Welcome back to our School Board Meeting Highlights for the 2022-2023 school year! We have a lot of great things going on in the Okaloosa County School District so this edition is full of great information. I want to welcome our new employees and families to the OCSD family. Our faculty, staff, and administrators have worked hard to prepare for a successful school year and I cannot wait to see how much we improve! Let's begin this school year strong!
We would love for you to share our latest news. Please feel free to forward this newsletter to your friends, family, coworkers, businesses, and organizations and encourage them to subscribe! A full School Board meeting agenda is available on our website at www.okaloosaschools.com. You can watch the meeting and the meeting workshop in their entirety by visiting the School Board of Okaloosa County's YouTube page. |
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Superintendent Chambers rode an elementary bus route the first week of school to check in with students.
"I had so much fun greeting students at their bus stops and getting to know them while riding to school with them. They shared their first week experiences, who their teachers are, and their favorite subject in school. I even got to say hi to a former student who was watching her son get on the bus! It was an energizing experience full of laughs, and I hope everyone who watches this video gets a smile.
A special thank you to bus driver Ron Dobesh for the safe ride. I am proud to have you as a member of the OCSD family!"
-Superintendent Chambers
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Citizens Oversight Committee Update
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Jason Belcher, Chairman of the Citizens Oversight Committee Board, addressed the School Board with an update as a safeguard of stewardship of the sales tax dollars spent in relation to our Capital projects. We are currently about $10.5 million ahead of what we projected to earn at this point due to the strong economy in Okaloosa County. This does not mean we have the ability to add projects to our already approved list, but it has helped accelerate project start dates and offset the rising cost of construction. So far in 2022, we have spent $16.2 million in Capital Outlay from Half-Cent Sales Tax dollars as well as another $5.5 million in Certificate of Participation (COP) funds to begin some of our larger projects like Cafetoriums.
"I want to thank the Citizens Oversight group for the work that they do. Looking at Capital as a whole in Okaloosa County, what has been happening over the last few years has been historic. Single point of entry projects were completed three years ahead of schedule. We have replaced roofs, HVAC systems, paved parking lots, updated athletic facilities, and we are excited for what is yet to come. We look forward to the classroom additions, cafetoriums, and multi-purpose buildings that we are starting construction on and, in the future, new school construction. We haven't had these types of renovations and construction in a long time. We are grateful for your work on this committee."
- Superintendent Chambers
The next Citizens Oversight Committee Meeting will take place on September 13, 2022.
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Construction Program Update
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We are excited to report that Single Point of Entry projects are complete at all campuses and were functional for the first day of school. These safety measures were completed three years ahead of schedule thanks to Okaloosa County voters' half-cent sales tax!
Other projects scheduled include
- Roofing
- Longwood Elementary
- Bruner Middle
- Silver Sands
- Niceville High
- Ruckel Middle
- Laurel Hill
- Richbourg
- Fort Walton Beach High School
- Major HVAC projects
- Bruner Middle
- Elliott Point Elementary
- Lewis
- Niceville High
- Northwood Elementary
- Okaloosa Technical College
- New Cafetoriums (Cafeteria/Auditorium) beginning within the school year
- Edwins Elementary
- Bob Sikes Elementary
- Plew Elementary
- Shalimar Elementary
- Wright Elementary
- Ruckel Middle
- Gym Floor Replacement
- Lewis School
- Davidson Middle
- Crestview High
- Front Entrance Canopy Projects and Enhancements will begin this year
- Lewis School
- Choctawhatchee High School
- Multi-purpose buildings
- Baker
- Choctawhatchee High
- Crestview High
- Fort Walton Beach High
- Niceville High
- Laurel Hill will renovate an existing building
Many other projects are in the planning phases. Please visit the Capital Improvement Dashboard on our website to see all tasks and progress!
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In the fall of 2021, the School Board approved a plan to invest $750,000 into all band programs in the District. It is important to us to provide students the opportunity to participate in a variety of Arts programs, our band programs being some of the most popular. Jody Dunn, Band Director at Crestview High School, shared that "the sousaphones, tubas, euphoniums, baritones, french horns, mellophones, trombones, trumpets, cornets, bass clarinets, tenor saxophones, baritone saxophones, percussion instruments, and more are all being happily played by our students! They are all very proud of them and were very excited and appreciative to be able to use them." Schools are in the process of compiling another order once their class rosters become finalized. We are proud to support and provide excellent Academic, Athletic, and Arts programs in the Okaloosa County School District!
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Mental Health and Wellness
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The Mental Health and Wellness of our students and staff is a priority in the Okaloosa County School District. We are increasing the number of Mental Health Counselors in our schools and providing more resources than ever. In 2018, OCSD had 12 Mental Health Counselors and 7 Social Workers who split time among all schools. In 2020-2021 we responded to the increased need onset by the pandemic, expanding our staff to 16 Mental Health Counselors and 8 Social Workers. Last school year, we had 19 Mental Health Counselors (one of which is bilingual), 8 Social Workers, and we completed the implementation of the HOPE Squad at all of our secondary schools. We also partnered with the CDAC RISE program to build social skills and resiliency with our elementary students. This year, we have 28 Mental Health Counselors (7 from CDAC) and 9 Social Workers for a total of 37 Mental Health Providers. Each High School and some of our Middle and Elementary schools have a full-time Mental Health counselor on campus five days a week. Our goal is to have a full-time Mental Health Provider on every campus in years to come.
