Boca Raton High Teacher Receives Fulbright Award - Hakima Mazouz of Boca Raton Community High School has been awarded a Fulbright Teacher Exchange grant to teach in France, the United States Department of State and the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board announced. The Fulbright Program, America's flagship international educational exchange program, is sponsored by the United States Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs.

School District Wins Three Sunshine Medallion Awards - The Sunshine State School Public Relations Association (SUNSPRA) recently announced this year's Sunshine Medallion Award Winners.  The awards are given for excellence in communications and stake holder relationships. 
-Hagen Road Elementary, Multicultural Diversity category - "Murals"
-Public Affairs Department, Other Programs/Projects category - "Engaging the Community with Art History"
-Supplemental Educational Services Department, Promotional Video or Radio category - "Guidance Counselors in Palm Beach County"

Allamanda Elementary Student Wins Writing Competition - Allamanda Elementary School’s Lindsay Lonano, 4th grade, won first place in WLRN Radio Station’s “Write Under the Sun” elementary school writing competition.  Allamanda runners-up include 4th grade students, Alex Woodward and Connor Voorhees.

Dreyfoos Students Win Congressional Arts Competition Artist’s Work To Hang In The Capitol For One Year - Dreyfoos School of the Arts visual art students Vinh Pham, a graduating senior from Royal Palm Beach, and Jessica Kleinman, a Dreyfoos junior from Boca Raton, were recently announced as the first place winner and runner up winner, respectively, of the Congressional Arts Competition.  The other runner up winner was Danielle Zfat of Donna Klein Jewish Academy.

Seminole Ridge High Students Win $28,000 In U.S. Army’s eCYBERMISSION Competition - Three teams from Seminole Ridge High School have won $28,000 in U.S. EE Savings Bonds by taking regional awards in this year’s national eCYBERMISSION competition.

FCAT Night At Publix Wins State Parent Involvement Award - Wynnebrook Elementary School along with Publix on Jog Road and Okeechobee Blvd and Publix on Community Drive in West Palm Beach will be honored by the Department of Education at the PTA Conference on July 18th in Tarpon Springs, Florida. FCAT NIGHT at Publix was implemented by Wynnebrook educator Leslie Millar to support parents and guardians in their efforts to help their children strengthen the critical skills that are outlined in the Sunshine State Standards and tested on the FCAT in a real-life situation. 

Outstanding Mathematics Teachers and Students Recognized at the Annual PBCCTM Teacher of the Year Dinner - The Palm Beach County Council of Teachers of Mathematics (PBCCTM) held the annual Teacher of the Year Recognition Dinner May 13, 2009 at the beautiful Palm Beach Hibiscus House in West Palm Beach.   The evening began with Suncoast High School Student, Alexander Hedlund, accepting the Gai Williams Scholarship Award.  Teachers from across Palm Beach County gathered together to celebrate and honor the very best mathematics teachers. 

Two Palm Beach County High Schools Join The Ranks of Nationally Recognized Career Academies - Palm Beach Central High School’s Culinary Academy and Seminole Ridge Community High School’s Biotechnology Academy had their programs reviewed to evaluate how they rate on the National Standards of Practice for career academies.  A team from the National Career Academy Coalition and the Association of Career and Technical Education assessed the academies using the career academy national standards of practice.  These standards were developed by a consortium of persons actively engaged with career academies to define what components a standard career academy should have for success.

Pine Jog Elementary Is The First And Only LEED Gold Certified School In Florida - The School District announced that it is now official; Pine Jog Elementary School is the first and only LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold Certified school in the state of Florida.  The LEED for Schools Rating System recognizes the unique nature of the design and construction of K-12 schools.  Green schools are healthy for students, teachers and the environment.

West Palm Beach Middle School Stock Market Team Tops in State--Again! - Palm Springs Community Middle School--under the guidance and instruction of teacher, Kamal Jabr, Palm Springs Community Middle School--placed first in the Florida Stock Market Competition with an investment return of 53.97%. The Stock Market Game™ - Florida is pleased to announce that Palm Springs Community Middle School’s Stock Market Team is # 1 out of 948 teams in Florida including all elementary, middle, high, and post secondary schools division of the 2009 session.  This is the same team that won first place ranking out of 823 competing teams during Fall 2008.

