Category: Education

Middle School Violinist: Please Support Our Orchestra Programs

Did you know that kids who are involved in music are more likely to score higher on standardized tests? It’s true — papers from respected journals, such as The Journal of Educational Psychology and The British Journal of Psychology have done extensive research on this matter. So, why aren’t our local public school orchestra programs supported by our public school districts?

Mahi Nooka

Unfortunately, not many adults involve themselves with youth orchestra programs, or even bother to learn about them. But, I believe that absolutely needs to change.

My name is Mahi Nooka. I’m 14 years old and I’m an eighth grader at Dr. John Long Middle School. I have been playing the violin for four years and I was invited to give my opinion on this subject by Neighborhood News editor Gary Nager because of a disturbing pattern I’ve noticed: our local youth orchestras are not being supported by the Pasco County School District or the local community.

You see, school orchestra programs in this area aren’t well-known or funded properly. I’m in both my school orchestra at Dr. John Long and in an outside program called the Tampa Metropolitan Youth Orchestra (or TMYO). It’s well known that the arts historically have had a low priority in Florida’s public schools, especially compared to sports and other money-making activities and I don’t think that’s fair or just.

But, even within the arts, there is a hierarchy; specifically, within school music programs. Orchestra programs are almost always given a lower priority than band programs in the amount and quality of resources provided. I’ve seen bands (especially high school marching bands) get larger classrooms, uniforms, and spots on the school’s website, while the orchestra programs are stuck using the same equipment for the past sixteen years or more.

It doesn’t make sense to me, though. I know that music has the ability to change kids’ lives — it has changed mine drastically. I started in orchestra in the 6th grade (although I’ve been taking private lessons since the 4th grade) and came to love it.

In the 7th grade, my private teacher recommended that I join an outside program to supplement my school experiences, and we found TMYO, a youth orchestra program located in Hillsborough County. I auditioned for one of the four groups they had that matched my skill level best, and I loved it so much that I auditioned again this year, for the next higher group. Currently, I’m proud to say that I am sitting fourth chair in the second violin section at TMYO.

One thing I can tell you through my experience is that orchestra is like a family. It teaches teamwork and lets us form incredible bonds. I’m more confident and passionate because of it, and my fellow musicians and I are comparable to siblings. Orchestra gave me that, and I’m hoping that if orchestra programs are better nourished, other kids can have that, too.

However, whether orchestra programs can thrive or not doesn’t depend upon us as musicians. The success of these programs depends heavily upon public participation — on people like you knowing about our programs and taking the initiative to support us.

That brings us to the real question: How can you support us?

Attending an orchestra concert is a great way to help. By attending, you’re showing that the kids’ hard work is not for nothing, and that someone cares. This is vital to developing confidence and allows us to practice performing in front of an audience (two essential skills for musicians).

Trust me, it doesn’t feel good when your auditorium is half-full and you’re performing for barely fifty people. This may seem like a lot of people to some of you, but think of how many people go to sporting events, especially football games.

And honestly, if nothing else, concerts are just a great way to spend time and involve yourself with the community. Though I’m not sure about other programs and schools, the concert for Dr. John Long is on Wednesday, May 4, at the Center for the Arts at Wesley Chapel, and the next concert for TMYO is on Saturday, May 14, at the USF School of Music in Tampa. The general public is invited to attend both of these events.

In addition to simply attending an orchestra concert, many local nonprofit programs have options for donations on their website. I know TMYO does (tmyo.org/make-a-donation) and so do many others in the area: the Florida Youth Orchestra (floridayouthorchestra.org/donate), and the Florida Symphony Youth Orchestra (fsyo.org/support-fsyo). Donating lets our orchestras continue to exist and allows young musicians continue to express themselves creatively.

If you’re not interested in donating or attending, you can still help by spreading the word. Discussing the benefits of orchestra programs can help stir up interest in the programs, and some parents might even check out orchestra programs for their own kids. It may seem like a little thing, but it can help a lot.

And so, I’ve made my case. The youth orchestra programs need to be supported, and I’ve done my part to ensure that happens by having this article published in the Neighborhood News. I will keep advocating in the background because of my love for orchestra, but there is only so much I can do. I hope I have inspired you to take action. This is your chance to give back and make an impact — one that will be appreciated by young orchestral musicians in our community.

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Wiregrass Ranch High Health Fair Draws A Crowd

When Phoebe Taylor put on the drunk goggles and attempted to walk the guided pathway, she thought it would be easy. Instead, the Wiregrass Ranch High freshman was shocked to find herself stumbling throughout and sometimes off the course.

Like Taylor, students at her school are learning the consequences of drinking and driving, the dangers of not wearing their seatbelts and the importance of mental health.

