HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) — Students in Tampa Bay’s largest school district are getting ready to head back to school.
Leaders with Hillsborough County Public Schools held a news conference Wednesday to discuss the upcoming school year.
District leaders hosted the event at Aquilla Jackson Morgan High School in Wimauma to discuss the upcoming school year. The new school, now the largest in the county, will accommodate the growth in the county’s southern region.
Junior Noel Cardentey transferred to the new school because of its new cosmetology program.
“It’s a massive school. It feels like a college campus. There are numerous opportunities for me to develop my business, which will be barbering,” said Cardentey.
District-wide, school leaders talked about improved grades and striving for an “A” rating this year.
Superintendent Van Ayres said staff shortages have declined and credited a millage increase for helping boost teacher and bus driver pay.
Ayres said this upcoming school year, the district is short around 430 teachers, which is down from 600 shortages last year.
Ayres also talked about the ongoing review of more than 600 books.
Ayres said so far, 55 books on a state list have been banned from school shelves, and staff are in the process of reviewing hundreds more.
But one day earlier, Florida’s Education Commissioner called out the district over a book written by a transgender author.
In a tweet, Anastasios Kamoutsas claimed that Hillsborough Schools “continues to expose students to inappropriate content” and hinted at possible state intervention.
“I believe he mentioned inappropriate material in that tweet, so we will review it. Currently, the particular book in question that was displayed is under review following our district procedures, and it is only available for check out with parents’ permission,” said Van Ayres.
