| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to the Lake County magnet high school |
| 3 | pilot project; providing for a pilot project that includes |
| 4 | the formation of a magnet high school focusing on health- |
| 5 | related professions on the Lake-Sumter Community College |
| 6 | South Lake Campus which would allow high school students |
| 7 | to complete an associate in science or associate in arts |
| 8 | degree; providing goals; providing for implementation for |
| 9 | the architectural design, initial construction, and |
| 10 | support of the magnet high school; providing an |
| 11 | appropriation; providing an effective date. |
| 12 |
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| 13 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 14 |
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| 15 | Section 1. (1) The purpose of this section is to enable |
| 16 | the School Board of Lake County, the Lake-Sumter Community |
| 17 | College, and hospitals in Lake County to implement a pilot |
| 18 | project on the Lake-Sumter Community College South Lake Campus |
| 19 | that includes the formation of a magnet high school that will |
| 20 | focus on health-related professions. This special high school |
| 21 | would allow Lake County students to pursue the completion of an |
| 22 | associate in science or an associate in arts degree while they |
| 23 | complete their high school education. This pilot project will |
| 24 | provide students an outstanding career-technical option while at |
| 25 | the same time providing outstanding economic opportunity in the |
| 26 | field of health-related professions. The goals of this project |
| 27 | are to: |
| 28 | (a) Develop health-related majors for high school |
| 29 | students, creating a seamless K-20 education experience. |
| 30 | (b) Help high school students earn college credit through |
| 31 | dual enrollment in health-related and general education courses. |
| 32 | (c) Provide opportunities for degree and certificate |
| 33 | programs in areas where critical shortages exist, thereby |
| 34 | offering the greatest employment potential for students. |
| 35 | (d) Provide academic excellence in a small learning |
| 36 | environment. |
| 37 | (e) Offer on-the-job experiences through business |
| 38 | partnership, internships, and job-shadowing opportunities. |
| 39 | (f) Provide hands-on projects linking education to the |
| 40 | real world while incorporating current technological skills. |
| 41 | (g) Provide a foundation for certifying teachers in |
| 42 | critical shortage areas and in the areas of math and science. |
| 43 | (h) Assist students in recognizing their interests, |
| 44 | aptitudes, and abilities as they relate to adult roles in the |
| 45 | world of work. |
| 46 | (i) Help students understand the broad scope of work and |
| 47 | career possibilities currently available in the areas of health |
| 48 | and science. |
| 49 | (j) Ensure that career education will be thoroughly |
| 50 | blended into the school curriculum in order to promote |
| 51 | intellectual development and higher-level thinking and the |
| 52 | acquisition of problem-solving skills. |
| 53 | (k) Assist in the development of the social skills, |
| 54 | personal values, and self-esteem of all students. |
| 55 | (l) Work with the families of all students to support |
| 56 | their child's career aspirations. |
| 57 | (m) Maximize the shared use of both the Lake-Sumter |
| 58 | Community College and the magnet high school facilities. |
| 59 | (n) Strengthen the partnership between the Lake County |
| 60 | schools and Lake-Sumter Community College and promote solid |
| 61 | coordination between the high school and the community college. |
| 62 | (o) Lighten the burden of overcrowding in Lake County's |
| 63 | high-growth areas as well as offer all Lake County students |
| 64 | immediate access to community college facilities. |
| 65 | (2) Beginning in the 2008-2009 school year, the School |
| 66 | Board of Lake County shall implement this pilot project for the |
| 67 | architectural design, initial construction, and support of this |
| 68 | special high school, including the following: |
| 69 | (a) Provide seed money for the implementation of the |
| 70 | magnet high school design. |
| 71 | (b) Create a plan for sharing the pilot project with |
| 72 | school districts around the state. |
| 73 | (c) Provide a pilot project evaluation to the President of |
| 74 | the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives on |
| 75 | the effectiveness of the project with recommendations for |
| 76 | assistance in how to best duplicate this project in other |
| 77 | partnerships with school districts and community colleges |
| 78 | throughout the state. |
| 79 | Section 2. The sum of $250,000 is appropriated from the |
| 80 | General Revenue Fund to the School Board of Lake County for the |
| 81 | 2008-2009 school year, which sum shall be matched by the School |
| 82 | Board of Lake County, for the purposes of paying expenses in |
| 83 | establishing the pilot project created in this act. |
| 84 | Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2008. |