As an undergrad at the University of Miami, I took President Donna Shalala’s class on health care, which she regularly peppered with stories from her own years as Secretary of Health and Human Services. She once described how she got the job in the first place. An old friend of…
“Oh, wow, Professor Watkins. I haven’t seen you since I took your class on Sino-American relations. Your lectures were always rousing.” “Oh Johnny, you can call me Charlene now, and if you found me teaching you relations arousing, well, I do live close to campus. Maybe we could have some…
Paddling as a disciplinary measure in school may seem archaic, but it’s still practiced widely in certain Florida counties. Though the practice is outlawed in 31 states, Florida leaves it up to each individual school district to make the call. Turns out 28 of Florida’s 67 school districts are still…
The Disneyland measles horror has been spreading, but Miami-Dade kids, at least, should be protected: 98 percent of public school students are vaccinated, according to Miami-Dade County Public Schools spokesperson Daisy Gonzalez-Diego. “The District is at a solid vaccination rate,” Gonzalez-Diego said in a statement, “but we will continue to…
In the wake of this week’s controversy involving free speech, social media, and allegations of filth at one Miami-Dade high school, students at another are reportedly sending out their own pictures of unhygienic conditions. The new photos were taken by students at Miami Palmetto Senior High School, according to Lisa…
Dr. Lucia Cox, the recently embattled principal of Miami Sunset Senior High School, resigned Wednesday following days of uproar stemming from students’ viral social media posts about school conditions. “Recognizing the best interests of Miami Sunset Senior High School, its students, faculty, and community and standing firmly on the high…
Last week, photos posted to Tumblr claiming to show that Miami Sunset High has a filth problem — showing spoiled juice, a moldy shower, and a cockroach allegedly inside the building — went viral on social media, prompting an official probe from public school officials. But some Sunset alumni say…
After Buzzfeed published a post reporting that an apparent Miami Sunset High student had taken pictures of filthy conditions at the school, including disgustingly spoiled juice, a moldy shower, and a cockroach problem, a Miami-Dade County Public Schools spokesman says some of the claims might have been doctored by a…
Florida International University is a juggernaut. The school is fast approaching 60,000 students, has two major campuses plus half a dozen satellite locations, and received voter approval last week to expand into 64 acres of Tamiami Park. But not all members of the FIU family are happy. In fact, some…
John Thrasher has held a lot of positions in his life: speaker of the Florida House, chairman of the Republican Party of Florida, lobbyist, chairman of Rick Scott’s reelection campaign, and current state senator. Yesterday the Florida State University Board of Trustees voted 11-2 to appoint Thrasher as the 15th…
Donna Shalala hasn’t even left yet, but already the University of Miami’s party school reputation is back. Playboy released its list of the top ten party schools this year, and the University of Miami comes in at number seven. See also: Donna Shalala Announces Plans to Retire From University of…
Three Miami-Dade high schools cracked the Top 100 in Newsweek’s annual high school ranking list, and they’re all charter schools. Newsweek actually split its rankings into two lists this year: a general top high schools list, and a list for the 100 best schools for low-income students. No Miami schools…
Rick Scott announced plans this morning to raise per student spending on education in the state to its highest levels ever. Interestingly, the announcement came just a week after likely Democratic challenger Charlie Crist criss-crossed the state in a yellow school bus reminding people how much Scott had slashed education…
Apparently the key to being as homosexual as you can possibly be is standardized math tests. Who knew? That’s what Florida state Rep. Charles Van Zant declared in a speech railing against the Common Core basic educational standards. As far as we know Common Core does not involve crazy things…
Only 20 percent of Florida’s 12th-graders in public schools are considered proficient at math. For those of you bad at math, that means only one out of five. For those of you really, really bad at math, pick your favorite member of One Direction and pretend he’s the only one…
Florida State University’s president is on his way out, and students are naturally concerned about what the departure might mean for their school. Except this time, the leadership transition also involves questions about the influence of oh, you know, conservative billionaire and Possibly the Most Reviled Political Donor in America…
Coral Reef Senior High Principal Adrianne Leal asked her teachers not to post anything on social media before President Obama visited her school last Friday. But for history teacher Randall Scott, holding back was not an option. The birther, who calls himself a “Republican Extremist,” wasn’t about to self-censor. This…
A crowd of twenty-somethings congregated in front of the Miami-Dade Courthouse last night adorned in black hoodies and somber faces. Wednesday marked the second anniversary of the death of Trayvon Martin, the local teen whose shooting by neighborhood watchman George Zimmerman sent shockwaves across the nation. And as Florida’s Stand…
Che Scott is a very good-looking man who has not had sex in 10 years. As a 21-year-old UM football player, Scott took a vow of abstinence. The now-minister and chaplain for the Heat doesn’t plan on sleeping with anyone again until he’s married, out of respect for his future…
Hundreds of school bus drivers didn’t show up to work today in Miami-Dade, leaving some students stranded at their bus stops. About one sixth of drivers decided to skip their duties today in a protest over pay and benefits…
University of Miami is top ten material, and we’re not talking about the football team. The Daily Beast compiled the stats on America’s sexiest colleges, and ol’ Suntan U came in at number eight…
A South Miami teacher is out of a job after she tried to make sure her students had a little too much fun after prom. Isabel Diaz-Almaraz, a teacher at South Miami High, allegedly rented a $1,000-a-night suite for students to party after prom and provided them with booze and…
