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APRIL 15, 2020
Shift to online learning poses challenges
By B.C. Manion bcmanion@lakerlutznews.com
When the state of Florida decided to shift to distance learning in March — parents, teachers and students found themselves facing a steep learning curve. “This thing came on pretty quick.We’re all learning on the fly,” said George O’Connor, who is supervising his 7-year-old granddaughter Julia’s instruction, in his Wesley Chapel home. Normally, Julia attends Sand Pine Elementary. Now, she’s beginning her school
day by reciting The Pledge of Allegiance in her grandparents’ dining room. “The first week was a challenge, getting all of the programs and things like that,” O’Connor said.“We started the second week off yesterday, and it seems to be going a lot better.” “It’s a least four hours of scheduled work. “The teachers are holding something on Zoom, like a teleconference with the students.They’re also offering tutoring over the phones, as to how to work the programs,” O’Connor said. Their granddaughter is staying with her
grandparents because her mom, Kim, is an officer with the Tampa Police Department. Normally, Kim is assigned as a School Resource Officer at Benito Middle School, but while school campuses are closed because of the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, she’s assisting the department’s patrol officers. George said Kim is practicing social distancing, to avoid any potential spread of the virus. Kim said she and Julia are communicating See ONLINE, page 9A
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Concert eases isolation blues With the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic changing the routines of everyday life, the Keystone Place at Terra Bella senior living community, at 2200 Livingston Road in Land O’ Lakes, came up with a creative way to safely engage and entertain its residents. To help reduce isolation during these challenging times, the community hired The Boomer Band (keyboard/vocalist Kevin de Champlain and drummer/vocalist Vance Fontanella) to perform oldies from a flatbed trailer that was being pulled around the property. Many residents enjoyed the concert from the comfort of their apartment balconies.
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Municipal elections postponed By Kevin Weiss kweiss@lakerlutznews.com
Municipal elections in Pasco County were supposed to take place April 14, but instead are delayed indefinitely per an executive order from Gov. Ron DeSantis. The action was taken in the wake of coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19). The elections for the cities of Dade City, San Antonio and Zephyrhills will be rescheduled “as soon as is practicable,” Executive Order 20-97 states. The governor’s order says the election postponement is necessary “in order to ensure maximum citizen participation in the electoral process and provide a safe and orderly procedure for persons seeking to exercise their right to vote, to minimize citizen exposure to danger during this emergency, and to protect the integrity of the electoral process.” The initial request to delay the local city elections came from Pasco County Supervisor of Elections Brian Corley, who cited the “health and safety” of voters and poll workers during the coronavirus pandemic. Pasco was the first county in the state to request such a delay. Corley had ongoing discussions on the matter with intermediaries Secretary of State Laurel M. Lee, State Division of Elections Director Maria Matthews and incoming Senate president Wilton Simpson. The elections supervisor made the request on behalf of the municipalities April 2. The governor’s executive order was issued April 8. “I’m very pleased and appreciate the governor moving as expeditiously as he See ELECTIONS, page 9A
While practicing social distancing, several residents of the Keystone Place at Terra Bella senior living community in Land O’ Lakes enjoy the parking lot rock ‘n’ roll concert.
The Boomer Band, a Pinellas County-based, two-piece pop/dance band, perform a Fats Domino hit for the residents of the memory care unit at the Keystone Place at Terra Bella senior living community.
School district adapts to distance learning Tampa crisis line’s call volume rises
By B.C. Manion
bcmanion@lakerlutznews.com
While parents suddenly found themselves thrust into the role of being frontline teachers, educators in Pasco and Hillsborough counties also found themselves making a big shift when the state ordered school campuses to be closed. The order is in effect until April 30, and as press time for The Laker/Lutz News it remained unclear whether that will be extended. During a virtual Pasco County School Board meeting on April 7, district officials discussed how county schools made the switch to online learning. Superintendent Kurt Browning told the audience viewing the meeting,“When this thing hit, I remember our first meeting in the superintendent’s conference room.We were all a little shell-shocked by the fact that school was going to be closed for an additional week after Spring Break.” But, district staff stepped up, and by the time the shift was made, the district was wellpoised to make the shift, Browning said. He credited Joanne Glenn and her eSchool team for the guidance and encouragement they provided to district teachers. “Our brick-and-mortars classroom teach-
ers, for a large part, most part, have never done virtual education before,” he said. But, once they received the training that the district’s Office of Leading and Learning and the eSchool staff put together, he said,“a lot of the angst disappeared.” The district also distributed about 17,000 devices to families needing them, including roughly 9,000 for elementary school students and about 8,000 for secondary school students, said Assistant Superintendent Kevin Shibley.A small number of devices were still in the process of being provided for families. Don Peace, president of the United School Employees of Pasco, complimented the district’s handling of the transition of shifting from direct to distance instruction. “As we work in our second week of distance learning, I want to recognize our district superintendent and staff for having a Plan B in place,” Peace said. “A special thanks goes out to Joanne Glenn and the wonderful group of eSchool employees who have willingly served as resources to those in need of help, during this transition period,” he said. “I also want to thank you for how you are handling the thousands of ‘new teachers’ in our district, by that I mean, the parents, See SCHOOL, page 9A
By B.C. Manion bcmanion@lakerlutznews.com
The call volume has been increasing at the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay, amid the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Statistics kept by the crisis center reveal that from March 21 through March 27, a total of 1,617 calls came in — with 540 of those being related to COVID-19. Calls from March 28 to April 3 totaled 1,828, including 704 pandemic-related calls. “The biggest reason right now is regarding financial assistance, but we also saw a high rate of individuals seeking emotional support, as well,” said Clara Reynolds, the crisis center’s president and CEO. “And, as you can imagine, you may be calling because you’re worried about your finances, but you can see where that would also have an emotional toll,” Reynolds said. During the week ending March 27, there See CRISIS, page 9A