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Serving Pasco since 1981/Serving Lutz since 1964

Kevin O' Farrell

Safety, flexibility are the bywords as college students return

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With COVID-19 safety protocols in place and enrollments either declining or flat, Pasco County’s colleges and universities have welcomed back students for the fall semester.

Whether it was Saint Leo University or the campuses at Pasco-Hernando State College, most courses were offered online to keep class sizes small. Zoom video conferencing technology was utilized for full interactivity, while hybrid/in-person attendance demanded face masks, hand-sanitizing and social distancing.

Students gather with face masks at Saint Leo University. (Courtesy of Renee Gerstein/Saint Leo University)

Seat configurations were redone. Plexiglass shields were installed in high-transaction, high-touch point areas. Some student activities were abandoned, while others were offered virtually.

“The keyword for everyone these days is flexibility,’’ said Saint Leo Senior Vice President Melanie Storms. “Of course, there will be a learning curve. But we’re very comfortable with what we’re doing.’’

After a record-breaking 2019, which featured a 40% enrollment increase, Storms said Saint Leo will have the same number of new students (1,000) as last fall. There is a 30% reduction in new international students and a 10% decrease in students living on the main campus. Enrollment in Saint Leo’s online programs are up 16% over last year.

“We got out early with a plan and were very transparent with our students about what we were planning to do,’’ Storms said. “We often talk (in the administration) and wonder what our enrollment might have been had there not been COVID. We might have seen another pretty substantial increase. We believe the fact that we have held steady is a reflection of how strong our new class is and the flexibility we’re providing them.’’

Saint Leo students could choose their educational method — either hybrid (alternating in Group A and Group B between in-person and Zoom), connected (exclusive Zoom in a scheduled class period with other students) or online.

Regardless of the choice, all Saint Leo students are required to have at least one class fully online, so overall traffic at campus sites could be kept at acceptable levels (maximum 50% of the normal population, maximum of 15 students in all classes).

“It’s a lot to take in, but we have a team solely dedicated to analyzing this and manipulating the boxes,’’ Storms said. “We went through the classrooms and determined where we’d need to be for comfortable occupancy. We backed that into the scheduling software and worked to make sure students would have the right mix and be optimized in their educational experience.

Saint Leo University’s social distancing reminder.

“We’re all doing things we’ve never done before. Many students are just navigating their lives and saying, ‘Sometimes I’m on Zoom, sometimes I’m online, sometimes I’m in the classroom.’ It’s interesting that one-third of our students selected connected (Zoom), but our housing is only down 10%. So we anticipate a lot of students coming to live with us who are (solely) studying in the Zoom capacity. It’s a new world. We’re getting our feet wet and making adjustments on the fly.’’

At Pasco-Hernando State College’s Porter Campus, in Wesley Chapel, and its East Campus, in Dade City, course offerings will largely be online or Zoom. There are notable exceptions, particularly in the health sciences programs, where students need access to laboratories and specialized equipment or disciplines, such as welding or law enforcement.

Porter Campus Provost Kevin O’Farrell said his enrollment was down 24% from last fall during a recent snapshot, but he was optimistic about an upswing due to students making last-minute decisions.

“I know the word ‘unprecedented’ has probably been overused, but there’s no other way to describe the challenges faced by all levels of higher education,’’ O’Farrell said. “At the same time, I’ve been so heartened by the level of innovation and ingenuity everybody is using. I always say, ‘Don’t let a crisis go to waste,’ and by that I mean, it’s an opportunity to rethink all of our processes and problem-solving.

“We went to a virtual waiting room for students to utilize time with advisors. I think that’s going to become a standard now. When the pandemic goes away, I think people would rather wait at home to speak with an advisor instead of sitting in the lobby. We’ll go back to some things, but we’ve found better ways to do other things.’’

At the state college’s East Campus, Provost Ed Goolsby said his faculty has adapted well to working remotely, although some prefer occasionally utilizing their on-campus office.

