Jim Allen Elementary Names Students Of The Month
January 24, 2020
Jim Allen Elementary School has named Students of the Month for December. They are Abigail Revels (pictured left) and Aisley Salisbury. Photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Escambia School Board Declares Feb. 22-29 National FFA Week
January 23, 2020
The Escambia County School Board passed a resolution this week designating the week of February 22-29, 2020, as National FFA Week. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
15 Escambia Schools Receive Five Star School Award
January 22, 2020
Fifteen schools were recognized Tuesday night by the Escambia County School Board as 2018-2019 Five Star Award winning schools.
The award is bestowed upon schools that are committed to incorporating family and community members into the school environment to enhance student learning.
In Escambia County, Five Star Schools Award winners were:
- Jim Allen Elementary – Rachel Watts, principal
- Beulah Elementary – Monica Silvers, principal and Mat Taylor, assistant principal
- Blue Angels Elementary – Jayne Murphy, principal and Vanessa Griffin, guidance counselor/5-Star committee
- Hellen Caro Elementary – Sandy Moore, principal and Julie Pearson, assistant principal
- N.B. Cook Elementary School of the Arts– Lalla Pierce, assistant principal
- Cordova Park Elementary – Aggie Bauer, principal and Tammy Douglas, assistant principal
- Ferry Pass Elementary – Catrena Fieg, principal and Jessica Bryan, assistant principal
- R.C. Lipscomb Elementary – Barbara Quarells, assist. principal
- L.D. McArthur Elementary – Dr. Tamma Vaughn, principal and Kristin Arnold, assistant principal and Evelyn Ball, 5-Star Chairman
- Molino Park Elementary – Lisa Barnes, prinicipal, Angela Hassebrock, 5-Star committee and Gena Daniels, 5-Star committee
- Montclair Elementary – Hollie Wilkins, principal
- Myrtle Grove Elementary – Robin Maloy, principal and Gina Hoyland, curriculum coordinator
- Pleasant Grove Elementary – Sunday Tindell, assistant principal
- Scenic Heights Elementary – Shelly Cox, principal
- A.K. Suter Elementary – Russell Queen, principal and Dr. Patrice Moody, assistant principal
The complete criteria for the Five Star School Award is as follows:
• Have a strong community/business partnership program and provide recognition, training and opportunities for the school’s partners to be actively involved in the school.
• Have strong family involvement including an active PTA, booster program or the like; offer educational opportunities and support to families; offer joint parent/student training; offer outreach activities; use a variety of techniques to communicate with families; and provide current information about school policies, practices and school performance.
• Have a strong volunteer program with 80% of school staff having participated in school-based volunteer training; have a designated volunteer coordinator who provides leadership; a total number of hours in volunteer service must equal twice the number of students enrolled in the school; and recognize volunteers.
• Must encourage and support student community service by providing learning opportunities that focus on community needs; have a minimum of 50% of the students involved in community activities.
• Have an active School Advisory Council.
• Must complete a portfolio that documents the requirements; and must
• Have a school grade of “C” or better, as determined by the Florida DOE.
Women’s Sewing Group Quilt Donation Keeping Escambia Westgate Students Warmer
January 21, 2020
Students in wheelchairs at Escambia Westgate are a little warmer and cozier on cold days thanks to a donation this school year. The Beulah Baptist Church Women’s Sewing Group created quilts for the students. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Escambia County 4-H Meat Judging Team Places Fourth In Western National Roundup In Colorado
January 20, 2020
The Escambia County 4-H Meat Judging Team placed fourth at the Western National Roundup 4-H Meat Judging Contest recently at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colorado.
Team members were Jessica Conti, Hannah Schnupp, Ethan Thorne, and Hannah Thorne. Participants had to identify 30 retail cuts, place six retail, wholesale, and carcass classes, and give three sets of oral reasons.
