PBSO

Miller's trial is scheduled for March.

​For nearly three years, Heath Miller sat in jail without facing a jury. In April 2009, the once-popular band teacher at H.L. Watkins Middle School in Palm Beach Gardens was charged with sexually assaulting four of his eighth-grade, female students. His arrest came as a shock to many in the community. Just months earlier, he had been hailed as a hero for shooting and killing a masked intruder who broke into his Wellington home.

Miller, 37, was a favored son of Belle Glade, his mom a former mayor, his dad the owner of a funeral home. The allegations that he molested teenaged girls in his band room stood in stark contrast to the reputation he had built as a charismatic teacher and mentor to kids. He pleaded not guilty to felony charges of sexual activity with a child, lewd and lascivious molestation, and tampering with evidence.

Initially, Miller was denied bail, partly because he was accused of tampering with More >>

maverickshigh.com

Brandon works at Mavericks in Palm Springs.

​On April 23, 2011, months before she was hired as assistant principal at the Mavericks High charter school in Palm Springs, Tisa Brandon was videotaped hanging out with teenagers at Denny's in the wee hours of a Saturday morning.

At the time, Brandon was dean of Liberty High School in Kissimmee. Three students spotted her in a booth at Denny's around 1:30 a.m., sitting with a former student who had recently withdrawn from Liberty because he was about to be expelled. According to statements the witnesses gave the Osceola County school district, Brandon and the ex-student were kissing.
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Supreme Court Justice Wiley Blount Rutledge, knockin' down anti-disestablishmentarians back in the day.

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This government endorsement of religion brought to you by state Sen. Gary Siplin.

​The state Senate passed SB 98 this afternoon by a 31-8 margin, paving the way for public school districts to allow student prayer in school. The bill would allow "student volunteers to deliver inspirational messages, including but not limited to, prayers of invocation or benediction," according to a legislative summary from the Senate Judiciary Committee.More >>

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maverickshigh.com

Brandon was hired at Mavericks High in Palm Springs.

​Here's the leadership team at Mavericks High School in Palm Springs: Principal Thomas Lockett is not certified to teach in Florida and has a background in pharmaceutical sales. Assistant Principal Tisa Brandon came to Palm Springs from the Osceola County School District, where she was investigated for alleged "unethical behavior" involving a student.

Welcome to the wonderful world of Mavericks charter schools.

Brandon was dean of exceptional student education at a high school in More >>

Our best guess as to what Delores Brown's funeral home looked like.

According to court documents, the 52-year-old Brown simply drove a moving truck to 
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maverickshigh.com

Mavericks High in Homestead.

​Perhaps the people in Tallahassee don't read much on the interwebs. Or maybe they don't mind entrusting their kids' education to a team of real estate developers. Whatever the reason, the Leon County School Board has decided to approve a new Mavericks High charter school.

Mavericks in Education Florida is a West Palm Beach-based, for-profit charter school chain that promises to help at-risk kids graduate. But in reality, most Mavericks schools graduate less than 15 percent of eligible students. They score "incomplete" on state report cards, because so few students are taking the FCAT. Plus, two whistleblower lawsuits filed in Miami allege Mavericks inflates attendance numbers and inaccurately reports grades. (Read the New Times feature story on Mavericks here.)
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maverickshigh.com

Mavericks High in Palm Springs.

​The principal of the Mavericks High charter school in Palm Springs is not certified to teach in Florida, according to the State Department of Education.

Thomas Lockett runs a school that serves roughly 500 at-risk students and promises to help them earn enough credits to graduate. Yet he does not have a teaching certificate or list any teaching experience on his LinkedIn online résumé. Prior to joining Mavericks last year, he was an account executive for home health-care and pharmaceutical companies. More >>

maverickshigh.com

Mavericks makes news in the Big Easy.

​Florida has a habit of exporting its public policies to other states, where they spread like cold sores on a drunken Himmarshee night. Grading schools and teachers based on test scores, expanding vouchers and charters schools -- the nation has former Gov. Jeb Bush to thank for that.

Now, the governor of Louisiana wants to pass a law modeled after Florida's "charter school-in-the- workplace" initiative, in which private businesses can start schools to serve the children of their employees. In South Florida,More >>