Education News

Kristyn Walker of Marco Island received a Doctor of Law and Master of Laws in International and Comparative Law (J.D./LL.M.) degree this year as a member of the class of 2008. Full story »

For some students at Manatee Middle School in Naples, the monotony of daily classroom activities was broken up Thursday and Friday by a chance to leave a lasting legacy on their school. Under the guidance of renowned Marco muralist Stephen Muldoon, a select number of students got to jazz up their school cafeteria by painting the walls with a large mural inspired by Calusa Indian masks. Full story »

The sweet sound of the Morning Musicians filled the multi-purpose room at Tommie Barfield Elementary Wednesday morning. This chorus of fourth and fifth grade students, under the direction of music teacher Lisa Braren, performed a program dedicated to positive behavior and making good choices. Full story »

Former Superintendent Ray Baker reached a tentative agreement with the Collier County School District to settle a lawsuit against the district for $555,000. “We believe the agreement is a fair one. It is not great for either side, but it is good for both sides,” said School Board Attorney Richard Withers. Baker filed his lawsuit against the district on Aug. 20. The lawsuit alleged the School Board violated state Sunshine Laws, so its July 31 vote to fire Baker was void. Full story »

Many of history’s great artists — Edgar Degas, Leonardo da Vinci, and Mary Cassatt, to name a few — found their passion for painting in their teenage years. For Camielle Aylwin, a 15-year-old tenth grader at Lely High School, art was never something she considered seriously — not until a year ago when she fell in love with the idea of painting. Full story »

The Lely High School National Honor Society is sponsoring a blood drive from 8 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Wednesday. The Community Blood Center’s Bloodmobile will be located in the school’s west parking lot , located at 1 Lely High School Boulevard in Lely Resort, East Naples. Full story »

Working towards being an environmentally conscious institution has become a priority at Florida Gulf Coast University. This was the message from Dr. Wilson Bradshaw, the university’s third president, during an address at a Marco Island Area Chamber of Commerce business before breakfast session held April 25 at the Marco Island Yacht Club. Full story »

Three new employees to the Collier County School District are new to their school communities, but they are not new to Superintendent Dennis Thompson. That’s because the three new people that will assume leadership positions at three Collier County schools this fall are moving from Rockford, Ill., where they worked under Thompson. Full story »

On April 16, the Lely High School Band left Naples at 7:30 p.m. and traveled through the night to Gatlinburg, Tenn. The students were performing in the Fiesta Val Music Festival during the weekend. They arrived in the Gatlinburg area the next day around 1 p.m. and began to visit the many tourist areas that the city provides. Full story »

Joe Paterno is running for the Collier County School Board for the District 4 seat. Full story »

Collier County teachers and teachers assistants won’t get the raises they had hoped for. The Collier County School Board decided during two hearings not to overturn a special state magistrate ruling concerning a salary dispute brought by Collier County teachers and teacher assistants. The unions had asked for a 3 percent salary increase, instead of the 2 percent step increase based on experience and a 1 percent bonus, which the district said was all that was economically feasible. In both hearings Friday afternoon in the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Administrative Center, the School Board voted 4-1 to uphold the special magistrate ruling. Full story »

“Mayday. Mayday. Mayday.” These words, derived from the French m’daiez meaning “help me,” are used to call for aid from a vessel, explained instructor Harold Gaertner of the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary. Tuning to the radio hailing frequency, channel 16, attendees in his class dutifully repeated the phrase even though none of them owned a boat. Full story »

There could be another bump in the road for teachers and classroom assistants who want the Collier County School Board to determine if they deserve more money. Attorneys for the Collier County School District and the Collier County Education Association, which represents 80 percent of the district’s teachers, have received a letter from the International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 79 asking to intervene in the upcoming hearing. Full story »

They tried to come up with an agreement, but a settlement between the Collier County School Board and former Superintendent Ray Baker is no closer to bring solved. School Board Attorney Richard Withers said Tuesday that an executive session with the Collier County School Board made progress, but not enough to go back to a court-ordered mediator with a settlement. He said district council will ask that the case move forward to trial. Full story »

Donna Condee was so into working with her kindergarten students that she barely noticed some familiar, and not-so-familiar faces, enter her Tommie Barfield Elementary School classroom on Tuesday morning. Full story »