Here's a local and state news update from Florida Today and WFIT. I'm Evan Niemczyk.
School vaccine mandates may be a factor in the race for Florida governor. WFIT’s Terri Wright has more.
The DeSantis administration has proposed eliminating several vaccine requirements for public and private school students and making it easier for parents to opt out.
The proposal comes as Republican gubernatorial candidate Byron Donalds says he wants to study the issue before deciding whether to repeal vaccine mandates established by state law. Florida has reported 142 measles cases, the fifth-highest total in the nation.
Democratic gubernatorial nominee David Jolly’s campaign says he would fire Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo if elected.
The search is on for the next Orange County Public Schools superintendent.
As Central Florida Public Media’s education reporter Kayla Kissel tells us, the school board voted Tuesday to move forward with a request for proposals to find a firm to lead the search.
"The start of the search comes a month after Superintendent Maria Vazquez announced her retirement after more than 30 years with the district.
District 1 board member, and newly elected board chair, Angie Gallo says she wants the next superintendent to help bring students back to the district. Orange County is grappling with a drop in enrollment.
“We've got to refill our classrooms, refill our schools, and it's going to be those innovative approaches that do that.”
She also wants the new leader to find ways to manage the district’s financial challenges and work with the teachers union.
The board is also considering expanding its search committee to include more educators and members of the business community.
The district hopes to have a new superintendent in place by June of next year, ahead of Vazquez’s final day on August 31st.
I'm Kayla Kissel, in Orlando"
This Tuesday's Starlink mission was the final Falcon 9 flight dedicated to launching Starlink satellites from Florida. WFIT’s Rick Glasby tells us future Starlink launches will be from Vandenberg in California.
"In the short term, the move will dramatically reduce the number of SpaceX launches from the Cape. So far this year there has been 33 Starlink missions from here. The company is transitioning to the larger Starship rocket for future East Coast Starlink deployments.
Meanwhile, SpaceX and Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry announced yesterday a plan to build a new spaceport for Starship on the Louisiana coast. The company will invest $100 billion in its largest launch facility, located in Vermilion Parish along the Gulf."
A week after winning the GOP gubernatorial primary, U.S. Representative Byron Donalds has picked his running mate.
He went with state Senator Bryan Avila [AH-vee-lah], a Miami Republican and Cuban American.
""He has fought woke ideology, he's fought higher taxes, he's fought higher costs every single day, and I could not be more prouder than to have him stand by my side."
And, if Donalds wins, Avila would be the state's lieutenant governor. The role is mostly ceremonial, but he would be next in the line of succession.
The Democratic nominee, David Jolly, picked former Congresswoman Gwen Graham.
A lieutenant governor most recently became governor in 1998. Buddy MacKay took over after Governor Lawton Chiles died shortly before his second term ended.
For these stories and more, visit FloridaToday.com and WFIT.org. I'm Evan Niemczyk