April 15, 2014

Upcoming Events:

Legislation:

The 60 days that the Florida Legislature meets each year include weekends and holidays, and our legislators have indeed agreed not to meet this coming week, due to the religious holidays. When they return on April 14th, they will face a full plate of controversial education legislation regarding private school vouchers; charter school expansion and contract uniformity; student, teacher, and school evaluation and accountability; local control of textbook selection, arming school personnel, granting in-state tuition to undocumented students; and funding specifics. Senate and House positions on many of these issues are divergent, surprising for this point of the session. Given that the last scheduled day of the session is May 2nd, it's now or never if you wish to make your voice heard on the issues that concern you.

Speaking of local education funding, the most important bill you've never heard of is CS/HB 651 (Value Adjustment Board Proceedings), now on the House Second Reading Calendar. Thanks to efforts by members of the Miami Dade delegation, this bill now proposes to regulate property tax "secret Santas"--agents who, unbeknownst to homeowners, file property tax assessment appeals on their behalf, and then hope to collect commissions out of the tax rebates to homeowners whose appeals are successful. During the appeal process, which can be stretched out over months and years, homeowners are required to pay only a portion of their property taxes. Why is this important? In allocating education dollars, the state assumes that individual school districts collect 95% of estimated local property tax revenues. Because of a two-year backlog in local property tax appeals (many filed by the secret Santas), our Miami-Dade school district is collecting significantly less than this required 95%; the projected income shortfall for the coming year could amount to as much as $40 million. If you agree that that the district should be able to collect each and every property tax penny that it is legitimately due in a timely fashion, now is the time to urge Florida legislators to support CS/HB 651

PTSA General Membership meeting:

April 24th at 9:15am; we will have our elections for PTSA board members for the 2014-2015 year. In addition, a special presentation by Ritchie Lucas, The Student Success Project;

Every student is a success story waiting to happen"

From Ritchie Lucas and the award-winning marketing firm Think Factory, comes The Student Success Project. This bold new "real life" program empowers students to understand, pursue, and achieve success both in the classroom and out. With success being relative, The Student Success Project shows students take control of their own success path, in the classroom, and beyond. Success is different for each student and The Student Success Project provides the tools to take true ownership of their lives while becoming more positive, self-motivational, self-reliant, and confident. We all want our kids to become successful. The Student Success Project teaches them the way to get it done. There is a real strategy in learning how to grab success. Knowledge is a result of learning. Success is the result of doing the right things with the knowledge.

Taste of Pinecrest Presented by the Pinecrest Business Association:

Thanks to all that came out to Pinecrest Gardens on April 6th to support a great community event in support of our public schools. Special thanks to our new football coach Michael Manasco and our football players, Daria and Rod Castan, Laurie Fitzgerald, Elizabeth Guerrero, Lisa Merkin, Marco and Diana Tejada, Alix Flinn and many high school students who volunteered at the event. Congratulations to Lisa Dillon for working with our students with our No Place for Hate program. MPSH received its banner as a No Place for Hate school at the event.

Campaign for Excellence is going strong:

Dorothy Lewis, a local EWM relator, donated to the campaign. Here's why: I chose to support Palmetto High School's Campaign for Excellence because I am committed to our local schools. As a past PTA president, I have been very active in the school community for many years. In keeping our schools strong, we keep our community strong. Donate to the Campaign for Excellence, and support excellence in your own back yard.