📚 Midterm Check‑In
We’re already halfway through the 4th nine weeks of the school year! This is a great time for families to review grades, celebrate progress, and talk about any areas that may need extra attention before the quarter ends on Thursday, May 28.
At Santa Rosa County District Schools, we’re committed to supporting our students every step of the way toward graduation and beyond! 🎓💙
We’re already halfway through the 4th nine weeks of the school year! This is a great time for families to review grades, celebrate progress, and talk about any areas that may need extra attention before the quarter ends on Thursday, May 28.
At Santa Rosa County District Schools, we’re committed to supporting our students every step of the way toward graduation and beyond! 🎓💙
📋 Administrative Professionals Day 📋
Today we’re recognizing the incredible administrative professionals across our district and school sites who work tirelessly behind the scenes. Your organization, dedication, and attention to detail help keep everything running smoothly each day. We truly appreciate all that you do to support our schools and teams—thank you for being such an essential part of our success! 💙👏
Today we’re recognizing the incredible administrative professionals across our district and school sites who work tirelessly behind the scenes. Your organization, dedication, and attention to detail help keep everything running smoothly each day. We truly appreciate all that you do to support our schools and teams—thank you for being such an essential part of our success! 💙👏
💜 Month of the Military Family💜
April is the Month of the Military Child, and at our April School Board Meeting, we were honored to recognize two families who are part of our Santa Rosa County School District family—the Boisvert Family and the Littrel Family.
Military children demonstrate incredible strength, resilience, and adaptability, and their families play a vital role in supporting them every step of the way. We are grateful for the sacrifices these families make and are proud to recognize their service and commitment to our schools and community.
Thank you to ALL our military families for all that you do. 💜
April is the Month of the Military Child, and at our April School Board Meeting, we were honored to recognize two families who are part of our Santa Rosa County School District family—the Boisvert Family and the Littrel Family.
Military children demonstrate incredible strength, resilience, and adaptability, and their families play a vital role in supporting them every step of the way. We are grateful for the sacrifices these families make and are proud to recognize their service and commitment to our schools and community.
Thank you to ALL our military families for all that you do. 💜
🎤 4-H Public Speaking Competition 🎤
This year, 4,426 students participated in the 4-H Public Speaking Competition across 192 classrooms throughout Santa Rosa County! Today, the top school-level winners from 4th, 5th, and 6th grades came together at the Santa Rosa Auditorium to compete in the countywide finals, hosted by the UF IFAS Extension Office of Santa Rosa County.
We are incredibly proud of all our students for stepping up to the challenge of public speaking. Their confidence, preparation, and courage truly shined!
A heartfelt thank you to UF IFAS Extension (Santa Rosa County Extension), judges, volunteers, schools, teachers, and event sponsor Florida Power & Light for making this meaningful experience possible. Public speaking is a powerful life skill, and it’s inspiring to see our students developing it as they prepare for future success.
🎉 Congratulations to this year’s winners! 🎉
4th Grade
🥇 1st – Karter M., East Milton Elementary
🥈 2nd – Zachary A., West Navarre Intermediate
🥉 3rd – Emree S., Holley-Navarre Intermediate
5th Grade
🥇 1st – Addley M., West Navarre Intermediate
🥈 2nd – RoxAnna B., Bagdad
🥉 3rd – Mackenzie A., Wallace Lake K-8
6th Grade
🥇 1st – Taylor L., Avalon Middle
🥈 2nd – Jacob L., East Bay K-8
🥉 3rd – Georgia W., Jay Elementary
👏 Wonderful job to all participants and supporters who made this event such a success!
#SRCDS
This year, 4,426 students participated in the 4-H Public Speaking Competition across 192 classrooms throughout Santa Rosa County! Today, the top school-level winners from 4th, 5th, and 6th grades came together at the Santa Rosa Auditorium to compete in the countywide finals, hosted by the UF IFAS Extension Office of Santa Rosa County.
We are incredibly proud of all our students for stepping up to the challenge of public speaking. Their confidence, preparation, and courage truly shined!
