Florida Courier - February 1, 2013

Page 1

U.S. POSTAGE PAID DAYTONA BEACH, FL PERMIT #189

EE FR

FC

PRESORTED STANDARD MAIL

Congressional medals sought for Birmingham girls Page A6

www.flcourier.com

Read us online Like us on Facebookwww.facebook.com/ flcourier Follow us on Twitter@flcourier

www.flcourier.com

FEBRUARY 1 - FEBRUARY 7, 2013

VOLUME 21 NO. 5

Ministers call for state pay hike Group says state employees ‘overlooked’

IN THE 13th GRADE BY LYNN WADDELL AND JOHN O’CONNOR FLORIDA CENTER FOR INVESTIGATIVE REPORTING

PART 4 Computers are allowing remedial students in Florida colleges to take control of their educations.

COMPILED FROM WIRE AND STAFF REPORTS

A group of Tallahassee preachers led by the Rev. R.B. Holmes, vice chair of Gov. Rick Scott’s task force on the “stand your ground” selfdefense law, on Tuesday called for a raise for state workers on moral grounds. In a letter to Black-owned media outlets around the state, Holmes accused state legislators of taking state employees for granted. “...(B)udgetary constraints or revenue shortfalls over the last few years may have caused the Legislature to re-evaluate the role of state government and reassess and prioritize the programs that have been traditionally funded,” Holmes wrote. “Unfortunately, this situation has resulted in a reduction of services offered.

Hit hard Holmes believes state workers have taken the brunt of legislative budget-cutting. His letter also cites statistics indicating that Florida has the lowest state worker-to-citizen ratio in the nation, which leads to reduced service levels, especially to the poor and the elderly. “During the last six sessions... some of our elected officials have chosen to balance the state budget on the backs of our hardworking, dedicated state employees by not granting a general pay adjustment. Adding insult to injury, state employees were forced to contribute three percent of their income into their retirement, further draining their household budgets. “The state employee workforce has dwindled; jobs have been outsourced in the name of efficiency; family incomes have suffered. Nevertheless, I guarantee you that while these streamlining efforts have been underway, millions of dollars were still earmarked for pet projects for key legislators!”

SVEN VIETENSE / FOTOLIA

Jamille Cunningham’s primary learning tool in her remedial reading course at St. Petersburg College is a computer program. When Cunningham, 20, started the course, the program diagnosed her as weak in all but a handful of reading skills. It then directed her to a series of learning modules focused on skills she needed to improve, including reading comprehension and organizing ideas. The program also allowed her to bypass exercises in skills she had proficiency in. Her instructor goes over exercises in class and also follows her progress in the computer modules online.

Her own pace A high school dropout who passed her G.E.D. test on the third try, Cunningham has worked hard to complete the learning exercises, games and tests at her own pace. She can move through the material faster than if she were in a traditional remedial class where all students must sit through the same lessons. On her computer screen, she proudly points out the checkmarks beside more than half of the listed modules, indicating she has now mastered those skills. “I’m really excited. I like this class,” Cunningham said. “It helps me write papers and to actually think about what I’m saying.” The computer modules Cunningham uses to get through her remedial reading See STUDENTS, Page A2

FLORIDA COURIER / OUT AND ABOUT

’Canes blow Seminoles away

Rally during session At Holmes’ Bethel Missionary Baptist Church, preachers said they’re planning a faith-based rally at the Capitol during the upcoming legislative session to urge Scott and the Legislature to grant the first raises to state workers in six years. Holmes’ letter calls for an acrossthe-board pay raise “to correct past neglect and to ensure that we retain a qualified workforce.” Scott recently called for a pay raise just for Florida teachers. “When the governor proposed an across-the-board pay raise for the state’s public school classroom teachers, I had to applaud him. But

KIM GIBSON / FLORIDA COURIER

Florida State University’s Michael Snaer goes to the hoop against the University of Miami’s Durand Scott, but the Hurricanes defeated the Seminoles 71-47 before a sold-out crowd in Miami last week. Florida Courier photojournalist Kim Gibson was there.

See PAY, Page A2

Smith wants ‘stand your ground’ tweaks

FLORIDA COURIER FILES

Senate Minority Leader Chris Smith is pushing for changes to Florida’s infamous ‘stand your ground’ law.

ALSO INSIDE

hood watch volunteer shot and BY MARGIE MENZEL killed an unarmed 17-year-old, THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA Trayvon Martin, who was visitSenate Democratic Leader ing his father in a Sanford gated Chris Smith said Wednesday community. that the state’s culture of violence calls for changes to the No GOP support “stand your ground” self-deAfter weeks of national profense law, but the president tests when the Sanford police of the Florida Senate sent a initially declined to arrest the clear signal that major changes shooter, Gov. Rick Scott aparen’t likely. pointed a task force to study “To put our heads in the sand the law and make recommenwhen it comes to this contro- dations on its use. The panel’s versial (law) is wrong,” Smith draft findings did not call for told a gathering of newspaper significant changes. editors at the Associated Press Senate President Don Gaetz, Annual Legislative Planning R-Niceville, said he won’t supsession in Tallahassee. port any major changes, either. The law propelled Flori“I don’t plan to vote for any da into the national spotlight repeal of stand your ground or last year when a neighbor- any weakening of the Second

Amendment,” said Gaetz, who also spoke to the AP gathering. Smith had asked to be appointed to the Scott task force, but was not. Instead, he convened a task force in his Fort Lauderdale-area district.

SNAPSHOTS FLORIDA | A3

Borrowers slow in applying for mortgage settlement

Jury decision On Wednesday, Smith said the Florida Department of Law Enforcement should keep records on the use of “stand your ground,” a proposal (SB 136) in a bill he’s already filed. He also suggested giving law enforcement officers the ability to detain someone who claims “stand your ground” in order to do an investigation. And he called for prevent-

METRO | B1

Jimmy Jackson: Looking for his piece of the pie FINEST | B3

Meet Jasmine

See SMITH, Page A2

COMMENTARY: CHARLES W. CHERRY II: RANDOM THOUGHTS OF A FREE BLACK MIND | A4 COMMENTARY: REV. JESSE L. JACKSON: CHANGE MUST BE FORCED BY AMERICAN PEOPLE | A4


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.
Florida Courier - February 1, 2013 by Central Florida Communicators Group, LLC - Issuu