This Weeks News In Florida

OPTIONS: Some Spanish-speaking Hillsborough teens turn to the GED in Spanish as a different path to high school completion. (Times photo, Daniel Wallace)  BACKGROUND CHECKS: USF changes its professional conduct policy to make it easier to discipline faculty who violate it. TOO MUCH EMPHASIS: Florida's focus on the FCAT hurts education , columnist John Romano writes. Several other opinionators ...

Coast Guard searches for 5 missing Fla. boaters...woman gets 20 years for firing warning shot...child may have drowned after accident...plane's wheel falls off during takeoff...no confirmation on chemical at airport...Truman Legacy Symposium praises late president...

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce ad attacking U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson for supporting the Obama administration's health care reform plan appears to confuse Bill Nelson of Florida with Sen. Ben Nelson of Nebraska, some news outlets reported Thursday.

News item: Florida's Department of State reported this month that there are more than 53,000 dead Floridians who are registered to vote in the upcoming presidential election.

Who speaks for Florida State? A misguided trustee? The AD or football coach? Former players? Fans? Tony Barnhart says FSU needs to speak with one voice when it comes to whether to stay in the ACC or go to the Big 12.

FCAT: Ninth- and tenth-grade FCAT reading scores rise despite increased passing levels, while FCAT writing performance suffers because of tougher grading rules. Still, public anger mounts as more poor results are predicted. Details from Hernando ,  Pasco and Pinellas . Don't trust the testing industry , former test grader Todd Farley writes in a guest column for the Times . YEARBOOK STIR: Land O ...

More good news comes to the Florida commercial real estate market as 7-Eleven Inc., the massive convenience store company, will be bring more major business to the Broward, Palm Beach and Miami-Dade County areas as it is set to expand by opening 15 more stores by the end of 2012 with 25 more set for the following year.

STUDENT CRITIQUE: Fourth graders at Pasco's Sand Pine Elementary School say the state needs to give kids more time if they are to perform well on the FCAT writing test. (Times photo, Jeffrey S. Solochek)  TUTORING TROUBLE:  US Education secretary Arne Duncan  criticizes Florida's decision to keep paying for NCLB tutoring  despite its waiver from the requirement, the AP reports. More  from the ...

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DON'T DO IT: As teens prepare for a summer filled with driving, some Tampa area schools bring the "It Can Wait" message about the dangers of texting and driving to their students. (Times photo, Daniel Wallace) UPTURN: Tampa area private schools see their enrollments rebound . OVER: The Pasco School Board ends its social studies textbook adoption controversy without a word. ANOTHER ONE: Florida ...