Q: Do you have any administrative news to share in District 4?
A: We are saying goodbye at the end of this school year to Lisa Kunze, longtime principal at Nease. While it is never easy to lose our principals who have so successfully led our schools, we are excited to announce that Gina Fonseca will be coming to Nease. Both have been fixtures in the St. Johns County School District for a number of years. Lisa Kunze started as an AP at Nease, then went on to help open Ponte Vedra High School as AP, then was promoted to principal at Switzerland Point Middle School before returning home to Nease as principal. We wish her all the best. Gina Fonseca began as an AP at Ponte Vedra High School, then went to the district office in charge of secondary curriculum and instruction, then became principal at Freedom Crossing Academy. We are very fortunate to get her back to District 4 and we know that she will be an excellent leader at Nease.
Q: Will school facilities be open to the public again this summer?
A: Yes. All eight of our high schools, including Ponte Vedra High School, will be open Wednesday evenings in June and in July (through July 24) from 5 p.m. – 7 p.m. to promote community health and wellness. Access will be allowed to the track, tennis courts, and outdoor basketball courts only.
Q: Do you have the results of the state’s Progress Monitoring Tests yet?
A: While we are still waiting for the final results of the state’s Progress Monitoring Tests, initial results seem very positive. We are pleased to be one of only two school districts in the state to be “A” rated since 2010.
Q: What else do you have to share with District 4?
A: Certificates of Excellence in Financial Reporting were received by the district’s accounting department for the school district’s annual Comprehensive Financial Report. We have received these awards each of the seven years since we began participating in the program in fiscal year 2015 – 16. The Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada (GFOA) and the Association of School Business Officials International (ASBO) issued the certificates of excellence.
Also, the school district earned “Best Public Dashboard” in the EnergyCAP 2023 Eco Champion Awards. On this dashboard on our website, interested parties can look at energy cost summaries by school and water cost summaries by school. By monitoring this, district staff is able to detect water leaks, for example. Since the inception of our energy conservation program in 2008, we’ve had a cost avoidance through March 2024 of $75.5 million. (That is equivalent to 1,425 average teacher salaries of $53,000.)
Q: How can our readers contact you?
A: They can email me at kelly.barrera@stjohns.k12.fl.us or call me at (904) 547-7510.
