Author: Garrett Cooper

Rapper Tekashi 6ix9ine was taken to a hospital after he was assaulted inside a Palm Beach County gym Tuesday night, the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office said. In a news release, the sheriff’s office said the 26-year-old rapper, whose real name is Daniel Hernandez, was attacked inside LA Fitness, located at 8888 Lantana Road, at about 8:45 p.m. In a statement to NBC News, Hernandez’s attorney, Lance Lazzaro, said the rapper was attacked in a gym sauna by “three or four thugs who beat him up.” Lazzaro said Hernandez tried fighting back and suffered cuts to his face and bruises.…

The “classical education” concept promoted by Ron DeSantis, Chris Rufo, and Hillsdale College is a reactionary far-right project. But it wouldn’t be gaining so much ground if bipartisan education reform hadn’t sucked the life out of our public schools. lassical” education is all over the news, as Florida governor Ron DeSantis pursues his shock-and-awe campaign to remake Florida’s public colleges and universities in the image of Michigan-based Hillsdale College. This classical Christian liberal arts school, which has become one of the most influential centers of right-wing thought in recent years, has been working assiduously to transform the political landscape of…

TAMPA, Fla. — Every week, Gov. Ron DeSantis seems to make national education news. Here are 10 important education moments from DeSantis’ tenure so far — in chronological order. The governor dives in on school choice “If the taxpayer is paying for education, it’s public education,” DeSantis said in 2019. Even for Florida governors, who’ve all supported school choice programs in the 21st century, that was a radical stance. It showed how strongly the governor supports giving students scholarships to attend private schools. Later that year, DeSantis approved a bill creating a taxpayer-funded voucher system. (Previous school choice models relied…

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Reports of empty classroom libraries and an extensive review of a book about hall-of-fame baseball player Roberto Clemente have put Duval County Public Schools in the hot seat with the Florida Department of Education. The 40-page picture book has been prevented from going on library shelves for months, as the district reviews it to ensure it complies with new state curriculum laws. “This is absurd,” said Florida Education Commissioner Manny Diaz in an exclusive interview with Action News Jax. Diaz sent a letter to Duval’s School Superintendent Sunday, expressing concerns about empty classroom bookshelves and the lengthy…

More than a decade after tightening exposure standards for dioxin, federal regulators have yet to reassess the potential health risks posed by the hazardous industrial byproduct to Jacksonville residents living near what was once among the worst Superfund sites in the nation. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in a 2014 report said it would “immediately commence negotiations” needed to begin testing properties near the Vertac Inc. Superfund Site. But as of this month, the agency has yet to gather samples needed to evaluate the possible risk the chemical poses to residents living near the former herbicide plant. The soil sampling…