Today's news

TEACH ABOUT SEX: Nearly nine in 10 Floridians surveyed by the Times think schools should teach sex education. And not just about abstinence. Visit the Gradebook at 8:30 a.m. for full poll results.

FAMU MAKES STRIDES: Under new leadership, the university has taken steps to shore up its finances and management.

HE KNOWS A FEW THINGS ABOUT RUNNING A DISTRICT: Retired Hillsborough superintendent Earl Lennard will mediate the dispute between Pinellas superintendent Clayton Wilcox and school board lawyer Jim Robinson.

RUNNING FOR "SUPERINTENTENT": Michele Rehm, a Holiday stay-at-home mother of 10, wants to be Pasco schools superintendent. She just can't spell it. And that's the least of her problems. She also has an arrest record.

CROWDED FIELD FOR PINELLAS BOARD SEAT: Incumbent Janet Clark announces her reelection bid, and she faces three challengers.

TAKE A CLOSER LOOK: Rather than just cut one scholarship program (FRAG), the state should consider them all together - including Bright Futures - and make the best decision for the budget and for students, the Times editorializes. Ed H. Moore, president of the Independent Colleges & Universities of Florida, also writes an op-ed piece on the importance of the FRAG grants.

HUH? A Michigan education professor writes a paper suggesting that Hillsborough teachers just don't understand the district's performance pay plan, Education Week reports. The author recommends that lawmakers work more closely with teachers as they move ahead with merit pay.

CRAMMING IT IN: Folks love the idea of requiring elementary school children to get out of their seats for daily P.E. But making the concept work is turning out to be harder than it was to come up with the idea, the Florida Times-Union reports.

ONE MORE TRY: Gov. Crist is pushing the "65 percent solution" for schools again, and educators aren't too impressed, the Herald-Tribune reports.

SINGLE-GENDER CLASSES: A handful of schools around Florida are experimenting with the idea of splitting boys and girls. The effort could spread if a bill that's in the Legislature gets approved, the Naples Daily News reports.

DOES THE BUILDING MAKE THE SCHOOL? Poorly regarded Miami Beach High, in the midst of a makeover, certainly hopes so, the Miami Herald reports.

QUITTING: Sarasota superintendent Gary Norris announces his intention to resign within a year, the Herald-Tribune reports.

JUST EAT: Many kids go hungry rather than accept free lunch through the nationally subsidized meal program, because lunch time is a time to impress friends and not stand out, the NY Times reports. Officials are looking at ways to remove the stigma.

Visit the Gradebook at noon for an interview with state Rep. John Legg, vice chairman of the House K-12 Education Committee. Legg talks about the upcoming legislative session.