There’s a push in Florida to overhaul the system that gives students scholarships to attend private schools. The groups all say the use of school vouchers diverts badly-needed funds from public schools. “What we are fighting for is to keep public schools money in the public schools,” said Adora Obi Nweze, president of the Florida State Conference of the NAACP. But supporters of school vouchers argue they give parents other options besides public schools particularly when they’re low-performing. Several organizations want state lawmakers to prioritize public school funding and scale back the money going to private schools through vouchers.

When a child at any Duval County school starts to act out, the staff is trained to deescalate the situation. During such a scenario, staff member are instructed to contact the school district’s hotline, which differs from county to county. By law, school district personnel are not allowed to make the decision to admit a person under the Baker Act. The non-profit agency has licensed health care professionals trained in anxiety disorders, delinquency issues and Baker Act diversion. “I think it’s not always understood by the general public that a Baker Act situation is not a punishment.

If you need help with WJXT’s or WCWJ's FCC public inspection file, call (904) 393-9801. Copyright © 2020 News4Jax.com is managed by Graham Digital and pubished by Graham Media Group, a division of Graham Holdings.

The female officer is heard interacting with a male officer. The female officer is heard saying, “I think they may have agitated her a little bit.”Female officer: “Follow me just in case. The police officers were also not present when Child Guidance was intervening with the student. "Our procedure is to call Child Guidance when a student’s crisis is not de-escalating and the student is at risk of self-harm or harming others. “We cannot speak on behalf of Child Guidance regarding decision making in this matter, but we have already requested a leadership meeting with Child Guidance to review this situation.”

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The mother of a 6-year-old girl is demanding answers after her daughter was involuntarily committed to a mental health facility last week after an episode at a Jacksonville elementary school. Tuesday morning started off like every other morning for Falk when she sent her daughter Nadia off to Love Grove Elementary. “Then, a couple of hours later, I got a call saying that she is so uncontrollable that they had to Baker Act her," Falk said. Nadia is on medication for various mental health issues and is in a class specifically for children with special needs. Falk said she was not made aware of the situation until after the decision was made to Baker Act her daughter.

Mother wants answers after 6-year-old daughter was involuntarily committed at schoolPublished: February 10, 2020, 6:15 pmMartina Falk said she isn’t looking to file a lawsuit, she just wants to know what happened

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Principals at Florida public schools would need to take additional steps before children can be removed from school grounds and involuntarily committed under the Baker Act, under a bill approved by a House panel on Tuesday. Webb told the committee that the bill is in response to a growing concern that Florida’s public schools are not always using the Baker Act “responsibly and judiciously.”Currently, the proposal does not require a principal or their designee to immediately notify a parent if a child is committed under the Baker Act. State Rep. Mike Hill, R-Pensacola, said he would like to see parental consent added to the bill as it moved forward. But House PreK-12 Innovation Chairman Ralph Massullo, R-Lecanto, saw the benefit in the exemption. The Senate Committee on Children, Families, and Elder Affairs unanimously approved a similar measure (SB 1062) Tuesday afternoon.