Today's news

MAKING UP THE DIFFERENCE: School districts across Florida are looking at a variety of ways to save money, from closing schools to turning up the temperature. Here's a quick overview of some of the choices they've made. (Times photo, Jim Damaske)

CHARTER SCHOOL DROPS MAIN CLAIM: Deerwood Academy, a failed Pasco charter school, withdraws a major part of its lawsuit against the Pasco school district while awaiting the verdict.

NEVER MISSED A DAY: Two Springstead High seniors finish their K-12 experience with perfect attendance. "I considered it like a job. It's just something you're supposed to do," Thomas Glunt explains.

IT'S NOT EASY: Being a classroom teacher is really hard work, guest columnist Melanie Hubbard writes.

GOOD LUCK, MIKE: New Osceola superintendent Mike Grego has his plate full as he takes over the suburban Orlando district, the Orlando Sentinel editorializes.

DON'T LOOK TO LOTTO: Many Florida residents still think the Florida Lottery was supposed to help bail out the state's public education system, but it's just not so, the Daytona Beach News-Journal reports.

HARD TO FIND GOOD HELP: Bay schools are having trouble keeping unscreened workers - especially illegal immigrants - off the crews doing construction in the district, the Northwest Florida Daily News reports.

ON THE AIR: St. Lucie prepares to televise its School Board meetings, the Palm Beach Post reports.

RECORD ENROLLMENT: The number of students enrolled in public education across the country is expected to surpass 50-million for the first time, the Washington Post reports.