Today's news

BACK TO BUSINESS: Hillsborough School Board member Jennifer Faliero (left) endured some tough personal times and public controversy. She says she's "a much stronger person now" in a pointed Q&A with columnist Ernest Hooper.

HOW DID SHE GET THAT JOB? A Hillsborough bus driver involved in a crash that injured four wasn't qualified to work for the district.

A FINE LINE: The companies in USF's technology incubator are private businesses. But since the county contributes public money to them, it wants more say in the center's operations.

PUSHING THEIR POTENTIAL: Kids who have middling test results, but seem to show promise, take advantage of the AVID program at 20 Hillsborough schools.

MISSION:IMPOSSIBLE? Florida lawmakers appear unable to reach a compromise on property tax reform. The fate of education funding looms over the effort.

I SPY: A little camera looking down on me. But the Pasco food service department had no business installing the video recording system to watch a Mitchell High cafeteria worker and, after the union complained, the district office intervened - and apologized.

PREDATORS ARE ONLINE: So report them if you run into one, AG Bill McCollum tells Hernando High students.

STUDENTS ARE ONLINE, TOO: Florida Virtual School, now in its 10th year, enrolls more than 54,000 students from all around the world, the Orlando Sentinel reports.

BODY PAINTING: The Manatee School Board will tackle the issue Monday of whether all students attending sports events - that's boys and girls - can or can't paint their torsos in team colors and cheer the night away, the Herald-Tribune reports.

WASH YOUR HANDS. REALLY: A virulent strain of staph infection is making its way through schools across the nation, the NY Times reports. Experts say it could be more deadly than AIDS. How close is it? Sarasota County schools, the Herald-Tribune reports. And Martin County, the Palm Beach Post reports.

PERFORMANCE PAY, NEW YORK STYLE: New York schools and the union reach a deal to give performance bonuses to teachers working in the city's poorest neighborhoods, the NY Times reports.