“Through the competition process, the team has developed life skills through activities to understand the processing of beef, pork, and lamb, including retail identification, factors relating to meat quality, and cookery,” according to Brian Estevez, UF/IFAS Extension Escambia County 4-H/Youth Development Agent.
“Meat judging participants acquire knowledge and skills in meat identification and grading techniques and then apply those basic skills to the selection process. Participants then develop an understanding and appreciation of the basic scientific principles involved in eating and cooking quality, nutritional value, and consumer appeal of meat. 4-H members on the team also learn life skills such as decision making, problem solving, and goal setting,” he said.”
During the trip to the national contest, the meat judging team participated in a mock contest at the University of Wyoming in Laramie. The team also toured Colorado State University and visited with Dr. Katie Abrams, assistant professor in the Department of Journalism and Technical Communication. The Western National Roundup 4-H Meat Judging Contest was held in conjunction with the National Western Stock Show in Denver.
Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Escambia County Arbor Day Tree Giveaway Held Saturday
January 19, 2020
A tree giveaway was held Saturday in observance of Arbor Day was held Saturday.
Escambia County held the tree giveaway and public planting Saturday morning at Beulah Middle School. Support for the event wass provided by the Florida Forest Service, Escambia County Natural Resources Management Division and UF/IFAS Extension with help from volunteers including the Beulah Middle School FFA and International Paper.
The event began with a tree planting ceremony followed by a tree giveaway and educational sessions. Families received two free native 1-gallon trees while supplies lasted, including swamp chestnut oak, chickasaw plum, red maple and mayhaw.
Photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Stop Crape Murder: Don’t Cut Back Your Myrtles
January 19, 2020
by the Santa Rosa County Extension Service
Proper pruning is one of the most misunderstood of all gardening practices, yet it is one of the most important procedures in a landscape. A common victim of bad, improper pruning is the crape myrtle. Crape myrtles will occasionally need pruning to obtain the desired landscape effect, but many times these plants are butchered for no good reason.
According to Dan Gill, LSU Ag Center Horticulturist, an unfortunate trend in crape myrtle pruning is to lop off their tops, which results in a tree reduced to large branches ending in stubs. The lush growth that occurs at these cut sites appears vigorous but is actually structurally weak and more susceptible to fungus diseases such as powdery mildew. And when pruning is conducted improperly over several years, unsightly large, swollen knobs form at the point where pruning is done each year.
Flowers are not the only virtue of this tree. Many varieties have beautiful bark and growth habits that can be enjoyed all year if trees are not heavily pruned.
Crape murder
This unsightly, ugly pruning known as crape murder is not recommended. Once it’s done, it ruins the tree’s graceful natural shape for the rest of its life.
Often gardeners think they are supposed to prune their crape myrtles that way, and nothing could be farther from the truth. Many think that crape myrtles need to be cut way back to bloom well. This is not accurate. The flower clusters may be larger on lopped trees, but the added weight on the ends of long branches causes them to bend over awkwardly, especially after it rains. And since the tree is smaller, it actually produces fewer flower clusters.
Many people say they need to cut a crape myrtle back because of its size. If the height of the crape myrtle is not causing a problem with a nearby structure or power lines, there is little reason to reduce the tree’s height. To cut a crape myrtle back for the vague reason of “it just seems too large” ignores the fact that these plants are trees. They are supposed to be large.
To prune a crape myrtle properly, first decide if it needs to be pruned. As with any pruning project, you must have a specific, valid purpose in mind before you begin. In other words, if you can’t come up with a good reason to prune your tree – leave it alone. If you do see something that calls for pruning, study the tree carefully and determine what needs to be pruned to accomplish the specific purpose identified.
There are a few valid reasons for pruning a crape myrtle. One reason is to eliminate crossed and rubbing branches because rubbing branches can lead to open wounds.
Over time, branches that are too low on the trunk will need to be pruned to raise the canopy. We often need to remove weak, thin branches from the inner part of the tree to produce a cleaner-looking tree. Selected branches may need to be pruned back to a side branch or the trunk to create a shapelier tree. Of course, you need to prune to keep suckers removed from the base of the trunk.
