Florida: News

Florida is home to nearly 586,500 privately held business establishments, so it is a tremendous accomplishment to be named 1 of only 50 "Florida Companies to Watch." (Read more)

Four Florida cities were named to a new list of U.S. Cities Getting Smarter the Fastest. Jacksonville (#7) and Orlando (#8) saw nearly 50% gains in their college-educated populations, and Tampa (#11, +39.6%) and Miami (#23, +31.7%) also outpaced traditional hotspots like Boston, Washington and Seattle. (Read more)

Business Facilities ranks Florida #3 among America's Top States for Workforce Training. (Read more)

Florida is home to 4 of the nation's top 10 magnet schools--more than any other state. (Read more)

CNBC rated states based on the education level of their workforce, the numbers of available workers, union membership, and relative success of each state's worker training programs in placing their participants in jobs. (Read more)

Florida schools scored numerous awards in multiple categories on Community College Week's latest rankings. (Read more)

Florida is the only U.S. state to earn an A in the Postsecondary Access and Success category for both 2-year and 4-year institutions, in a new report issued by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. (Read more)

Miami (#6), Gainesville (#8) and Orlando (#14) all rank among America's Most Well-Read Cities according to Amazon. (Read more)

Indian River State College's Brown Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, a $21.5 million, 65,000 square foot facility, represents a unique partnership between the college and local business partners, including FPL. (Read more)

Florida's public high school students took more Advanced Placement classes than ever in 2011 and also aced more of the AP exams, meaning more students who graduated were likely ready for college. (Read more)

Florida ranks among the nation's Top 5 states for bachelor's degree holders, technical workforce, and science and engineering workforce. (Read more)

In an unprecedented achievement, three student teams from Embry-Riddle's Daytona Beach campus took first, second, and third place in the Runway Safety/Runway Incursions Challenge category of the 2010-2011 Design Competition for Universities sponsored by the Federal Aviation Administration. (Read more)

For the second year in a row, Valencia Community College ranks first in the nation in the number of associate degrees awarded by a community college. The ranking was published on Monday by Community College Week. (Read more)

Newsweek has named 43 Florida schools, including 2 of the Top 10, to the 2011 list of America's Best High Schools. (Read more)

The University of South Florida has joined the elite of the world's top innovators as one of 14 universities and university systems that rank in the top 300 organizations granted U.S. Patents last year, according to the Intellectual Property Association. (Read more)

Florida's Workforce and Job Training rank #1 in the nation, according the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the National Chamber Foundation. (Read more)

The Washington Post has named 149 Florida high schools to its High School Challenge list of America's top 1,900 public high schools, including 4 of the Top 20. (Read more)

Florida is home to 3 of the Top 20 Most Well-Read Cities in America (Miami, Gainesville and Orlando)--more than any other state, as ranked by Amazon.com. (Read more)

Florida's Career and Professional Education Act was 1 of only 5 initiatives named as a "Model of 21st Century Career and Technical Education" in Harvard University's "Pathways to Prosperity: The Road to an American Solution". (Read more)

The Sunshine State is ranked number one in the nation, topping Maryland for the percentage of 2010 seniors taking Advanced Placement (AP) exams while in high school. No other state has as many recognized schools and Florida's total is more than double the number in most other states. (Read more)

New College of Florida has been ranked No. 2 and the University of Florida No. 3 "Best Value Public College in America" for 2011 by The Princeton Review, one of America's best known education services companies, and USA TODAY, one of the nation's most widely read newspapers. (Read more)

Through targeted business assistance, the Florida Economic Gardening Institute and its program GrowFL helped entrepreneurial growth companies create at least 418 jobs throughout the state in just its first year. (Read more)

Florida ranks 7th in the nation for number of doctorate degrees awarded, and two Florida schools ranks among the top 50 in the U.S. (UF ranks 10th, FSU ranks 47th). (Read more)

The University of Central Florida has become the second-largest university in the nation in student enrollment, surpassing Ohio State. The university's growth is fueled by the longstanding commitment to providing high-quality students access to higher education. (Read more)

The University of South Florida ranks among the nation's Top 25 Graduate Schools for Entrepreneurs, according to The Princeton Review and Entrepreneur magazine. The schools were selected because they have high numbers of experienced faculty, students launching businesses after graduation, and experiences outside of the class room. (Read more)

UCF's College of Engineering and Computer Science is one of the best 100 in the world, according to The Academic Ranking of World Universities. Considered the most influential international ranking system in the world, the ARWU rates a variety of broad fields at research universities. (Read more)

The National Aeronautic and Space Administration has awarded its highest honor, the NASA Distinguished Public Service Medal, to Dr. Kenneth Ford, CEO and Director of the Pensacola, Florida-based Institute for Human and Machine Cognition. (Read more)

Florida has been ranked number one in the nation for its workforce on CNBC's fourth annual America's Top States for Business rankings. The workforce rankings in CNBC's annual study are based on several indicators, including the education level of the workforce, the number of available workers, union membership and the relative success of each state's worker training programs in placing participants in jobs. (Read more)

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the National Chamber Foundation have ranked Florida a national leader in infrastructure (#1) and workforce development & training (#2). (Read more)

Florida's Valencia Community College awards more associate degrees than any other two-year school in the nation, according to a report just published by Community College Week. Florida is home to nearly 1 out of every 5 of Community College Week's top schools, including 6 of the Top 10 four-year institutions. (Read more)

Palm Bay, Florida ranks 11th on Forbes' first-ever ranking of America's Most Innovative Cities. Rankings were based on a combination of data including patents, venture capital investment, and ratios of high-tech, science and "creative" jobs. (Read more)