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East County | Schools

School board member Cindy Spray said "students are students to me." She has the most charter school students in her district. She made a visit to ¡HOLA! Elementary School on April 1. Spray was walking through the hallways and saw Dalba Lopez's music class dancing and they performed a special routine for her.
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • June 4, 2025
Manatee school board will vote to give charters a cut of half-penny tax

Since 2023, charter schools have not received funding from the half-penny sales tax.

  • East County
  • Schools
Interim superintendent Kevin Chapman's contract was finalized in a special board meeting May 29. He will be interim until January 5, 2026 or whenever the school board hires someone in his place.
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • June 4, 2025
Manatee school board wants fast process to find new superintendent

The School Board of Manatee County aims to have a new superintendent in place by the time the 2025-26 school year begins in August.

  • East County
  • Schools
Haile Middle School teacher arrested on charge of lewd contact
    By
  • Eric Garwood
  • June 3, 2025
Haile Middle School teacher arrested on charge of lewd contact

The student told deputies that the teacher sent an explicit photo.

  • East County
  • News
Eddy Thomas, Kylie West, Kylah Scheetz and Charlotte Humlicek are among the 34 seventh grade students that will skip the eighth grade and start taking high school level classes next school year through the SOAR program.
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • June 2, 2025
Students begin high school early with Lakewood Ranch Prep Soar program

Students in the Soar program have the opportunity to earn as many as 60 college credits during their five-year high school career.

  • East County
  • Schools
Daniel Bryan-Beachler and Bryan Thomas both grew up in Indiana and have each taught for 38 years. Bryan-Beachler has been a teacher at Lakewood Ranch High School since 2001 and Thomas has been a teacher there since the school opened in 1998.
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • May 30, 2025
Two Lakewood Ranch High teachers retire after 38-year careers

Bryan Thomas has taught at LWRHS since its opening while Daniel Bryan-Beachler has taught at the school since 2001.

  • East County
  • Schools
Although the wave off tradition has occured since 2015, this is Board Member Heather Felton's first time.
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • May 30, 2025
Manatee school district leaders thank bus drivers the last day of the school year

The bus drivers' "wave-off" has been a tradition since 2015 in the School District of Manatee County.

  • East County
  • Schools
Head of school Debra Otey congratulates co-salutatorian Josey Rubinstein on graduating. Rubinstein was honored as a U.S. Lacrosse All-Academic American, signifying excellence in academics and athletics.
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • May 24, 2025
ODA graduates reflect on the road ahead

The top graduates of ODA were heavily involved in horseback riding, sports and stem based activities while maintaining success in the classroom.

  • East County
  • Schools
Seventh grade students at Haile Middle School Cooper Gallegos, Connor Willats, Joshua Parker, Sofia Laubacker and Amelia Cendere make up team "Charlie."
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • May 23, 2025
East County robotics teams perform well at world championships

Haile Middle placed third in its division, and Mona Jain Middle placed second in its division for teamwork.

  • East County
  • Schools
Former School District of Manatee County Superintendent Jason Wysong
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • May 20, 2025
Manatee School Board fires superintendent

Mainly citing concerns over communication, the Manatee County School Board on Tuesday fired Superintendent Jason Wysong with just over 13 months remaining on his contract.

  • East County
  • Schools
The Lakewood Ranch High School Music Department has received the "Support Music Merit Award" from The NAMM Foundation in honor of its outstanding commitment to music education. The music department staff includes orchestra director Thomas Durante, band director John Wilkerson and choir director Rebekah Lester.
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • May 20, 2025
Lakewood Ranch High honored with Support Music Merit Award

The award from the National Association of Music Merchants Foundation recognizes schools that demonstrate exceptional achievement.

  • East County
  • Schools
Katherine Lo, a seventh grader in digital art, created a piece inspired by video games and titled the game she created "Knight's Revenge." She generated the background using artificial intelligence.
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • May 19, 2025
Mona Jain Middle of Lakewood Ranch hosts its second annual Art Show

Digital and traditional art pieces were featured at the show using different mediums.

  • East County
  • Schools
Kaele Smith, Sophia Eastman, Miley Walker and Sam Baker show their excitement for graduating from Braden River High School.
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • May 15, 2025
Commencement speaker punctuates Braden River High's graduation ceremony

Louann McCord says graduation is just a "comma" in the students' lives.

  • East County
  • Schools
Mark Eubanks IV reads his essay “Chess with My Grandma” at the school board meeting April 29.
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • May 14, 2025
Willis Elementary fifth grader wins contest with essay on grandma

Mark Eubanks won the Florida Retired Educators Association contest for Manatee County with his essay "Chess with my grandma."