“They can work from there, but they just won’t be teaching on campus for the most part,’’ Goolsby said. “There will always be a place for the face-to-face teaching and I know some students want that level of accountability. We’ll just have to see what the environment is moving forward to the spring semester and beyond.

“I think we have shown — and we have been forced to show — that education can adapt. We have seen the words ‘fluid’ and ‘pivot’ quite a bit, but those are words that describe what we need to do,” he said.

By Joey Johnston

Published August 26, 2020

Collaboration creates connectivity

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The opening of the State Road 56 Extension between Wesley Chapel and Zephyrhills has a personal benefit for Alora Butler, a student at Pasco-Hernando State College’s Porter Campus at Wiregrass Ranch.

She said the new road segment will cut her 30-minute commute to school in half.

Greg Lenners, general manager of The Shops at Wiregrass, expects to see an uptick in business, as the extension of State Road 56 over to the Zephyrhills area makes it easier for shoppers to get to the mall. (Christine Holtzman)

It also reduces the time that the Zephyrhills resident spends on the road, to get to leisure activities or do her banking in Wesley Chapel.

The new 6-mile stretch also makes life easier for her husband, too, as he makes his commute to work at a warehouse in Land O’ Lakes.

Butler is just one of the thousands who can now opt for a shorter, or less congested route, to and from the east side of Pasco County.

Kevin O’ Farrell, provost at the Porter Campus, near the intersection of State Road 56 and Mansfield Boulevard, said he thinks the new road will even help students perform better academically.

Less time in traffic means less stress, in O’ Farrell’s opinion. And, because of that, he said, students “are more mentally ready to engage in class, they’re ready to focus more on their coursework.”

Greg Lenners, general manager for The Shops at Wiregrass, 28211 Paseo Drive in Wesley Chapel, expects the mall to experience an uptick in business because of the better access for shoppers coming from the east.

Laura Zimmerman, who lives on Meadow Pointe Boulevard, is happy to have another option for traveling to Zephyrhills. (Christine Holtzman)

Patrons at the mall said they’re glad to see the new road connection.

“I think it will ease the congestion and offer other alternatives,” said Laura Zimmerman, who lives on Meadow Pointe Boulevard and travels frequently to Zephyrhills.

McKenna Alkishawi, who lives in Zephyrhills, said the new route is “definitely 100 percent” beneficial.

Another Zephyrhills resident — Brenda Maass — is happy there’s a new way to get to Morris Bridge Road, where she can then head north at the new intersection.

For Zephyrhills resident John Skidmore, the new connection makes it easier for both him and his mother to get to doctor appointments.

“It’s about time. It’s going to be great,” Skidmore said.

Brenda Maass, a Zephyrhills resident and retiree, now has an alternative route in State Road 56 to visit friends and shop in the Wesley Chapel and Land O’ Lakes region. (Christine Holtzman)

Donna Pacheco, a Wesley Chapel retiree, is pleased to have a more convenient way to get to Zephyrhills, where she goes three to four times a week to visit her brother, son and grandchildren.

“It’s really about time that they did that (extended the road),” she said.

Bill Cronin, president/CEO of the Pasco Economic Development Council Inc., sees other benefits that improved connectivity will create.

“You’ve got the (State Road) 56 extension. You’ve got the potential widening of (U.S.) 301 in the north of the county, as well as the alignment of Clinton Avenue and (State Road) 39, which now starts to make us look a little more connected to Polk and some of those areas that we can access.

“We end up being much more strategically located for distribution activity,” Cronin said.

Numerous sources said the project’s success hinged on the collaboration of elected leaders and staff at the state, county and city levels; private landowners; and involved citizens.

Melonie Monson, executive director for The Greater Zephyrhills Chamber of Commerce, said local efforts played a vital role in securing a four-lane road.

