Today's news

STILL CROWDED: Even with new schools opening to take up the overage, Wesley Chapel Elementary and other Pasco schools along the State Road 54 corridor continue to struggle with crowding. Officials say the district is making progress but not fast enough. (Times file photo)

MORE FREE MEALS: Broward schools are trying to get families to sign up for free meals early, as officials expect the numbers qualifying to rise, the Sun-Sentinel reports.

FIND SOMEPLACE ELSE: About 700 St. Lucie children must look for a new school after the charter school they planned to attend fails to find a location, the Port St. Lucie Tribune reports.

PLEASE STILL COME: Hoping to keep students visiting even during economic bad times, the Miami Art Museum drops its $1 per student charge for Miami-Dade school field trips, the Miami Herald reports.

ONE MORE CLASS PERIOD: Several Orange middle and high schools will add a seventh period to the school day, hoping to trim class sizes, the Orlando Sentinel reports. The article doesn't say whether teachers will be working more, a key complaint when this happened in Hillsborough.

HOLDING THEIR NOSES: Lake School Board members grudgingly approve a slate of administrators recommended by outgoing superintendent Anna Cowin, the Orlando Sentinel reports. Any bets on whether the new superintendent changes things back?

UNION NO-SHOW: Representatives for Manatee teachers didn't attend a special magistrate's hearing aimed at settling a salary dispute, making it unlikely that an agreement will come soon, the Herald-Tribune reports.

ONE YEAR LATER: FAMU president James Ammons talks about his decision to return to troubled FAMU, the Tallahassee Democrat reports.

THE COST OF COLLEGE: Congress is trying to make it easier for students to understand how much it costs to attend university. Some wonder whether the proposed solution will do anything more than create extra paperwork, the Chicago Tribune reports.