A heartfelt thank you to UF IFAS Extension (Santa Rosa County Extension), judges, volunteers, schools, teachers, and event sponsor Florida Power & Light for making this meaningful experience possible. Public speaking is a powerful life skill, and it’s inspiring to see our students developing it as they prepare for future success.
🎉 Congratulations to this year’s winners! 🎉
4th Grade
🥇 1st – Karter M., East Milton Elementary
🥈 2nd – Zachary A., West Navarre Intermediate
🥉 3rd – Emree S., Holley-Navarre Intermediate
5th Grade
🥇 1st – Addley M., West Navarre Intermediate
🥈 2nd – RoxAnna B., Bagdad
🥉 3rd – Mackenzie A., Wallace Lake K-8
6th Grade
🥇 1st – Taylor L., Avalon Middle
🥈 2nd – Jacob L., East Bay K-8
🥉 3rd – Georgia W., Jay Elementary
👏 Wonderful job to all participants and supporters who made this event such a success!
#SRCDS
📘 Middle School Battle of the Books 📘
Middle school students from across Santa Rosa County brought their competitive spirit and reading knowledge to this year’s Battle of the Books! Each team participating earned their spot by first winning at the school level, then advancing to compete against other top teams from around the county. Students were tested on their understanding of the Sunshine State Young Readers Award (SSYRA) titles, demonstrating strong teamwork, focus, and a shared love of reading. With 15 books to master, it was an impressive display of dedication and skill!.
🎉 Congratulations to all teams who competed and represented their schools so well!
🏆 Middle School Winners:
🥇 1st Place – Gulf Breeze Middle School
🥈 2nd Place – Sims Middle School
🥉 3rd Place – Wallace Lake K‑8
Ready to start reading for next year? Check out the 2026–2027 SSYRA Middle School book list below and get a head start! ⬇️
🔗 https://www.floridamediaed.org/ssyra-6-8.html
Middle school students from across Santa Rosa County brought their competitive spirit and reading knowledge to this year’s Battle of the Books! Each team participating earned their spot by first winning at the school level, then advancing to compete against other top teams from around the county. Students were tested on their understanding of the Sunshine State Young Readers Award (SSYRA) titles, demonstrating strong teamwork, focus, and a shared love of reading. With 15 books to master, it was an impressive display of dedication and skill!.
🎉 Congratulations to all teams who competed and represented their schools so well!
🏆 Middle School Winners:
🥇 1st Place – Gulf Breeze Middle School
🥈 2nd Place – Sims Middle School
🥉 3rd Place – Wallace Lake K‑8
Ready to start reading for next year? Check out the 2026–2027 SSYRA Middle School book list below and get a head start! ⬇️
🔗 https://www.floridamediaed.org/ssyra-6-8.html
📚 Elementary Battle of the Books 📚
Elementary students from across Santa Rosa County put their reading skills to the test during this year’s Battle of the Books! Each team earned their spot by first winning at their own school, then advancing to compete at the county level. Battling it out over the Sunshine State Young Readers Award (SSYRA) titles, these readers showed remarkable teamwork, dedication, and a genuine love of reading. With 15 books on each list, the competition was intense and exciting from start to finish!
👏 A huge congratulations to our winners and a big shoutout to all participating schools and students who made this event such a memorable success.