2009 SECME Winners Announced - Dawn DeWitt, a teacher at Palm Springs Community Middle School, has been named one of four finalists in the national SECME Teacher of the Year Awards. She will join representatives from the local schools that were the overall champions at the 2009 SECME District Olympiads --and the students who will represent the district at the 33rd Annual SECME Summer Institute and National Competition --for recognition by the Board at the next Palm Beach County School Board meeting scheduled for May 27.

Park Vista Senior Completes Science Fair Sweep - Melanie Kabinoff, a senior at Park Vista High School, competed in and earned awards at seven consecutive county and state science fairs.  Melanie is the first student in Palm Beach County to earn seven awards at the Palm Beach County Science and Engineering Fair, a Palm Beach County record.

The team of students “Los Dragones de Dreyfoos” of the Alexander W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts finished 1st and 2nd place during the competitions of the Florida State Spanish Conference held this past April in Orlando, Florida. “Los Dragones de Dreyfoos” have been participating in the competition for eight consecutive years within the 4A Division.  This classification includes High Schools with student population of 1000 to 1500 students.

All the World’s a Stage - Teen from Dreyfoos School of the Arts Named Semi-Finalist in Competition - Captivating audiences with a performance of a sonnet and monologue from Shakespeare, Benjamin Viertel, a student of Beverly Blanchette at Alexander W. Dreyfoos Jr. School of the Arts, placed as a semi-finalist at the English-Speaking Union National Shakespeare Competition.  The competition was held in late April at Lincoln Center in New York City for 59 winners of ESU Branch competitions nationwide.  Benjamin had won the ESU Palm Beach Branch regional competition. 

U.S. Secretary of Education Ame Duncan today announced the selection of Fedja Kadribasic, a senior at West Boca Raton Community High School, as a 2009 Presidential Scholar. Mr. Kadribasic is one of 141 outstanding American high school seniors that have demonstrated exceptional academic achievement, artistic excellence, leadership, citizenship, and service at school and in their community.

District Teacher Selected for Prestigious National Program - Conniston Middle School teacher Susan Collopy is one of only 80 teachers selected nationwide for one of twenty summer study opportunities supported by the Landmarks of American History and Culture workshops.  The program is designed so  teachers can study with recognized experts in the humanities disciplines. Ms. Collopy will participate in a workshop entitled “The Most Southern Place on Earth:  Music, History and Culture of the Mississippi Delta.”  The one-week program will be held at Delta State University in Cleveland, Mississippi, and is directed by Dr. Luther Brown, who is founding director of The Delta Center for Culture and Learning at Delta State University, The workshop will explore the history of the Blues, civil rights, political leadership, and agriculture of the Mississippi Delta, and will include travel to Memphis, Tennessee.

South Tech Motorcycle Service Technology Students Excel At SkillsUSA - Two of the academy’s students, Patrick Ink, a sophomore, and Scott Haslem, a freshman, competed in the SkillsUSA state competition in Bradenton, Florida. They walked away with the gold and bronze medals. Patrick will be going to the national competition in Kansas City in June to compete against the top 2% of aspiring motorcycle mechanics in the United States. According to academy instructor, Tommy Terry, Patrick, the gold medal winner, wowed the judges with the technique used to install a brake caliper.  The students had to perform their skills on a 2009 dirt bike, with which they had no prior experience, read the bike’s service manual instructions, and perform the assigned task.  Patrick devised a method to reinstall the brake caliper, but in a simpler and quicker way than the factory pros had seen before.

