Communication Builds Our Community
Communication Builds Our Community
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After a two-year process, Webber International University has been granted approval to offer a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree program. The University has begun accepting applications for students to start their pre-nursing coursework beginning in January of 2022. The word of approval by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges and the Florida Board of Nursing was welcomed by Dr. Carol Daniel, the program's Chief Nursing...
Lake Wales has been blessed by the creation of the Lake Wales Charter Schools system nearly two decades ago. Now representing seven schools educating students in grades 1 through 12, the system has received nationwide attention for its innovative methods. Competition between schools for the attention of parents and students has been a positive. The mere existence of the quasi-independent district was likely motivation for improvements at Polk County School System's McLaughlin...
Given an opportunity to help heal the community after a divisive search for a new charter school superintendent, two city commissioners said "no." A resolution presented to the city commission Tuesday night by Deputy Mayor Robin Gibson offered a welcome to the incoming Superintendent Dr. Wayne V. Rodolfich, who was chosen after a nearly year-long process. Commissioners Jack Hilligoss and Daniel Williams voted down the resolution, which failed on a 2-2 vote in the absence of...
The Lake Wales Charter School Board of Trustees is expected to choose a new superintendent of schools Tuesday to run seven local schools and maintain the standard of excellence achieved by former Superintendent Jesse Jackson. Jackson, who built an award-winning program with the help of principals and staff members, resigned in February, leaving the trustees to find a replacement. The fraught selection process continues to generate community concern. A nationwide search for...
A small but vocal group has been a significant influence on the process of selecting a new superintendent for the Lake Wales Charter School system, a simple reading of documents reveals. (See Related Story Here) The Polk County chapter of the Ohio-based County Citizens Defending Freedom has been involved in the process at numerous points and has consistently acted to promote the selection of Andy Oguntola. Two speakers who sought to end the national search in Lake Wales in...
An April 30 event at Lake Wailes Park is more than a local celebration, it's part of a much broader celebration of a famous father-son duo who changed the face of North America. April 26, 2022, marks 200 years since the birth of American landscape architect and social reformer Frederick Law Olmsted, who championed the idea of public parks in the United States. Lake Wales Heritage is among more than 120 organizations nationwide have banded together as "Olmsted 200: Parks for...
Four finalists for the position of superintendent for the Lake Wales Charter Schools system are participating in the interview process today. The day's agenda includes one-on-one meetings with members of the Board of Trustees and a tour of facilities and the general community by a volunteer. The finalists are Emilean Clemons, Andy Oguntola, Wayne V. Rodolfich, and Anuj Saran. The four were left after the withdrawal of PJ D'Aoust immediately after he was selected as on of the...
EDITOR'S UPDATE: Dr. P.J. D'Aoust has withdrawn from the selection process after being selected as one of the finalists for Charter Schools Superintendent. After a lengthy and contentious final meeting, a recommendation has been sent to the Lake Wales Charter School Board of Trustees from the ten-member Citizen's Superintendent Search Committee. In a nearly two-hour meeting, the committee members submitted their final choices to be forwarded to the board. Coming out on top...
Lake Wales High School Principal Donna Dunson has notified the Lake Wales Charter Schools Board of Trustees that she is retaining an employment attorney to represent her "because of the systemic harassment that has been in play for over a year." The action is further evidence of the polarization that has disrupted the local seven-school system, which has been previously recognized for striking improvements in local schools. Dunson, a popular local school leader who has been a...
Marta Graeven of Lakeshore passed away Wednesday, December 29, 2021. She was born on July 29th, 1946, in Humaco, Puerto Rico. Marta was a teacher with the public schools and was of Catholic faith. Marta was very happy, humorous and so full of life. She was artistic, loved fashion and shopping. Her love for her family and grandchildren will be greatly missed. Marta was born to the late Victor Martinez, and Carmen Ortega of Lake Wales. She is survived by her sons Christopher...
The challenge of managing the wave of new development proposed for Lake Wales was the topic of a two-hour workshop for city commissioners Friday afternoon, with the prospect for much more time to be spent on the topic in coming weeks and months. The nearly ten thousand housing units projected to fill a dozen developments in coming years are likely to attract an associated wave of new commercial development. Hearing presentations from city planners, experts, and citizens, the...
The field of candidates seeking the helm of the Lake Wales Charter Schools got a bit smaller this week as two of the remaining candidates have withdraw their applications. The search now narrows to eight after two applicants withdrew. Those two were Dr. Ronald J Iasruss, Superintendent of the Marion City Schools in Marion Ohio, and James T. Stroder, Superintendent of the Rogersville City School in Tennessee. They had been selected to advance to the next round in the selection...