🏆 Elementary School Winners:
🥇 1st Place – Gulf Breeze Elementary
🥈 2nd Place – Wallace Lake K-8
🥉 3rd Place – S.S. Dixon Intermediate
Ready to keep the reading momentum going? Get a head start on next year by exploring the 2026–2027 SSYRA book list below! ⬇️
🔗 https://www.floridamediaed.org/ssyra-3-5.html
🎶 What a beautiful night of music! The Elementary All-County Chorus performance was absolutely outstanding. Over 100 elementary students from across Santa Rosa County District Schools were selected for this honor and came together at Milton First Baptist Church to showcase their talents. Congratulations on a superb performance—let’s give them a big round of applause! 👏🎵
🔥🍔 Grillin’ in the Breeze 🍔🔥
Grills fire up April 25 | 11–2:30 at the GB Community Center! Enjoy live music, mouthwatering samples from local grill teams, a kids area, silent auction, and fun for a great cause. 🎶🌴
🎟️ Tickets on sale now: www.grillininthebreeze.com
Grills fire up April 25 | 11–2:30 at the GB Community Center! Enjoy live music, mouthwatering samples from local grill teams, a kids area, silent auction, and fun for a great cause. 🎶🌴
🎟️ Tickets on sale now: www.grillininthebreeze.com
🐎⭐ Don’t miss the 25th Annual Sandy Sansing Pro Rodeo at Ted May Arena in Jay, Florida on Friday, April 24 at 7 PM and Saturday, April 25 (gates open 5 PM) for thrilling rodeo action, bounce houses, face painting, and great concessions. 🤠🎉
🎶🥁 Incredible Achievement for Pace High School! 🥁🎶
We are incredibly proud to celebrate the Pace High School Indoor Percussion Ensemble, which earned 4th Place at the WGI World Championships in Dayton, Ohio, with a phenomenal score of 94.388! 🌟
Competing against 52 of the nation’s top ensembles, 45 of our talented students delivered a powerful performance of “Ultraviolet,” showcasing creativity, precision, and teamwork on the world stage. This marks yet another year of national excellence, as Pace has been a WGI Open Class Finalist since 2022.
Congratulations to our students, staff, and supporters on this outstanding accomplishment! 👏💙
We are incredibly proud to celebrate the Pace High School Indoor Percussion Ensemble, which earned 4th Place at the WGI World Championships in Dayton, Ohio, with a phenomenal score of 94.388! 🌟
Competing against 52 of the nation’s top ensembles, 45 of our talented students delivered a powerful performance of “Ultraviolet,” showcasing creativity, precision, and teamwork on the world stage. This marks yet another year of national excellence, as Pace has been a WGI Open Class Finalist since 2022.
Congratulations to our students, staff, and supporters on this outstanding accomplishment! 👏💙
🎉 Proud Moment for Gulf Breeze High School! 🎉
We’re excited to celebrate Sydney Maygarden (freshman) and Joshua Khan (senior), who have been selected as finalists for the inaugural Emerald Coast Youth Poet Laureate program! 📝✨
Chosen from young poets ages 13–19 across Northwest Florida, these students stood out for their powerful poetry, leadership, and community engagement.
Congratulations, Sydney and Joshua—we’re so proud of you! 👏
We’re excited to celebrate Sydney Maygarden (freshman) and Joshua Khan (senior), who have been selected as finalists for the inaugural Emerald Coast Youth Poet Laureate program! 📝✨
Chosen from young poets ages 13–19 across Northwest Florida, these students stood out for their powerful poetry, leadership, and community engagement.
Congratulations, Sydney and Joshua—we’re so proud of you! 👏
🌟 Volunteer Appreciation Week 🌟
From April 20-24, we proudly recognize the incredible volunteers who give so much to support Santa Rosa County District Schools. Your time, kindness, and dedication make a lasting impact on our students and help strengthen our entire school district. We are truly grateful for all you do to help shape a brighter future. Thank you for making a difference! 💙👏
From April 20-24, we proudly recognize the incredible volunteers who give so much to support Santa Rosa County District Schools. Your time, kindness, and dedication make a lasting impact on our students and help strengthen our entire school district. We are truly grateful for all you do to help shape a brighter future. Thank you for making a difference! 💙👏
✨ ¡Desfile de Moda en Español! ✨
Mrs. Elciana Trew’s Spanish 1 students at GBMS lit up the classroom with their annual Fashion Show (desfile de moda)—a favorite tradition that brings language learning to life! Through this engaging performance assessment, students showcased their growing Spanish skills while building confidence, creativity, and enthusiasm for learning. ¡Qué divertido y educativo! 👗🧥
Mrs. Elciana Trew’s Spanish 1 students at GBMS lit up the classroom with their annual Fashion Show (desfile de moda)—a favorite tradition that brings language learning to life! Through this engaging performance assessment, students showcased their growing Spanish skills while building confidence, creativity, and enthusiasm for learning. ¡Qué divertido y educativo! 👗🧥
🔥 THIS is what next‑level learning looks like! 🔥
The Santa Rosa Center for Innovation is absolutely delivering, and our students got to experience it firsthand! This incredible space is opening doors, sparking excitement, and showing students just how many possibilities are out there.
