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Hernando County: What you need to know for going back to school

 
Published July 30, 2015

Getting ready

Registration

Students must be 5 years old on or before Sept. 1 to enroll in kindergarten. To register for the first grade, students must be 6 and have proof of completing kindergarten. If the child did not attend a public school for kindergarten, parents should present a report card or completion letter from the director of the private school.

Identifying a school

Families can contact the district's transportation department at (352) 797-7003 to confirm which school their child is zoned for. Parents will need to provide both the street address and the nearest cross street of their home.

Parents interested in enrolling their child at a school other than their zoned school will need to complete a student reassignment form, available at any school or from the district office. They'll be open from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday.

New to Florida?

If this is the student's first time enrolling in a Florida school, the family will need to provide:

• A birth certificate (for kindergarten and first-grade enrollees; please bring the official document, not the hospital certificate).

• A physical completed by a licensed physician dated no earlier than Aug. 1, 2014.

• An immunization record.

• Proof of residency, either in the form of a rent receipt, home contract, utility bill with parent or guardian's name on it or a notarized statement from the family member with whom the student resides.

• A copy of the student's last report card, if applicable, or name and phone number of last-attended school.

New to Hernando County?

If the student is coming to Hernando County from another Florida school district, he or she will need to provide:

• A birth certificate (for kindergarten and first-grade enrollees; please bring the official document, not the hospital certificate).

• An immunization record.

• Proof of residency, either in the form of a rent receipt, home contract, utility bill with parent or guardian's name on it or a notarized statement from the family member with whom the student resides.

Immunizations

Pre-K

• 4-5 doses of diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis (DTaP) vaccine or age-appropriate tetanus vaccines.

• 3 doses hepatitis B vaccine (Hep B).

• 3-4 doses inactivated polio vaccine (IPV).

• 1 dose MMR (measles, mumps, rubella).

• 1 dose varicella vaccine (chicken pox).

• Hib immunization. Numbers of doses depend on type of vaccine and student's age.

K-Grade 5

• 4-5 doses diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis (DTaP) vaccine or age-appropriate tetanus vaccines.

• 3-5 doses inactivated polio vaccine (IPV) (one dose of polio must be after age 4).

• 3 doses hepatitis B vaccine (Hep B).

• 2 doses MMR (measles, mumps, rubella).

• 2 does varicella vaccine (chicken pox).

Grade 6

• 4-5 doses diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis (DTaP) vaccine or age-appropriate tetanus vaccines.

• 3-4 doses inactivated polio vaccine (IPV).

• 3 doses hepatitis B vaccine (Hep B).

• 2 doses MMR (measles, mumps, rubella).

• 1 dose varicella vaccine (chicken pox).

Grades 7-12

• 4-5 doses diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis (DTaP) vaccine or age-appropriate tetanus vaccines.

• 3 doses hepatitis B vaccine (Hep B).

• 3-4 doses inactivated polio vaccine (IPV).

• 2 doses MMR (measles, mumps, rubella).

• 1 dose varicella vaccine (chicken pox).

Grades 7-11 only

• 1 dose Tdap (tetanus-diphtheria-pertussis).

Grade 12 only

• 1 dose Tdap (tetanus-diphtheria-pertussis) or TD (tetanus-diphtheria).

Open houses

ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS

Brooksville: 3-6 p.m. Aug. 19 (kindergarten only); 4-6 p.m. Aug. 20 (grades 1-5).

Chocachatti: 9-11 a.m. Aug. 21.

Deltona: 5-7 p.m. Aug. 20 (kindergarten only); 9-11 a.m. Aug. 21 (grades 1-5).

Eastside: 9 a.m.-to 1 p.m. Aug. 20 (kindergarten only); 2-4 p.m. Aug. 20 (grades 1-5).

Moton: 6:30-8 p.m. Aug. 20 (kindergarten only); 9-11 a.m. Aug. 21 (grades 1-5).

Pine Grove: 4-6 p.m. Aug. 19 (pre-k and kindergarten); 4-6 p.m. Aug. 20 (grades 1-5).

Spring Hill: 3-4 p.m. Aug. 20 (kindergarten only); 4:30-6:30 p.m. Aug. 20 (grades 1-5).

Suncoast: 6 p.m. Aug. 13 (kindergarten only); 3:30-6 p.m. Aug. 20 (grades 1-5).

Westside: 4:30-5:30 p.m. (kindergarten only), and 5:30-7 p.m. (grades 1-5) Aug. 20.

K-8 SCHOOLS

Challenger K-8 School of Science and Mathematics: 4-6 p.m. Aug. 19 (middle school); 4-6 p.m. Aug. 20 (grades 1-5); 4-6 p.m. Aug. 21 (kindergarten only).

Explorer K-8: 5-7 p.m. Aug. 19 (PreK-grade 3); 5-7 p.m. Aug. 20 (grades 4-8).

J.D. Floyd K-8 School of Environmental Science: 5-7 p.m. Aug. 20.

Winding Waters K-8: 5-7 p.m. Aug. 20.

MIDDLE SCHOOLS

Fox Chapel: 2:15-6 p.m. Aug. 20.

Parrott: 3-6 p.m. Aug. 20.

Powell: 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Aug. 20.

