Education Notes
Wehrlen to graduate from FGCU
Charles A. Wehrlen, of Sanibel, will graduate from Florida Gulf Coast University in 2019 after completing an internship with the U.S. Marshals Service.
The university will confer a Bachelor of Arts, with a major emphasis in criminal justice studies and a minor in business management.
Wehrlen is graduating with honors.
He intends to pursue a federal career in counter-terrorism.
Education Notes
District relaunches Change-for-Change website
The School District of Lee County has unveiled a new version of the Change for Change webpage at www.leeschools.net. The updated site makes information about the revenue raised from the half-cent sales tax and how it is being spent easily accessible.
In early April, the state distributed $6.3 million in sales tax revenue to the district, the first of monthly scheduled distributions.
The updated website has two main pages. One for the district, displaying the amount of revenue from the sales tax, any interest earned and what has been spent. There are four categories for the projects the voters approved: construction, maintenance, safety and technology. A fifth category, reserves, has been added to account for money being saved for future projects.
The second section features pull down menus for every school to find the projects underway or planned and the amount spent or budgeted. An information section on each school page allows for updates and project pictures so parents and the community stay informed.
The data on the sites represents revenue and planned spending for Jan. 1 through June 30. Money spent on sales tax projects before the start of the year is not included. When the next fiscal year starts July 1, a new set of revenue and planned spending will be available with the previous year being archived for easy retrieval.
Education Notes
Non-profit to provide students with LED lights
The School District of Lee County is partnering with the Lee County Sheriff’s Office and Big Momma and the Wild Bunch at B103.9 to raise money so that every student bus rider has a flashing LED light they can attach to their backpack.
The LCSO is committing $20,000 and the school district $10,000 toward the $100,000 goal.
The LCSO will creating a non-profit called “Compassionate Cops” to manage the donations and help purchase the lights.
At the moment, only checks sent to the LCSO with “Lights for Layla” written in the memo line can be accepted as donations.
Once the non-profit is established, information about making donations online will be posted on the LCSO and school district’s Facebook pages.
It is anticipated the lights will be purchased this summer and distributed to students before the start of the next school year in August.