From firing up skills in Culinary Arts to getting hands-on with Electricity, Welding, Manufacturing, HVAC, and CSIT, students weren’t just watching—they were doing. The Center for Innovation brings education to life by connecting learning to real careers and real futures. The confidence, curiosity, and excitement students showed as they tried new tools, asked questions, and explored pathways they’d never considered before was amazing to see. These experiences matter—and they stick.
We are incredibly grateful to the talented instructors and students from Locklin Technical College, as well as our Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment, Mr. Thorpe, whose support and expertise made each learning station engaging and meaningful.
👏 The Center for Innovation continues to prove what’s possible when students are given opportunities to explore, create, and imagine their future. We are so proud of this space and even more excited for what’s ahead!
🚀 Big things are happening—and this is just one more reason to celebrate the impact of the Center for Innovation!
The Santa Rosa Center for Innovation is absolutely delivering, and our students got to experience it firsthand! This incredible space is opening doors, sparking excitement, and showing students just how many possibilities are out there.
From firing up skills in Culinary Arts to getting hands-on with Electricity, Welding, Manufacturing, HVAC, and CSIT, students weren’t just watching—they were doing. The Center for Innovation brings education to life by connecting learning to real careers and real futures. The confidence, curiosity, and excitement students showed as they tried new tools, asked questions, and explored pathways they’d never considered before was amazing to see. These experiences matter—and they stick.
We are incredibly grateful to the talented instructors and students from Locklin Technical College, as well as our Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment, Mr. Thorpe, whose support and expertise made each learning station engaging and meaningful.
👏 The Center for Innovation continues to prove what’s possible when students are given opportunities to explore, create, and imagine their future. We are so proud of this space and even more excited for what’s ahead!
🚀 Big things are happening—and this is just one more reason to celebrate the impact of the Center for Innovation!
🎓⭐ Congratulations to Our Florida Prepaid Superintendent’s Scholarship Recipients! ⭐🎓
Santa Rosa County District Schools is proud to celebrate LaQuentin Longmire of Milton High School and Brea Lyle of Jay High School as recipients of the Florida Prepaid Superintendent’s Scholarship!
These outstanding seniors were each awarded an $8,000 scholarship in recognition of their hard work, character, and dedication to excellence. LaQuentin plans to attend the University of West Florida, where he hopes to pursue a career as a social worker or psychiatrist. Brea also plans to attend the University of West Florida, with aspirations of becoming a neonatal nurse practitioner.
We are incredibly proud of LaQuentin and Brea and can’t wait to see all they accomplish in the future. Please join us in congratulating these two amazing students on this well‑deserved honor! 🎉💙
#SantaRosaProud #SuperintendentsScholarship #FloridaPrepaid #ClassOf2026 #SRCDS
Santa Rosa County District Schools is proud to celebrate LaQuentin Longmire of Milton High School and Brea Lyle of Jay High School as recipients of the Florida Prepaid Superintendent’s Scholarship!
These outstanding seniors were each awarded an $8,000 scholarship in recognition of their hard work, character, and dedication to excellence. LaQuentin plans to attend the University of West Florida, where he hopes to pursue a career as a social worker or psychiatrist. Brea also plans to attend the University of West Florida, with aspirations of becoming a neonatal nurse practitioner.
