Sarasota County Schools News

(L-R) Hal Nelson, Belinda Williams, Ronald Ferguson

SARASOTA — Schools across the United States report significantly lower average academic achievement among minority and low-income students, compared with the achievement levels of other groups. This disparity is known as the “achievement gap.” Two nationally recognized experts on closing the achievement gap participated in a symposium on the subject April 25 at Booker High School.

Hal Nelson, the Sarasota County Schools assistant superintendent for NeXt Generation Learning, hosted the event, titled “Legacy of Achievement: A Mini-Symposium Exploring the Achievement Gap.” Participants included district administrators, school and community leaders and teachers from Sarasota County Schools and neighboring school districts.

One symposium presenter was Belinda Williams, a psychologist with 30 years of experience studying the academic achievement patterns of culturally diverse and socioeconomically disadvantaged students. Williams is the author of “Closing the Achievement Gap: A Vision for Changing Beliefs and Practices.”

The other participating expert was Ronald Ferguson, a professor at the Graduate School of Education and the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. He is the author of “Toward Excellence with Equity: An Emerging Vision for Closing the Achievement Gap.”

Over the past seven months, Nelson has led a committee of district and school-based administrators, teachers and community leaders to address the challenge of improving academic achievement among low-income and minority students. The committee has discussed the disparities in student performance among various ethnic and socio-economic groups; seen presentations on careers, second-chance programs, athletics and post-secondary education planning; and explored ideas on the causes of the achievement gap and how to close it.

“The mini-symposium was the culminating event for our committee,” said Nelson. “We are pleased that Dr. Williams and Dr. Ferguson shared their expertise with our community. At a time when resources for education are limited and priorities are being reviewed, this event was particularly timely. It helped keep one of public education’s most critical goals front and center — raising the academic performance of all students.”

Susan Toale's fourth-grade class plants a tree at Southside on Arbor Day, April 25.

SARASOTA — Math teachers from across Florida learned how to crunch numbers and analyze data with advanced graphing calculators April 19 as Sarasota High School hosted a Texas Instruments TI-Nspire calculator workshop.

The workshop provided lessons on how to best use the advanced calculators in the classroom. Participating teachers received in-service and salary credit. Breakfast and lunch was donated by Morton's Market.

“I’ve pursued the goal of hosting a workshop like this at Sarasota High for three years,” said Ricardo Bellón, Sarasota High math teacher and president of the Sarasota Council of Teachers of Mathematics (SCTM). “With the support of SCTM, the SHS School Advisory Council, Principal Jeff Hradek and Assistant Principal David Jones, it became a reality.”

Sarasota High School and Texas Instruments welcomed about 80 math teachers from around the state to the workshop. In exchange for hosting the event, the school will receive one classroom set of 30 TI-Nspire calculators and interactive software.

"These calculators engage students and allow them to draw conclusions, analyze data, graph, manipulate, calculate, solve and presuppose math problem scenarios and real-world experiences we strive for in the mathematics curriculum,” explained Bellón. “Students can work individually with the calculators, collaborate in small groups or with the entire class. Teachers can pose problems and allow students to engage, react, investigate and discover results. The graphing capabilities, the display clarity and the graphics are very impressive.”

Many of the teachers attending the one-day workshop signed up for a three-day intensive High School MTE Technology Workshop at Sarasota High, to be held July 22-24. The three-day event will share strategies for training teachers who are new to TI-Nspire calculators. The intensive workshop will focus on how to make the best use of the new capabilities of the TI-Nspire by presenting tasks and asking questions that encourage teachers to explore the advanced uses of the calculators for classroom lessons.

SARASOTA - Carmela Gaudet, a paraprofessional job coach in the Pupil Support Services Department, was selected as the 2008 School-Related Employee of the Year for the Sarasota County Schools. Gaudet was chosen from among 47 nominees from district schools and departments honored at a luncheon at Michael’s on East April 14.

As a grand prize for winning the honor, Gaudet received free use of a 2009 Toyota Corolla for a year from Germain Toyota of Sarasota. She also received a $1,200 savings bond from the school district’s two administrators' organizations, gift certificates from Barnes & Noble, Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse and the Corkscrew Delicatessen. Winning at the local level also qualifies her as a nominee for Florida School-Related Employee of the Year.

