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SEPTEMBER 4 - 17, 2012
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Southwood Middle starts school year with new principal BY LINDA RODRIGUEZ BERNFELD
W
hen Southwood Middle students went back to school on Aug. 20, they found Magda Pereira in the principal’s office instead of Deborah Leal. Leal was re-assigned to take over Hammocks Middle School in West Kendall. “I got appointed to Southwood middle in mid-July,” Pereira said. From that day, she eagerly prepared for the first day of school. Before moving to Southwood, Pereira was principal at Irving and Beatrice Peskoe K-8 Center in Leisure City. During her time there, she shepherded the school’s transition into a K-8 center. She also brought up the school’s grade from a D to an A — all in a year’s time. “It was a district targeted school,” she said. “I held intervention groups. I was
Former village mayor and family visit Paris
Beacon Council Update BY GRANT MILLER
Publisher The folks at The Beacon Council say we got a bunch of it wrong so here it is in their own words: Dear Mr. Miller: We write to correct the factual mistatements in your article about The Beacon Council as follows: 1. You stated: The Beacon Couincil received 50 percent of the occupational license surtax. In fact The Beacon Council received 28 percent of the occupational license surtax.
SEE ENTIRE LETTER ON PAGE 8
Former Palmetto Bay Mayor Eugene Flinn; his wife, Alex, and daughters, Meredith and Katherine, read the Palmetto Bay News in front of the Arc de Triomphe in Paris.
Student turns her summer break into an art adventure (See story page 4)
New Southwood principal Magda Pereira is happy to be heading an arts magnet school.
always around the students and making a difference in the lives of the student.” For Pereira, not only is Southwood closer to home but she believes it’s an amazing school. “I’m honored and privileged to join the faculty and staff here,” she said. “They’ve received their 12th-consecutive A (grade). We’re extremely happy.” Pereira made her start as a secondary teacher in language arts. She was the assistant principal at Coral Reef for six years so arts magnet schools are dear to her heart. This year, Southwood has a theme — Just Reach. Pereira said they chose the
theme because of the Olympics. “Every student has a dream,” she said. “Our goal is to make sure they reach it and give them the support necessary to be successful. With our support and their relentless efforts, they can reach their dreams.” She vows to help by monitoring the student’s academics to catch anyone who stumbles. “These are our superstars, so we can push them so they can dream and put everything on the line so they can be suc-
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PRINCIPAL, page 6
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