The Future Career Academy (FCA) conducted business panels at Plant City high schools on October 9. The panels are designed to prepare and connect graduating high school seniors with high-demand career opportunities. Seniors had the chance to miss class to hear from area employers about the organizations they work for, what sorts of career paths […]
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SCIENTIST, AUTHOR, STRAWBERRY CREST HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) awarded Tanishka Aglave with the President’s Environmental Youth Award (PEYA). This honor recognizes outstanding environmental stewardship projects developed by youth. In America in 2025, the EPA handed out 11 of these awards. Aglave spent some of her growing-up years on a citrus farm, seeing the greening disease’s impact on […]
Continue ReadingSmall Buckets, Big Lessons at Head Start Garden
At Burney Elementary’s Head Start class, something special is happening. Instead of running around the playground or learning their letter and numbers, the approximately two dozen children were circling around a row of bright red cattle buckets. These weren’t any ordinary buckets, though; they were the foundation of a brand-new bucket garden. The idea began […]
Continue ReadingRICK LOTT TECHNICAL COLLEGE OPENING SOON
Schools (HCPS) asked the community for ideas for the name of the new technical college in Plant City, 230 names were submitted. One name got twice as many nominations as all the other names combined: Rick Lott. “This was really his baby going all the way back,” Mayor Nate Kilton said. “I think it is […]
Continue ReadingSTRAWBERRY CREST ANNOUNCES 28 NATIONAL MERIT SEMIFINALISTS
Photo courtesy of Jamie Ferrario Hillsborough County Public Schools (HCPS) announced 80 students have been named semifinalists in the 2026 National Merit Scholarship Program, operated by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation. Of this number, 28 are Strawberry Crest High School (SCHS) students. The nearest runner-up had 11 students reach this level. For other schools in […]
Continue ReadingOBSTACLE COURSE IN THE WORKS
Following on the Make America Healthy Again movement, in July, the U.S. government advocated to “Make America Fit Again” to reverse the decline in children’s health. One way it has done so is by bringing back the presidential fitness test. Well before the federal government began this initiative, First Sergeant Aarik Karlson, US Army (RET), […]
Continue ReadingPLANT CITY CHRISTIAN ACADEMY WANTS TO ADD SPORTS COURT
“Plant City Christian Academy (PCCA) is just special,” Tiffany Lewis, vice president of Ways and Means for the Parent Teacher Association (PTA), said. “There is a sense of community there we have never experienced at any of the other schools my kids have attended. The teachers are like an extension of your family.” The school, […]
Continue ReadingLisa Westcott Launches Homeschool Program in Plant City
A new homeschool program will debut Aug. 19 at Red Calliope Gallery on Evers, offering preschool through third grade students the chance to learn music fundamentals in small, age-specific classes. The program, Music with Nona Lisa, is led by Lisa Westcott, affectionately known as “Nona Lisa,” meaning grandmother in Italian, a veteran music educator with […]
Continue ReadingBULLYING
Where did summer go? The first day of classes for Hillsborough County Public Schools (HCPS) is August 11. Along with all of the positives of schools, like learning, classes, sports, and clubs, one negative consistently raises its ugly head, bullying. According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, bullying is abuse and mistreatment of someone vulnerable by someone […]
Continue ReadingPCHS GRADUATES WIN AT SKILLSUSA COMPETITIONS
According to SkillsUSA Florida, employers in the state can’t find applicants with the necessary skills to fill available jobs. To make matters worse, this skills gap is widening because students are trying other sorts of education and employment instead of going into skilled technical fields, also known as trades. To address this problem and help […]
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