Important Dates

It is hard to believe that April is already upon us. We have a lot to look forward to as we enter the final semester of the 2015-16 school year.

Thank you to our staff, parents, and community members who attended our Strategic Plan 2017-2019 Community Forums in March. I am glad we were able to share our vision of the goals and strategies that drive our district’s work. We received some great feedback! Look for the collaborative draft which will be published on April 12th as part of the April 19th School Board Work Session agenda.

Five Golden Apple recipients will be honored on April 1st at the 26th Annual Golden Apple Celebration of Teachers dinner. I am so proud of these teachers, as well as our Teachers of Distinction for this major accomplishment. It is always a truly special night.

Florida Gulf Coast University is hosting its fourth annual High School Solar Go-Kart Challenge this month. We are thrilled to have 8 teams registered for this year’s event. We even have our first all-female go-kart team from Gulf Coast High School competing.

This month we also have our Commissioner's Academic Challenge team competing at the State Scholar Bowl in Orlando and our Marine Science students presenting their student-made films at our annual Marine Science Film Festivals at both Rookery Bay and the Conservancy. Plus, still to come this school year, we have our Middle School Scholar Bowl Tournament, our first-ever Elementary Math Challenge, a UNIQUE Academic Competition, the 3rd Annual iSTEM Competition, and our Middle School Debate Tournament.

Good luck to everyone participating in these and many other events!

~ Dr. Kamela Patton

Last month Florida held its presidential primary election, and we were the center of national attention. I feel so blessed to live in a country where we have the right to vote, and I always use it as a teachable moment with my children. I was pleased to see several friends post pictures on Facebook after they took their own children to the polls as they proudly wore their “I just voted” stickers. Even though they may be too young to vote, it is never too early to teach children the importance of our right to vote.

Besides exercising our right to vote, it is our duty to educate ourselves on the issues. There are several local elections (August 30th primary and November 8th general) that directly impact local education and our children. This generation deserves the very best education, and we must all take an active role in advocating for them.

In February I had the opportunity to visit with legislators in Tallahassee as the legislative liaison for the school district, and it was such a relief to find many representatives who are true champions for our students. Unfortunately, there are also some elected officials who are out of touch, but you have the opportunity this year to vote for state representatives and state senators who will put our students first. Also, there will be two Collier County School Board seats on the ballot in the August primary. If you would like to hear from the school board candidates and ask questions, there are several non-partisan candidate forums scheduled. The League of Women Voters of Collier County and the Florida Citizens' Alliance are sponsoring the following school board forums:

“Meet the Candidates”

When: April 14th at 7:00pm

Where: Marco Island Presbyterian Church

“School Board Candidate Forum”

When: May 18th at 6:00pm

Where: Norris Center

“Meet the Candidates”

When: May 24th at 6:30pm

Where: Golden Gate Assembly of God Church 

“Meet the Candidates”

When: July 14th at 6:30pm

Where: First Baptist Church Naples

Lastly, please be considerate and tolerant of those who may have a different viewpoint than you. If we work together, we can find common ground and do what’s best for our children. Please contact me anytime with questions or concerns: lichteke@collierschools.com.

~ Kelly Lichter

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