several concepts, including the elimination of some high school graduation testing requirements, that the Senate had proposed, Florida Phoenix reports.
Today in Tallahassee … The House convenes at 9 a.m. HB 1291 on teacher preparation is on the calendar for final consideration. ⢠The Senate convenes at 9 a.m. Bills on the special order calendar include SB 1128 on university carryover funds, SB 994 on student transportation and SB 962 on inhaler availability in schools.
Hot topics
School construction: Hillsborough County school district officials have pledged $70 million to rebuild recently closed Just Elementary School and nearby Stewart Middle. ⢠The St. Johns County school district plans to convert a high school it closed in 1985 into a new campus for its technical college, WTLV reports.
Religion in schools: A Palm Beach County high school math teacher has been reprimanded for giving students pamphlets encouraging them to join in the worship of Jesus Christ, the Palm Beach Post reports.
Parent involvement: The Escambia County school district is encouraging families to get more involved in their childrenâs schools as a way to combat rising absenteeism, WKRG reports.
Open enrollment: The Martin County School Board will make all district schools available for open enrollment, if there is space available, WPTV reports.
New College: The school announced the hiring of a Presidential Scholar who has faced past criticism for his writings in favor of colonialism, the Herald-Tribune reports.
Hazing: The University of Miami chapter of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity is under investigation after videos surfaced that reportedly show hazing activities, the Miami Herald reports.
Election season: Leon County superintendent Rocky Hanna has drawn a second challenger for the post, the Tallahassee Democrat reports.
Eclipse activity: A major solar eclipse is coming on April 8, and Seminole County schools are getting ready for it, WESH reports.
Culture wars: Teachers in Florida schools that follow the International Baccalaureate program say they are not feeling constricted by state laws on the instruction of race, gender and other areas because of the way the program is structured, Education Week reports.
Crossing zones: Recently installed cameras have captured nearly 200 drivers speeding through school crossing zones in the city of Eustis, the Daily Commercial reports.
Charter schools: Residents of an Alachua County town whose students attend schools in nearby Newberry are criticizing Newberryâs proposal to convert the schools into charters, WCJB reports.
From the police blotter … Six people, including a staff member and three students, were arrested after a fight at Hillsborough Countyâs Chamberlain High School. ⢠Two Flagler County teens face charges stemming from a fight at school, Flagler Live reports.
Donât miss a story. Hereâs a link to yesterdayâs roundup.
Before you go … Did you know physicists, scientists and mathematicians were behind some of the biggest ideas in finance? Check out this fascinating explanation.
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/4DLXMJBS6JDU3N75Q6AVJCW4H4.jpeg?w=400&resize=400,240&ssl=1 "Rubio, Scott call fast-tracking of Florida state park golf course plan ‘ridiculous’")
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/4DLXMJBS6JDU3N75Q6AVJCW4H4.jpeg?w=80&resize=80,80&ssl=1 "Rubio, Scott call fast-tracking of Florida state park golf course plan ‘ridiculous’")
A 40-year-old man accused of using an AR-style rifle to threaten another man in a Wawa parking lot was arrested, according to a recently-obtained affidavit.
Jeremy Vigil, of the 700 block of Southwest Estate Avenue in Port St. Lucie, was arrested June 15 on aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and battery charges after the incident at a Wawa at Southwest Becker Road and Southwest Port St. Lucie Boulevard.
A man about 10 p.m. June 15 told Port St. Lucie police that he and Vigil completed a job together the weekend before, and Vigil was angry about payment.
The man said Vigil contacted him, telling him to meet with his money. He arrived at Wawa and met Vigil, with their vehicles positioned window to window.
He described Vigil as “extremely angry,” and accused Vigil of pointing an AR-style rifle out of his truck at him.
“I’m a gangster (expletive),” Vigil is quoted as saying. “I’ll (expletive) kill you.”
The man said Vigil’s son was in the truck, and tried to get the rifle away from his father.
The man reportedly tried to record the encounter on his phone but said Vigil knocked the phone from his hand.
The man said he drove off and circled around to get his phone from the ground near the air pumps.
Ultimately, he said Vigil approached again without the rifle. Vigil reportedly “prevented him from leaving by chest-bumping (the man’s) vehicle.”
Vigil and the man got in a physical altercation near the gas pumps. Vigil then is accused of chasing the man into Wawa and yelling before leaving the scene.
Police viewed video surveillance of the incident.
Police reported they couldn’t definitively see a firearm in the video, noting the quality of the footage and distance away made it difficult.
The store manager told investigators it was the third incident involving Vigil at the location.
Police went to Vigil’s home, and he finally came outside after officers used a public address system and made a number of phone calls.
Vigil allowed officers to search his home, and they reported finding an AR-style rifle inside a safe.
Vigil initially denied the allegations.
Parts of the affidavit that appear to contain some of Vigil’s statements with police were redacted.
Vigil was taken to the St. Lucie County Jail, but it couldn’t immediately be determined June 22 whether he’d been released on bond. Attempts to reach the booking desk via phone were unsuccessful.
Will Greenlee is a breaking news reporter for TCPalm. Follow Will on X @OffTheBeatTweet or reach him by phone at 772-267-7926. E-mail him at will.greenlee@tcpalm.com.
Cape Coral has one. So do Fort Myers, Bonita Springs and Naples.
And now it’s Fort Myers Beach’s turn to get its very own food truck park.
