JACKSONVILLE, Fla. \u2013 Duval County schools are set to lose $3.2 million from a state fund that pays for Advanced Placement, IB and similar programs \u2014 money that helps students save on college costs and keeps those classes running.<\/p>\n
School Board Member Cindy Pearson raised the alarm in a Facebook post<\/a>, highlighting the impact of the \u201cAcademic Acceleration Options Supplement,\u201d a fund created last year after similar cuts<\/a> threatened the same programs.<\/p>\n \u201cWe were told we weren\u2019t gonna lose money. It was just gonna be a different system. And now we know the different system has created a loss in funds,\u201d Pearson said.<\/p>\n Despite more students passing exams last year, that success has actually reduced Duval County\u2019s payout from a fixed pot of state money. Because hundreds more students passed exams than expected, the district\u2019s per-student share of the fixed fund shrank \u2014 costing Duval roughly $871 per student.<\/p>\n Wolfson High School senior Jarrett Kelley said he hopes the programs are protected.<\/p>\n \u201cI certainly hope that this is not something that\u2019s taken away from students because I know for me personally, it\u2019s gonna save me $20,000 on college,\u201d Kelley said.<\/p>\n Last year, school districts across Florida faced millions of dollars in funding cuts for programs like Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, AICE and Career and Technical Education. Students like Kelley were among those who fought those cuts \u2014 and now, the fight is back.<\/p>\n \u201cWell, to be honest with you, I wasn\u2019t entirely shocked. Last year, we felt as if we did enough to ensure this wouldn\u2019t happen again and to ensure that we really spread the message about how important these programs are. And we thought that Tallahassee understood,\u201d Kelley said.<\/p>\n Pearson said the budget loss puts principals in a difficult position \u2014 even when their students have exceeded performance expectations.<\/p>\n \u201cThe principals get their share based on student performance. And when you have a decrease in budget, you have to make budget decisions. And so that will be up to the principals to determine what they\u2019re gonna do with less funds, even though their students exceeded performance estimates,\u201d Pearson said.<\/p>\n There is still time to influence this year\u2019s budget. Lawmakers are expected to return to Tallahassee later this month to finalize the budget.<\/p>\n Pearson is urging parents, students and community members to contact their elected representatives directly.<\/p>\n \u201cI would highly recommend anybody who\u2019s invested in the acceleration funds or in students or student achievement reach out to their elected representatives, also to the education committee and to the Speaker of the House and the President of the Senate. And ask them to put more money in the Academic Accelerated Options supplement and ask them to keep pace with student achievement,\u201d Pearson said.<\/p>\n Below is a list of local lawmakers to contact. There\u2019s further contact information also listed on the city website<\/a>.<\/p>\n Senators<\/p>\n Clay Yarborough – Yarborough.Clay.web@flsenate.gov<\/a><\/p>\n Tracie Davis – Davis.Tracie.web@flsenate.gov<\/a><\/p>\n Representatives<\/p>\n Wyman Duggan District 12 – Wyman.Duggan@myfloridahouse.gov<\/a><\/p>\n Angie Nixon District 12 – Angie.Nixon@myfloridahouse.gov<\/a><\/p>\n Kimberley Daniels District 14 – Kimberly.Daniels@myfloridahouse.gov<\/a><\/p>\n Dean Black District 15 – Dean.Black@flhouse.gov<\/a><\/p>\n Kiyan Michael District 16 – Kiyan.Michael@flhouse.gov<\/a><\/p>\n Jessica Baker District 17 – Jessica.Baker@flhouse.gov<\/a><\/p>\n Pearson also shared a list of lawmakers to contact:<\/p>\n President Ben Albritton, Senate President<\/p>\n albritton.ben.web@flsenate.gov<\/a> <\/p>\n Senator Jim Boyd, Majority Leader<\/p>\n boyd.jim.web@flsenate.gov<\/a> <\/p>\n Senator Lori Berman, Minority Leader<\/p>\n berman.lori.web@flsenate.gov<\/a> <\/p>\n Senator Corey Simon, Committee Chair, Education Prek-12<\/p>\n simon.corey.web@flsenate.gov<\/a><\/p>\n Senator Alexis Calatyud, Committee Vice Chair, Education Prek-12<\/p>\n calatyud.alexis.web@flsenate.gov<\/a> <\/p>\n Speaker Daniel Perez, Speaker of the House<\/p>\n Daniel.Perez@flhouse.gov<\/a> <\/p>\n Rep Tyler Sirois, House Majority Leader<\/p>\n Tyler.Sirois@myfloridahouse.gov<\/a> <\/p>\n Rep Fentrice Driskell, House Minority Leader<\/p>\n Fentrice.Driskell@flhouse.gov<\/a> <\/p>\n Rep Jennifer Canady, Chair, Education and Employment Committee<\/p>\n Jennifer.Canady@flhouse.gov<\/a> <\/p>\n Rep Taylor Michael Yarkosky, Vice Chair, Education and Employment Committee<\/p>\n Taylor.Yarkosky@flhouse.gov<\/a> <\/p>\n Rep Jenna Persons-Mulicka, Chair, Pre-K Budget Subcommittee<\/p>\n