Generally, avoid cutting back or shortening branches much larger than your finger, although cutting larger branches back to a side branch or to the trunk when needed is fine.
Visitors to our area often marvel over our crape myrtles. During summer, their colorful flowers, attractive bark and beautiful shape make them among our most valuable landscape plants. Please appreciate this – and stop the unfortunate trend of hacking them back.
Pictured top: Crape myrtle trees do not need pruning for new growth. Pictured below: These Crape myrtles were ruined with unnecessary topping. Submitted photos for NorthEscambia.com.
Tate High School Names Students Of The Month
January 17, 2020
Tate High School has named students of the month. They are Tanner Rutherford and Trinity Lentz, pictured with Principal Rick Shackle. Photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Local Student Musicians Perform At All State
January 16, 2020
Eleven student musicians from Escambia County middle and high school music programs successfully auditioned for a position in the 2019-2020 All State bands and choirs. These students traveled to Tampa recently for several days of rehearsal.
This year’s high school participants were:
- Sarah Bryan, Tate High, auditioned and was selected to perform in the All State Symphonic Band playing the piccolo. Her instructors are Jakob Wisdom and Chris Snyder.
- Brandon Mitra, Escambia High, auditioned and was selected to perform in the All State High School Symphonic Band playing the clarinet. His instructors are Doug Holsworth and Dustin Hicklen.
- Alyssa Pascoe, Pensacola High, auditioned and was selected to perform in the All State High School Honor Band playing the oboe. Her instructor at PHS is Armand Navarro.
- Jeremiah D. Fortune, Booker T. Washington High, auditioned and was selected to perform in the All State TTBB Choir. His instructor is Micah Roland.
- Nathaniel Holzknecht, Booker T. Washington High, auditioned and was selected to perform in the All State Concert Choir. His instructor is Micah Roland.
- Jack Lloyd, Booker T. Washington High, auditioned and was selected to perform in the All State High School Symphonic Band playing the clarinet. His instructors are Lawrence Young, Jr., Michael Young and Jennifer Smith.
This year’s middle school participants were:
- Lily Bullard, Jim Bailey Middle, auditioned and was selected to perform in the All State Middle School Honor Band playing the flute.
- Kailee Norris, Brown Barge Middle, auditioned and was selected to perform in the All State Middle School Honor Band playing the trumpet. Her instructor is Angela Nass-Hillman.
- William Walley, Ferry Pass Middle, auditioned and was selected to perform in the All State Middle School Honor Band playing the trombone. His instructor is Russell L. Bertles.
- Thomas Glasser, Ransom Middle, auditioned and was selected to perform in the All State Middle School Concert Chorus. His instructor at Ransom is Angela Horne.
- Andrew Walker, Ransom Middle, auditioned and was selected to perform in the All State Honor Band playing the trombone. His instructor is Janie Walker.
Pictured: Sarah Bryan, Tate High, auditioned and was selected to perform in the All State Symphonic Band playing the piccolo. Photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Reading Is Snow Much Fun: Bratt Elementary Students Receive Free Books Thanks To IP Grant
January 14, 2020
First graders at Bratt Elementary were recently treated to “Reading is SNOW Much Fun,” Books for Ownership Event. This is the second year Bratt Elementary has received the “Books for Ownership” grant from International Paper and Reading is Fundamental (RIF). This grant provides first graders with three new books to own and enjoy.
The first grade team planned a snowy themed event for the celebration.
Students enjoyed story time, retelling the story, and choosing their books to own.
Then all first graders participated in STREAM snowy activities. Students constructed snowflakes using marshmallows and toothpicks and made snowballs from snow. Students designed snowy pictures using Geoboards and created snowflake artwork. Students practiced science and math by using magnifying glasses to identify snowflakes and used snowflakes to measure their heights. Students also enjoyed a snowflake snack while practicing sight words and reading their new books.