McKenna Alkishawi is a Zephyrhills resident who often travels into Wesley Chapel on her leisure time. The USF student said that the new State Road 56 extension will be ‘100 percent’ beneficial in cutting down her commute time. (Christine Holtzman)

“There were a lot of letters written to legislators, to city officials, to government officials — and everybody decided to work together,” Monson said.

Vonnie Mikkelsen, now president and CEO of the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce in Oregon, recalls those efforts. “It didn’t come top down. It came grassroots up,” she said.

“Honestly, it was a question of: Why hasn’t this happened sooner?” Mikkelsen said.

She credited then State Rep. Danny Burgess for playing a leading role.

“He listened and he understood immediately,” she said.

But, he wasn’t the only one.

“Our local government officials, they understood the importance. Our airport manager at the time, understood the opportunity that it presented. The Pasco EDC (knew, too).

“Everybody really rallied around the idea, even in the context of the first answer being, ‘No. No way.’

“Quite honestly, we thought, ‘OK. That’s not the final answer,’” Mikkelsen said.

“What really sealed the deal were some conversations at the state level.

Kevin O’ Farrell, provost at the Pasco-Hernando State College Porter Campus at Wiregrass Ranch, said the extension of State Road 56 will reduce commute times for students and staff traveling to the campus, near the intersection of Mansfield Boulevard and State Road 56. (Brian Fernandes)

“Lo, and behold, there was an opportunity. It required some innovative and creative thinking, and some collaborative partnerships at the local level to make it happen.”

Burgess, now executive director for the Florida Department of Veterans Affairs, agreed: “The public-private partnership aspect, and the various levels of  governments that were involved in this, was really a huge success story, and an example of what can happen when everybody comes together for the common good of a community.”

The partnership resulted in a $22,750,000 loan for the third and fourth lanes of the project, with the loan to be repaid by private development partners through a mobility fee surcharge and a special assessment, if necessary.

The City of Zephyrhills agreed to reimburse the county for 10 percent of any loan shortfall paid for by the county. The contractor, Cone & Graham Inc., also agreed to include all costs associated with the design, permitting and construction, and other costs within the loan amount.

It’s a success that Burgess said he will savor.

“In the Legislature, and politics, in general, you know — in this line of work — you somewhat have to get used to defeats more than victories, if I’m going to be quite honest with you. You actually have to learn to live with that.

“But, then a victory like this happens. It’s validation. This is why you do what you do. You fight every day, because when you do something this big — this will have a profound impact on your community,” he said.

State Road 56 Extension

  • $59.7 million project
  • Runs from Meadow Pointe Boulevard in Wesley Chapel to U.S. 301 in Zephyrhills
  • Signalized intersections added at Morris Bridge Road and U.S. 301
  • Road design is curved, to minimize wetlands disruption
  • Amenities include: 10-foot multi-use path; 5-foot sidewalk; 7-foot-wide bicycle lanes on both shoulders

By B.C. Manion and Brian Fernandes

Published July 17, 2019

New opportunities coming to Cypress Creek campus

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Crews have begun work on Cypress Creek Middle School, being built on the site where Cypress Creek Middle High School now operates.

A new Instructional and Performing Arts Center, which will provide educational opportunities and entertainment, will rise on the same site.

This is what the new Instructional Performing Arts Center, to be built on the campus shared by Cypress Creek High School and the new Cypress Creek Middle School, will look like. The campus is at 8701 Old Pasco Road in Wesley Chapel. (Courtesy of Pasco-Hernando State College)

Both are slated to open in fall of 2020.

Pasco County Schools gave Pasco-Hernando State College the land where the performing arts center, IPAC, will be built. The state college is paying the construction costs for IPAC, and will oversee its use.

But, the new facility will benefit middle school through college students, through the programs it offers.

In a recent interview with The Laker/Lutz News, representatives of the state college and the school district provided details relating to IPAC and the new middle school building.

The middle school project — at roughly 190,000 square feet, will take much longer to build than the 35,000-square foot performing arts center.

At the middle school, “they’re working on the site work. The foundation work is ongoing right now. Everything is on schedule for completion in July of 2020 for an August 2020 opening,” said Mike Gude, the school district’s director of construction services.

