Education Archive

At a time when the news media is reporting record numbers of teachers leaving education, Lauren Hinote chose to trade her career as an insurance agent for the classroom.

It’s worked out so far; earlier this year, her peers chose her as Chumuckla Elementary School’s Teacher of the Year. The first-grade teacher blames her sister, Ashley Drinkard, a third-grade teacher at S.S. Dixon Intermediate School.

Amber Murray loves what she does.

“I can’t imagine having another career,” she told the Press Gazette last week. “I live for the moments when a student has struggled with a concept for days or weeks, then it clicks, and it makes sense to them. It is so empowering knowing that you helped them learn a new concept or skill, and I get to see their self-confidence blossom.”

For the past nine years, Rachel Swartz has been a prominent figure at Hobbs Middle School in Milton.

Teaching Algebra and geometry honors courses to eighth graders as well as advanced math to seventh graders, Swartz has become a teacher loved by students and faculty alike. So much so, she was named Hobbs Middle’s choice for teacher of the year, the first time she has received the honor.

Everyone loves a good detective story. On Tuesday, Oct. 17, at Pea Ridge Elementary School’s STEAM night, students had the chance to be a part of their own. STEAM is short for science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics.

The theme of this year’s STEAM night was “The Mystery of the Missing Picture,” in which students had to solve the fictional crime of who ‘stole’ principal Kimberly Crate’s picture. The goal of a STEAM night is to create a hands-on event to get students excited about learning science and math.

After a nearly seven-hour meeting Oct. 12, the Santa Rosa County School Board is still waiting to approve the health insurance program for district employees. The current plan expires Dec. 31.

There is a little-known problem in Santa Rosa County’s schools. According to Santa Rosa County District Schools’ coordinator of federal programs Bobbie Lewter, the district has a poverty rate of 43.54 percent.

Oct. 2 marked National Custodian Appreciation Day. For Santa Rosa District Schools, it was an opportunity to acknowledge the hard work and dedication of school district and ABM staff who help keep our schools clean.

When House Bill 1 passed the Florida Legislature and was signed into law by Gov. Ron DeSantis earlier this year, the expectation was that come the beginning of the 2023-2024 school year, families would have expanded school choice access through an updated school voucher system, which notably includes an education savings account (ESA) for every Florida student.

Keeping students engaged in school can be a challenge. For Bagdad Elementary School, they are doing it by giving them responsibilities.

Every school library and media center in Santa Rosa County District Schools has completely opened to students, with the exception of one: Wallace Lake K-8.