State Science and Engineering Fair Winners Announced - Palm Beach County Middle and High School students participated in the 2009 State Science and Engineering Fair held in Lakeland Florida on April 15-17, 2009. Forty students who represented Palm Beach County were selected from the Regional Palm Beach County Science & Engineering fair. According to School District Science Fair Coordinator Debrah Bowen, “These students were excellent representatives for Palm Beach County and their projects represented all areas of scientific investigation.”  The judging was held on Thursday, April 16 and the students anxiously awaited the results that were presented on Friday evening. Twenty three students won place awards, cash and prizes at the state competition. >Click here for the list of winners

Wynnebrook Elementary Volunteer Honored With Prime Time Award - Francine Moorer, a volunteer in the Foster Grandparent Program at Wynnebrook Elementary School recently won a Prime Time Award.  In nominating Ms. Moorer, Wynnebrook Elementary Educator Leslie Millar wrote: Francine Moorer is 85 years young!  Francine has as much energy as one of her kindergarten students that she works with.  For the past eight years Francine Moorer has been called “Grandma” at Wynnebrook Elementary School as she volunteers with the Foster Grandparent Program.

Palm Beach MIT Club Honors Two Suncoast High School Science Teachers - On September 23, the Palm Beach Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) club, which serves as a link between Palm Beach MIT alumni and the parent institute, will honor two Suncoast High School teachers for their outstanding contributions to science education. The MIT Inspirational Teacher Award allows current MIT students to recognize an outstanding secondary school teacher who inspired in them a love of learning and the creative spirit, encouraged them to pursue excellence, and gave them the skills and enthusiasm they needed to make a positive difference in the world.  Parhys Napier, a former Suncoast High School student from Belle Glade and now a sophomore engineering student at MIT, nominated Brian Murray, a physics teacher and Science Department Instructional Leader at Suncoast High School.  Napier stated that “Mr. Murray pushed and encouraged me to go beyond my comfort zone.”

Forest Hill High School Student Receives Commendation for Unexpected Service - High school student Demaanie Blackwood has received a commendation letter from the manager of a department at Good Samaritan Hospital after being a good Samaritan when the woman’s tire blew out recently on I-95.  Mary Jean Houlahan is an oncology nurse who heads the Comprehensive Breast Center and Patient Navigation Program at Good Samaritan Medical Center. She said the appearance of the shredded tire after the blowout indicated she was fortunate that she did not rollover. “Demaanie and a friend kindly and politely approached me to change the tire, she said.  “He  not only fixed the tire—but  he also put everything back appropriately in the trunk,” the former Marine added.

Crestwood Middle School Student Wins First And Second Places In Track and Field Competition - Isidro A. Peart Jr., 8th grade student at Crestwood Middle School finished first in the 100 meters hurdle race and finished second in the 400 meter dash race during the Bob Hayes Middle School Invitational Track and Field Meet held in Jacksonville on March 20, 2009. For the past 39 years, the Bob Hayes Invitational has been a focal point for young track and field participants from Southeastern United States.  Crestwood Middle School was the only middle school in Palm Beach County to compete in the events.

Palm Beach Public Elementary School Student Top Winner - Joshua Yeckes, Palm Beach Public student under the art direction of his teacher Mariellen Davis took 1st Place recently in The Florida History Through Art Contest. The contest was sponsored by The Historical Society of Palm Beach County. Joshua Yeckes is a 4th grade student with a fantastic and creative vision of Palm Beach County through the time from 1908 – 2008. The contest was presented by Richard A. Marconi - the curator of education from the Historical Society of Palm Beach County.

Governor’s Point of Light Award Winner Bud Tamarkin To Be Honored At April 15th School Board Meeting - Governor Charlie Crist recognized Bud Tamarkin as this week’s Point of Light in honor of Fitness/Nutrition Awareness Month.  Mr. Tamarkin will also be honored at the April 15th Palm Beach County School Board meeting at 5:00 pm. “For more than 20 years, Bud has committed himself to promoting health and nutrition among Palm Beach County citizens,” said Governor Crist. “His relentless passion to provide nutritional workshops, healthcare and physical activity programs is an inspiration to many.”