Gaudet is one of six job coaches in the Exceptional Student Education Department. She works with students who have disabilities to help them develop job skills. In 2007 she initiated a community training partnership with Habitat for Humanity to help students learn marketable skills in the building trades. Her students have completed trade skill programs in general construction, plumbing and drywall. Many have earned certificates in the trades and have passed the OSHA Safety Standards test.

In her continuous effort to lead by example, Gaudet has completed four courses from the National Center for Construction Education and Research. She has earned certification as an NCCER instructor in construction technology, core curriculum, plumbing and drywall.

“I’m honored to win this recognition because I represent a special student population,” Gaudet said. “I’m a catalyst. They’re doing the work. The award shows that they are being recognized.”

She said the success that her students have enjoyed also is due to the efforts of a team of Pupil Support Services staff, school staff and community members dedicated to helping students become self-sufficient.

The program is guided largely by the interests of the students, she said. Students are invited to share their interests and engage in various assessments to determine their capabilities.

“If you can see the world as our students see it, you get a sense of what they are going through,” she said. “It helps me see what they don’t see about themselves. We want them to say, ‘I can do this.’”

She said she spends much of her time working with community organizations and making contacts with employers to place students in supported employment. She said the best result of her newfound visibility would be its helping develop more job sites.

In addition to her job-related contributions to the community, Gaudet is a member of several community agencies, including the Sarasota County Mentoring Initiative, the Senior Friendship Center, the Girl Scout Gulf Coast Council Board, and the Suncoast Work Force Board. She has received the Sarasota County Youth Related Services “Heart of Gold Award,” among many other community service honors.

Sarasota School Board Chairwoman Kathy Kleinlein told the nominees and guests at the luncheon that she is very pleased that the School-Related Employee of the Year awards program has progressed from a simple presentation of plaques at a school board meeting to a much more sophisticated program. She said the ceremony now reflects clearly that support staff make valuable contributions to student success and are “equal and important members of the family in this district.”

Gretchen Johnson, the 2007 School-Related Employee of the Year, was asked to summarize her experience. She said spending a year representing her fellow school-related employees caused her to pay more attention to the contributions that her colleagues make every day to the success of students. “They don’t do it for the recognition,” she said. “They do it to help the children.”

Michael Jones, the executive director of Human Resources for the school district, said in his remarks titled “The Magnificence of Work” at the luncheon that all of the nominees have mastered the art of working. “You bring to the work place outstanding job knowledge, effectiveness and commitment to your colleagues and employer. And your work is accomplished with a gentle touch of humanity.

"Our schools perform better as a result of your accomplishments. The other employees with whom you work look at their work differently because of your commitment to excellence.”

SARASOTA - Fruitville Elementary School Assistant Principal Dawn Williams-Clayton has been appointed principal at Emma E. Booker Elementary School. She will succeed Albert Bezilla, who has served as interim principal at the school since the beginning of the 2007-08 school year.

Bezilla was hired out of retirement when longtime Emma E. Principal Gwen Rigell took sick leave in August. Rigell succumbed to her illness in December.

Williams-Clayton, 34, is a cum laude graduate of the City College of New York. She holds a master’s degree in elementary education and a second master’s degree in administration and supervision.

She taught elementary school in New York state from 1995-2003 and served an administrative internship in Pocantico Hills, NY in 2002. She has participated in developing reports and presentations on a variety of educational issues, including accountability, literacy, teaching students with learning disabilities, school safety and web page design.

She was hired as the assistant principal at Fruitville in 2003. During her tenure at Fruitville, she has initiated preventive discipline strategies, worked to enhance student and parent programs, helped develop community partnerships, and taken a lead role in evaluating instructional practices.

Her appointment will be effective May 1. Bezilla will work with her during her transition into the new position. The position of assistant principal at Fruitville will be posted immediately.

Sarasota County Schools Assistant Superintendent Hal Nelson praised both Bezilla and Williams-Clayton as outstanding administrators. “We feel very fortunate that Mr. Bezilla was available to serve in an interim capacity at Emma E. Booker,” he said. “I am very pleased with his success in maintaining the tradition of excellence Mrs. Rigell established in her 15 years there.