West Hernando: 4-6 p.m. Aug. 20.

HIGH SCHOOLS

Central: 6-7:30 p.m. Sept. 2.

Hernando: 1-3 p.m. Aug. 21.

Nature Coast Technical: 6-8 p.m. Sept. 10.

Springstead: 6-8 p.m. Sept. 1.

Weeki Wachee: 6-8 p.m. Sept. 2.

OTHER CENTERS

Endeavor Academy: by appointment only.

Hernando eSchool: by appointment only.

Springs Coast Environmental Education Center: by appointment only.

Adult Education Programs: by appointment only.

Suncoast Education Technical Center (SunTech): 2:30-3:30 p.m. Aug. 11.

CHARTER SCHOOLS

Gulf Coast Academy of Science and Technology: by appointment only.

Gulf Coast Middle School: by appointment only.

Brooksville Engineering, Science, and Technology (BEST) Academy: by appointment only.

HIGH SCHOOL OPEN CAMPUS DATES

Central: 9-11 a.m. Aug. 19 (freshmen); 1-3 p.m. Aug. 19 (sophomores); 9-11 a.m. Aug. 20 (juniors); 1-3 p.m. Aug. 20 (seniors).

Springstead: 1-3 p.m. Aug. 21 (all students).

Weeki Wachee: 9 a.m.-noon Aug. 20 (all students).

(Hernando High and Nature Coast Tech have not scheduled open campus events)

Buses

Transportation officials are continuing to update school bus routes and pickup times. Detailed bus route information is expected to be available the week of Aug. 17 and can be found on the district website, hernandoschool.org (select "District Offices," then "Transportation").

Bus stops are not listed for students enrolled in special programs such as AYP, Career Academy, TOPS and students with special needs.

Parents should remember that during the first week of school, buses often run late. Also, all bus stops and times are subject to change.

Parents who have questions or do not have computer access can call the district transportation office at (352) 797-7003.

Food service

The school district's food and nutrition department offers breakfast and lunch at all Hernando County schools.

The regular cost for breakfast is $1 for elementary students and $1.25 for secondary students; the cost for lunch is $2 for elementary students and $2.25-2.50 for secondary students.

The cost is 30 cents for breakfast and 40 cents for lunch for all students who receive reduced-cost meals.

Menus can be downloaded from each school's Edline page under "Links" or by visiting schoolmenu.com/directory/fl/hernando-county-school-district/.

Parents can set up lunch accounts for students. Access to online accounts is available at mylunchmoney.com. The accounts allow parents to set daily and weekly spending limits and view student meal purchases.

Email reminders are sent out for low balances. Payments may be made securely through the website, or directly to the school. Unspent balances carry over to the next school year.

For more information, contact the food and nutrition department at (352) 797-7028.

The school district

School Board

Gus Guadagnino, chairman

Matthew Foreman, vice chairman

Susan Duval

Mark Johnson

Beth Narverud

School board meetings, held at the district office building at 919 N Broad St. in Brooksville, are open to the public and broadcast live on Hernando Instructional Television, Bright House cable Ch. 642.

• Meetings are generally at 7 p.m. the first and third Tuesday of the month.

• Workshops, during which matters are discussed but no formal votes are taken, are frequently scheduled on Tuesday afternoons. For more information, call (352) 797-7253.

District administration

Lori Romano, Ph.D., superintendent, (352) 797-7000.

Eric Williams, deputy superintendent, (352) 797-7001.

Gina Michalicka, executive director of academic services, (352) 797-7051.

Heather Martin, executive director of business services, (352) 797-7005.

Sean Arnold, executive director of support operations, (352) 797-7071.

Directors, supervisors and managers

Paula Clark, Ph.D., coordinator of professional development, (352) 797-7016

Erik Van de Boogaard, director of facility operations, (352) 797-7071

Michelle Kernan, director of federal programs, (352) 797-7051

Lori Drenth, director of food and nutrition, (352) 797-7028

Lisa Becker, director of human resources, (352) 797-7005

Cathy Dofka, director of student services and ESE, (352) 797-7022

Doug Compton, director of transportation, (352) 797-7003

Linda Peirce, manager of assessment & accountability, (352) 797-7051

Manager of safety and security, (352) 797-7054

Manager of warehouse and property control, (352) 797-7061

Public information officer, (352) 797-7009

Sophia Watson, supervisor of Adult and Technical Education, (352) 797-7018

Supervisor of elementary programs, (352) 797-7051

Judy Everett, supervisor of exceptional student education, (352) 797-7022

Deborah Pfenning, supervisor of school choice, (352) 797-7022

Marcia Austin, supervisor of secondary programs, (352) 797-7051

Betty Harper, supervisor of student services, (352) 797-7008

Jason Chase, supervisor of technology and information services, (352) 797-7006

Cindy Stewart, supervisor of Title I, (352) 797-7051

Helpful phone numbers

Adult education, (352) 797-7018

Exceptional Student Education, (352) 797-7022

Food & Nutrition, (352) 797-7028

Professional Development, (352) 797-7016

Safety & Security, (352) 797-7054

School Choice, (352) 797-7051

Technology & Information Services, (352) 797-7006

Transportation, (352) 797-7003

Title I, (352) 797-7051

Volunteers in Education, (352) 797-7054