Sarasota County Schools News

SARASOTA – Thirty Sarasota County residents from the ages of 18 to 21 will have an opportunity for a free technical education at Sarasota County Technical Institute, with funding from a Technical Education for Youth (TEY) grant under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

SCTI, in partnership with Jewish Family and Children’s Service and the Suncoast Workforce Board, will distribute 30 scholarships for students to take certain courses at the school. The students selected will receive free tuition, books, uniforms and supplies for a technical course of their choice from among 19 choices. Students who do not already have a high school diploma will receive free instruction in passing the General Equivalency Diploma (GED) exam, with the cost of all testing covered by the grant. There is also the possibility of child care and transportation support for students who qualify, and other services may be provided as needed.

Available courses under the grant include Accounting Operations, Auto Repair, Business Computer Programming, PC Support and Digital Design. Students may also take courses leading to certification or licensing as an emergency medical technician, firefighter, law enforcement officer, surgical technician and legal or medical administrative assistant, among others.

In order to be considered for a scholarship, prospective students must register by Friday, March 19, be 18-21 years upon enrollment, be a U.S. citizen living in Sarasota County, complete a selection interview and provide financial documents as requested. Most classes will begin in August; the GED instruction will start in late March. The courses range in length from 165 to 1,400 hours (900 hours is a full school year at SCTI).

Interested persons may contact Bill Maher at SCTI at 924-1365, ext. 62233, for more information about the TEY scholarships.

SARASOTA — Fifty student-created history projects about topics as diverse as grenades and Greenpeace were on display Feb. 26 and 27 at the 12^th annual Sarasota History Fair. 

The event was held at the Daughters of the American Revolution House and the Crocker Church, located at Pioneer Park on Coconut Avenue, just south of 12^th Street in downtown Sarasota. The History Fair was made possible by a partnership among the Daughters of the American Revolution, the Historical Society of Sarasota County and Sarasota County Schools.

“The projects, created by middle and high school students, show a great deal of creativity and passion for local, national and global history,” said Bernadette Bennett, curriculum specialist for Sarasota County Schools.

The projects included exhibits, documentaries, Web sites and research papers on subjects such as “The Ringling Causeway: Gateway to Sarasota’s Future,” “The Hamburger in America through Innovation, Impact and Change,” and “Elevators: Taking the World to a Whole New Level,” to name a few.

SARASOTA – On Feb. 22 Florida Commissioner of Education Eric Smith, K-12 Public Schools Chancellor Frances Haithcock, state Sen. Nancy Detert (R-District 23) and state Rep. Keith Fitzgerald (D-District 69) joined Shirley Brown, chairwoman of the School Board of Sarasota County, for a town hall-style forum on K-12 education issues under consideration by the Florida Legislature in the 2010 regular session.

The forum was held in the School Board Chambers in Sarasota. It was open to the public and televised live on The Education Channel, Comcast 20 and Verizon 33 (for a full schedule, including repeat broadcasts of the forum, visit wwwTheEdChannel.net). The legislative session starts March 2.

Detert currently serves as the majority whip in the Florida Senate and is the chairwoman of the Education Pre-K-12 and Education Pre-K-12 Appropriations committees. Fitzgerald is a member of the Florida House Policy Council and the Health & Family Services Policy Council.

“Having Commissioner Smith join us for this meeting was a very big coup for our community,” said Detert. “He has worked very hard to secure the federal Race to the Top money for Florida, and he shared his thoughts on the ramifications of the initiative for Sarasota County and other Florida school districts.”

Announced by the Obama administration in July 2009, Race to the Top will provide states with $4.35 billion in competitive grants, with the goal of fostering education reform and innovation to improve student achievement. States will distribute the federal funds to eligible districts that meet certain criteria, including basing at least part of teacher pay on performance measures.

The forum also explored the Florida Class Size Amendment and a proposal to “freeze” class size at the current school-average class size level, rather than for each classroom. The implementation of the 2002 amendment calls the size of each class to be limited to 18 students in grades K-3, 22 students in grades 4-8 and 25 students in grades 9-12. The change to keep the limits at the school average, which would allow districts flexibility for some variations on the class size as long as the school average is maintained, must be made as a new amendment to the Florida Constitution and is expected to be on the statewide ballot in November.

The legislature also is expected to consider a proposed bill that will add new requirements for high school graduation. The 21st Century Diploma Initiative proposes that high school students be required to take more rigorous math and science classes, to increase the graduation-required score on the 10th grade FCAT from a 2 to a 3, and bring Bright Futures state scholarship requirements in line with the new standards. The new requirements, if implemented, would be phased in gradually starting with the freshman class of 2014.

“The idea behind the possible changes is to make sure our graduates are competitive in an increasingly competitive global economy,” said Detert.