Nelson said of the district’s newest administrative appointee, “Mrs. Williams-Clayton has impressed me and other district administrators with her very, very strong instructional orientation and her clear passion for serving the needs of disadvantaged students. She is going to do exceptional things at this already wonderful school.”

Williams-Clayton said she is very excited about the opportunity to serve in a new capacity. “After talking to the exceptional staff of Emma E. Booker, I am filled with the strongest sense of pride that I've ever felt in my career as an educator,” she said. “The reality of working side by side with such a skilled, compassionate and accomplished staff is thrilling. Together we'll continue with the longstanding tradition at Emma E. of moving children to new heights and even greater successes.”

NOKOMIS — A new room and equipment at Laurel-Nokomis School will improve the learning and coping abilities of 17 children with autism. School and district administrators, students, members of the school’s Parent Teacher Organization (PTO), donors and other supporters dedicated the Autistic Sensory-Therapy Motor Room April 15 with a reception and tour. A specially-equipped golf cart with the Laurel-Nokomis School autism unit’s colors and logo, used to transport autistic students around the campus, was also presented to the school at the event.

The Tampa Bay Lightning Foundation provided a $10,000 grant to the school to fund the Motor Room, which will provide students in the autism unit with visual and auditory stimulation and calming influences. The Foundation was recently honored by Partners and Alliances Linking Schools (PALS) as the school district's Corporate Business Sponsor of the Year for 2007-08. Caddy Carts of North Port and The Platinum Group, Inc., donated the golf cart.

“The Motor Room and golf cart will allow us to better serve our students with special needs,” said Laurel-Nokomis Principal Nancy Dubin. “We are grateful to the Lightning Foundation, Caddy Carts, The Platinum Group and our PTO for their generosity and commitment to these children. It’s particularly fitting that we dedicate the room and the equipment in April, which is National Autism Awareness Month.”

Autism is a developmental disability caused by a neurological condition. It usually affects brain function, development and social interaction. Children and adults with autism have difficulty relating to other people, often exhibit restrictive or repetitive body movements and struggle with the use of language. The condition occurs in males four times as often as it does in females; there are 15 boys and two girls from pre-kindergarten through fifth grade in the autism unit at Laurel-Nokomis.

“Some children with autism have trouble understanding the relationship between their bodies and the world around them,” said Heather Petz, who teaches pre-kindergarten students with autism at Laurel-Nokomis. “This room, the equipment and the way we use it will help them get in tune with their bodies, their fellow students and the adults around them by providing them with therapeutic sights, sounds and experiences. It will affect their lives in a very meaningful way.”

Laurel-Nokomis School is a comprehensive school serving a diverse student body. It is the only public school in Sarasota County encompassing grades K-8. The school’s autism unit opened in August 2006.

SARASOTA - At a budget workshop March 18, a majority of the members of the School Board of Sarasota County agreed to support several budget reduction options presented by staff to close a $32 million funding gap. For a detailed report on the results of the meeting click this link: 0318BudgetReport. Another workshop was held April 8; for a report on the results of that workshop click this link: 0408BudgetReport .

Funding gap background

The state of Florida is facing a budget shortfall of more than $2 billion for the 2008-09 fiscal year. It is anticipated that the legislature will revert school funding to the 2006-2007 base level.
Compared to what the district budget for the coming year would have been with all current services and programs in place and with normal increases in wages and benefits, that cutback represents about a $32.1 million shortfall, about 7.5 percent of the district’s total $420 million operating budget. These cuts are in addition to the approximately $10 million in mid-year cuts made to the 2007-08 district operating budget.

About 70 percent of the district budget is allocated to schools, 19 percent to departments and 11 percent to centralized costs such as utilities. Prior to the March 18 meeting, school budgets for next year had been reduced by about $9.8 million and district department budgets had been cut by about $2.8 million.

Those cuts still left $19.5 million to be reduced. Staff prepared a list of options that the school board could consider either to reduce spending or to enhance revenue to close the budget gap.

March 18 budget workshop

At the March 18 meeting, the majority of the board agreed to implement several of the options provided by administrators. The total value of those cuts was about $15.7 million. The board also asked administration to return to the next scheduled board workshop on April 8 with recommendations for budget adjustments to make up the remaining $3.8 million needed to balance the budget. Administrators were asked to bring back a list of potential additional cuts to a board workshop April 8.

