News from the South - Florida News Feed
π« Best private high schools in the Orlando metro area
SUMMARY: The top 25 private schools in the Orlando, Florida area feature strong academic reputations, with most earning Niche grades of A or higher. Enrollment ranges from small schools like Grace Christian Academy (41 students) to large institutions like Lake Highland Preparatory School (2,066 students). Student-to-teacher ratios vary from as low as 5:1 at Leaders Preparatory School to about 16:1 at Faith Christian Academy. Many schools maintain ratios around 10β15:1, supporting personalized education. The highest-ranked schools include Windermere Preparatory School, Montverde Academy, and Lake Highland Preparatory, all earning A+ grades with enrollments exceeding 1,300 students.
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News from the South - Florida News Feed
South Florida weather for Friday 5/23/25
SUMMARY: South Floridaβs weather heading into Memorial Day weekend will see a significant decrease in rainfall after recent beneficial rains. Friday will bring some seabreeze showers midday with storms developing inland and moving southwest by evening. Saturday carries a 30-40% rain chance, dropping to 20% on Sunday, with no severe weather expected. Sunday will be drier, making for a good beach day with low rip current risk and light southeast winds. Temperatures will be warm but more seasonable, in the upper 80s to around 90, with overnight lows remaining humid and balmy between 80 and 90 degrees. Afternoon storms will continue into next week.

CBS News Miami’s chief meteorologist Ivan Cabrera’s weather outlook for South Florida.
News from the South - Florida News Feed
Security First offers new homeowners’ policies, indicating signs of recovery
SUMMARY: Florida’s insurance market shows signs of recovery, with industry leaders noting improvements following legislative reforms in late 2022. Security First Insurance, a Florida-based company, introduced a new Signature+ HO-3 policy featuring lower rates, disappearing deductibles, and discounts for first responders and military members. President Melissa Burt DeVriese highlighted the companyβs expansion across the state and willingness to take on more risk as new insurers enter the market. She encourages consumers to shop around for better rates and coverage options. Meanwhile, Deputy Andy Lahera remains in recovery two years after a life-altering injury, with his family asking for community-wide prayers.
The post Security First offers new homeowners’ policies, indicating signs of recovery appeared first on www.abcactionnews.com
News from the South - Florida News Feed
An immigrant advocacy group is celebrating this bill DeSantis signed to curb legal services scams
by Jackie Llanos, Florida Phoenix
May 23, 2025
Amid ongoing raids in Florida immigrant communities, Gov. Ron DeSantisβ signed a bill Thursday creating an avenue for relief against people unlawfully providing immigration legal services.
HB 915, one of 17 bills DeSantis signed Thursday, prohibits notaries public from advertising their services using language that implies they possess professional legal skills in immigration law. Notaries public are authorized to serve as witnesses and verify signatures on documents such as powers of attorney, deeds, and estates.
Thomas Kennedy, a policy analyst with Florida Immigrant Coalition, said in a phone interview that the group sought help from lawmakers in addressing the problem of notaries public providing immigration legal services, which he described as an epidemic in Central and South Florida. He called the signing of the new law good news.
βThis is happening all over the place. People are very, very desperate for some sort of solution or adjustment of status that leaves them vulnerable for people that are preying on them,β Kennedy said, pointing to the hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans in Florida at risk of deportation after the U.S. Supreme Court ruling earlier this week allowing the Trump administration to strip the immigrants of temporary protections and work permits.
A series of special sessions at the beginning of the year yielded hundreds of millions for local law enforcement to engage in immigration enforcement, plus new laws heightening penalties for immigrants living in the country without authorization. However, during the regular legislative session, lawmakers didnβt pass other proposals cracking down on legal aid for immigrant children and companies hiring people unauthorized to work in the country.
But nearly all lawmakers agreed to pass the bill from Orlando Democratic Rep. Johanna LΓ³pez, allowing people to recover damages in civil lawsuits from notaries public providing representation in immigration law matters.
Further, notaries public wonβt be able to refer to themselves as βnotario pΓΊblico,β the term in Spanish, because in some Latin American countries βnotariosβ can file legal documents, give legal advice, and represent people in court, according to the final legislative analysis of the bill.
Still, Kennedy said passing a pro-immigrant law in this climate was no easy feat.
βI guess common sense prevailed in this matter,β he said.
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Florida Phoenix is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Florida Phoenix maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Michael Moline for questions: info@floridaphoenix.com.
The post An immigrant advocacy group is celebrating this bill DeSantis signed to curb legal services scams appeared first on floridaphoenix.com
Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader βStaff Editor.
Political Bias Rating: Center-Left
This content presents a generally supportive view of efforts to protect immigrant communities from fraudulent legal representation, highlighting a bill signed by a conservative governor but emphasizing pro-immigrant perspectives. It gives voice to immigrant advocacy groups and underscores the challenges faced by immigrants, suggesting a sympathetic stance toward immigrant rights while maintaining factual coverage of legislative actions. This approach aligns with a center-left position that favors immigrant protections and legal accountability without strongly criticizing the governor’s broader policies.
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