Earlier this year, it was confirmed voting systems in two Florida counties had been hacked during the 2016 election. Tom Flanigan reports state and federal authorities have announced new safeguards to prevent that happening in 2020.
When he took office, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis set his sights on weeding out common core in K-12 education. Now, the governor says its replacement standards will be rolled out soon. Ryan Dailey reports in the meantime, ‘the Nation’s Report Card’ shows reading proficiency in the state has fallen in the past two years.
Florida is near the bottom in the nation when it comes to teacher pay. Governor Ron DeSantis wants to change that by raising the base salary. But the state’s largest teacher union says the governor’s plans don’t go far enough. Blaise Gainey has the story.
NPR’s Hidden Brain podcast recently celebrated its fourth anniversary, and the radio show is now two years old. We regularly hear the host, Shankar Vedantam (SHAHNker veh-DAHN-tum), on Morning Edition as NPR's social science correspondent. Gina Jordan recently spoke with him about his work.
When adults are feeling stressed out, overwhelmed or tired, many will take a vacation day or personal day off work for a little reset. Some might even take a sick day -- even when they’re not feeling physically ill. Many experts say taking a “mental health day" to tend to one’s psychological and emotional well-being is vital to overall health. And now a Florida lawmaker feels that grade-schoolers should get the same benefit.
WLRN's Christine DiMattei chats with Democratic State Representative Susan Valdes of Tampa. Valdes is sponsoring a bill (HB 315) that would allow Florida students one mental health day per semester as an excused absence.
The Apalachicola Seafood festival kicks off this weekend. Last year the event came just weeks after Hurricane Michael wrought havoc on the small coastal town. This year, it comes just day before a Federal court hears arguments in a case that could significantly change the community’s future. Regan McCarthy has more….