“It’s easy for us to just go and do something dumb and regret it later,” Taylor says. “If that actually happened it could be very dangerous.”

The largest-ever Wiregrass Ranch Wellness & Safety Fair was hosted on March 9 by the school’s Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD) chapter to bring awareness to mental health and promote a healthier and safer lifestyle.

The event brought about 35 community leaders and the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO) to talk to students and demonstrate the dangers of these acts.

Shaina Finkel, the president of the school’s SADD chapter and the national SADD president for the 2021-22 school year, oversaw the event. Her main goal was to have students talk to these organizations and understand the messages they are spreading.

“It’s not just going in and getting education,” Finkel said. “It’s meeting people and finding things that you might be passionate about that you didn’t know you were passionate about. It’s bringing safety and education and health to our school and it’s just allowing the students to learn.”

Finkel says there have been instances where these messages have not been reached by students; she hopes that through these fairs, students will rethink some of their previous and future decisions.

Ashley Boyles, Wiregrass Ranch High’s assistant principal, also oversaw the Wellness & Safety Fair. She says the fair is eye-opening to students and impacts them for a long time. The last time the fair occurred was two years ago, because of the pandemic, but she says students still remember and talk about it to this day.

“We’re again trying to make sure that our students are safe not only at school, but out in the community, out on the roads,” she says. “We always say to be college-, career- and life-ready and I think this is something to be life-ready.”

Students watched as a rolling car simulator demonstrated the dangers of drinking and driving and not wearing a seatbelt in a car crash. As the car spun, dummies inside not wearing a seatbelt flew out. Florida Highway Patrol spokesperson Steve Gaskin said he still gets people coming up to him and saying they remember the visual impact, and it is one of the reasons why they buckle up today.

“If I can make an impact on each one of these kids, then that’s one crash I won’t have to work and it’s one family I won’t have to go talk to and say, ‘Hey, your child’s not coming home tonight,’” he says.

Kelsey Strigler, the vice president of Wiregrass Ranch’s SADD chapter, says the car simulator is likely the most effective demonstration to show students the importance of wearing their seatbelts.

“Looking at it, I would be terrified,” she says. “I already do wear my seatbelt, but If I was a student who didn’t, that would really drive the point across that like you really need to wear that or you’re going to end up like the dummy on the floor.”

Among the booths was the American Foundation of Suicide’s Tampa Bay chapter run by board member Teresa Daniels. She is spreading her son Tristan Daniels’ story in hopes of saving another student’s life.

“There is hope out there,” she said. “They could be lifesavers. They can help anyone in need.”

Gabriella Nieddialek, a SADD member, recognized the importance of this booth and is glad to now be learning about these tools.

“A lot of teens don’t really like to come forward about mental health, and it’s definitely something that I’m glad the school introduces and is comfortable talking about,” Nieddialek said. “Definitely encouraging us to talk to people and get help.”

Wiregrass Ranch’s SADD chapter advisor Gregory Finkel is proud of how the event turned out. He watched how students interacted with community members as they talked to each other about what they learned. He says that is what the event is all about.

“You don’t really get these opportunities too often,” Gregory Finkel said. “If we can hit one of them, just one kid right, make a difference in their lives, the better.”

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Dr. Kiran Patel To Open Elementary School On Charter Campus

When Dr. Kiran C. Patel Elementary School opens this fall, it will complete the campus that currently houses Patel High School for students in grades 9-12 and Terrace Community Middle School for students in grades 6-8.

The 32-acre campus is located on Raulerson Ranch Rd. and is visible from I-75 near E. Fowler Ave, just 15 minutes south of New Tampa.

Patel High opened its doors for the 2019-20 school year and has continued to increase in popularity, with 450 students already signed up with hopes of being chosen by lottery to fill one of the 150 available slots at the school for the 2022-23 school year.

Terrace Community Middle School has been operating for more than 20 years and moved onto the Patel campus at the beginning of the 2021-22 school year in August.

After establishing the high school and working to bring the middle school onto the campus, Dr. Kiran C. Patel has turned his attention to younger students with the latest campus expansion.

“I think education in the formative years is what will create the future for anybody,” says Dr. Patel, a local entrepreneur and philanthropist who is both the founder and financier of the school. “Here we have an educational institution that focuses on a well-rounded person who has qualities of being a better human being. We don’t just focus on the grade of the school. There’s no question we want students to achieve a high standard of measurable goals, but there’s a lot more to education than that.”

