The shooter rapidly fires through the front doors of an elementary school with an assault rifle and blasts his way down the hallway. Screaming children are running for their lives or frozen in fear. Teachers quickly try to decide: barricade the doors, or make a run for it with their students? Police...
Edgardo Ortiz Nieves and his wife flew into Orlando a few weeks after Hurricane Maria slammed into Puerto Rico. They wanted a break from the frustrations of living in a place where electricity and clean water were scarce, and the opportunity to find better medical care for their mothers than was...
A former Seminole State College employee is suing the school, saying her supervisor excluded her from meetings and fired her because she’s black. Sonja Boles, who worked as the director of records and registration/registrar between 2012 and 2014, was subject to “racial discriminatory conduct and...
University of Central Florida fraternities and sororities won’t host social activities or any events with drinking for at least the first six weeks of the spring semester, up from the two-week ban on alcohol that has been in place in the past. The councils that oversee Greek life also will review...
Even in our internet-centered time, getting a library card is still a rite of passage for many young people. But for those who are homeless or move frequently, obtaining a card is difficult or impossible, and trips to the library also can be out of reach. That’s one reason the Orange County Library...
The city’s plan to transform a historic school in Holden Heights drew the ire Thursday of Commissioner Sam Ings, who represents the west Orlando neighborhood on the City Council. Mayor Buddy Dyer’s staff this week confirmed they plan to acquire the Grand Avenue School, an Orlando historic landmark...
Prompted by Hurricane Irma, the University of Central Florida’s pantry has seen a sharp rise in students seeking food, toiletries and clothing. The Knights Helping Knights pantry recorded about 3,400 student visits in October and almost as many the following month, up from 1,900 visits in September....
TALLAHASSEE — School voucher advocates on Wednesday recommended increased oversight of private schools that take state-backed scholarships, including more campus visits by state inspectors, new rules aimed at preventing schools from falsifying fire inspections and requiring more schools to turn...
For 90 years, students from west Orlando’s Holden Heights neighborhood passed through the arched doorway of the school many simply called The Grand, a historic landmark and community hub that shut its doors in June. But the Grand Avenue School’s retirement won’t last long — to the relief of preservationists,...
Grace Foley was an outgoing 14-year-old with a contagious smile, who spoke as easily to adults as other kids, served on student council, played softball and loved to wear mismatched socks. “She was always smiling,” said Dominic Vitiello, a close friend of the family. “You just gravitate to her....
The number of children using a state scholarship to attend religious or other private schools in Florida soared by 21 percent last year to about 140,000 — the largest increase since the voucher programs started more than 15 years ago. No one has been more central to that growth than Tampa venture...
Police at the University of Central Florida have a floppy-eared solution to a serious problem: How to get victims of violent crime to give officers the information they need while minimizing further trauma that could come from repeating horrible details in cold interrogation rooms. Her name is...
A handful of protesters from the anti-gay Westboro Baptist Church showed up Monday morning at Valencia College’s west campus and on Sunday morning at several churches in Seminole County, law officers said. There were no scuffles and no arrests. The group stayed at the college for about half an hour,...
College student Alex Reccasina loves biking, but after witnessing two accidents on Alafaya Trail, she prefers not to risk it. From the window of her Riverwind Way apartment, she saw a pedestrian get hit by a car. Another friend stopped riding her bike after being struck by a car on the busy street....
The University of Central Florida will honor victims of domestic violence during a Light Up the Night event on Monday. Among the scheduled speakers is Stephanie Dixon-Daniels, whose pregnant daughter, Sade Dixon, was killed last December. Her ex-boyfriend, Markeith Loyd, is accused of killing Dixon...
Candace Fox laughed easily and smiled often Thursday at the University of Central Florida’s Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences. But the 24-year-old Ph.D. candidate’s thesis research is serious business: she’s using a modified parainfluenza virus to target and help kill cancer cells. She was...
Kyle Dencker, a computer science teacher at Timber Creek High School, has spent nearly a decade getting students to “see past these stereotypes” that peg computer classes as a place for only white, male nerds. That worked earned him Orange County’s teacher of the year honors Tuesday night. Dencker,...
The Seminole State College committee charged with narrowing the field of candidates for the institution’s next president is looking for applicants with a doctorate degree, preferably with teaching experience, and a strong leadership track record in a higher education institution. Members of the...
Lake County School Board member Bill Mathias hasn’t pocketed a penny of the roughly $185,000 in salary he’s earned since taking office in 2012. Instead, he’s donated it to local charities and the Lake County Educational Foundation, which supports the district with fundraisers, such as a takeoff...
Nancy Robbinson, who has been on the Orange County School Board since 2008, plans to run for board chairman, seeking the top elected role in the region’s largest school district. Bill Sublette, the current chairman, is not seeking a third term because he is running for Orange County mayor in 2018....
The Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Florida officially unveiled its newest branch Thursday afternoon — a gleaming $4.25 million, 30,000-square-foot facility that is already home to 300 kids in the heart of Parramore. Now the largest of the nonprofit organization’s 35 clubs in seven counties, the...
University of Central Florida Police Chief Richard Beary announced his retirement on Wednesday. “I am proud to have served 41 years as a law enforcement officer and 11 years as Chief of Police for the University of Central Florida,” Beary said in a statement. His last day will be June 30, 2018....
LEESBURG — More than 7,200 students from Puerto Rico have enrolled in Florida’s K-12 public schools, and another 800 in state colleges, since Hurricane Maria slammed the island in September, and education leaders said Tuesday a lack of affordable housing is presenting challenges for those who have...
A University of Central Florida sorority has been suspended after members were accused of ordering shots for underage pledges and urging them to “chug” mimosas at an off-campus bar. Alpha Xi Delta’s UCF chapter is on interim suspension and can’t participate in fundraisers, social activities or...
State college leaders say a bill aimed at reducing waste and duplication between Florida’s higher education institutions could hamstring their ability to meet local demands for graduates with bachelors degrees. The proposal, which cleared a preliminary vote in a Senate subcommittee meeting in November,...