Today's news

LONG TRANSITION, HIGH COST: The new proposed Pinellas student assignment plan remains a work in progress. One thing is sure, though - a five-year transition period could drive transportation costs up by the millions, superintendent Clayton Wilcox tells the Times. (Times photo, Willie Allen Jr.)

ACCESS LIMITED: A policy opening Pinellas schools to recruiters who want to talk to students about post-high school options says the contact can occur only during noninstructional time. Aimed at military and related recruiters, the rule also could affect college recruiters too.

EVERYBODY SHIFT: The boundaries for nearly all of Hernando County's schools will move to reduce crowding and fill new schools. About 1,800 kids would be affected.

THEY SAY SCHOOL CAN BE A ZOO: Seminole school officials find $200,000 in their budget to donate to the Central Florida Zoo, even as they bemoan a tight budget year, the Orlando Sentinel reports.

HOORAY! A CASH INFUSION: Private university leaders are celebrating the federal decision to boost Pell Grants, saying the change could help more students afford to attend, the Miami Herald reports.

BRIDGING THE GAP: Palm Beach educators gather to brainstorm ideas to help minority students improve their academic achievement, the Sun-Sentinel reports. So does the Palm Beach Post.

D IS GOOD ENOUGH? The principal of Ridge Community High School in Haines City says her D-rated school is on the right path, the Lakeland Ledger reports.

SAVING TIME: Maryland plans to eliminate essay questions from its high school exit exam, to speed the time it takes to grade them, the Washington Post reports. Leaders say new multiple choice tests are sophisticated enough to determine whether the teens actually know their stuff.

Visit the Gradebook at 9:30 a.m. for the fourth of seven profiles on the candidates for Florida education commissioner. Today, it's former Colorado education commissioner William Moloney.