Q: What’s happening now with regard to Career and Technical Education in our schools?
A: We just had the High School Academy Showcase, which returned to World Golf Village this year, in December. It was bigger than ever because so many of our programs have expanded — especially noteworthy are lots of dual enrollment and workforce certification opportunities. The deadline application for all academies for next school year is Jan. 31 at 5 p.m. Applications are accepted online on the student’s HAC account; visit https://cte.stjohns.k12.fl.us/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/23-24-Frequently-Asked-Questions-Programs-of-Choice.pdf for more information.

Q: Can you share the latest information on the search for a new superintendent for St. Johns County Schools?
A: Superintendent Tim Forson is retiring as of June 30, 2025, so we are in the early process of beginning a search for his replacement. We are looking at what areas of strength we need to help implement our strategic plan in its entirety, including the different areas of challenges we are facing in education. We will use the services of the Florida School Boards Association as we have in the past. This year, there will be a public survey online and people will be able to follow the process online including access to candidate information. This won’t be a rushed process; we will determine our timeline at our Jan. 14 board meeting.

Q: What’s the latest on the school under construction in RiverTown?
A: On Dec. 13, all school board members attended the “topping off” ceremony at the new school under construction in RiverTown. Also in attendance was Paul Rose, executive director of facilities for the school district, who will retire at the end of February. This will be his last new school and we are grateful for all his hard work. Superintendent Tim Forson has named Jessley Hathaway, current principal of Osceola Elementary School, as the new school’s principal. In the New Year, the process of community meetings to determine the school culture, name, mascot, and colors will start.

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Q: What else do you have to share with District 4?
A: I’d like to highlight the NJROTC program at Nease High School. I recently attended the annual inspection of the cadets and heard remarks from the Area-12 Commander. The Nease program is highly decorated, having received the status of number one unit in the nation two times in the past decade. Additionally, every year, between five and seven military academy appointments come from Nease, which is pretty unprecedented. We have had people relocate to this area just so their student could participate in this program. I’m not sure a lot of people know that we have a program of this caliber in our district.

Congratulations to Matthew Jones from Ponte Vedra High School, who was named as one of two District Sunshine State Scholars. This program recognizes strong academic achievement in the STEM field and the district scholars will attend a state level function in April.

Finally, the Teacher of the Year banquet will be held on Jan. 31. District 4 school representatives are: Landrum Middle: Kandise Ellis; Nease High School: Amy Case; Ocean Palms: Stacy Crouch; Palm Valley Academy: Stephanie Crawford, Jordan Mattheus; Pine Island Academy: Daniel Kaufman, Kristin Meyers; Ponte Vedra High School: Meghan Yoder; PVPV Rawlings: Kaleigh Kessler; and Valley Ridge Academy: Nicole Crecco, Blakeney Zitiello.

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.

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