Almost All Wesley Chapel Schools Earn Outstanding 2024-25 Grades 

School letter grades in Wesley Chapel are up overall this year, according to a report released by the Florida Department of Education in July. 

Four of Wesley Chapel’s nine elementary schools improved by a letter grade, including Sand Pine, which moved from a “B” to an “A.” 

“We are thrilled,” says Sand Pine principal Angie Shauger. “For me, this A grade is more than a letter. It’s a celebration of what’s possible when a school unites around a shared mission to do what’s best for our students. I could not be prouder of our students, staff, and school community that has led us here.” 

The other three elementary schools that improved their letter grades from the 2023-24 school year to 2024-25 are Double Branch, Quail Hollow and Veterans, all of which moved from a “C” to a “B.” 

At Quail Hollow, both principal Norman Graham and assistant principal Nicole Sciarratta joined the school for the 2023-24 school year, and they agree that it’s rare for a school to have a complete turnover of the administrative team all at once. Last year, they say they experienced “typical growing pains,” while this year they were able to establish new expectations and increase the staff’s focus on student achievement. 

“Our teachers focused on setting specific goals with every student in reading and math, so they were able to help students make growth in very specific areas,” says Sciarratta. “We saw tremendous growth in proficiency and learning gains this year, and we were just one point from an A.” 

All of the elementary schools that improved their grades were quick to express their pride in their school and the importance of hard work by both teachers and students, and the support of parents and the community. 

“I am super proud of our community pulling together,” says principal Lisa Grimsley at Double Branch Elementary. “Not just the teachers, but our fantastic PTA and even our PLACE [after-school program] staff, where they have time for homework and support our academic needs.” 

While the principals are pleased with the higher grades, they are keeping an eye toward further growth. 

“As we look ahead to the new school year, we are energized and committed to reaching an A,” says Melissa Bidgood, the principal at Veterans Elementary, who says this year’s success “stems from a laser-sharp focus on data, identifying areas of need, and closely monitoring student growth.” 

Seven Oaks Elementary maintained its A, while Wesley Chapel and Wiregrass elementaries maintained their Bs. 

Two Wesley Chapel elementary schools dropped a letter grade, including Watergrass, which fell from a B to a C, and New River, which dropped from a C to a D. Neither New River principal Kelly Wisneski nor Watergrass principal Andrea Altman were reached for comments about their school’s respective grades. 

Meanwhile, the new Kirkland Ranch K-8 school received an A as its first ever letter grade. 

All of Wesley Chapel’s other K-8 and middle schools maintained their previous letter grades, including As for John Long, Pinecrest Academy, and Union Park Charter Academy, while Cypress Creek, Innovation Prep and Weightman middle schools all earned Bs. 

At the high school level, Cypress Creek High earned its first-ever A after earning consistent B ratings since it opened for the 2017-18 school year. 

Kirkland Ranch Academy of Innovation and Wiregrass Ranch High both maintained their As from the previous year, and Pinecrest Academy’s high school showed the largest increase of any Wesley Chapel school, as it moved from a C last year (its first year receiving a grade) to an A this year. 

Even high-achieving schools recognize that boiling so many measurements into just one letter can be problematic, and may not represent all of the complexities of an entire school and all of the students within it. The letter grades take into account various measurements to represent student achievement, learning gains, graduation, acceleration success, and maintaining a focus on students who need the most support. 

Quail Hollow’s Graham expresses it this way. “At the end of the day, we want each one of our kids to be successful,” he says. “We want to look at each student as an individual and help them get what they need.” 

More information about the 2024-25 school grades is available online at FLDoE.org/accountability/accountability-reporting/school-grades. You’ll find a much more extensive chart that breaks down how each school earned its respective letter grade. 

Final Touch Quality Cleaners — Amazing People & Fantastic Cleaning Services! 

(L.-r.) Reggie, Ryder, Erica & Ryleigh invite you to check out Final Touch Quality Cleaners, which will make sure every inch of your home, apartment, business or Airbnb will be sparkling when they leave. (All photos by Charmaine George) 

Reggie Wakefield and Erica Poniatowski, the owners of Final Touch Quality Cleaners, have become mine and Jannah’s friends over the course of the last two years, since they took over cleaning our previous apartment and especially, since they have been cleaning our larger, new apartment at the Silversaw Apartments. 

Jannah first met both Erica and Reggie at her Business Networking International (BNI) meetings. Erica joined the group and we all hit it off instantly. 

Both Erica and Reggie have cleaned our place, but Erica is more focused on her career as a Realtor® with Great Western Realty in Tampa, while Reggie…well, I’ll let him tell you. 

“I was cleaning houses and apartments in New York City when I was seven or eight years old, when my mom used to take me and one of my sisters (Brittany) with her. We were both young, so we thought she was just doing favors for our neighbors, but we later found out she had made a business out of it!” 

He adds, “We were both kind of chunky kids, so we loved cleaning food trucks because they would pay us with free food!,” he laughs. 

And, although Reggie got into the home alarm business when he and Erica graduated from the same high school in southern New Jersey, he says, “I’ve just always loved to clean! I get a feeling of satisfaction when I leave someone’s home or business sparkling.” 