April 8 budget workshop

The list of proposed additional cuts discussed in the April 8 workshop totaled about $6 million.
The Board accepted three of the proposals. One will eliminate the district subsidy for family health insurance. A second will end two extra-duty days for teachers to use for professional development. A third will stop a pay incentive program for administrators.

The total savings realized by the three cuts will be about $3.8 million the first year and about $6 million in subsequent years.

Formal approval still to come; FAQs

Although the budget cuts will not be formally approved until the board adopts the budget at a regular meeting, the agreements reached so far include all the cuts that will affect staffing. Budget documents have been released to principals and department heads for planning their work force for next year.

For frequently asked questions and answers about the budget issues click here: BudgetFAQs

SARASOTA - Tatum Ridge Elementary School held an assembly at 8:50 a.m., Monday, April 14. to celebrate its ranking as the number one school in the U.S. in the number of correct answers among all schools that participated in World Math Day, which was held March 5. The school placed first in the U.S. by answering 560,267 math questions correctly.

Tatum Ridge received $500 from Voyager Expanded Learning, the sponsor of World Math Day. The company also sponsored an afternoon pizza snack for the school. In addition to the monetary award, Tatum Ridge students Lisa Hoffman and Bernard Tortorice received certificates for finishing in the overall Top 1,000 students.

Children of all ages and ability levels from around the globe united in their quest to set a new world record. More than 150 countries, over 20,000 schools, and some 750,000 students participated in the event worldwide, answering 182,455,169 questions correctly. The numbers were up significantly from 2007, when 98 countries, 1,297 schools and 286,392 students answered 38,904,275 questions correctly.

"Super" event: (L-R) Current, future and past superintendents Gary Norris, Lori White and Wilma Hamilton at the Leadership Legacy event April 12.

SARASOTA — School Board members, district administrators, principals, assistant principals, teachers and other members of the Sarasota County Schools team gathered with many of the district’s friends and supporters Saturday (April 12) at Laurel Oak County Club for Leadership Legacy 2008: Growing Our Own Leaders. The evening of camaraderie raised approximately $20,000 for the Wilma Hamilton Leadership Fund of the Education Foundation of Sarasota County.

The fund, established in 2003 by then Superintendent Wilma Hamilton, supports the components of the district’s Leadership Development Program. The program is the realization of Hamilton’s vision of recognizing and developing leaders from within the district. It trains and supports more than 400 professionals in the school district, who exchange ideas, problems and solutions. The program encourages leaders to collaborate and network with their peers rather than work in isolation.

“Well-trained and supported administrators are critical to the success of a great school system,” said Wendy Katz, director of leadership development. “In the past five years since the establishment of the program and the fund, we have had great success in developing and retaining many leaders in our district, including assistant principals, principals and central administrators.”

Of those principals hired from previous positions within Sarasota County public schools from 2002-07, 20 out of 21 continue to work for the district. All 37 assistant principals hired from within the district during that same period still work for the district.

Perhaps the best recent example of home-grown leadership is the appointment of Lori White to succeed Gary Norris as Superintendent of Schools when he leaves the Sarasota district May 30 for a new position in Iowa. The school board agreed to hire White at an April 8 workshop and is expected to formally approve her contract at its regular meeting Tuesday (April 15.)

White attended Sarasota County public schools, graduated from Florida State University in 1977 and began her career with the district in 1977 as a special education teacher at Ashton Elementary School. She accepted her first district administration position as an early childhood specialist.

White subsequently served as an elementary supervisor, supervisor of curriculum, director of curriculum and executive director of curriculum before being appointed associate superintendent by Hamilton in 2003.

“Growing our own leaders at every level is critical for the future of Sarasota County Schools,” said White, who attended the Leadership Legacy event, as did Norris and Hamilton. “The Wilma Hamilton Leadership Fund helps us continue the Leadership Development Program and create rewarding career pathways for the many talented people in this district who are dedicated to excellence in the education of our young people.”

