Community Welcomes Educators at Annual New Teacher Breakfast

By Cierra Craft

On Thursday, August 3, the Plant City community welcomed more than 200 new educators at the annual New Teacher Breakfast. The Greater Plant City Chamber of Commerce organized the New Teacher Breakfast at the Florida Strawberry Festival’s TECO Expo Hall and provided a traditional breakfast catered by Second Plate Catering. Sponsors of the event gave teachers free promotional materials and school supplies for their classrooms, including Raulerson Castillo and Company, TECO, Walmart, Suncoast Credit Union, Florida Insurance Center, TD Bank, Hillsborough Community College, State Farm, YMCA, Your CBD Store, The Canopy at Walden Woods, South Florida Baptist Hospital, Publix, and Minuteman Press, among others.

Tomlin Middle School welcomed Matt Johnson as the school’s new principal; he and Tomlin’s new teachers came to the event in style: Johnson wore an inflatable Tiger costume and each of the new teachers donned tiger ears and a cape. Pinecrest Elementary also brought straw cowboy hats and made horses out of pool noodles to show their school spirit.

Christy Langsdale, a new science teacher at Marshall Middle School, shared that this has been the best environment from administration she’s experienced in her career. She said Marshall Principal Mr. Mayo has come by her class several times over the past week to check on her, and fellow new Physical Education teacher Davi’on Riley and Access Points ESE teacher Calvin Lamar agreed. Riley said this has been a seamless process thanks to Mr. Mayo and Mrs. Davis, and Lamar said he came from a county in South Florida to Hillsborough, and everyone’s been welcoming.

Mayor Nate Kilton led the program with the invocation and shared with teachers an inspiring message about the importance of their duty, and thanked them for answering the call. Little Miss Plant City Queen Layla Jones and her court opened with the Pledge of Allegiance as the Strawberry Crest High School JROTC Color Guard presented the colors. Queen Layla finished the pledge with a message: “God Bless America, and God Bless our Troops.”

Interim Superintendent Van Ayers was in attendance, sharing with the crowd of new teachers and administrators that Hillsborough County Public Schools will do everything in their power to support the teachers over the school year to come.

“This school district is here to support you along the way,” said Ayers. “We are here for you and support you always… this Plant City community exemplifies what it means it means to support our teachers.”

School Board Member District 4 Patti Rendon also shared with the teachers a message of support for the coming school year: “You are the heart and soul of our district.”

The Chamber also drew names for door prizes ranging from cash to gift baskets. Suncoast Wealth Solution’s Michelle Engle drew two names for $150 Publix gift cards.

Irene Castillo, past chairman of the board, then called each school by name for the annual School Spirit Award. Each school performed a cheer in hopes of being named the winner. The 2023 School Spirit Award winners are Springhead Elementary, Tomlin Middle School, and Plant City High School.