We are incredibly proud of LaQuentin and Brea and can’t wait to see all they accomplish in the future. Please join us in congratulating these two amazing students on this well‑deserved honor! 🎉💙
#SantaRosaProud #SuperintendentsScholarship #FloridaPrepaid #ClassOf2026 #SRCDS
🎉 Congratulations to Mrs. Amanda Penrod! 🎉
We are proud to celebrate Amanda Penrod, our Dillon Center Rookie Teacher of the Year! As a Speech Language Diagnostician in our Exceptional Student Services Department, Amanda brings dedication, compassion, and excellence to everything she does. Her commitment to supporting and empowering our students truly makes a difference each and every day.
Please join us in congratulating Mrs. Penrod on this well‑deserved honor—we are so thankful to have her as part of our school family! 🌟
#SRCDS #RookieTeacherOfTheYear 💙
We are proud to celebrate Amanda Penrod, our Dillon Center Rookie Teacher of the Year! As a Speech Language Diagnostician in our Exceptional Student Services Department, Amanda brings dedication, compassion, and excellence to everything she does. Her commitment to supporting and empowering our students truly makes a difference each and every day.
Please join us in congratulating Mrs. Penrod on this well‑deserved honor—we are so thankful to have her as part of our school family! 🌟
#SRCDS #RookieTeacherOfTheYear 💙
🌍✨ UWF College & Career Field Trip Highlights! ✨🌍
The Department of Social Studies, World Languages, and ESOL transported 200 students from Mrs. Mahoney’s HNMS, Hobbs, East Bay, WBMS, and Sims Spanish 1 classes, along with Mr. Hadley’s GBHS and NHS ESOL students, to the University of West Florida for an unforgettable College & Career Field Trip!
Students loved meeting fellow Broadcast students, touring the UWF campus, and taking part in the vibrant Global Block Party. 🌎🎉As World Language educators, it was especially rewarding to see students actively engaging in the Culture and Communities standards—from getting their “passports” stamped at each country’s table to practicing language skills with confidence and curiosity.
What an incredible day of learning, exploration and future‑focused inspiration! 💙📚✈️
💙 April is Autism Awareness Month 💙
Santa Rosa County District Schools is proud to celebrate the incredible students , dedicated educators , and supportive families 🤝 who make our schools stronger every day.
We are committed to creating classrooms where every student is understood, supported, and empowered to shine ✨. Together, we continue building a culture of acceptance, understanding, and opportunity for all—this month and throughout the year!
#AutismAwarenessMonth #InclusiveSchools #StrongerTogether #CelebrateDifferences #SRCDS
Santa Rosa County District Schools is proud to celebrate the incredible students , dedicated educators , and supportive families 🤝 who make our schools stronger every day.
We are committed to creating classrooms where every student is understood, supported, and empowered to shine ✨. Together, we continue building a culture of acceptance, understanding, and opportunity for all—this month and throughout the year!
#AutismAwarenessMonth #InclusiveSchools #StrongerTogether #CelebrateDifferences #SRCDS
SPECIAL EDITION OF LEAPS & BOUNDS
Our 3rd Quarter Special Edition of LEAPS & Bounds is now available online at 🔗https://bit.ly/April2026SpecialEdition3QLeapsandBounds
In this edition, we highlight third-quarter achievements, including instructional work with Defined Learning and Student-Led Academic Teams, along with exciting progress in Career and Workforce Education. Enjoy a snapshot of students, teachers, and programs making an impact across the district.
💜 April is the Month of the Military Family💜
Join us in wearing PURPLE on April 15 as we celebrate "Purple Up" Day in honor of Month of the Military Child! These students show incredible strength through constant change, long separations, and moments of uncertainty—all while continuing to shine. When you wear purple, you help recognize the resilience and sacrifices of the heroes who stand behind our service members.
Thank you for standing with and celebrating our military families today and always!
Join us in wearing PURPLE on April 15 as we celebrate "Purple Up" Day in honor of Month of the Military Child! These students show incredible strength through constant change, long separations, and moments of uncertainty—all while continuing to shine. When you wear purple, you help recognize the resilience and sacrifices of the heroes who stand behind our service members.
Thank you for standing with and celebrating our military families today and always!