This year’s Leadership Legacy event was organized by a committee that included some of the district’s rising leaders, members of the Leadership Development Program’s Leadership Academy. The event co-chairs were Colleen Glenney and Ellen Ziarnicki. Glenney is the Visual and Performing Arts program coordinator at Booker Middle School and Booker High School; Ziarnicki is the Glenallen Elementary School Teacher of the Year.

The festivities included silent and live auctions, dinner and dancing to the music of Men from Mars.

Associate Superintendent Lori White

SARASOTA — The School Board of Sarasota County has tentatively appointed Lori White, the district associate superintendent of instructional support services, to succeed Gary Norris as superintendent of schools. Norris resigned April 1 after being hired as superintendent of the Waterloo Community Schools in Waterloo, Iowa. He plans to leave his Sarasota position May 30 and to begin his new job July 1.

The Sarasota school board had scheduled a workshop Tuesday to discuss the process for seeking a new superintendent. They were expected to consider whether to conduct a national search, to pursue a statewide search or to make an appointment from within the district.

Instead, School Board Chairwoman Kathy Kleinlein opened the workshop by reiterating the qualities that each board member had said they wanted to see in the new superintendent, including fiscal responsibility, district experience, strong communications skills, and recognition as a community leader. Kleinlein said one name consistently came to mind when she reviewed that list of qualifications: Lori White.

The only impediment to the appointment, Kleinlein said, was that White had said she would be willing to serve as an interim superintendent, but was not interested in a permanent appointment.

"I asked her to consider making a personal sacrifice for the greater good of the district,” Kleinlein said. She said White would allow her name to be brought forward, but would accept only if the board unanimously supported her appointment.

Kleinlein polled the board members. All expressed support for White’s appointment, though Carol Todd expressed some reservations about the appointment process. The formal vote on the appointment is scheduled for the regular Board meeting April 15.

Board member Shirley Brown suggested that the board should express their support of the new superintendent not only by supporting her nomination, but by taking a more active role in helping her manage the district. “We need to be full partners and team members,” Brown said.

Vice Chairwoman Caroline Zucker said she has worked with White for several years. “It doesn’t matter what capacity she is in, she always goes well beyond what is expected of her,” she said.

Member Frank Kovach said, “Like myself, Lori White is a homegrown product of Sarasota County Schools. If anyone else has more knowledge of this school district, I’d like to know who that is. She is a healer. She has no learning curve.”

White, 53, is indeed a Sarasota product. She attended Alta Vista Elementary School, Sarasota Junior High School and was a member of the first graduating class of Pine View School.

She graduated from Florida State University in 1977 with both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in Interrelated Areas of Special Education. She began her career in the Sarasota County Schools in 1977 as a special education teacher at Ashton Elementary School.

In 1984 she accepted her first district administration position as an early childhood specialist. She subsequently served as an elementary supervisor, supervisor of curriculum, director of curriculum and executive director of curriculum before being appointed associate superintendent.

“I’ve lived my life in Sarasota County,” White said. “I’ve raised my children here. I’m not going anywhere. We have something very special here. This community deserves high-quality education. We can’t afford to lose the momentum to move forward.”

White said that even though the district is facing difficult financial times, she is confident that the board and administration can work together for the good of students.

“We will have differences of opinion, of course, but that’s part of government. We will have to be very thoughtful and listen to each other. I believe we can have a very smooth transition and can move forward without losing any ground.”

Kleinlein said, “Lori White is the best person to lead the Sarasota County Schools. She will bring experience from every aspect of school administration. Her compassion, conscientiousness, fairness and intelligence are respected throughout the district and the entire community. She clearly has the full support of the entire school board.”

White said she previously expressed reservations about being appointed superintendent because she loves her current job. “I’m the kind of person who loved whatever job I had. I loved being a teacher. I loved being a curriculum specialist. But when I’m asked to lead, I’m going to do it.”

SARASOTA – School spirit is strong in Sarasota County, and spring and summer are key fundraising seasons for booster clubs and other organizations that support school athletic programs. Unfortunately there are unscrupulous individuals and groups who take advantage of fans by preying on unsuspecting students, parents, alumni and other supporters of school teams with money-making schemes disguised as legitimate fundraising programs.
Recent fraudulent fundraisers have involved selling calendars and other items, with the money supposedly going to support a school or a team.

