Posted on August 28th, 2015 by
Thomas Kennedy
Cortney Stewart Gets It! Read why
Stewart: “The people elected to these seats reflect what we value in our greatest investment for the future — our children.”
This past Sunday Cortney Stewart a 2003 graduate of Lecanto High School wrote and outstanding column in the Citrus County Chronicle that I believe is important to read. Stewart has bachelor’s degrees in political science and international affairs, a master’s degree in intercultural studies and is beginning her doctoral studies in international conflict management this year. She spent the last two years teaching and training students, teachers and government officials in Baghdad, Iraq.
Here are some excepts
“Elections can bring out the best about America. By their very nature, they remind us and the world our democracy is alive (and potentially well). It brings to the forefront our civic duty and it causes us, even if just for a moment, to consider what it takes to maintain what we have; it forces us to think about where we have come from and where we, as a nation, want to go.“
Stewart goes on to say…
“More frequently, however, elections bring out the worst about us. Primaries are full of backbiting and hits below the belt. Primary candidates spend an inexcusable amount of time trashing colleagues from their own party and very little time talking about what their ideas for forward progress actually are. And then, in the blink of an eye, when our candidate loses the primary, we are expected to erase all the negative truths and untruths the mud slinging brought to light and throw our intellectual, emotional and monetary support behind the candidate we were just trained to despise; all for the good of the party, of course.”
…
“You might be surprised to know that, collectively, school board members make up the largest group of elected officials in the country. It makes sense, given every school district has a school board. Florida alone has 74 separate districts.“
…
“School board members set some education standards and enforce others. They act as the collective voice of our community’s schools. They are the visionaries for what we want for our local education system and they are maintenance keepers for a large organization that must be effective and efficient all the time. They must balance individual visions with the visions of the superintendent and their fellow board members while dealing with high-level administrative conflict, managing the collective bargaining network and overseeing a complicated budget with incredible constraints.“
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Filed under: News & Updates
Posted on August 22nd, 2015 by
Thomas Kennedy
Week Two of 2015-2016 School Year
10 days down with 170 to go…
Summer is beginning to feel like a distant memory for teachers and students. Bus drivers are back to their very early mornings, readying the buses and doing their safety checks. The maintenance and custodians staffs are back to their school schedule after a hectic summer schedule preparing the schools for the New Year. Secretaries, attendance and bookkeepers are busy keeping up with their work. Administrators pray that our students and staff have a successful, safe and positive school year.
Much has begun over the last weeks. Athletes have watched their concussion video and have started practices. Musicians are marching or playing. iPads have been deployed at several schools. School work is now the routine for many.
The first two weeks of the 2015-2016 School Year in Citrus County are behind us, but the best parts of the school year are in front of us. Whether as a student, educator, or parent, make the most of the coming year. Let us value one another and be excited about learning. There are continued great possibilities still to reach. I feel so blessed we live in Citrus County.
Interested is seeing pictures from many of the beginning school year activities, visit the District’s Facebook Album pages at: https://www.facebook.com/CitrusCountySchoolDistrict/photos_stream?tab=photos_albums
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Filed under: News & Updates
Posted on August 15th, 2015 by
Thomas Kennedy
Environmental Jeopardy Competition of Local High Schools
Tuesday, Sept. 22, 6 p.m.
Local high schools compete in testing their environmental knowledge. Public invited. Event held at Citrus County Extension Office, 3650 Sovereign Path, Lecanto.
Call (352) 613-6850 for information. FREE.
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Filed under: News & Updates
Posted on August 15th, 2015 by
Thomas Kennedy
“The ancient African proverb teaches, ‘it takes a village’, as Chronicle’s Abdon Sidibe stories demonstrates that is the case in Citrus Schools. Thank you United Way of Citrus County & CEO Amy Meek, Citrus County YMCA & executive director Joanna Castle, and Citrus Schools Food Service Department and director Roy Pistone for working with our school district to better our kids.” ~ Thomas
Chronicle: In school district, prosperity amid contradiction
It appears Citrus County School District educators and students have taken to heart something Superintendent Sandra “Sam” Himmel has been saying for years: “A ZIP code should not define or limit the educational opportunities in Citrus County.”
In the past five years, the percentage of pupils on free and reduced-price lunches has steadily risen — but so has educational distinction for the small, poor and rural school district.
….Click here to read the rest of the story
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Filed under: News & Updates
Posted on August 12th, 2015 by
Thomas Kennedy
CRHS featured in FSPMA Publication
The Florida School Plant Management Association (FSPMA) represents educational maintenance, custodial, grounds, safety and environmental staff and supervisors, and other facility related school professionals as well as related industry representatives in the State of Florida. Their purpose is improving school plant management, maintenance and care through the promotion of acceptable policies, standards and practices; and to promote the professional advancement of school plant management personnel.
Their Summer 2015 Publication featured Crystal River High School and its recent rebuilding and renovations. CRHS construction project has been an award winning project and we are proud to be featured in this fine Associations publication to showcase the success of all those involved in the development, design, construction and maintenance of the CRHS renovation project. Follow this link to read the entire CRHS section of the publication: https://thomastalks.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/FSPMA_3rd-Publication_vCitrus.pdf
I want to thank FSPMA President, John Colasanti for promoting CRHS and Citrus Schools. Mr. Colasanti also happens to be Citrus County Schools own Maintenance Department Coordinator.
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Filed under: News & Updates
Posted on August 12th, 2015 by
Thomas Kennedy
Chronicle Agrees in Op-Ed: “Another state misstep in education tied to focus on high-stakes testing”
This Op-Ed does an outstanding job explaining the issue and challenges we face as a result of this law.
Thank you Citrus County Chronicle for again understanding the issues effecting public education.
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Filed under: News & Updates
This past Sunday Cortney Stewart a 2003 graduate of Lecanto High School wrote and outstanding column in the Citrus County Chronicle that I believe is important to read. Stewart has bachelor’s degrees in political science and international affairs, a master’s degree in intercultural studies and is beginning her doctoral studies in international conflict management this year. She spent the last two years teaching and training students, teachers and government officials in Baghdad, Iraq.
