Hillsborough Responds

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Dear Families,

I hope this communication finds each of you safe and healthy as we journey through February. It’s so hard to believe there are only three weeks remaining until Spring Break. With this said, I challenge each of our learners to reenergize their efforts and focus on their academic courses over these next few weeks in order to finish the third quarter strong. As I visit classrooms, I see our students, teachers, support staff, and leaders giving best effort and I firmly believe my challenge can be easily met.

This past week, I had the privilege of taking part in our virtual High School Forum. It’s an annual event where each high school selects two students to take part in discussions with district leadership and our board members. These students come armed with one question or statement they feel is important to their classmates and the future of the district. I was blown away by the level of questions and concerns brought forward by our future leaders. Each interaction pushed district staff to think differently as we seek to improve student experiences and outcomes for every student.

The main takeaways from the forum:

• The overwhelming appreciation by our students to the teachers and administration that work hard to keep everyone safe and help schools remain open;
• The importance of school community and extracurricular activities;
• How eLearning has helped them become more organized and resilient;
• The desire for more information about Dual Enrollment and Technical and Vocational Programs.

Our dialogue was outstanding and I promise everyone that we are listening and we will work to make sure each one of their concerns are addressed. I encourage you to watch the Forum here.

Also taking place this past week was our CEOs in Schools experience in partnership with Hillsborough Education Foundation. Local CEOs were asked to adopt a school and spend their entire day shadowing a principal and learning the ins and outs of running a school. This annual event continues to prove to be beneficial for all parties as everyone obtains a better understanding on what it takes to build the intellectual, social, and emotional capacity of our students while preparing them for life. So many times, we have witnessed local CEOs form a lasting bond with the school and that bond further strengthens the school’s ties to the community.

A major “thank you” to all of the local CEOs who took part in this special event!

Finally, I know a lot of you are wondering what came of the Super Bowl wager between myself and Dr. Mark Bedell, Superintendent of Kansas City Public Schools. I’m excited to tell you, they are already making good on the wager! This past Friday, we received a barbeque lunch, delivered to our Teacher of the Year, Laura Meehan from Caminiti Exceptional Center. I’m told more delicious barbeque and baked goods are on their way from Kansas City as we speak! We appreciate KCPS for upholding their part of our wager and sharing a few of their local treasures.

I cannot thank each of you enough for your continued support of public education and trusting our district with your child. I hope you enjoy the rest of your Sunday evening and look forward to seeing you in the community soon.

Respectfully,

Addison Davis, Superintendent of Schools

We are very proud of our new website. One of its greatest features is for our students. We have dedicated an entire portion of our easy-to-access site to the resources our students might find most useful.

To access Student Resources, you simply go to our website www.HillsboroughSchools.org and click on Students across the bar on the top. Once there, you will see dozens of important resources for our learners.

They include:

• Canvas & Clever login information
• Mental Health Resources
• Report a Bully
• Scholarship Opportunities
• Breakfast/Lunch menus
• Graduation requirements

We encourage you to take the time to look through these helpful resources! You can navigate directly to the Student page here.

Attention students! You're invited to enter HART's Black History Month contest. Create a video, essay, or drawing around HART's 2021 theme of "The Black Family"

"The Black Family" theme can include heads of the family, types of family relationships, and various family backgrounds.

All entries must be received by Sunday, February 28, 2021 and will be entered into a raffle to win a HART 31-day pass. Four winners will be chosen!

Thank you to HART for creating this opportunity for our students!

Learn more about the contest and find the entry form

This week, renowned local architect Jerel McCants presented his vision for a walkable memorial on King High School's campus, honoring those buried at Ridgewood Cemetery. The Historical Response Committee reviewed the design and provided feedback.

This is just the first step toward creating a memorial. The district would love student, family, staff, and community feedback before moving forward. You can provide feedback here.

Please watch the video below for more information about the memorial.

Education Referendum: When taxpayers passed the half-penny sales tax it was a game-changer for improving the learning environment for students and it opened doors for small, local, and minority-owned businesses.

Read about the partnership formed during Kenly Elementary School's air conditioning replacement when three businesses rolled up their sleeves to get the job done while putting students, families, and staff first.

Eighty percent of the referendum projects are awarded to local businesses and 25% are awarded to small and minority-owned businesses.

Magnet Application Window: Mark your calendars! Our next Magnet Schools Application Window runs from March 5 - March 25. Get ready to be part of wave #2 as we continue to prepare for the 2021/2022 school year!

Learn more about our extensive Magnet options!

Math Homework Hotline: We are so excited by all the students taking advantage of Math Homework Hotline this year! Math Homework Hotline offers a free service to students for math help. On select Thursdays, the live show is broadcast from 6pm - 7pm featuring a specific math topic while students call in with ANY of their math questions. The tutors will begin taking calls at 5:30pm. The hotline number is 813-840-7260.

You can watch Math Homework Helpline on Spectrum channel 635 or Frontier channel 32.

View a schedule of shows

"Yesterday, Conference Night, my daughter's teacher, Mrs. Gauthier, started the conference asking about some little concerns. Nothing major, it could've been a note in the agenda. But the way she asked, and the way she talked about my daughter, shows that she cares. It's only been a month because we were eLearners and seems like she's known her forever.

And today! My daughter threw a tantrum just when she had to get out of the car. Not at home, not on our way, but just when we stopped! So, there he was, Coach Wells. Patient and caring. Calling her by name (I didn't say her name, so he knew it, which surprised me because there are so many kids). He helped her out of the car but I could see through the mirrors how he was talking to her, helping her put herself together. He made my morning."

Email: newsletter@sdhc.k12.fl.us
Website: HillsboroughSchools.org
Location: 901 East Kennedy Boulevard, Tampa, FL, USA
Phone: 813-272-4000
Facebook: facebook.com/HillsboroughSch
Twitter: @HillsboroughSch