Cypress Creek Middle will have a capacity of 1,691 students, making it the largest of the district’s middle schools.

Safety and security will be first and foremost, with a single point of entry, controlled access and a fence around the school, Gude said.

Ray Gadd, deputy superintendent of Pasco County Schools, envisions opportunities for education, entertainment and growth for the local economy through the collaborative project involving the school district and state college.

“We designed our middle school to be very much compatible with the IPAC (performing arts center),” added Ray Gadd, deputy superintendent for Pasco County Schools. “We have a black box theater. A beautiful state-of-the-art black box theater. We also have an orchestra room. Dance. Chorus,” Gadd said.

Dr. Stanley Giannet, vice president of academic affairs and faculty development at PHSC, said the performing arts center will serve an important academic role.

“It’s called the Instructional and Performing Arts Center, the IPAC. The reason we have instructional there first is because in addition to a community-type events space and a performing arts space, the primary responsibility is to provide educational opportunities for our students, both dual enrollment students, students who will pipeline from the school district to PHSC, and community students, who wish to partake in the program,” he explained.

The state college will be using space within the performing arts center to provide courses to support a new Associate of Science degree in digital design and multimedia technology.

That new program was based on a needs analysis, and takes advantage of the fact that some programs are already offered in these areas at Wesley Chapel, Wiregrass and Cypress Creek high schools.

“It’s a natural extension,” Giannet said. Plus, there’s a documented need in the community for employees with these skills.

“This is a high-wage target industry,” Giannet said. The skills learned in this program can be applied to the performing arts, but also transferred to jobs in other industries, he said.

In the fall of 2020, Pasco County Schools is scheduled to open Cypress Creek Middle School. It is being designed for 1,600 students, making it the district’s largest middle school. The middle school will join Cypress Creek High and Pasco Hernando State College’s Instructional and Performing Arts Center. (Courtesy of Pasco County Schools)

Students also will be able to take courses to support an Associate of Arts degree, which they can transfer to a four-year degree, he said.

Students will be able to take dance, theater and music classes as electives toward their associate’s degree, Giannet said. To get the associate’s, students would need 36 hours of general education, but the remaining 24 could be acquired at IPAC, focused on the performing arts.

Campus could draw regional events
The performing arts center is considered to be an extension of the state college’s Porter Campus at Wiregrass Ranch, which will be under the direction of an administrator who will report to Kevin O’ Farrell, provost of the Porter Campus.

The community also will have access to a new performing arts venue, and the campus could attract national or regional thespian festivals, or other kinds of performing arts events.

The 444-seat performing arts theater, the 150-seat black box theater at the middle school, and the arts classrooms available on campus provide a set of resources that could be attractive for such events, Gadd said. Plus, the site has plenty of parking to support such events, after school hours.

The black box theater might prove particularly popular with local theater groups, Gadd said.

“One of the advantages of the black box in the middle school is that it might be more amenable to some community theater activities, because I think the IPAC center is going to be like an anthill — it’s going to be very busy,” Gadd said.

The combined state college and school district resources on the campus create the potential for increased economic development, additional educational programs, and a new entertainment venue for the community, Gadd said.

Dr. Stanley Giannet, vice president of academic affairs and faculty development at Pasco-Hernando State College, said the new performing arts center on the Cypress Creek campus will offer a broad array of educational opportunities.

Gianett noted that the center will be a source of revenue for the college, too.

“We’ll have professional troupes, professional shows that we can bring in,” he said, and there will be opportunities for groups to rent the facility for events.

The theater also will provide another place for the school district to offer plays and other events.

Working together on this project has helped the district and state college develop a greater level of collaboration, said Gadd, who not only serves as the school district’s deputy superintendent, but also sits on the state college’s board.

The dual role offers a vantage point that allows him to see areas where the district and college can leverage the resources of the individual organizations, through collaboration.

