Critics blame lawmakers as Florida school districts close campuses

The big story: The Miami-Dade County School Board on Tuesday approved several new attendance zones as the district prepared to close two under-used schools that serve primarily poor and minority students.

The plan follows a trend in several Florida school districts that are closing and “repurposing” buildings in an effort to more efficiently use space and allocate resources. The Broward County School Board, for instance, on Tuesday voted to close at least five schools in 2025, WSVN reports.

Such moves have sparked heavy criticism from community and civic groups, who contend the state’s education funding model is forcing public education to make such dramatic choices.

“This is a systematic diverting of dollars from public education to private schools,” Mina Hosseini, executive director of P.S. 305, an education advocacy group in Miami-Dade County, said of the latest effort in Miami. “This is a small example of something the board is forced to do based on state funding.” Read more from the Miami Herald.

Hot topics

Classroom technology: The Hillsborough County School Board continues to refine its policy governing student cellphone use, Bay News 9 reports. • The Seminole County School Board moved to restrict student use of artificial intelligence on assignments, WKMG reports.

Elections: A Manatee County School Board member announced he would resign to run for a state House seat. The local supervisor of elections said voters won’t get to pick the next board member, prompting criticism from civic organizations, the Bradenton Herald reports.

Mental health services: The Duval County school district is expanding students’ access to counselors through a mental telehealth platform, WJXT reports.

NIL: The Miami-Dade County School Board called for an analysis of new FHSAA name, image and likeness rules to ensure student-athletes are not exploited, the Miami Herald reports.

Religion in schools: The Liberty Counsel secretly helped write the Miami-Dade County School Board’s new policy on invocations at meetings, Axios reports.

School leadership: Five Pasco County schools and one in Hillsborough County are getting new principals.

Security: The Brevard County Sheriff’s Office has begun training the school district’s first cohort of armed guardians, Spectrum 13 reports.

Tax referendums: The Seminole County School Board approved a list of construction projects to be included if voters renew the district’s local-option sales tax in November, the Orlando Sentinel reports. • The Broward County School Board agreed to pay local charter schools $108 million in revenue and interest for its previously unpaid share of the district’s local-option property tax, the Miami Herald reports.

Transgender student-athletes: The mother of a Broward County transgender student said the school district destroyed her child’s life with the way it investigated the child’s participation on a high school girls volleyball team, Associated Press reports.

Don’t miss a story. Here’s a link to yesterday’s roundup.

Before you go ... OK, anime fans. There’s buzz that this upcoming movie is the real deal, and the studio is the next Ghibli. We’ll see in early July.