So, when both he and Erica made the decision to move from New Jersey to Florida, after both of them left different alarm companies, it was Reggie who pushed for them to start their own cleaning service in the Sunshine State, especially since Brittany, the sister he used to clean with when they were kids, already owned a successful “sister” cleaning company in Norfolk, VA. 

The couple ultimately settled in nearby Lutz and Erica became the public face of the new Final Touch Quality Cleaners — despite Reggie’s winning smile and hard-to-resist personality — so he could focus on the cleaning side while she ran the business and handled the billing and marketing. 

“Even though she’s great at it, I know that cleaning isn’t Erica’s thing,” Reggie says. “When Erica said she wanted to get her real estate license, I was happy for her to go for it.” 

In the meantime, Final Touch has continued to grow, with all-5-star reviews on 16 reviews on Google. Customer Jackie P., in a 5-star Google review, says, “I’ve used Final Touch Quality Cleaners for everything I have! My home and my business! They do phenomenal work and their detailed approach is very reassuring. They also make our appliances look like new each time they leave and we always have a great smelling house afterwards. 10/10. Will always recommend and use.” 

One thing I’ve noticed when Reggie cleans our apartment is how methodical he is. We haven’t had an actual office for him to clean, but I can imagine how he would be able to expand what he does for us for a much larger space. 

Speaking of larger spaces, after Erica and Reggie met Rock & Brews general manager Kareem Nelson at a BNI function at the restaurant a year ago, they immediately were hired to clean it. 

“Kareem told me they had an in-house cleaning crew they weren’t happy with,” Reggie says. “I told him ‘I got you’ and we’ve been cleaning it ever since. I’m sad they’re closing it, not just because we’re losing a commercial client, but because Kareem has been so great to work with.” 

So, as of now, Reggie says he and Erica are focused on finding another big commercial account to replace Rock & Brews. 

“We have a crew and we all work the commercial accounts together to get it done — not just fast, but right!,” he says. “We’ll always make sure your office, restaurant or other place of business always looks as good as your home when we finish cleaning.” Reggie and Erica also are happy to clean your Airbnb, and provide move-in, move-out and post-construction cleans, too. 

Final Touch also is looking to hire additional cleaners after an amazing occurrence with part of their crew. “We had a couple working for us but they recently won a million dollars on a scratch-off ticket!,” Reggie says. “At first, they said they would keep on working…after all, a million dollars isn’t worth as much today as it once was… but they ended up leaving anyway.” 

Erica and Reggie have a daughter named Ryleigh and a son named Ryder and you can see how much they love their little family. 

“We’ve got to make it work for them,” Reggie says, “and I have no doubt we will.” 

New clients who mention this story will receive 10% off their first clean with Final Touch Quality Cleaners. For more information and a free estimate, call (813) 530-5591 or email FinalTouchQC@gmail.com. 

2024-25 School Grades Are Out & Two New Tampa Schools Improved 

Source: Florida Department of Education

New Tampa’s Hillsborough County public schools continue to earn impressive grades from the Florida Department of Education, which released its 2024-25 School Grades Report earlier this month. 

All but one of New Tampa’s elementary and middle schools earned an “A” grade, with Tampa Palms earning a “B” for the second year in a row, after many years of consistent A ratings. 

Two New Tampa schools improved from a B to an A. Heritage Elementary earned an A after dipping to a B in 2023- 24. Turner Bartels K-8 earned an A after several years of earning Bs. 

“We are so proud of everyone’s hard work,” says Heritage Elementary principal Mary Booth. “It’s a true team effort from teachers and staff, plus our students work so hard and our families are supportive.” 

The six schools that maintained their A status include Chiles, Clark, Hunter’s Green and Pride elementary schools and both Benito and Liberty middle schools. 

Both of New Tampa’s high schools again earned a “C” grade, as both schools have consistently, going back to 2016. 

“But, we’re making growth,” says Taryn Anello, the principal at Wharton High. “Across the board, we’ve made gains in every category, and we’re on an upward trend. We’ve improved 22 points over last year.” 

She says she hates for teachers, students and families to feel disheartened because the school’s grade did not improve to a B, when the students, teachers and staff are all working so hard to make gains that they hope will show up in the school’s rating. 

“With the storms and the chaotic year we had, sometimes it’s a heavy lift to maintain that focus,” Anello says. “It wasn’t just the adults who went through those hardships, but our kids went through that, too.” 

Even those schools that earn an A recognize that boiling so many measurements into just one letter can be problematic, and may not be representative of all of the complexities of an entire school and all of the students within it. The letter grades take into account various measurements to represent student achievement, learning gains, graduation, acceleration success and maintaining a focus on students who need the most support. 

For example, Heritage lost just a slight percentage in 2023-24 and dipped an entire letter grade. “It depends on the students in front of you and their needs,” explains Booth. “We look at student learning gains, for example, but sometimes the tests don’t accurately measure the gains we’ve seen.” 

Hillsborough County received an overall B grade from the state, which Hillsborough Superintendent of Schools Van Ayres said in an email to families was only one percentage point away from an overall A rating for the District. 