Access 26 Family Food Truck Park is expected to open early next year at 2500 Estero Blvd. and Beach Access 26. On June 8, Stevens Construction broke ground on the project, which will highlight five yet-to-be-announced food trucks, all with unique menus.
And there’s more. A bar with covered seating, Manny’s Scoops ice cream and retail area will be featured in a two-story, 3,000 square-foot structure. Storage, office space, restrooms, coolers, a freezer and a dumbwaiter system for beer kegs and supplies will take up the second floor.
A 569-square-foot comfort center with restrooms, storage and three outdoor showers is also planned, along with a curbside table rail, artificial turf play area, three shade canvas structures, guest parking lot and beach access.
And it’s designed with storms and hurricanes in mind — the building’s generator and mechanical equipment will be above flood level, metal flood panels and waterproof walls will help with storm surge and flooding, and the foundation’s design lets water flow through more easily.
Southwest Florida’s expanding food truck scene
Access 26 is the latest food truck park to join Southwest Florida’s growing eatertainment scene. Slipaway Food Truck Park & Marina opened a year ago on July 4 with food trucks, a large covered central bar, live music daily and more in Cape Coral.
Bay Street Yard first brought its vibrant food and entertainment concept to downtown Fort Myers in May 2024, while Backyard Social debuted its food trucks and family-fun daytime and 21-and-up nightlife format in south Fort Myers in October 2023.
Bonita Springs welcomed Rooftop at Riverside’s two-story, two-bar (one on the rooftop) open-air venue with food trucks in January 2024.
Naples’ Celebration Park — a waterfront destination with gourmet food trucks, bar and live music — led the way, opening in November 2018.
Robyn George is a food and dining reporter for The News-Press. Connect at rhgeorge@fortmyer.gannett.com
Please support local community journalism and stay informed about Southwest Florida news by subscribing to The News-Press and Naples Daily News; download the free News-Press or Naples Daily News app, and sign up for daily briefing email newsletter, food & dining and growth & development newsletters here and here.
NASA’s next great observatory, the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, arrived at the Kennedy Space Center aboard the agency’s massive Pegasus barge late Sunday morning.
The spacecraft was nestled inside its protective case, which NASA nicknamed the “Chariot” in keeping with the “Roman” theme. That said, telescope is named not for the ancient empire, but instead for NASA’s first Chief of Astronomy, Nancy Grace Roman.
“She was a key person in our exploration of space. She understood that in order to better understand the universe, you have to go in space,” said Lucas Paganini, the program executive for Roman. “That’s why she’s called the ‘Mother of Hubble’ because she made Hubble possible.”
The 43-foot-tall observatory disembarked from the barge shortly after 7 p.m. EDT (2300 UTC), following a stream of thunderstorms that delayed its departure by about an hour. The spacecraft will travel to the south end of the KSC campus to a building called the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility.
There it will undergo a roughly 70-day prelaunch campaign involving checkouts, fueling, and finally the encapsulation inside the payload fairing of a Falcon Heavy rocket. The observatory is set to launch from Launch Complex 39A no earlier than August 30, moved up from the original September launch date.
“A lot of credit to this great team. They’ve been able to accommodate schedules, to accelerate to be able to launch earlier,” Paganini said. “There’s a lot of things going on at the Cape and of course the team has been amazing.”
This was the second trip to Florida for the Pegasus barge this year after it dropped off the propellant tank section of the core stage for the Artemis 3 Space Launch System rocket back in late April. While the spacecraft arrived safely, Neil Patel, the Roman mechanical engineer who traveled with the observatory, said it wasn’t entirely smooth sailing after leaving from Massachusetts.
“We do have a tight temperature tolerance on the observatory. We need to stay below 74 degrees. We have two cooling units: we had a primary and a redundant unit and they just weren’t getting the job done down here, so we had to make a stop, add additional rental units,” Patel said.
“Again, it was an amazing effort to have a team come down on an emergency basis. Basically, a MacGyver crew came in and we added additional units and those units did maintain the temperature quite well.”
Roman is designed to operate near a fixed point in space called Lagrange Point 2, about 1.5 million km away from the Earth on the side opposite the Sun. It’s designed to operate there for a minimum of five years, but Paganini said with the propellant onboard, it will likely last for 10 years or more.
The telescope is+ equipped with a 300 megapixel camera called the Wide Field Instrument, which features 18 detectors. It was developed by BAE Systems (formerly Ball Aerospace).
“It’s going to allow us to observe at least 100 times wider field of view than what we can do with Hubble. Same resolution, but a wider area, 1000 times faster,” Paganini said. “So what takes Roman a year to observe, it would take Hubble thousands of years. So it’s definitely much more efficient.”
The observatory also features a chronograph instrument, developed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, which will allow Roman to observe the faint light of exoplanets near their stars.
Paganini said Roman will also help scientists better understand dark matter and dark energy, the combination of which he calls the “dark universe”.
“100 years ago, we discovered that the universe was expanding. 25 years ago, we discovered that it was expanding at an accelerated pace and that’s what led to a Nobel Prize,” Paganini said. “What we don’t quite know yet is if that acceleration is changing in ways. We don’t know if it’s actually dark energy, what is producing it, or is it simply that we don’t understand gravity at all.
“So eventually, we’ll see if the laws of physics that we use these days are the right ones for what we are observing. But at the end is, we’re trying to understand a very human question, which is where do we come from and where are wea heading in this universe that is our neighborhood?”
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