“Often the perpetrators of these scams victimize several school districts, moving from community to community,” said Jim Clark, supervisor of athletics for Sarasota County Schools. He points out that discount cards offered by schools are usually authentic fundraising projects, but warns would-be buyers to be wary.

“If you see students in a team uniform selling something, that’s usually a good sign,” he added. “But if you have any doubts or questions about a particular fundraiser, I urge you to contact the school in question. Parents, students and community members work hard to raise funds for their schools and teams, and we want the generous donations of their friends and fans to go to the right place.”

SARASOTA — Gary Norris, who has served as superintendent of Sarasota County Schools since April 2004, has accepted the position of superintendent of Waterloo Community Schools in Waterloo, Iowa. He will start his new position July 1.

Norris began his education career in 1972 as a vocal music teacher in Kansas. Six years later, he became a high-school administrator. In 1983 he obtained a doctorate in Educational Leadership from Kansas State University in Manhattan, Kansas. He has served as a school superintendent in three states: Kansas, Minnesota and Florida (in Indian River County from 1989-1994).

In Sarasota County, Norris worked with the school board, administrators, teachers and staff on several wide-ranging programs. He led the launch of the school district’s NeXt Generation Learning initiative, a strategic vision to better prepare students for the 21st century global workforce. As part of this effort, Norris promoted the expansion of Career and Technical Education opportunities for students at middle schools and high schools. He also was instrumental in planning the new Suncoast Polytechnical High School currently under construction on the campus of the Sarasota County Technical Institute.

Norris placed a very high priority on staff development, instructional leadership and cooperation with other organizations. He helped establish a partnership with the Sarasota Classified/Teachers Association to expand collaborative planning activities, implement a research-based screening process for teacher selection and organize an instructional leadership academy for principals.

In collaboration with county administrators, Norris formed an alliance with Sarasota County Government to create a shared management system for information technology services. That program has significantly reduced the cost of technology services in both organizations and has been recognized as a national model of efficient resource management.

Norris praised the faculty and staff of Sarasota County Schools as being among the finest in America. “Together we have laid firm groundwork for our NeXt Generation students to be the leaders of the 21st century’s global society,” he said. “I am proud of the progress we have made.”

Norris credits parents, volunteers and other community members for their roles in the district’s achievements of the past four years. He said he is especially thankful for the voters’ approval referendum in 2002 and again in 2006 that provided the financial resources for many of the district’s initiatives.

“I am very mindful that none of our progress would have been possible without the support of many people and organizations,” said Norris. “As I look forward to this new opportunity in Iowa, I am reflecting on the many things I learned here and the friendships and partnerships we’ve forged together. Sarasota County is a wonderful community.”

SARASOTA — The Florida School Boards Association has once again recognized the School Board of Sarasota County as a Master Board. The FSBA awards the Master Board distinction to school boards in the state whose members complete a rigorous program designed to enhance leadership and teamwork skills.

The School Board of Sarasota County will officially be recognized as a Master Board in June at the FSBA Annual Spring Conference, which will be held this year in Tampa. The five-member board includes Kathy Keinlein, chairwoman; Caroline Zucker, vice chairwoman; Shirley Brown; Frank Kovach and Carol Todd.

The Master Board title was first awarded to the School Board of Sarasota County in 1992. When one or more members leave a school board, the Master Board distinction is lost and must be regained through the FSBA’s Master Board Reinstatement Program, which requires additional training for new and returning board members. Of the 67 school districts in Florida, 34 currently are recognized as Master Boards.

The Master Board program provides a leadership framework to help Florida school board members work together as a student-focused team. Roles and responsibilities are reviewed in the training, with the goal of breaking down barriers, building trust among team members, appreciating the importance of differing points of view and developing strategies for clarifying decisions that have been made.

“The Master Board training helps us recognize our individual strengths and challenges as board members,” said Caroline Zucker, vice chairwoman of the School Board of Sarasota County. The board originally achieved the Master Board designation during her first term as a member (1992-96).

“Becoming a Master Board was very important to our board, and maintaining that designation remains a high priority. The idea is for us to leverage our individual skills for the team, so we can work together to help our students, parents and staff in the most effective ways. It’s a comprehensive training program that makes Florida school boards better at serving their communities.”