VERO BEACH — Absenteeism has doubled at Vero Beach High School in the last week with bomb threats starting off four school days.

And for many students who did show up for school this week, the decision came after a serious conversation at home.

“My daughter tried not to go Monday because of the Columbine anniversary,” parent Darby Dickerson said. “But I told her you can’t let two dead folks from 10 years ago stop you.”
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FORT PIERCE — A plan that includes eliminating 331 jobs and closing three schools to cut $30.6 million from next year’s budget was explained in detail Tuesday evening to elected members of the School Board, who sat silent through the presentation by Schools Superintendent Michael Lannon.

Their lack of comment was deliberate. Chairwoman Judi Miller said after the meeting all five members of the School Board had previously agreed in individual conversations with Lannon not to speak until after a town hall meeting on the proposal, scheduled for 6 p.m. March 31 at Fort Pierce Central High School auditorium.

Lannon spoke for almost one hour on a problem that he laid entirely at the feet of Tallahassee lawmakers who refuse to raise more money in the face of shortfalls created by the economic recession.
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SEBASTIAN — The woman who kept her mother’s mummified remains in a bedroom of their home for six years told police she never reported the death because she couldn’t afford burial expenses.

According to interview records released Tuesday, Penelope Sharon Jordan had maintained the ruse over the deception of the fate of Timmie Jordan since 2003. The story she gave to a Sebastian officer Monday morning was that her mother, who was born in 1913, was living in Melbourne. However, officers said Penelope Jordan couldn’t provide an address for where her mother was staying.
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FORT PIERCE — Despite a sagging economy, graphic design using digital media is booming.

“Over 10,000 new jobs in graphic design become available in Florida each year,” said Jose Farinos, dean of advanced technology at Indian River State College. “And over 6,000 of them require a two-year college degree.”
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STUART — Even though Martin County detective Sgt. Bill McCaw grew up on the South Side of Chicago and lived amid gang violence, he didn’t have the slightest clue it existed when he was a child.

Few people did.

Heading the gang intelligence unit, the 20-year Martin County Sheriff’s Office veteran spoke to residents Wednesday evening to try to make sure that gang growth doesn’t go similarly undetected in Martin County.

The event at the Martin County Administration Building sponsored by Project Northland occurred two days after 16-year-old Torenda Youngblood Jr. was shot and killed at his Fort Pierce bus stop, the most recent of four shootings since Saturday.

At least two were “directly related to gang violence,” said Fort Pierce Chief of Police Sean Baldwin.

McCaw sees gang violence as a problem that continues to seep into the county.
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When students take the FCAT this month, the goal is to determine how much they’ve learned this year. But often the real predictor of students’ success occurs when the teacher first walks into the classroom.

National studies show high staff turnover — often filling schools with inexperienced teachers — can impact a school’s overall performance and can impair students’ learning. Researchers say across the country Title I schools, which get federal money because of a high number of low-income students, often have difficulty attracting highly qualified teachers.

This, they say, results in struggling students not getting the help they need and low grades for the schools. In Florida, the state grades schools based on Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test scores each year, which can translate into more money for the schools.
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PORT ST. LUCIE — State health officials suspect a Port St. Lucie child’s death this month was from the flu virus.

However, the cause of death can not be confirmed until St. Lucie County Health Department officials receive an autopsy report from the Medical Examiner’s Office, said Arlease Hall, St. Lucie County Health Department spokeswoman.

On Wednesday, Florida Today reported the flu virus arrived late in state and had claimed the life of a Port St. Lucie child, bringing the nation’s total pediatric deaths to five for this flu season.

Although the flu is not a reportable disease, the state monitors its activity through sentinel physicians and the reports of emergency room physicians, according to Florida Today. (more…)

Wendy Portillo

Portillo got the suspension after a lengthy St. Lucie County Schools investigation into the incident. Alex was 5 years old last May when he was voted out by classmates. He was in the process of being diagnosed with a type of autism. (more…)

STUART — In September, longtime Assistant Superintendent Hank Salzler was awarded a three-year contract.

Four months later, Salzler has moved into a new role as “administrator on assignment” and is now the Martin County School District’s interim transportation director. But he still takes home a base salary of $107,946 before benefits and supplements. (more…)

STUART — Teachers in the Martin County School District voted today to ratify a contract that will provide each of them with a $300 bonus this year.

Eighty-four percent of teachers who voted approved the contract.

School officials and union representatives reached the settlement in December after one negotiating session — a stark contrast to last year when the two sides went to impasse — and agreed that raises were not possible with this year’s budget constraints. Martin schools have lost about $9.6 million in revenue this year compared to the start of the last school year, school officials said.

Most teachers in the district received a 5.25 percent raise last year after negotiations went to impasse. A special magistrate recommended that the district accept the teachers’ plan, but district officials disagreed. The school board eventually voted to accept the district’s plan.

This year’s agreement provides instructional personnel with a one-time $300 bonus and resolves 22 contract-language issues, including increasing to five the number of personal days a teacher may take consecutively.