Democracy relies upon "the consent of the governed" to function. Consent implies an understanding of the questions of importance to the populace, which in turn requires an educated electorate. By these steps of logic, Public education is the bedrock upon which American freedoms are based. More than 20 years ago Florida voters overwhelmingly voted to remove partisan politics from Florida's public school boards, making them among the few Florida public offices, along with most...
The long-vacant position of leadership at the helm of the Lake Wales Charter Schools is a step closer to be filled after the Superintendent Search Committee reduced the original field of applicants to a list of favorites. The opportunity to lead the acclaimed school system, one of the only community-based charter conversion systems in the nation, generated significant interest. The search for applicants, advertised nationally, drew a field of twenty-five, representing eleven...
The City of Lake Wales will apparently acquire the Seminole Hotel as a result of a deal reached during court-ordered mediation on November 12. The terms of the settlement were discussed by the City Commission at Wednesday's workshop meeting. "When it becomes ours, we're going to do the cleaning up," said Commissioner Terrye Howell. The deal will be closed with a vote next Tuesday. The property, built in 1929, has been the target of long-running code liens that quickly...
The search for a new superintendent for the Lake Wales Charter School System has entered its next phase following the close of applications for the position on November 17. Now the search committee will begin the process of winnowing the 25 applicants, representing 11 states, down to a few finalists who will be granted preliminary on-line interviews The field of applicants includes local residents, including several from Polk County. Others on the list have attended local...
Local dining food choices aren't as limited as you might believe, and they certainly don't have to be boring. That much is evident after a visit to a local restaurant celebrating its first anniversary. Orgen D'nal is an outgrowth of a personal training studio called Kingdom Fitness run by restaurant owner Arthur White in an adjacent building. His customers enjoyed rejuvenating health drinks after workouts, so after three years of operations he conceived of a juice bar, which...
Geraldine Jewel Thomas Woods, 80 of Lake Wales, died at Winter Haven Hospital, Winter Haven, Florida. Born in Belle Glade, Florida. She was a retired Educator, Public Schools in Polk County, Florida and a graduate of Bethune Cookman University formerly Bethune Cookman College, Daytona Beach, Florida. Member of New Divine Church of God by Faith, Lake Wales. Services: Saturday, October 30, 2021 at 11:00 a.m. Location: New Divine Church of God by Faith, 640 Burns Avenue, Lake...
Finding a new superintendent for the Lake Wales Charter School System is a painstaking process, with huge focus on finding the ideal candidate, according to Bill Vogel. Vogel, 72, is himself a former school superintendent who is providing services to the Charter Schools Board of Trustees as a consultant to the Florida School Board Association. "We're very impressed with the commitment of the Board of Trustees to finding the right candidate," he told the LakeWalesNews.Net...
The Florida Department of Education has finally submitted a plan outlining how federal relief funds will be used to help schools recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. The plan is four months late and Florida was the last state in the nation to submit one. On the line is $2.3 billion in additional COVID relief funds, adding up to a total $15 billion earmarked for Florida's COVID recovery in schools. The Florida Phoenix has been writing about the issue for months now, with the...
Students and parents involved in the Polk County Public Schools may wish to offer comments to the School System about the future direction of Polk Public Schools. According to officials at the county-wide system, they are seeking public input to create a new strategic plan to improve schools and better serve students. A community survey has been developed, and stakeholders are being invited to tell them what they think are the top qualities for an ideal PCPS graduate. The...
Editor's Note: Florida public schools seem to be purposefully forgotten by state leaders, leaving teachers scrambling to work miracles with scarcely a loaf or fish in sight. This story from Florida Phoenix highlights the problem. Florida is now one of only two states in the nation that has not submitted a plan to the U.S. Department of Education for providing billions in federal dollars to help public schools during the pandemic. Overall, 48 states and Washington D.C. have...
In a dramatic turnabout involving Florida’s new surgeon general, the state Department of Health has created a new COVID-19 related emergency rule that allows parents to keep kids in school even if they have been exposed to the virus. Previously, students would have to quarantine at home for a certain time period before going back to school, raising Constitutional questions about who controls public schools — the executive branch, local school boards or parents. New Sur...
More than six months after the departure of lauded Lake Wales Charter Schools Superintendent Jesse Jackson, the process of seeking his replacement being conducted by the Board of Trustees is in disarray. Board Chairman Danny Gill has written a memo calling for an opportunity for citizens to voice their opinions at the September 20 meeting of the board. His memo states that “This is not a meeting to discuss who the next Superintendent should be or will be. This meeting will b...
The largest proposed development in Lake Wales history has taken another step forward. City Commissioners have approved a new zoning designation for over 1,800 acres of vacant land south of Thompson Nursery road and west of U.S. Highway 27 at the request of the Winter Haven Corporation, which has owned the property for decades. The property will now be zoned as Planned Development Mixed Use. Previously, there was no zoning classification on the land. The plan calls for 2,800...
