Dive Summary:
- Florida Gov. Rick Scott is set to sign an extensive education bill Monday that loosens tough graduation standards, sets up the University of Florida to lead the state in online education, changes testing requirements and adds a "financial literacy" requirement for high school students.
- The bill passed the Florida Legislature easily and its main component allows students to graduate from high school even if they haven't completed tough math and science classes like Algebra II, chemistry and physics, which were added to state graduation requirements in 2010.
- Several provisions impact Florida's public universities, including one that designates criteria for regarding them as "preeminent research universities" and another that allows the University of Florida to start an online institute offering bachelor's degrees in 2014.
From the article:
... Supporters of the measure insisted they were redesigning high school standards to give different options to students who may not be interested in pursuing a college degree.
"Whether that child wants to be a brain surgeon or a Mercedes mechanic, this takes care of them," said Rep. Elizabeth Porter, R-Lake City during debate on the bill. ...
