Four Republican senators made news Tuesday for unexpectedly reversing their previous course and voting to deliver a second death knell to Parent Empowerment legislation, but Sunshine State News also caught up with another GOP member whose defection is no less surprising: Sen. Alan Hays of Umatilla.
Hays, a major opponent of the bill last year, this time voted to support it. And while Sens. Jack Latvala, Greg Evers, Rene Garcia, and Miguel Diaz de la Portilla changed positions under dubious circumstances and curious reasoning, Hays couldn't be clearer. Here's what he tells Sunshine State News:
I feel like the best thing that we can do for our young people is to provide them with a first-class education, and to sentence a child to stay in a failing school is to do a disservice to that young person, to their family -- and to our state, because those are the young people whom we are going to depend on for leadership later on.
It was just yesterday that we were debating whether or not a 50-year sentence for a 16- or 17-year-old young person who committed a heinous crime was a 'life sentence,' in the words of those who were opposed to that sentence and advocating a reduction of that sentence to 25 years. I would suggest to them and to everyone else that a more imposing sentence is for that of a young person who is still in school, to tell them they have to stay in a failing school.
I thought Senator Simmons' amendment was a stroke of genius, for which he is renowned. David Simmons [R-Altamonte Springs] is a true servant to the people of Florida; it is a real privilege to work with a man like him, who has the skills to bring about good public policy. I thought his amendment was very good, it leaves the final decision in the hands of the school board, which is elected by the local people.
That's why I was able to vote for the bill. I thought it was very good public policy.
SB 862 would have empowered parents of children who attend failing schools to petition their school board to choose one of several turnaround options, including converting it into a charter school. The bill was not a true parent trigger, as the petition would have no binding effect on government officials. The Senate version gave final say-so to the local school board, while the House version, HB 867, would have given that responsibility to the state Board of Education.
Reach Eric Giunta at egiunta@sunshinestatenews.com or at (954) 235-9116.
