A friend emailed me that, according to Ron Peacock – school district’s Director of Facilities Planning, the $21 million price tag for the new A.K. Suter Elementary includes demolition of the current…
Category: Education
Library Closing, Beginning New Chapter
The West Florida Public Library’s main branch, located at 200 W. Gregory St. downtown Pensacola, will close temporarily in connection with the ongoing construction of a new library building on the site….
$21-million Suter project defies board policy and wasn’t planned
“Sal” wrote last Friday that the expansion of A.K. Suter Elementary has been in the works for years. He got me double-checking my research and I came across two documents that prove…
Help teachers teach
DonorsChoose.org grew out of a Bronx high school where teachers experienced first-hand the scarcity of learning materials in our public schools. Charles Best, then a social studies teacher, sensed that many people…
Oh, By the way
How many of you believe that it’s just a coincidence that two new schools that are being built are in the districts of school board members who were once mentioned as possible…
Only 52 percent of students at Suter Elementary live in attendance zone
Superintendent Malcolm Thomas and the Escambia County School Board want to replace A.K. Suter Elementary with a new $21-million facility–the most the district has ever spend on an elementary school. As of…
Florida Voices column gets attention
FEATURED STORIES Parent trigger bill sparks fierce debate as vote nears By Leslie Postal Orlando Sentinel A proposal that could let parents decide the fate of failing public schools is sparking…
Lincoln Park has largest enrollment increase
Lincoln Park Elementary has been on Superintendent Malcolm Thomas’ chopping block for nearly a year. The mistake he made this time was to tell parents, teachers and church leaders that was his…
Parent Triggering bill could destroy public education
My latest column for Florida Voices is on the proposed “parent triggering” bill, the crowning blow to a decade-long effort to take “public†out of education and unload struggling schools, especially those…
U.S. Dept. of Education finds huge racial disparities in public education
A report released today by the U.S. Department of Education has particular significance for Escambia County, in light of our cover story on such disparities (“Black & White“), the District’s not using…
Building a Better Future
UWF’s Building Construction program is dedicated to teaching students the latest technology, incorporating the highest standards in energy efficiency and environmental responsibility. Josh Newby with the university communications, explains: The construction industry…
In 9 years, Escambia School District General Fund Reserves grew 377%
I reviewed the past 9 years to see how the Escambia County School District has grown General Fund Reserves under both Malcolm Thomas and his predecessor Jim Paul. The reserves have grown…