“These achievements are a result not only of the hard work of our students, teachers, support professionals and school administrators, but also of our laser-like focus on high-quality core instruction in every classroom and intentional progress monitoring to drive these impressive results,” Superintendent Ayres said in a media release. 

For more info about school grades, visit FLDOE.org/accountability/accountability-reporting/school-grades/.

Sushi Update — Sushi Bowls & Ginza Are Gone, Sushi Time Is In 

It was only 3-1/2 months ago that we were the first to tell you about the opening of Sushi Bowls by Kazoku Sushi (photo below) in the Pebble Creek Collection, but co-owner Cristina Chanquin admits that Sushi Bowls closed abruptly a few weeks ago. She cited issues with finding a solid team to work at the New Tampa location and a need to “focus on the foundation of our business,” as Cristina and her husband Sergio also own Sushi House in Ybor City. 

“But, we do serve our bowls at the cafés at both the AdventHealth and BayCare hospitals in Wesley Chapel every Thursday,” she says. 

So, if you (like yours truly) were a fan of Sushi Bowls, you can still grab a tasty bowl at those local hospitals. 

Is It Sushi Time Yet? 

But, speaking of sushi, if you’ve been wondering what happened to Ginza Endless Sushi & Hibachi next to LA Fitness at 6417 E. County Line Rd. (top photo), it’s been replaced with another Japanese restaurant — Sushi Time Hibachi, Ramen & Seafood. 

Now open less than three weeks as this issue is reaching you, the new owners want everyone to know that Sushi Time is not another all-you-care-to-eat place, nor does it offer teppanyaki/hibachi tables in the dining room. 

It is, however, a reasonably priced, full-service, sushi-focused, sit-down Japanese restaurant with nearly 80 different sushi and sashimi options. Of course, Jannah and I first had to try — and gave thumbs-up to — the California roll shown above left), but we’ll be back for more. 

But, for those of you who, like us, enjoy Japanese/Asian appetizers like fried (or steamed) pork gyoza dumplings, spring and egg rolls, we did try all of the above and enjoyed them all — especially the extra-crispy pork egg rolls. 

We also sampled the chicken hibachi (which is still available, but made in the kitchen) shown right, which was loaded with large chunks of chicken and fresh veggies and served with white or pretty good fried rice. There also are steak and shrimp hibachi options and Asian favorites like Mongolian chicken or beef, General Tso’s chicken, beef or chicken with broccoli and more. For more info about Sushi Time, call (813) 364-4545 or visit SushiTimeTampa.com and please tell the owners I sent you! — GN

New Tampa Players To Present The Tony Award-Winning Classic ‘The Music Man!” 

Oh, the Wells Fargo Wagon is coming… to the stage at the New Tampa Performing Arts Center! The New Tampa Players, New Tampa’s community theater troupe, is preparing to open its summer production of “The Music Man.” 

This classic musical features toe-tapping tunes, colorful costumes and a cast filled with neighbors, teachers and students. “The Music Man” is bringing people together both onstage and off. 

“The New Tampa Players (NTP) chose ‘Music Man’ for this summer because it is just fun that will have our audiences humming the tunes for days! It has big dance numbers, silly comedy and characters that make you smile!,” says NTP producing artistic director Nora Paine. 

The cast of 40 includes a wide range of community members — from first-time performers to stage veterans. David Groomes and Becky Groomes, veterans of the Tampa stage, join NTP’s cast as the con man Harold Hill and the River City mayor’s wife Eulalie Shinn. Melanie Marie Bierwieler, who earned raves as Lina in last summer’s “Singin’ in the Rain,” plays the female lead, Marian Paroo, River City’s prim and skeptical librarian. 

Set in 1912, “The Music Man,” which won five Tony Awards in 1958, including Best Musical, was written by Meredith Wilson. It tells the story of Harold Hill (originally played by Tony winner Robert Preston and by Hugh Jackman in the 2022 Broadway revival), a charming con man who poses as a traveling bandleader. He arrives in River City, Iowa, planning to sell instruments and uniforms to the townspeople, and then skip town without teaching the children how to play. 

However, Harold’s plan starts to unravel when he falls for Marian (originally played by Tony winner Barbara Cook on Broadway), the town’s librarian and piano teacher. As he grows genuinely fond of Marian and the community, Harold inadvertently brings the town together — creating a boys’ band and actually lifting local spirits. 

In the end, despite being exposed as a fraud, Harold is forgiven by the townspeople, thanks in large part to Marian’s support and the unexpected positive impact he ends up having on the town. The show celebrates themes of transformation, redemption and community. 

Whether you know every lyric to “Seventy-Six Trombones” or are new to River City, “The Music Man” promises an unforgettable night of music, heart and good old-fashioned fun. 

Performances will run Fridays-Sundays, July 25-27 and August 1-3 at the New Tampa Performing Arts Center, with both evening and matinee options. Tickets can be purchased at NewTampaPlayers.thundertix.com. For more info, visit NewTampaPlayers.org or see the ad below. — Special to the Neighborhood News, including the photos on this page.