How to help “restore the roar”

Laura Young
ECB Publishing, Inc.

On July 1, 2022, the Florida Department of Education (FDOE) the Jefferson County School District (JCS) to local control after five years of state-mandated charter school operation by Somerset Academy, Inc. The FDOE set a timeline of three years for JCS to turn its K-12 school around – academically and financially.
In local lingo, the school district is on a three-year mission to “Restore the Roar” of the Jefferson Tigers. In an interview with the Monticello News on March 23, JCS Principal Jackie Pons said progress toward this goal is ahead of schedule, with many important accomplishments to celebrate through the first nine months of rebuilding the local school system almost from scratch. Still, there is much to do while the three-year clock is ticking, and Pons knows that support from members of the community is vital for success.
There are many ways community members can get involved in restoring the Tiger roar, whether that's right now through the end of this school year, during the full summer school that will be offered or looking ahead to next school year. Pons said that the people in our county are really showing a united interest in seeing the pubic school succeed, thrive and return to greatness.
“Everywhere I go in the community,” said Pons, “they want us to get our school up to the standards that it needs to be... We all come together on that issue. We all agree that we can do this together.”
The entire community worked on getting the school back... When comes to us wanting to restore the roar and restore the school to the greatness that it once had, the community shares that vision.
It doesn't matter, he says, what a person's politics, race, religion or role in local life is; this goal is something that everyone he talks to shares and feels passionate about.
Here are five key ways locals can take action to support the effort:
+ Attend the next School Advisory Council meeting on Thursday, April 6, at 6 p.m. in the JCS Media Center. If you're not a parent, invite one to join you. You'll hear the latest updates on school improvement initiatives and have a chance to weigh in on how to keep the momentum going. For more information, contact the school at (850) 997-3555.
+ Tutor a student during afterschool. Many students are having to play catch up on courses required for graduation that were not scheduled for them during the past few years. To help with tutoring, assisting the afterschool teachers or other afterschool activities, contact Jennifer Burnum, jburnum@jeffersonschools.com.
+ Become a sports booster! The sports program has been significantly expanded this year, with more opportunities to play – and many, many students taking advantage of those opportunities. These teams have all needed new uniforms, sidelines support, ticket takers, a cheering crowd, coaching, recognition and more. To do your bit and help shape the booster effort for the future, contact Athletic Director Pat Kennedy at jkennedy@jeffersonschool.net.
+ Learn more about JCS being a Community Partnership School and how local agencies' goals and civic groups' service projects can be coordinated with the school to meet the needs of students and their families. For more information, contact Children's Home Society of Florida Community Partnership School Director Lori Livingston at llivingston@jeffersonschools.net.
Pons noted that the district is implementing a Raptor Management System for quickly approving volunteers to be on campus, so those who take that step to help out can begin to make their mark sooner rather than later.
“We acknowledge that it's been 20 years of failure here,” said Pons. “Where were you over the past twenty years? 'Cause we need you. There's something for everybody here. I think we're right where we need to be. We still have a lot of work to do, and I've got saying I tell everybody: 'If it would have been easy, somebody would have done it 20 years ago.' So we knew coming in here this was not going to be a snap your fingers and it was going to turn around overnight. It was going to take a lot of hard work. We're going to get this done. We're way ahead of schedule and we've built a great team.”
Pons is confident of the final result and wants volunteers to know they are needed on that team and are welcomed to join the effort.