Jupiter High Spanish Team Scores Big At State Competition - Jupiter High School's Spanish competition team, known as Los Amigos Vagabundos, enjoyed great success at the Florida State Spanish Conference, held on April 2-4 in Orlando. Members include seniors Angela Gómez, Charles Chandler, Naomi Rivas, Tyler Batlle, Jonnuel Ortega, Jessica Arcía, and Leandro Sicard. Junior members include Catalina Marín and Jazmín Serrano. Sophomore members include Samantha Sicard, Samantha Spann, and Rishi Abbi. In total, some 51 schools participated in the contest in two divisions. Jupiter High's team competed in Division II, 6A in four areas--impromptu speaking, declamation, drama, and senior scholarship.

Local Robotics Team Wins First Place - The Children of the Swamp, a high school robotics team comprised of students from Suncoast and Inlet Grove high schools finished in 1st place at the Florida Regional competition for the F.I.R.S.T. organization (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) held at the University of Central Florida. Fifty three teams from Florida and other states competed in the three day event. Two other teams from Palm Beach County also participated in the event, one from Palm Beach Central High School and the other from Jupiter and Dwyer high schools. The Children of the Swamp will move on to the F.I.R.S.T. robotics international competition that will be held in April at Atlanta’s Georgia Dome.

Floyd Henry, Jr. has been honored by AdvancED with the National Excellence in Education Award for his unparalleled leadership in promoting and advancing excellence in education.  Henry received the award on Monday, March 30, 2009 during the evening Recognition Dinner and Awards Gala held during the 2009 AdvancED Conference in Chicago, Illinois.

Boynton Beach High Teens Mentor Elementary Students - Boynton Beach High School students in two clubs, Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD) and Future Florida Educators of America (FFEA) are participating in the "Teen Trendsetters Reading Mentors” program.   Every Tuesday from 3:00 pm to 5:00 pm at Pompey Park in Delray Beach, 2nd-4th graders from area elementary schools meet with their Boynton Beach High teen mentors.

Palm Beach Central High Students Come To Aid Of Accident Victims - Two student-athletes from Palm Beach Central High School, senior, Kyle Finch and junior, Alex Anagnostu, were on their way back from a visit to Florida Gulf Coast University in Fort Myers on Sunday, March 15, 2009 when they witnessed a car accident.  What they saw was an SUV’s back tire being blown out, rolling three times, hitting a guard rail and ending up nose first in the bank of a canal. They instantly stopped and proceeded to assist the lives of the five people involved in the accident on Route 80.

Three Area Schools Receive 2009 Magnet Schools of America Merit Award - Bak Middle School of the Arts and Roosevelt Middle School in West Palm Beach and Suncoast Community High School in Riviera Beach have been recognized by Magnet Schools of America as the top magnet schools in the United States.  Magnet School Merit Awards are based on the individual school’s commitment to high academic standards, curriculum innovation, successful desegregation and diversity efforts, and the delivery of quality services to school stakeholders. The School District’s Department of Choice Programs & School Choice is proud to recognize these three Choice schools which received the Magnet School of Distinction Award.

School District Career Ed Manager Selected as Leadership PBC Awards Nominee - Career educator Connie Scotchel Gross has been selected as one of nine nominees for the 2009 Leadership Palm Beach County Leadership Excellence Award.  The Leadership Excellence Award celebrates individuals who are living examples of the vision and mission of Leadership Palm Beach County and who reflect the leadership qualities of integrity, compassion, credibility, passion, risk-taking, fairness, empowerment and humility.

Marilynn Rose Pedek is the Palm Beach County Teacher of the Year - School Superintendent Art Johnson surprised Marilynn Rose Pedek in class on March 26 with the announcement that she is the School District of Palm Beach County-Macy’s Teacher of the Year.  Ms. Pedek teaches science and chemistry at Suncoast Community High School in Riviera Beach, where she is a leader in the science department, the professional development chair, SMaRT (trained to use current software to enhance student achievement) educator, and a club moderator.  Dr. Linda Cartlidge, Principal, says, “In all these situations Ms. Pedek has demonstrated mastery of scientific concepts, applications of educational technology, understanding of current pedagogical trends, and the ability to organize and to lead both students and adults.”

