Archive for News & Updates

Blessings in a Backpack Kiwanis Club Fundraiser for 10/15/2010

Posted on October 12th, 2010 by

Blessings in a Backpack

Kiwanis Club Fundraiser

THIS FRIDAY, October 15th, 2010

Grilled Chicken Lunch Plate

Kiwanis Club Chicken Lunch plates to benefit Blessings in a Backpack of Citrus County!  On Friday October 15, 2010 the volunteers with Kiwanis and Blessings in a Backpack will be serving up lunch that may be picked up in Inverness (between Welch Appliance and Hagar group) or have your lunch delivered at no extra charge!

Tickets on sale now for only $8.00!!

Feed your appetite with:
1/2 grilled chicken
baked beans
coleslaw
bread

And then your donation helps feed our kids…..

100% of the proceeds will go to purchase food to feed hungry Citrus county children through the Blessings in a Backpack program!

Call to get your tickets:  352.302.0109 or email: feedcitruskids@gmail.com

Checks made payable to: Blessings in a Backpack of Citrus County accepted, Cash/Credit card payments accepted

About Blessings in a Backpack:

The Citrus County Blessings in a Backpack, Florida chapter of Blessings in a Backpack was started in 2009 with Hernando Elementary School being the pilot participating school. Homosassa Elementary will be added in September, 2010. In Citrus Co, FL, a staggering 65% of public school children are on government-assisted meal programs. Many of these children go from Friday afternoon until Monday morning with no access to food or meals, other than that provided by charities, such as Blessings in a Backpack.

Through Blessings in a Backpack’s weekend meals program, children benefit via:
— Increased access to vitamin-fortified food
— Increased attendance at school
— Higher test scores
— Reduced behavioral problems
— Increased parental participation
— Learn more at the national Blessings in a Backpack site

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Renaissance Center Awards 10/6/2010

Posted on October 11th, 2010 by

Wednesday, October 6th, 2010, I had the pleasure of visiting The Renaissance Center (RC) and attending their quarterly student awards ceremony.

RC is an alternative education facility for  middle and  high School students.  Students at the RC participate in a school wide behavior system as well as counseling in order to prepare them for their eventual return to their schools. The curriculum at The Renaissance  Center  meets the Sunshine State Standards and participates in the Citrus County Public Schools instructional time lines. RC provides includes a media center, computer labs, and additional  instructional opportunities.

The quarterly student awards ceremonies are always a fun, uplifting and at times,  emotional event.  Many of these students are nearing  the completion of  the necessary goals to transfer back to their school and these awards are  given in recognition of that determination and work.  These ceremonies also serve as another way of motivating  the other  students at RC.

As I stood in the back during the ceremony, many  educators  came up  to share with me how far a student ha d  come while at RC  and I couldn’t help but notice how  these dedicated professionals talked  about these students like they  were  their own children and family .

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CHS Teacherrs Using Skype in the Classroom

Posted on October 8th, 2010 by

Citrus High School’s own Jerry Swiatek using Skype in the classroom.  Read the article below!

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Schools Using Skype

KAALtv.com – http://kaaltv.com/article/stories/S1779363.shtml?cat=10151
By: Sarah Swistak

(ABC 6 NEWS) – Another form of technology being used in our schools is Skype.

It’s a computer program that lets you talk with people all around the world on your web cam for free, but one district is using it to knock down the four walls of the classroom and change the face of education.

It’s a meeting that would not have been possible if not for twitter, and a re-tweeted tweet.

The tweet came from Jerry Swiatek, who was looking for an Applied Geneticist to be a guest lecturer for 13 students in an AP Bio Class.

“It was just a shot in the dark,” he said.

“This is right up my alley. This is definitely the kind of thing I get excited about too,” said Dr. Kelsey Metzger, an Associate Professor in the Center for Learning Innovation at the University of Minnesota-Rochester.

But the classroom is at Citrus High School in Iverness, Florida, 1,400 miles away from

Doctor Kelsey Metzger’s office at UMR, so she’ll be teaching through Skype.

“It’s really an awesome example of how social media is sort of breaking down the four walls of the classroom and it’s just a great example of how the kids, how their learning isn’t confined to their school. That their learning can come from anywhere in the world,” said Swiatek.

“This is something I’ve always wanted for my classroom,” said Gene Trescott, the Science Department Head at Citrus High School.

And it’s a lesson on molecular genetics, from an expert in the field, that the Florida district couldn’t otherwise afford.

“Hopefully it’ll open a lot of doors for a lot of people to have access to ideas, information and learning opportunities that they wouldn’t have otherwise had,” said Dr. Metzger.

Dr. Metzger will give the half-hour lecture tomorrow morning, and plans are already underway for another one in November.

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Planning Meeting for Coach Dabney Day

Posted on October 7th, 2010 by

Next planning meeting for Coach Dabney Day: October 11, 5:00 @ Heritage House in Crystal River.

Come help plan a great day for Coach!

Mark the date: Get Together with Coach Dabney, November 13th at Heritage Village in Crystal River

Coach Dabney’s Facebook Page

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Inverness Middle Visit 10/5/2010

Posted on October 5th, 2010 by

Today, October 5th, 2010  ,   I visited Inverness Middle School (IMS).  For those of you who don’t know ,  IMS’s campus and history dates back to 1949.  IMS was originally named Booker T. Washington (BTW) and in the pre-integration days the school was a segregated school.  The school became Inverness Middle School after integration. BTW won FIAA state titles in boys basketball and boys and girls track  a ccording to longtime former Citrus County Schools coach, teacher and Principal Archie Dabney.

IMS is now our largest middle school in Citrus County with over 1,100 students.  Principal Trish Douglas spent time  with me bringing   me through several classrooms and  the campus. Principal Douglas shared with me the positive progress IMS is having with the AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination) program.  Today the IMS football team was traveling to play The Villages.   Like   many of our schools , IMS  has their student athletes dress up for game day and many young men could be seen walking around campus in long shirts and ties.  It was most impressive.  I am looking forward to visiting IMS again soon.

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Citrus Springs Elementary School Visit 10/4/2010

Posted on October 4th, 2010 by

I spent the morning of Monday, October 4th, 20910 at Citrus Springs Elementary School (CSES) and walked the halls with Principal Scott Hebert and Assistant Principal Alice Harrell.  My son Ethan attended CSES from Kindergarten through the end of 3rd grade before we were re-zoned into Central Ridge Elementary (CRE) so CSES is school I knew well.  This is both Mr. Hebert and Mrs. Harrell’s first year as administrators at CSES.  (Mr. Hebert was Curriculum Specialist at CSES but left to be assistant principal at another school before returning this year).   CSES has had some changes  since my son attended school there.   At one time the school had over 1,100 students before CRE opened; now CSES has over 700 students.  The school was filled with many familiar and new educators ‘  faces.  I stopped by music and visited with Mr. Chris Wilson.  Mr. Wilson shared that he was working to bring back the violin choir that CSES used to have.  He hopes to use a combination of the “suzuki method” along with some others to teach the violin to the students.  I enjoyed meeting again with many of the staff and educators I knew and I enjoyed meeting new staff members as well.

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