September 2024 Family and Community Newsletter

Pasco County Schools is thrilled to announce that it has received a generous grant of $63,000 from the Suncoast Credit Union.

This significant contribution will greatly help bolster our ongoing magnet schools recruitment, retention, and community engagement efforts, ultimately leading to greater opportunity and stronger student achievement.

Pasco County Schools is committed to providing diverse educational opportunities for our students. Our investment in magnet schools and programs has been a cornerstone of our district since 2012. Today, we proudly host thirty-six magnet schools and programs with nearly 15,000 students reaping the benefits of an enriched educational experience.

Our schools offer a wide array of programs, including Cambridge, International Baccalaureate (IB), STEM and STEAM, Biomedical Sciences, Engineering, Cybersecurity and more. These programs are meant to spark passion in our students and connect their learning to real-world applications.

Many of our magnet schools and programs are situated in communities that face economic challenges. The Suncoast Credit Union grant will help to support initiatives that directly impact our students, including student recruitment, retention, field trips, and school events.

We are incredibly grateful to the Suncoast Credit Union for its support of our students and schools. This grant is not just a financial contribution, it's an investment in Pasco County as a whole.

We have some new community partnerships with local businesses and organizations that love supporting our schools! Here are some new partners that have joined us to start the school year!  

Handcart Garden Center  9239 Handcart Road, Dade City  (813) 771-8905 

Handcart Garden Center can support our local schools with on-site and off-site field trips that focus on lessons in agriculture and landscaping design and starting a school or home garden. These programs not only enhance students' understanding of agriculture, but also promote environmental stewardship. Find out more at handcartgardencenter.com. 

STAND Above the Influence 7809 Massachusettes Ave. New Port Richey (352) 442-6750 

STAND Youth-Led Coalition empowers youth to be agents of change by strengthening their voices and educating others to build a healthier community. Students that take part in STAND work to prevent youth substance misuse through empowerment. STAND provides an opportunity to earn volunteer hours by taking part in community events, advocating change by educating peers, parents, school administrators, and community stakeholders through different types of service projects. Email STAND for more info.

Are you a business or organization that wants to get involved with Pasco County Schools, visit our engagement web page, or contact Matthew Testoni. 

Calling all parents of gifted identified students! Mark your calendars to save-the-date for our annual Gifted Parent Night event on October 17, from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. Stay tuned! More information to come around this exciting virtual event.  

Now enrolling for the 2024-2025 school year! Mittye P. Locke Early Learning Academy and Fox Hollow Elementary offer a free 3-hour Voluntary Prekindergarten program (VPK), Monday through Friday, for children who are 4-years-old on or before September 1, 2024.  

Before parents can apply for enrollment at Mittye P. Locke Early Learning Academy or Fox Hollow Elementary, a valid VPK Certificate of Eligibility must be obtained from the Early Learning Coalition of Pasco and Hernando counties.  

Please complete an enrollment application or obtain more information about the VPK program with Pasco County Schools.

Space is limited at each school site. Eligible children are accepted in the order that applications are received based on availability. 

Parents are essential partners in making sure students get to school each and every day. That’s why Pasco County Schools wants to partner with you to improve attendance district-wide.

With September being Attendance Awareness Month, Kurt Browning, Pasco County Superintendent of Schools, wants to talk to students about the importance of having good attendance. Please visit our attendance resources page with your child to learn how making attendance a priority today will help them later in college, career, and life. 

Remember, every day counts!

Pasco County Schools is excited to launch the 2nd annual R.A.C.E. to Read, Pasco! district-wide, Pre-K-12 reading challenge for the 2024-2025 school year. All students and staff are invited to participate. We collectively read over 30-million minutes last school year! The new challenge is to collectively read 35-million minutes from August 12, 2024 through May 16, 2025. Minutes will be logged via Beanstack, and celebrations will be school based.  

Get ready to Read Across the County Everyday! 

Pasco County Schools College and Career Specialists are excited to announce a series of college fairs this October! Families are invited to join us for evening events at James W. Mitchell High School on Tuesday, October 8, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., and at Pasco High School on Wednesday, October 9 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Additionally, college fairs will be hosted during the school day for students at the following campuses: 

• Tuesday, October 8: Sunlake High School, 8 a.m. to 10 a.m., and Land O’ Lakes High School, 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
• Wednesday, October 9: Cypress Creek High School, 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. 
• Thursday, October 10: River Ridge High School, 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. 
• Friday, October 11: Gulf High School 8 a.m. to 10 a.m., and Fivay High School, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. 

Don’t miss this fantastic opportunity to explore college options and plan for your future! 

Beginning the month of August, we will be doing a Facebook contest each month giving a PLACE client the opportunity to win one week of free tuition.

To enter, just like the free tuition post and follow our Facebook page. It's that simple! A name will be randomly drawn on the last Friday of the month. Here are rules: 

• This giveaway is open to all currently enrolled PLACE students, excluding those with drop-In status. 

• The giveaway cannot be used to cover any past due balances. 

• The winner must be listed as a payer on the Procare account. 

• Tuition coverage is only for one child if there are multiple children in the family. 

• Winners are not eligible for additional giveaways within the next 12 months. 

Don't miss out on this amazing opportunity to lighten your tuition load. We appreciate our PLACE families and appreciate the opportunity to show you some love. 

The new school year is underway, and with all the excitement of what is to come, we ask our parents to partner with us by understanding that safety and security is essential to having a positive learning environment. This is a great time for all school stakeholders to unite and understand the importance of our school safety and security protocols.

School safety plans and security protocols are put in place to provide direction and guidance to our staff and students if an emergency were to occur and outline clear requirements regarding school safety practices.

Our schools conduct a variety of different drills during the school year to familiarize everyone on campus with taking the appropriate actions based on the emergency presented. The emergency drills serve as an evaluation to administrators so they can make constant improvements to their specific emergency response plans.

This year, new school safety legislation was written under Florida Safe Schools and signed into law by Governor DeSantis, taking effect on August 1, 2024. The new laws enhance the safety protocols at our schools. You may have noticed some changes at schools regarding gates and doors being secured where in the past they were not. We hope you understand that safety is not always convenient, and the intent is to create the safest learning environment for our students and staff allowing for an enjoyable 2024-2025 school year.

Office of Safety and Security