Diamond View Elem. Students Honored For Dedication To Environment - The Diamond View Elementary 4th grade class of Jennifer Palmer and Physical Education teacher Scott Rossa was honored April 9 at the John Prince Golf Learning Center (JPGLC) located in John Prince Park in Lake Worth.  The teachers and students from Diamond View Elementary School in conjunction with the (JPGLC) have developed a community involvement project to help build a better awareness of the environment by building bird houses, reading books and articles about the Audubon Society and creating art work to illustrate what they have learned. In Physical Education class these students have been learning golf lessons through the First Tee program.  

Two Suncoast High Students Awarded “Bikes for Kidz” Grant - Suncoast High School Juniors, Andrew Kohner from Wellington and Cody Ellsworth from Jupiter, have been awarded a grant that is making a lot of elementary kids happy.  The grant promotes physical fitness through the gift of bicycles and safety helmets for elementary students at Title I schools.  The idea was born after Andrew began participating in the BIGS program, a division of Big Brother and Big Sisters, in 2007.  Andrew wanted to give the children bikes and safety helmets, “These are great kids; they just do not have some of the same advantages that other kids have.”  The grant has allowed the two teens to purchase over sixty bikes and helmets for elementary children in Title I schools.

Two South Tech Academy Graphic Design students competed in the statewide Florida Kid Care poster contest. Michael Cardona won 1st Place regional and will be awarded a $350 Best Buy card prize. Michael was 2nd overall in state. Student Lottie Cherilus won 2nd Place regional and will receive a $200 prize. The school’s Graphic Design program will be awarded $500 according to instructor Mickey Schemer.

CYPRESS TRAILS ELEMENTARY THANKS VIP READERS - Cypress Trails Elementary thanks all VIP readers who stopped by the school on Wednesday, November 5th to read in all classrooms as a way to promote and support the One Million Minute Reading Challenge. The school was honored to have guest readers such as Anchorman, Jim Sackett, of Channel 5, Principal Sharon Hench, football players from Royal Palm Beach High School and Captain Don Delucia with a team of Palm Beach County Fire Rescue. Captain Delucia said “We love interacting with elementary school kids in the community. We are happy to come to read to them today.”

The Thanks4Reading event held on November 5th was a reward for students who read over 500 minutes during the month of October. These activities and others to come in the near future are part of the Million Minute Reading Challenge. Students were treated to cookies and juice out in the courtyard.

FACE Club Grows At Seminole Ridge High School - The FACE club is growing by leaps and bounds this school year. Over 60 students have expressed genuine interest in this unique club that educates the community about facial differences and supports local families. Many students volunteered for a late October beach picnic at the Jupiter Civic Center, where over 20 families attended, and all had a good time. Our FACE members helped the kids have fun and got to know many of the families that we support.

Upcoming FACE events include: a car wash at the Wellington Blockbuster to raise money for the club’s activities; face painting at the Acreage’s Fall Festival November 15; a presentation by Dr. Drew Schitt about the medical mission trips he's taken, donating his time and surgical skills for Operation Smile. For more information about our FACE club, contact sponsor Mrs. Peggy Larson at 422-2708.

Okeeheelee Middle School Art Teacher Receives The 2008 “Hispanic Teacher of the Year Award”

Dolores Santiago, an Art teacher at Okeeheelee Middle School received the “Hispanic Teacher of the Year” award at the Hispanic Human Resource Council Gala held on October 25th at the Kravis Center.

Ms. Santiago is of Cuban descent and was born and raised in Belle Glade. She thanks her parents for having instilled in her the importance of being bilingual because that has enriched her life in many ways. As an educator she believes that all children can be as successful as they imagine themselves to be. She said “my job as an educator is to encourage children to grasp their potential and connect it to the real world.”

Ms. Santiago has been teaching in Palm Beach County public school since 1995 and considers herself to be a catalyst for innovative thinking. As an art teacher, she has strived to infuse multicultural education into her curriculum and has worked with children, parents and the community to increase parent involvement and to improve the education and lives of students.