The forum also looked at some of the challenges of school funding in a difficult economy, with state budgets like Florida’s facing reduced tax revenues due to decreased property values and lower amounts collected from sales tax.

“We believe this forum gave anyone interested in K-12 education in Sarasota County a closer look at, and a chance to comment on, some of the issues that are on the horizon,” said Brown. “We were fortunate to have some of the most influential leaders in the state leading the discussion."

STUDENT SUMMIT WITH DR. RICE: Students meet former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice at the Ringling College Library Association Town Hall news conference; (left to right) Cynthia Flynn-Melendez, Venice High School; Dustin Morris, Booker High School; Dr. Rice; Sebastian Wright, BHS; Jenny Isard, VHS. Photo courtesy Barbara Banks Photography and Ringling College Library Association

SARASOTA – Students from two Sarasota County public high schools participated in a news conference with former U.S. secretary of state Condoleezza Rice on Feb. 8. Cynthia Flynn-Melendez and Jenny Isard from Venice High joined Dustin Morris and Sebastian Wright from Booker High and local media representatives at the informal roundtable discussion backstage at the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall in Sarasota.

The news conference was held the day of Rice’s morning and evening appearances in the 2010 Town Hall Lecture Series, the 30^th year of the series which benefits the Ringling College Library Association (RCLA).

Dr. Rice told the reporters and students that “history’s judgment and today’s headlines are rarely the same,” and that world leaders must do what they think is right without worrying about popularity polls or pundits.

She told the students that she chose her career in higher education and diplomacy because she realized if she pursued her earlier dream of being a concert pianist she “would never be good enough to play Carnegie Hall.” She added that young people don’t have to know exactly what they want to do with the rest of their lives as they finish high school and perhaps enter college, but that they should explore various possibilities. “Find your passion,” she told them.

The students are among those from 10 public high schools selected by their principals in response to opportunities presented by the RCLA. The association has offered 20 student tickets for each evening lecture in the series and invited a small group of students to participate in each of the news conferences. Students meet and are photographed with each of the speakers after each lecture.

In addition to meeting Dr. Rice, students have enjoyed lectures by former President Bill Clinton and journalists Fareed Zakaria and Peggy Noonan. Students also will attend news conferences with, and lectures by, former president of Pakistan Pervez Musharraf and former Metropolitan Museum of Art director Philippe de Montebello.

The students attending the events are chosen by their principals on the basis of academic achievement, extracurricular activities and community service. The participating public schools are Booker High, the Cyesis Program, North Port High, Phoenix Academy, Pine View, Riverview High, Sarasota High, Sarasota Military Academy, Suncoast Polytechnical High and Venice High.   

“The students ask insightful questions at the news conferences and at the question-and-answer period after the lectures,” said Town Hall chair Olivia Thomas. “I have the honor of selecting the written questions from the audience after the lectures, and I often end with a question from a student because they submit questions that have resulted in delightful answers — questions such as ‘How did you decide on your career?’ and ‘What are your favorite things you’ve written or accomplished?’

“We’re so pleased to be able to offer this opportunity to our public high school students, who are such wonderful representatives of their schools and the district. The speakers spend a few moments with the students after each lecture, signing autographs and giving advice, and they really enjoy connecting with the young people from our community. And of course, the students love it, too.” 

About Town Hall

The Town Hall Lecture Series is the major fundraising activity of Ringling College Library Association. The association is the largest single donor to Ringling College of Art and Design, contributing a total of $6 million to date. Tickets are available by calling 941-925-1343 or e-mailing RCLATownHall@comcast.net.

Artwork by Alan Jason Avis, a Booker High student who won a $1,000 scholarship based on his portfolio of work  

TAMPA – Creations by 51 Sarasota County high school students have been accepted for display in an art exhibit at the annual Florida State Fair in Tampa from Thursday, Feb. 4 through Monday, Feb. 15.    

The Florida State Fair All State Art Exhibition and Portfolio competition is Florida's only statewide adjudicated and publicly displayed student art event. High school students from throughout Florida who submit work are eligible to have individual works or full portfolios of work accepted for display. From the Sarasota County School District, students from Booker, North Port, Pine View, Riverview, Sarasota and Venice high schools submitted artwork that was accepted.

Colleges receive the list of accepted portfolios and may offer scholarships to their accepted students based on this event. In addition, 10 portfolio winners are chosen annually to receive scholarships from the exhibition’s organizers to continue their art studies. Six Sarasota County students had their portfolios selected and one student, Alan Jason Avis of Booker High School, was among the 10 students statewide who received a $1,000 scholarship. 

The Florida State Fair is held at the State Fairgrounds, 4800 Highway 301 N., Tampa. The exhibit will be in the Florida Center.