Cape View community asks Brevard school board to reconsider consolidating school
At the Oct. 28 Brevard school board meeting, a group of about 25 parents and community members from Cape Canaveral and other parts of the county attended the meeting to speak out against closing Cape View Elementary School, something the district is considering in an effort to cut costs. Right now, the school — which has the capacity for about 600 students — serves approximately 270 kids, according to Sue Hann, assistant superintendent of facilities services, who discussed the possibility of consolidating the school with Roosevelt Elementary School in Cocoa Beach at a Sept. 23 work session.
But the school's small size is part of what makes it special, families said, along with its location in the community, making it easily accessible.
The October 28 Brevard school board meeting in Viera included a few parents and others wanting Cape View Elementary to remain open. The district has considered consolidating the under-capacity school with Roosevelt Elementary.
The president of the school's parent teacher organization said that 90% of the kids walk to school, and 30% of the population of Cape Canaveral was under the poverty line, and may not have the ability to drive their kids to school.
Following public comment, Board Chair Gene Trent thanked families for sharing their concerns with the board and encouraged them to reach out to continue the conversation via email.
Florida to stop using H1B visas in universities, DeSantis says
Gov. Ron DeSantis said Florida’s higher education institutions must stop hiring foreign workers on H1B visas.
He said he was directing the Florida Board of Governors to pull the plug on the use of these H1B visas in Florida’s universities at an event in Tampa on Oct. 29. He said they can do it with the residents in Florida or with Americans.
DeSantis has been critical of the H1B program, which he says is being abused by companies that hire foreign workers to replace Americans.
The program was enacted by Congress in 1990 to allow employers to hire foreigners with “highly specialized knowledge” and at least a bachelor’s degree. The number of H1B visas is capped at 85,000 annually, with 20,000 who must have a master’s degree.
Brevard voters will decide on continuing half-cent sales tax for schools in 2026 election
Brevard voters will decide next year whether to continue sales and property taxes that for the past decade have been used to fund school operations and capital projects.
Both taxes will go to referenda on Brevard County ballots in the 2026 midterm elections when voters will decide whether to continue the half-cent sales tax and a property tax equivalent to $1 on every $1,000 of taxable value of a person's home.
While the property tax revenue is designed to go to school operations, the sales tax will be used to fund capital expenses by Brevard Public Schools. Those include:
Maintenance and improvement for roughly 12.8 million square feet of school facilities
School security systems
Technology infrastructure upgrades
See photos: SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launch from Cape Canaveral Wednesday afternoon
Just after lunch time Wednesday, a SpaceX rocket took to a clear fall sky − marking Florida's 90th launch of the year.
After a few delays, the liftoff occurred at 12:35 p.m. from Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
While SpaceX did not give a reason for the change in the launch time, the Space Force 45th Weather Squadron had predicted moderate booster landing conditions.
Referred to as Starlink 10-37, the mission was a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket delivering a batch of 28 Starlink internet satellites to orbit.
The next liftoff from Florida will be no earlier than 1:00 a.m. Sunday, Nov. 2 from Launch Complex 40 in Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.