Construction is expected to begin on the performing arts center around June of this year, and the project is expected to be completed by July of 2020, said Tony Rivas, associate vice president facilities management and administrative services for the state college.

O’ Farrell said a request is being made to the Florida Legislature for some additional funding for the project.

“One of the final pushes that we’re making this legislative session is for an additional $2.5 million,” he said.

“We had $15.5 million for the facility,” he explained.

Because of the partnership between the state college and the school district, the site for the arts center has been secured, and it is almost ready for construction, O’ Farrell said.

If additional money can be secured for this project, it would go to enlarge the interior space in the arts center’s foyer to accommodate breakfasts, receptions and community gatherings.

Published February 13, 2019

Excellence in Business Awards announced

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The North Tampa Bay Chamber has announced the winners of its 2018 Excellence in Business Awards, which are bestowed during an annual celebration to acknowledge extraordinary contributions by local community members, businesses and organizations in the Wesley Chapel, New Tampa, Trinity and Odessa regions.

This year’s winners are:

New Business of the Year: Holiday Inn Express – Trinity

Small Business of the Year: Buttermilk Provisions

Large Business of the Year: Shriners Hospital for Children – Tampa

Business Leader of the Year: Dr. Kevin O’Farrell

Volunteer of the Year: Damaris Rios

Dorothy Mitchell Legacy Award: John Gallagher, retired Pasco County administrator

Also, The Board Member of the Year award went to David DeWeerd, CPA, and Dr. Kevin O’ Farrell received the Chairman’s Award. Both of those awards were given by Jennifer Cofini, chair of the North Tampa Bay Chamber’s board.

The event was presented by Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel and was held in the Sierra Center at Hyatt Place Wesley Chapel.

Event sponsors were Design & Construction Innovations, Wiregrass Ranch, Avalon Park West, and the Tampa Bay Times.

Published November 21, 2018

Learning the ins and outs of medical marijuana

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Medical marijuana is a fact in Florida.

Voters approved it in a 2016 referendum.

Lawmakers passed a law regulating it, effective January 2017.

Cities and counties generally are writing local ordinances in line with state law to permit dispensaries, but limit their locations.

Local governments, however, do have the option to ban them.

Pasco County commissioners are expected to vote on an ordinance in November that will treat medical marijuana dispensaries as pharmacies — and prohibit them from operating within 500 feet of public and private schools.

A display at a medical marijuana forum shows the many ways medical marijuana is delivered to patients. There are topical creams, vaporizers, oral syringes, tinctures and nasal sprays. (Kathy Steele)

The full impact of legalized medical marijuana, also known as medical cannabis, is a work-in-progress, with potential for legislators to tinker with the law in 2018.

A Community Awareness Series, hosted by the Pasco-Hernando State College’s Porter Campus, took on the issue at its “Medical Marijuana Legalization and Regulation Symposium” on Oct. 26.

About 100 people attended the seminar, which was open to students, faculty and the public.

The college wants “to bring dialogue and conversation to the issues that can affect our lives,” said Kevin O’ Farrell, provost at the Porter Campus.

Speakers included Keith Stolte, an ophthalmologist, who owns Stolte Eye Center in Spring Hill; and, Victoria Walker, media relations for Trulieve, one of 17 state approved dispensaries.

Stolte began treating patients with medical marijuana as soon as the state law took effect on Jan. 3.

He previously had researched medical marijuana and believed in its benefits for a host of ailments, in addition to glaucoma.

“We’re changing lives,” Stolte said. “If anybody told me we’d be getting the results we’re getting, I wouldn’t have believed them.”

His first patient was a teenage girl who was home-schooled due to a social anxiety disorder. “She couldn’t leave the house,” Stolte said.

Within a month of starting treatment, she enrolled in a local high school, and soon after, joined the cheerleading squad.

“That’s something else,” he said.

Laurie Oliver, practice manager at Stolte Eye Center, was a medical marijuana skeptic when she first learned of plans to see medical marijuana patients.