  • East County
  • Schools
Commencement speaker Nadia Gandi makes her way to receive her diploma while waving to the crowd.
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • May 14, 2025
Lakewood Ranch High School graduates hit the finish line

Valedictorian Olivia Spiegel compares graduation to winning a big race.

  • East County
  • Schools
Lakewood Ranch Preparatory Academy is one of four schools in the nation to have an agreement with Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine (LECOM) to provide high school seniors an opportunity for provisional early acceptance into the medical school.
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • May 13, 2025
LECOM strikes deal with Lakewood Ranch Prep for future acceptance

Lakewood Ranch Prep is the fourth high school in the nation to strike such an agreement with LECOM.

  • East County
  • Schools
Principal Kathy Price will be leaving Willis Elementary School after six years to become the executive director for the Manatee Education Foundation, which is a bittersweet transition for her.
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • May 9, 2025
Willis Elementary principal leaving for new challenge

Price said Willis has become her home away from home, but she was in need of a change.

  • East County
  • Schools
Christian Link described being a bus driver as his unexpected dream job. He has worked there for three and a half years and has trained other drivers for two and a half.
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • May 7, 2025
Manatee County aims to fill school bus driver shortage

Between sick days, vacations and leaves of absence, Manatee County needs more bus drivers to ensure students get to school efficiently.

  • East County
  • Schools
Brando Fetzek, vice president and project executive for NDC Construction Company and Jessica Roddenberry, the project manager from HKS Architects & Designers led the tour.
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • May 6, 2025
Lake Manatee K-8 school is set to open for elementary students in August

HKS Architects and Designers along with NDC Construction Company are working to ensure they deliver phase one in time for the 2025-2026 school year.

  • East County
  • Schools
Benjamin Hansen plays Scar.
    By
  • Lesley Dwyer
  • May 3, 2025
'The Lion King Jr.' pounces onto the stage

Students at the Woodland Fine Arts Academy have been working on the production since August.

  • East County
  • Schools
Kenneth Ordonez and his elementary teacher Joadie Durfee got to reunite at the gathering. Ordonez described Durfee as not only a teacher, but a good friend.
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • May 3, 2025
Past Braden River Elementary students gather before graduating high school

Seven years after graduating elementary school, Manatee County seniors reunited with old friends and teachers to reminisce before graduating high school and heading separate ways once more.

  • East County
  • Schools
John Hettler, principal and founder of SOSA said he is very grateful to the Lakewood Ranch Community Foundation for their generous donation towards the new playground equipment and necessary repairs. Executive director Kate Mulligan and president Mark Clark were amongst the members of the foundation present.
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • May 2, 2025
Sea of Strengths Academy receives grant for new playground

The Lakewood Ranch Community Foundation presented them with a grant for $8,700 to go towards the playground after Kelly Gonzalez, a parent at the school, wrote approximately 30 different ones.

  • East County
  • Neighbors
Layla Vaughn and Aureliano Mora are student council members at McNeal Elementary that acted as announcers for the leadership day event.
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • May 1, 2025
McNeal Elementary nurtures student leaders through Leader In Me program

The seven habits are “Be Proactive,” “Begin with the End In Mind,” “Put First Things First,” “Think Win-Win,” “Seek First to Understand, Then to Be Understood,” “Synergize” and “Sharpen the Saw.”

  • East County
  • Schools
Former School District of Manatee County Superintendent Jason Wysong
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • April 30, 2025
Manatee County teacher accused of inappropriate behavior resigns

A parent of a child at B.D. Gullett Elementary urged the school board to terminate the fifth grade teacher instead of accepting his resignation.

  • East County
  • Schools
Alex Benson says the current mural is much more detailed and will take more time than previous projects. His goal is to have it complete over the summer, ready for the 2025-2026 school year.
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • April 29, 2025
Local mural artist volunteers his talent to beautify McNeal Elementary

Alex Benson has painted three murals at the Lakewood Ranch school.

  • East County
  • Neighbors
Vicente Rivera, a senior at Lakewood Ranch High School, has been accepted into the United States Naval Academy in Maryland, which has a 9% acceptance rate.
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • April 26, 2025
Lakewood Ranch High senior ready to begin career at US Naval Academy

Vicente Rivera says he loves structure so a military academy is a great fit.

  • East County
  • Schools
Braden River Middle School students got to visit the Supreme Court and learned more about Gideon v. Wainwright, a 1963 landmark Supreme Court case that they learned in class.
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • April 23, 2025
Braden River Middle students experience real-life civics lesson

The students took a road trip to Tallahassee to visit the Florida State Capitol.