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In comparison to school districts across the state, Okaloosa County is starting the school year in a great place regarding positions filled. Our Human Resources and Professional Services departments worked hard this summer to fill 439 Instructional Positions and 213 Support Positions. As of Friday, August 26th, we only had 28 unfilled instructional positions in the district. Much of this can be attributed to the competitive pay we are offering with our new salary schedules and the benefits we provide our employees including fully paid health insurance (Medical, Dental, and Vision), retirement contributions, life insurance, and more for those who work at least 4 hours a day. We have a few new opportunities for people interested in becoming teachers, especially military veterans thanks to recent legislation endorsed by Governor DeSantis. Other positions we are hiring for include bus drivers, custodians, lunchroom monitors, and classroom assistants. Please get in touch with our Human Resources department or check our website for job opportunities if you or someone you know is interested in becoming a part of the OCSD Family!
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NEW:
Military Veterans Certification Pathway
Effective July 1, 2022, Florida issues a 5-year Temporary Certificate for military veterans who have not yet earned their bachelor’s degrees and meet the following eligibility:
- Minimum of 48 months of active duty military service with an honorable/medical discharge on;
- Minimum of 60 college credits with a 2.5 grade point average on an official transcript;
- Passing score on a Florida subject area examination for bachelor’s level subjects which demonstrates mastery of subject area knowledge;
- Employment in a Florida school district, including charter schools, with an assigned mentor; and
- Cleared background screening.
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On Saturday, August 20th our high schools gathered at HarborWalk Village for Hype on the Harbor: A Community Pep Rally! It was a great day full of school spirit as each student showcased the pride and passion they have for their school. The energy was contagious as bands played, cheerleaders cheered, dance teams danced, and football players chanted on the stage in front of hundreds of fans and tourists! As a bonus, HarborWalk donated $1,000 to each school that participated! Thank you for always supporting our schools and hosting this fantastic event, HarborWalk Village!
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Superintendent Chambers Updates the Board
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Thank you OCSD Family!
I want to thank not only our Principals for the work they do in getting ready for the start of school but also our custodians, support staff, and maintenance and facilities at the District level. People often ask, "do you work during the summer?" A lot of work occurs throughout the summer. You think about what happens in Human Resources. Those folks have been on fast forward for about three months, ensuring that we have appropriate staff hired and all the applicable laws are abided by. Then you look at finance in terms of ending one fiscal year and starting another. Personnel is working to hire new employees. Our Curriculum and Instruction staff is prepared for new standards, new assessments, and getting back to a professional development model. So much has happened over the course of the summer, and I could not be prouder of the work that our team has done. The schools are always a better place when our students and our teachers and staff are back. I'm thrilled to see teachers and staff in the schools I have visited recently who really and genuinely seem excited to be back with their students. I truly believe that this is going to be a great school year, and I'm looking forward to great things to come!
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OCSD and Schools get New Websites
Our new website is one of the big projects our team has been working on this summer. Last winter, we decided to transfer our website to a new platform called Apptegy. Thanks to our Webmaster Debbie Buchanan and her team at Titan, our schools and district sites have a fresh, clean look, and everything is located in the same place on all sites to make it easy for parents to go from one sight to the next and find what they are looking for quickly. Another perk to our partnership with Apptegy is a new call-out system. Our call-outs will be easier for administrators to complete and eliminate some of the technical difficulties parents experienced in the past. Principals can send a text message, call, email, or any combination to communicate important information to our parents and staff. If your caller ID says "Incoming call from 850-833-3100," it's from us!
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Principal, Dr. Samantha Dawson, Retires
We recognized Dr. Samantha Dawson, for her amazing career in the Okaloosa County School District. Dr. Dawson retired as Principal of Edge Elementary, a position she lead for over a decade. Before that she taught in our schools for many years. The Board shared many positive comments about Dr. Dawson and her amazing career.
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Okaloosa Public Arts Foundation donates $14,000
Thank you to the Okaloosa Public Arts Foundation for donating $2000 to each high school art department in the Okaloosa County School District in the amount of $14,000 to supplement art supplies for student enhancement and instruction in art. Ms. Bernadette Sims, President of the Foundation, and Representative Anne Johnston presented the funds to the Board.
"In the Okaloosa County School District we talk about focusing on Academics, the Arts, and Athletics. I appreciate the Okaloosa Public Arts Foundation for all that you do to help ensure our Arts programs get stronger each year."
- Superintendent Chambers
"This is not a lot compared to what [the art teachers] really need to do the things they want to do, but we feel like we are helping."
-Bernadette Simms, President, Okaloosa Public Arts
Over the years, the Okaloosa Public Arts Foundation has donated $38,000 to our Art programs. We appreciate your support!
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Administrative Appointments
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Congratulations to Ms. Kimberly Sears for being named Assistant Principal of Crestview High. Ms. Sears was previously a Teacher on Special Assignment (TSA) in the Crestview High School Guidance Department.
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Congratulations to Ms. Zoila Ganuza for being named a Specialist in Student Services. She served as a School Psychologist in OCSD for the past ten years!
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