“I’m an old-fashioned Southern woman,” she said. “You were taught marijuana was awful.”

But, the patients changed her mind, including an elderly woman with tremors who shook so badly she couldn’t feed herself. The woman came by the office soon after starting medical marijuana to proudly display a blue shirt, without a food crumb or stain on it.

“She just wanted to feed herself before she dies,” said Oliver.

Patients’ success stories are starting to change everyone’s attitudes, Stolte said.

“We are starting to drift from demonization of marijuana, and this could be really good,” he said.

The stigma that attaches to marijuana use also leads to misconceptions about dispensaries, said Walker.

They aren’t “head” shops with hippies in sandals behind the counter selling weed and bongs. In fact, state law bans the sale of the whole marijuana plant, Walker said.

“There is no smoking,” Walker said, adding anyone who walks into a dispensary will find a professional, medical office environment.

Security measures are mandated by law.

Trulieve stores typically have about 40 cameras. The same tight security is maintained at its facility in Tallahassee, where the cannabis plants are grown and medical marijuana products are manufactured.

Engineers and scientists work in Trulieve’s laboratory to develop and test different strains of cannabis.

Plants are pesticide-free and are grown indoors.

Products are offered in a variety of forms, including vaporizers, nasal spray, tinctures, topical creams, oral syringes and capsules. They may contain two of the main ingredients found in marijuana plants – tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) or cannabidiol (CBD).

The more common ingredient is THC, which can produce the “high” associated with marijuana. But CBD, which can’t produce a high, is becoming more popular with doctors because it can produce fewer side effects, Stolte said.

Edibles are legal, but Walker said dispensaries are waiting on rules regarding packaging and size before introducing them.

When they come, she said, “It will be very anti-attractive to minor children.”

The state is closely monitoring this fledging medical marijuana industry.

Dispensaries are capped statewide at 17. Each one is allowed to own and operate 25 retail stores.

Trulieve has 10 locations, with stores opening soon in North Fort Myers and Orlando.

Stores are open seven days a week. “We treat them just like a pharmacy,” Walker said.

Because state law gives cities and counties the option to ban dispensaries, Walker said, “It’s really up to local communities and towns to let us in.”

Doctors and patients also have regulations.

Doctors aren’t permitted to dispense medical marijuana. Doctors are not allowed to write a prescription, either, because marijuana is considered a controlled substance under federal law.

Physicians also must take a state mandated two-hour course and register with the state before they are qualified to “recommend” medical marijuana.

With a recommendation letter in hand, patients visit a dispensary to receive their medication. Patients must register on a confidential state database, and they have to wait about 30 days to receive a card.

Medical marijuana is dispensed in 70-day increments. Once the 70 days expires, a patient can renew the recommendation for another 70 days. This can be done sometimes by phone but, about every six months, there must be a face-to-face visit with a doctor.

By law, 10 diseases are listed as eligible for medical marijuana including epilepsy, glaucoma, post-traumatic stress disorder, Crohn’s and Parkinson’s.

But, the law also includes “medical conditions of the same kind or class as or comparable” to those specifically listed.

That gives doctors some discretion in approving patients who don’t neatly fit any of the approved categories, Stolte said.

He also noted that medical marijuana could play a role in addressing the opioid epidemic.

“You can kill yourself with opioids. You can’t kill yourself with marijuana,” Stolte said. “It (marijuana) is not a gateway drug. It’s an exit drug.”

Research is beginning to show that medical marijuana reduces opioid prescriptions and overdose deaths, he added.

“We’re treating people who have failed on everything else out there,” Stolte said.

The next event in the Community Awareness Series will be “DUI (Driving Under the Influence) Awareness Seminar” on Nov. 15 from 11 a.m. to noon. It will be at Pasco-Hernando State College, 2727 Mansfield Blvd., in Wesley Chapel, in the Conference Center, Building B, Room 303.

For information, visit PHSC.edu.

Published November 8, 2017