  • East County
  • Schools
Lara Zoppe plays Eurydice in "Hadestown: Teen Edition" alongside Sawyer Girgis, who plays Orpheus at the Ovation School of Musical Theatre. Zoppe is 14 years old and has been a student at Ovation since she was 3.
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • April 22, 2025
Young actors love the challenge of 'Hadestown: Teen Edition'

It was a different kind of challenge for the Ovation School of Musical Theatre students.

  • East County
  • Schools
Webb Brue, Griffin Wills, Sullivan Pippins, Parker Royce and Nolan Appel are in Tammy Peters' first grade class. They learned all about bees and informed the public on ways to save them.
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • April 20, 2025
Braden River Elementary showcases project-based learning at Innovation Expo

The first graders developed a love for bees and planted flowers to attract them.

  • East County
  • Schools
Ricardo Robinson-Shinall has worked in the Braden River High School theater department since 2016.
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • April 19, 2025
'Hadestown' will be Braden River High theater director's final show

Ricardo Robinson-Shinall is leaving Braden River High after 15 years.

  • East County
  • Schools
Fifth grader Avianna Owens said that Mr. Ray helped her when she didn't understand ranges and means.
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • April 13, 2025
Tara's Ray of Sunshine has brightened the lives of students for two decades

Raymond Turner, a volunteer tutor at Tara Elementary School, has been offering his math skills and advice since 2004.

  • East County
  • Schools
Samantha Casanueva, Parker Poplaski, Matthew Jackson and Trenton Horne of Blue Lightning with their robots and awards.
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • April 9, 2025
Three East County schools headed to Vex Robotics World Championship

Gilbert W McNeal Elementary School, Virgil Mills Elementary School, Carlos E. Haile Middle School and Dr. Mona Jain Middle School are going to compete in Dallas, Texas.

  • East County
  • Schools
Chaitanya Kurakula, Riley Harris and Sriya Boggavarapu with their Alice in Wonderland themed animatronics project that they are fixing and altering for nationals.
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • April 2, 2025
Braden River High TSA president leads team to a state championship

Sheena Kurakula now finishes her TSA career with a trip to the nationals with her teammates.

  • East County
  • Schools
Ethan Hacker, Braden River Middle School band director since February 2024.
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • April 2, 2025
New Braden River Middle teacher takes concert band to superior ratings

Ethan Hacker has his band finely tuned only a year after he took over the program.

  • East County
  • Schools
Braden River High junior Aaron Gordon won a two-year scholarship for his winning entry in a Black History Month essay contest.
    By
  • Madison Bierl
  • March 25, 2025
Braden River High junior wins Black History Month essay contest

Aaron Gordon, who loves music, picked Ray Charles as his subject for the essay.

  • East County
  • Schools
Teachers and student winners of the fifth grade essay content pose for a photo Feb. 25 at Robert Willis Elementary School in Lakewood Ranch. The contest was held by the Manatee County Retired Educators Association.
    By
  • Jim DeLa
  • March 5, 2025
Willis Elementary students recall grandparents' love in essay contest

Willis Elementary gets top two spots in Manatee County Retried Educators' Association contest.

  • East County
  • Schools
Mike and Katie Emmons founded the Taylor Emmons Scholarship fund in 2010.
    By
  • Eric Snider
  • February 21, 2025
Taylor Emmons' legacy lives on through Out-of-Door Academy scholarship

Grieving parents turned their son’s tragic death into a sustainable charitable endeavor that has paid for more than a dozen teenagers to attend a private high school.

  • East County
  • Neighbors
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Latest in East County

1
Bradenton Area EDC names interim CEO
  • January 17, 2026
Bradenton Area EDC names interim CEO
2
The crew from Station 1 walk across the parking lot to grab some lunch. From left to right: Battalion Chief Craig Madsen and firefighters Adam Stem, Evan Berggren and Tyler Schuele.
  • January 16, 2026
Braden River VFW dishes out thanks to East Manatee firefighters
3
Bradenton's Harley Busch, 3, is eager to ride the carousel alongside her father John Busch at the Manatee County Fair. She also rode a camel moments before.
  • January 16, 2026
Manatee County Fair, a tradition since 1916, is now open
4
Manatee County has announced available cold weather shelters.
  • January 15, 2026
Cold weather shelters open in Manatee, Sarasota counties for frigid spell
5
The Lakewood Ranch Pickleball Club members Mike Mulwani and Greg Pogue lost their first scrimmage 11 to nothing in 2023, but that didn't stop them from pursuing the sport to better their skills.
  • January 14, 2026
At 2,300 members, Lakewood Ranch Pickleball Club continues to grow

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