*(L.-r.) Co-founder Ashok Bagdy, Dr. Kiran C. Patel and former Chiles Elementary assistant principal Ashley Galfond are the driving forces behind Dr. Kiran C. Patel Elementary, which opens Aug. 2022.*

After initially committing $20 million to launch the high school, Dr. Kiran has spent another $20 million to build the elementary school and has spent an additional $5 million on upgrades to the campus, such as adding a covered outdoor court and restrooms by the sports fields. The Tampa resident’s business enterprises include luxury real estate development, medical software, healthcare solutions and commercial property acquisition and management. The success of these businesses allows him to make impactful contributions on a global scale, which he has done through the establishment of schools, colleges and hospitals on three continents.

“Construction on the elementary school was completed this summer,” says Ash Bagdy, who is a co-founder of the school, along with his wife, Kavita Jain, and Sonali Judd, who is Dr. Patel’s daughter.

Bagdy explains that the 84,000-sq.-ft. building is L-shaped. The elementary school is housed in one half and the middle school in the other. The two schools are completely separated with no interaction and TCMS remains a completely independent charter school.

Bagdy also says the campus was built with security in mind. Classrooms have key card entries, there are security cameras, a school security officer, and the school can be locked down in an emergency, with “one click to lock all doors.”

About The Elementary School

New Tampa’s Ashley Galfond has been hired as the first-ever principal of Patel Elementary.

Galfond was most recently the assistant principal at Chiles Elementary in Tampa Palms. She taught elementary school since her graduation from USF in 1998 until she moved into school administration seven years ago.

While she says it was not an easy decision to leave Chiles, she is extremely excited about the smaller focus at Patel.

“I like that everything within the organization is focused on the kids of Patel Elementary,” she says. “Here, everyone who has any stake in the school is just focused on our students.”

In fall 2022, the school will open with students in just three grades — kindergarten, first and second grade.

“Each year, as those children move to the next grade,” Galfond says, “we will add that grade until — four years from now — we will have K through five.”

Patel Elementary will open with a total of 270 students. There will be five classes in each of the three grades.

Each class will be limited to just 18 students. Although the physical size of each of the classrooms was expanded just before construction, it was to allow kids to spread out more for physical distancing because of Covid, not to make space for more kids in each classroom.

The Three ‘Pillars’

Galfond says that faculty members explain to parents and students that there are three crucial “pillars” at Patel Elementary.

“First,” she says, “we will focus on the whole child, including mental, physical and academic health and growth, with great outdoor learning opportunities as well as in the classroom.”

The second pillar, she says, is social emotional learning, which will be woven into the academic curriculum every day. Galfond explains that this includes teaching children to support one another, helping them to learn to express their own opinions and views, and figure out ways to calm themselves when they become upset. She adds that teacher training is a crucial part of the program.

The third pillar, according to Galfond, is project-based learning.

“It is inquiry-based,” she says. “We start with a question to engage students – something that affects the community in some way — and then, all disciplines are tied in to solve the problem, from reading to science to math.”

Dr. Patel notes that while academic achievement will be emphasized, it is not the only measure of success for the students who attend Patel Elementary.

“We will have a holistic approach and the goal of producing a student who is going to be an asset to the community,” explains Dr. Patel. “The purpose of education should not be to become a CEO. That should not be the primary goal, but to say that I will be a better human being and leave the earth better than I found it.”

Students Chosen By Lottery

Parents whose students will be entering kindergarten through second grade for the 2022-23 school year and are interested in attending Patel Elementary must apply online at PatelElementary.org. Students are chosen to attend the school through a random lottery process.

“This is the year with the best chance to get in,” explains Galfond. “It’s the most spots we will ever have.”

Every Tuesday in January, at 6 p.m., the school will host a new applicant Open House where families can meet the principal, with food and drinks provided.

“I am excited that everything materialized,” says Dr. Patel. “It was a big, big endeavor. I am very happy and proud to provide this option to the community.”

Patel Elementary is located at 10739 Raulerson Ranch Rd. in Tampa. To apply online for a spot for the 2022-23 school year, visit PatelElementary.org. For more information, call (813) 444-0660 or see the ad on page 21.

Patel

PHSC Officials Cut The Ribbon At The New IPAC!

Pasco Hernando State College held the official ribbon cutting of its Instructional Performing Arts Center (IPAC), which has been open less than a year, on Jan. 6. Speakers praised the public-private effort to bring the facility to fruition. *(Photos: Charmaine Georg*e)

After nine months of operating quietly on the campus of Cypress Creek High off Old Pasco Rd., the Pasco Hernando State College (PHSC) Instructional Performing Arts Center (IPAC) is preparing to spread its wings in 2022.

On Jan. 6, PHSC and governmental officials held the IPAC’s official ribbon cutting, with a dozen or so local dignitaries (like county commissioners Ron Oakley and Mike Moore and Florida State Rep. Randy Maggard, a PHSC graduate) on hand to give short speeches, some of them focusing on the success of the IPAC and its future offerings to the community.

