Latest news with #SarasotaCountySchools
Yahoo
07-03-2025
- Yahoo
Retired Sarasota ROTC teacher charged with inappropriately touching students
VENICE, Fla. (WFLA) – A retired Sarasota County Schools teacher is accused of inappropriately touching multiple students. Frank Troxel is facing multiple charges including sexual battery. The 61-year-old previously worked as an ROTC instructor at Venice High School. According to an arrest affidavit from Sarasota Schools Police, multiple female students reported inappropriate encounters with Troxel while he was on the job. Tampa Bay Buccaneers champion women's empowerment with 'She is Football' Dozens of conservative leaders back clean stopgap to avert shutdown In the report, one student told officers Troxel would 'smack her on her buttocks when walking past her'. Another reported to police, 'while being fitted for a uniform, the defendant touched her breasts and buttocks'. Troxel is charged with battery and nearly a dozen counts of lewd and lascivious behavior. He is out on bond. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
03-03-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Pamela Schmidt Named Sarasota County's 2025 School-Related Employee of the Year
Sarasota County Schools has named Pamela Schmidt, the records & evidence specialist for the Sarasota County Schools Police Department (SCSPD), as its 2025 School-Related Employee of the Year. Schmidt plays a crucial role in managing police records, tracking investigative evidence, and training new school resource officers (SROs) on the district's records management system. She also teaches crime scene investigations at Suncoast Technical College's Criminal Justice Academy and has voluntarily led forensic courses at Booker High School. Beyond her daily duties, Schmidt is a fixture at school and community events, including Trunk or Treat, Shop with a Cop, and National Night Out. With her district recognition, she is now in the running for the statewide award from the Florida Department of Education. Sarasota County Schools also recognized outstanding school-related employees at each of its campuses: Jaime Cope – Alta Vista ElementaryAndrew Kujawski – Ashton ElementaryRoxann Swantek Williams – Atwater ElementaryArlene Nieves – Bay Haven School of Basics PlusAlex Burbano-Jimenez – Booker HighJo Ann Lawson – Booker MiddleJulee Santelli – Brentwood ElementaryMaida Lara – Brookside MiddlePatricia Goldsmith – Chief of Student Services, Academic InterventionMeredith Clifton – Communications & Government AffairsTami Cooke – Cranberry ElementaryMarie Fernandez – Emma E. Booker ElementaryEcho Lazorko – Englewood ElementaryBrandi Hastie – Exceptional Student Education ServicesHector Robinson Rodriguez – Facilities, Custodial ServicesPeter Svoboda – Facilities, MaintenanceEngy Hanna – Financial ServicesJeff Brooks – Food & Nutrition ServicesTammy Gauntt – Fruitville ElementaryVeronica Keller – Garden ElementaryBrittany Cox – Glenallen ElementaryJacob Hoermann – Gocio ElementaryBrittany Steverson – Gulf Gate ElementaryCorruth Johnson – Heron Creek MiddleYolanda Nash – Human ResourcesJ McQueen – Information TechnologyTim Beery – Lakeview ElementaryNicole Bounds – Lamarque ElementaryLinette Stiffler – Laurel NokomisMeredith Carroll – Materials ManagementLena Walker – McIntosh MiddleNicole Freck – North Port HighKevin D'Angelo – Oak Park SchoolDonna Fangman – Phillippi Shores ElementaryFaith Kona – Pine View SchoolRebecca Bilbrey – Riverview HighAmanda Mavrikas – Sarasota HighFrank Meyer – Sarasota MiddleDebby Abt – Southside ElementaryAimee White – Student ServicesSally Williams – Suncoast Polytechnical HighDylan Kasper – Suncoast Technical CollegeGretchen Ryder – Tatum Ridge ElementaryCynthia Cochran – Taylor Ranch ElementaryLisandra Gonzalez – Toledo Blade ElementaryAlbert Oliver – TransportationSuzette Dill – TriadMarcia Kops-Roy – Tuttle ElementaryJaimie Satagaj – Venice ElementaryAmanda Center – Venice HighMike Volta – Venice MiddleDeborah Beese – Wilkinson ElementaryLeocadia Abreu – Woodland Middle Sarasota County Schools' School-Related Employee of the Year program is made possible by the support of community sponsors who believe in recognizing and encouraging excellence in education. The sponsors for this year's recognition are Sarasota Ford and Tandem Construction. The Sarasota Classified/Teachers Association served as the platinum sponsors for this year. Other sponsors include Achieva, Harvard Jolly PBK, Neal Communities, Trane, Florida Blue, Halfacre Construction Co., Magnum Builders, and Willis Smith Baacke Insurance, Bencor, and the Sarasota County Association of Educational Office Professionals. The Florida Department of Education's School-Related Employee of the Year program honors the significant contributions of non-instructional school staff across the state. This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Sarasota County Schools Honors School-Related Employee of Year
USA Today
31-01-2025
- Politics
- USA Today
Sarasota County's K-12, VPK school choice window opens next week. Here's how to apply
Sarasota County Schools will soon accept applications for enrollment from kindergarten through 12th grade students across the state. Sarasota County Schools will open its Controlled Open Enrollment, or K-12 School Choice, window from Feb. 3 to March 3. Students and families throughout Florida can apply to attend any public school in the district in the window as part of an ever-expanding school choice initiative that's gained state- and nationwide momentum. Only schools with open seats will accept applications. Families can apply to the school of their choice via the Focus Parent Portal, and the district will notify families of school placements in April. The district will conduct a lottery for schools that receive more applications than there are available seats. New Sarasota County schools on deck:Sarasota County School District officials explain construction plans, safety measures The school district's voluntary prekindergarten school choice program will also accept applications in the same window. The optional VPK program includes instruction from 8:30-11:30 a.m. daily, and it's open to children who turn 4 years old by Sept. 1 and receive a VPK Certificate of Eligibility from the Early Learning Coalition of Sarasota County. Families that submit a VPK choice application will be able choose their school site. The following are listed as school sites for VPK programs: Alta Vista Elementary School Atwater Elementary School Brentwood Elementary School Cranberry Elementary School Emma E. Booker Elementary School Englewood Elementary School Glenallen Elementary School Skye Ranch School Taylor Ranch Elementary School Toledo Blade Elementary School Tuttle Elementary School Venice Elementary School Wilkinson Elementary School More:Sarasota County's Pine View School students chat with space station astronaut by ham radio Sarasota County's K-12 and VPK choice programs open their yearly application windows as school choice sentiment rises across the state and the country. President Donald Trump issued an executive order Wednesday directing the secretaries of Labor and Education to explore using federal funds to support school choice; Linda McMahon, his pending education secretary pick, has expressed support for school choice. Florida has become a blueprint for school choice behind Gov. Ron DeSantis' administration and the universal school choice bill he signed in 2023. Since then, more than 1.4 million Florida students have used school choice programs, which include scholarships and stipends for students to attend schools outside their zoning. Sarasota County families are only required to submit a school choice application if their student wishes to attend a public school other than the one they're zoned for. Enrollment in charter schools and private schools does not require a school choice application. Contact Herald-Tribune Education Reporter Heather Bushman at hbushman@ Follow her on Twitter @hmb_1013.
