Board secretary named
Tampa executive and former Florida legislator Edwin Narain was named secretary of the Board of Trustees of his alma mater, Saint Leo University, for a two-year term. Narain earned two degrees from Saint Leo — a Bachelor of Arts in psychology in 2007 and a Master of Business Administration in 2009. He has served on the university’s board since 2016. Narain also earned his Juris Doctor from Stetson University College of Law.
Merit semifinalists
The National Merit Scholarship Corporation has announced the names of approximately 16,000 semifinalists in the 67th annual National Merit Scholarship Program.
To become a finalist, the semifinalist and a high school official must submit a detailed scholarship application in which they provide information about the semifinalist’s academic record, participation in school and community activities, demonstrated leadership abilities, employment, and honors and awards received. The nominated student also must have an outstanding academic record, be endorsed by a high school official, write an essay, and earn SAT or ACT scores that confirm the student’s performance on the qualifying test.
Semifinalists that will be designated to the finalist level will be notified in February.
National Merit Scholarships will be offered in the spring of 2022.
Students that were named as semifinalists in The Laker/Lutz News coverage area are:
- Devin T. Connerney – Gaither High
- Sohan Malladi and Daniel J. Urbonas – Land O’ Lakes High
- Kenneth P. Chew – Pasco High School
- Louis E. Cohen – Sunlake High
- Meryl A. Bentz, Andrea L. Burgess, Erin S. Kim and Vivian Rao – Steinbrenner High
- Eric T. Reichard – Wiregrass Ranch High
For more information, visit NationalMerit.org.
Grant awarded
Gov. Ron DeSantis announced that a project to build a technical training complex in Hernando County has been awarded a $6.1 million grant through the Florida Job Growth Grant, according to a news release.
The Citizen Success Center (the technical training complex) is a joint project between Pasco-Hernando State College, the Hernando School District, and Hernando County Government.
All three entities collaborated on the grant application.
The complex is set to be located on 17 acres at the Brooksville Tampa Bay Regional Airport, and has an expected completion date of fall 2023.
The grant funds will be used to prepare the county’s property and add the necessary infrastructure prior to the start of construction.
It will offer convenient, streamlined workforce training to prepare residents for direct entry into positions available in Hernando County.
“The college is excited to be involved in this joint effort to create a dynamic, student-centered educational facility with the mission of building specific skills to meet local employers’ needs in key career and technical fields” said Stanley M. Giannet, Ph.D., executive vice president and chief academic officer and college provost, in the release.
“Quality workforce training is vitally important to the economic health of our community and a significant component of our PHSC mission,” said Giannet.
Cox Elementary events
Staff members from the New River Library and the Hugh Embry Library will visit students at Rodney B. Cox Elementary School, 37615 Martin Luther King Blvd., in Dade City, for these upcoming events:
- Fall into Reading Drive-Thru Festival: Nov. 4 from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Students can receive goodies to encourage reading and learning.
- Early Release Day Craft: Nov. 10
For more information, call the New River Library at 813-788-6375.
Rabbi to speak
The Saint Leo University Center for Catholic-Jewish Studies will host a free lecture on Nov. 4 starting at 7 p.m., at Congregation Schaarai Zedek, 3303 W. Swann Ave., in Tampa.
The guest speaker will be Rabbi Dr. David Novak from the University of Toronto, on the topic of “Is There a Universal Moral Law? Natural Law in the Catholic and Jewish Traditions.”
Another guest speaker, Dr. Vincent Lloyd, will follow Novak’s address and the two will share some reflections.
To attend, reserve a seat online at Zedek.org/ccjs.
Saint Leo food drive
Saint Leo University’s Tampa Education Center will collect food through Nov. 18 for Metropolitan Ministries, whose mission is to care for the homeless and those at risk of becoming homeless, according to a news release.
Saint Leo University-Tampa is in the former Berriman-Morgan Cigar Factory building, at 1403 N. Howard Ave., in Tampa.
Canned goods and nonperishable food may be dropped off between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.
For information, contact Rod Kirkwood at or 813-743-3228.
College honors
Saint Leo University was named as one of the best regional universities in the South, in the 2022 U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges rankings, according to a news release.
In addition, Saint Leo was named to the Top Performers on Social Mobility list.
About 1,466 U.S. bachelor’s degree granting institutions were assessed on 17 measures of academic quality.
Only regionally accredited institutions that enrolled first-year (freshmen) students to four-year bachelor’s degree programs are considered for the honors.
Among regional universities in the South, Saint Leo ranked 29th overall and 39th for social mobility.
The Top Performers on Social Mobility ranking measures the extent schools enrolled and graduated students who received federal Pell Grants (those typically coming from households whose family incomes are less than $50,000 annually, though most Pell Grant money goes to students with a total family income below $20,000).
Early release days
Pasco County Schools again will utilize a monthly, early release time to allow for staff to engage in professional development aligned with student needs, and district and school priorities.
Upcoming early release dates are: Nov. 10, Dec. 8, Jan. 12, Feb. 2, March 9 and April 13.
On each of these days, students will be released two hours early.
The bell times, including the early release times for each school, can be found online at Pasco.k12.fl.us/site/pcs_bell_schedule.
Honor Society hosts fundraiser
The Martinez Middle School National Junior Honor Society will host a donation drive to benefit Hope Children’s Home, on Dec. 11 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., at the Stonebrier basketball gazebo, 3741 W. County Line Road in Lutz.
Guests can bring a blanket or lawn chair, and eat, relax and listen to live music with local metal band, Actual Purgatory. The Bacon Boss food truck will be on site from 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., and Kona Ice will be on site from noon to 2 p.m.
Accepted donations include: Nonperishable items (such as canned veggies, box/bag cereal, canned soup); household items (such as paper plates/bowls, aluminum foil, dryer sheets); school supplies (such as white board cleaner, binders, post-its); and, gently used clothes/shoes for boys and girls ages newborn to 18 years old.
For questions and a more detailed list of acceptable donations, email Annie Hayman at .
Free STEM DAY
Main Event announced its launch of an accredited, in-center educational program, Play Academy. Play Academy was created to help create the ultimate field trip experience for students.
In honor of National STEM Day on Nov. 8, Main Event will offer a STEAM curriculum from 3 p.m. – 6 p.m., free for all walk-in guests, accessible at all locations. This one day offering is the first and only time a small taste of Play Academy will be accessible to the public.
With any bowling purchase, customers will have the opportunity to try out the Play Academy Bowling Lab. Following the bowling lab, customers will be able to participate in more scientific experiments, including a DIY tie-dying T-shirt activity or a DIY ice cream creation.
Main Event has been working to transform games into problem-solving, captivating classwork for a fun and engaging learning experience.