Afterwards, IPAC executive director Lauren Murray, DMA (pictured above), said that PHSC students have already embraced the theater classes, and will be able to take dance classes this semester and participate in the facility’s music program starting this fall.

There also will be group piano and guitar lessons, which also will be available to the public, and Murray (right photo)has high hopes for launching a community art series this fall, which would include things like jazz trios, locally produced musicals and even stand-up comics.

“It will be pretty diverse, with musical, theatrical and dance events that we expect will reach a broad range of people,” said Dr. Murray.

The state-of-the-art, 35,000-sq.-ft. IPAC features a number of studios for things like dance, music and video production, and the 444-seat Will Weatherford Theater — named for the former Florida Speaker of the House who helped secure funding for the $18-million facility, is considered the heart of IPAC.

The facility already has won two awards — a first place Special Projects in the Florida Educational Facilities Planners’ Association, Inc., 2021 Architectural Showcase!, and an Excellence in Collaboration award from the North Tampa Bay Chamber of Commerce.

“It’s a nearly $20-million investment in our region that will be truly transformational for our students, our families and the residents of this area,” said PHSC Provost Dr. Kevin O’Farrell. “There is really nothing like the Instructional Performing Arts Center that we have here at PHSC.”

Ray Gadd, deputy superintendent for Pasco County Schools, was one of those first approached when the idea of building a performing arts center or arena came up years ago. He told the ribbon-cutting crowd that in his search for the right kind of design, he collected floor plans from the Tampa Bay area’s Mahaffey, Capitol and Straz theaters, and even a theater in Singapore that had a $100-million price tag.

“We didn’t quite get there,” he said, laughing. “Regardless of the cost, what we got was a jewel.”

There have already been 26 events held at the IPAC, most of them small and self-produced by local groups who rented the theater. There have been two fully-staged theatrical productions, musical events, day-long conferences and Dr. Murray said the active Indian community in Wesley Chapel has held two dance events with three more planned this spring.

She is hoping to augment the positive start with the community art series, outdoor festivals, week-long festivals and large-scale events.

“We plan to reach a lot of people,” Murray says. “We really are looking to cover the gamut.”

For more information, visit PHSC.edu or call (813) 536-2816.

IPAC

Kirkland Ranch Academy To Welcome Students In August

High school students looking for an innovative alternative to their neighborhood campus will have a new option this fall.

Pasco County Schools will open its Kirkland Ranch Academy of Innovation (KRAI) on Curley Rd., north of the WaterGrass community, for the 2022-23 school year.

The magnet school will initially start with just freshmen and sophomores, but will add a grade each year to serve ninth through twelfth grade.

No students are zoned for attendance at KRAI. Instead, students who are interested in its specialized programs will apply for a lottery. The school plans to prepare students for in-demand, high-salary, high-skill careers.

KRAI’s program options are:

• Applied Cybersecurity & Computer Science Principles

• Automotive Maintenance & Light Repair

• Automotive (Diesel)

• Biomedical Sciences

• Building Trades & Construction Technology

• Electricity

• Digital Media/Multimedia Design

• Engineering & Applied Robotics

• Patient Care Technology

• Welding Technology Fundamentals

DeeDee Johnson (photo) was named the principal of the school last September. The former principal of Wesley Chapel High was serving at Pasco Middle School and transitioned to oversee the opening of the Kirkland Ranch Academy this January.

“I am most excited about the opportunities that it’s going to bring students in the District,” she says, “whether it’s college, career, or preparing them for life.”

She emphasizes that while the school can provide a pathway to an in-demand, high-paying job right after high school, it’s also a great choice for college-focused students.

“There are industry certifications, but also Advanced Placement and Dual Enrollment courses,” says Johnson. “It’s going to give students a leg up by having connections with business and community partners.”

She says that one feature students will be excited about is that the school will have a 1:1 ratio of students to electronic devices. She anticipates that all students will be assigned a personal laptop for their own use, with some laptops being specialized to fit their chosen program of study.

The building and its construction are innovative, as well. The school overlooks the property’s large wetland, and was designed with energy efficiency as a priority, and its orientation creates a natural breezeway.

The first lottery for students to apply to attend the school closed in January, after we went to press. However, Johnson says she expects that a second window will open for students to apply later in the spring. To get more information about how to apply for Kirkland Ranch Academy of Innovation, visit the school’s website at KRAI.pasco.k12.fl.us.

“I’m excited about having the opportunity to build from scratch,” says Johnson, “including our school culture – what we’re going to believe and how we’re going to get there.”

Kirkland Ranch Academy of Innovation is located at 9100 Curley Rd. in Wesley Chapel. For more information, visit KRAI.pasco.k12.fl.us.

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