Lower division director named
Academy at the Lakes has appointed Araina “Raini” Jewell as the school’s new lower division director.
Jewell joined the Academy’s administration this past summer and has worked in partnership with Kathy Heller, the interim lower division director, to lead the lower division program and culture to higher heights.
Jewell earned an undergraduate degree at Brown University and a Master of Science in Early Childhood and Elementary Education at the Bank Street College of Education.
She also worked for J.P. Morgan and on the development team for Nickelodeon’s Nick Jr.’s “Dora Explorer.”
Jewell began independent school work as assistant director of admissions at The Nightingale-Bamford School, and then as director of both the early childhood division and the lower school division at Trevor Day School.
She also has served as principal of the lower school at St. John’s Episcopal Parish Day School in Tampa, before moving to Academy at the Lakes.
Heller will assume the role of director of curriculum and instruction for prekindergarten through sixth grade.
Build A Bear fundraiser nets 200 donations
Two hundred bears were made during the third annual Build A Bear For A Cause campaign, a fundraiser to bring holiday cheer to the under-served children in local elementary schools.
The bears were distributed as follows: 19 to Double Branch Elementary, 32 to New River Elementary, 15 to Quail Hollow Elementary, eight to Seven Oaks Elementary, 30 to Veterans Elementary, 30 to Watergrass Elementary, 14 to Wiregrass Elementary and 44 to Wesley Chapel Elementary.
In response to a last-minute request, eight bears also were donated to New Leaps Academy in Wesley Chapel, a school for children with varied exceptionalities.
A lesson in giving
The Primrose School at Collier Parkway is teaching children in VPK classes an important lesson about giving to others during the holiday season.
Teachers took the three VPK classes on a field trip to Publix in Collier Commons to shop for other families in need served by Pasco Kids First.
The classes of 15 to 21 children took turns shopping at half-hour increments.
The school has had a holiday food drive for Pasco Kids First for the past two years, and the students brought items in from their homes.
In the days that followed, the children and teachers discuss how food banks and shelters help people in the community.
Each activity supports the lessons at the heart of the Caring and Giving Food Drive: compassion, citizenship and giving without expectation.
Visit PrimroseSchools.com/blog to read more about the food drive, and tips for encouraging empathy, selflessness and generosity in young children.
Winter commencement
Pasco-Hernando State College hosted winter commencement Dec. 11 with two ceremonies to honor graduates earning bachelor and associate degrees, certificates and diplomas.
Students in The Laker/Lutz News coverage area receiving degrees were:
• Felix Jimenez, of Wesley Chapel, Associate of Science in network systems technology. Jimenez emigrated to the United States from the Dominican Republic in May 2012.
In addition to being a student, Jimenez works full-time, and is a husband and father to a 4-year-old and an 8-month-old. He learned time management skills to help balance work, school and family.
Jimenez also is an active member of his church and its outreach leadership team.
He plans to work in the IT field.
• Brandon Swanbom, of Land O’ Lakes, graduated with an Associate of Arts and Associate of Science in aviation, professional pilot. Swanbom is a staff sergeant for the Mississippi Air National Guard (U.S. Air Force) since 2014. His position is C-17 Loadmaster in the 183rd Airlift Squadron.
He is the president and founder of the PHSC Flight Club, and a recipient of a 2018 veteran exemplary service award from PHSC Student Life and Leadership.
Swanbom hopes to become a C-17 pilot in his current squadron and a commercial airline pilot in the future.
Early childhood operations course
Pasco-Hernando State College is offering a course for childcare directors to become credentialed.
The course, Operation of an Early Childhood Center, meets Florida Department of Children and Families requirements for the director credential.
Interested childcare workers can enroll now.
The course will be offered on Tuesday evenings from 4:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., starting Jan. 8 through March 5, at the North Campus in Brooksville, 11415 Ponce de Leon Blvd.
It also will be offered on Tuesday evenings from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m., March 19 through May 14, at the Spring Hill Campus, 450 Beverly Court.
The course is T.E.A.C.H. scholarship eligible. For information on the scholarship, visit Teach-fl.org.
To learn about the course itself, or to enroll, visit PHSC.edu/academics/continuing-education.
Online poster contest
The Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center is hosting the Kids Safe Online Poster Contest for kindergarten through 12th-grade students, nationwide.
Students can submit pieces of artwork that cover topics such as being safe online, good online security practices, cyber bullying, and how to be a good digital citizen.
The winners of the contest are made into cybersecurity awareness posters and calendars that are distributed throughout the country in recognition of National Cyber Security Awareness Month.
The contest is open until Jan. 25.
For information on how to access the contest guide and registration form, and how to enter and submit artwork, email .