Board meeting highlights (Jan. 16, 2024)
The School Board of Orange County held its regularly-scheduled board meeting Tuesday at 5 p.m. at the Ronald Blocker Educational Leadership Center. These are the highlights of the meeting:
OCPS Proclamations for January 2024
Celebrate Literacy Week, Florida! Jan 22-26
Changes regarding administrative personnel
Superintendent Maria Vazquez introduced the following new administrators (see photo above):
Jeffrey Aldridge, principal, 47 Lake Nona/Site 129-M-SE-2
Matthew Hendricks, principal, West/Site 47-E-W-4
Marquise McMiller, senior director, Govt. Relations
Carey Marie Mannion, assistant principal, Colonial High
Recognitions
Congressional Award Gold Medals were awarded to Olympia High juniors Maya and Veda Srikantan. The gold medal is the highest Congressional Youth Award. In order to achieve this award, both students completed more than 400 public-service hours; spent 200 hours on personal development in the area of musical performance; completed 200 hours of physical fitness; and explored India during a five-day trip.
Fall 2023 sports champions
Lake Buena Vista High Girls Swimming team were academic sports champions
The team’s GPA was 3.743. Team includes: Vlada Dogot, Alexa Feucht, Valentina Garcia, Valeria Gil, Nathalia Gutierrez, Victoria Gutierrez, Camila Melendez, Valeria Perez, Adelaide Phillips, Kayla Sickles, Kylah Sickles, Juliette Soos, Elia Sterman, and Kendalle Vuong.
Lake Buena Vista High Diving team’s individual state championship: Nathan Frette
Timber Creek High Boys Esports state championship: Carlin Abernethy, Ethan Craiker, Gabriel Lira Fagundes, Juan Pablo Ramirez, and Ian Rodriguez
East River High Girls Bowling state championship: Emmylou Molina, Camdyn Nielsen, Isis Reyes, Emily Rusnak, Larielle Tharps, and Jada Vidal
Windermere High Boys and Girls swim team and individual championships: Ryan Erisman, Walter Kueffer, Brooke Larweth, Addison Reese, Aidyn Reese, Lawson Seward, Hollace Stokes, and Roberto Zarate
Boone High Girls Swimming team sports champions: Lanie Gutch and Arianna Wertheim
Winter Park High Girls Swimming team’s individual winner: Adrianna Lojewski
District 5 School Board Spotlight:
The School Board of Orange County will be honoring an employee as a School Board Spotlight in their district throughout the 2023-24 school year. These employees have shown exceptional dedication and contributed to the success of our students. District 5 School Board Member Vicki-Elaine Felder recognized Jones High Band Director Naomi Nelson, who has worked for OCPS for more than 15 years. Naomi is a Jones High alumna, and this year she made history as the school’s first female band director. Today, she is a trailblazer who is dedicated, enthusiastic and resilient, and isn’t afraid of breaking barriers for her students to grow, learn and reach their potential.
*Reminder* All board meetings are live streamed on the School Board’s YouTube page and will be accessible from web browsers on computers or mobile devices. To find the live stream, visit www.boardmeetings.ocps.net.