2 new schools welcome St. Johns County students

3 years ago 306

Tocoi Creek players Kaiz Ragland, Charles Allsup, Dylan Freet and Dawson Cope astatine precocious schoolhouse media day.

ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. – Our area’s top-rated and fastest-growing schoolhouse districts begins the caller twelvemonth Monday with 2 marque caller schools: Pine Island Academy and Tocoi Creek High School.

Both are invited sights for a region dealing with overcrowded schools, but opening 1 from scratch is simply a challenge. But for 34-year seasoned Debbie O’Steen, this is different accidental to alteration lives.

“My paycheck is erstwhile I spot students beryllium successful. erstwhile they locomotion crossed that signifier and get their modular diploma. When they telephone ‘Ms. O’Steen, I’m an lawyer now!,” O’Seen said.

O’Steen is among the teachers who volition invited much than 1,300 students to Tocoi Creek connected Monday.

While the schoolhouse volition relieve overcrowding from Nease High School, Principal Jay Willets said. this is truthful overmuch much than simply opening a caller school.

“If anybody tin conscionable benignant of deliberation backmost to their precocious school, and their precocious schoolhouse memories, that’s what we’re gathering close now,” Tocoi main Jay Willets said. “That to me, that’s special, and we get a accidental to bash that.”

These caller classrooms travel with state-of-the-art technology. No much overhead projectors. Now determination are touchscreens with situation sound. There’s besides a caller information feature, erstwhile the doors close, they fastener automatically.

Three of the 5 buildings connected field are unfastened now. The gym and performing arts halfway volition unfastened astatine a aboriginal time.

Even though schoolhouse hasn’t officially started yet, O’Steen says successful a way, this already feels similar a family.

“We’re each present for the students. It’s not astir us,” she said. “That’s erstwhile you are going to springiness your champion to your students and they’re going to spot that and they’re going to spot you. And they’re going to privation to bash their best. They’re going to privation to learn.”

The amusive of the schoolhouse twelvemonth volition decidedly get disconnected to a moving start. The archetypal shot crippled volition beryllium connected Friday, and the archetypal pep rally, too.

For much accusation astir the district’s COVID-19 program and different policies spell to stjohns.k12.fl.us.