OKEECHOBEE — On Tuesday, June 10, several students were recognized at the Okeechobee County School Board meeting for their AR Reading achievements. Each of these students had the most AR points out of all of the children in their school. Claire Butler, a fourth grader at North Elementary, had 341 points; Montserrat Hernandez, a third grader at Seminole Elementary, had 380 AR points; Ryker Soto, a fifth grader at Central Elementary, had 240.6 AR points; Kayden Standifer, a second grader at Everglades Elementary, had 410 AR points; and McKenzie Stanley, a third grader from South Elementary, had 283.2 AR points.

Second grader Kayden Standifer brought a speech with her that she read to the crowd and just a few sentences in, it was clear how she achieved 410 AR points. Kayden read and pronounced each word with ease and familiarity, proving how well-read AR has made her.

School district staff was also recognized at the meeting for their years of service with Okeechobee County Schools. They are:
• Lisa Bell – Supervisor Food Service, Food Service Department, 10 years;
• Rufina Garduno – Custodian II, North Elementary School, 18 years;
• Joseph Gaucin – Warehouseman, Maintenance Department, 43 years;
• Pamela Gaucin – Teacher, Counselor-Elem, Seminole Elementary School, 40 years;
• Elizabeth Reaves – Administrative Assistant, Administrative Offices, 29 years.

Superintendent Dylan Tedders gave a presentation on the year in review, covering all of the accomplishments of the 2024-2025 school year.

During the 2024-2025 school year, 235 new hires were processed, as well as 59 transfers. Instructional vacancies were reduced to five which represents the lowest figure in almost a decade.

Okeechobee Schools deployed a new domain this school year, okeeschools.org, and they implemented a new web design. Along with that came the new app through Apptegy with the Rooms feature, hopefully making it easier for parents to access their child’s progress and be able to communicate with instructors. The app can be downloaded through Google Play Store or the Apple Store. Just search Okeechobee County Schools.

School safety is a top priority for parents as well as the Okeechobee County School board and throughout the school year 199 Safety Drills were conducted, along with two live-action drills with the Okeechobee County Sheriff’s Department. These drills are designed to prepare students and staff in the event of an emergency situation.

Additionally, a new safety system was implemented this year, Centegix. This system allowed the district to install thousands of strobes in every room and hallway. Twelve-hundred badges were distributed to all employees and substitutes. These badges have a button that can be pressed in an emergency that immediately alerts the authorities. Parents may also feel better knowing that every staff member and substitute in the district has been trained for emergency situations and fencing was updated and expanded at several schools.

The board also completed the closeout of millions of dollars of ESSER funding and re-appropriated ESSER funded positions to ensure no ESSER funded personnel were eliminated.

School has ended for the 2024-2025 school year and parents are reminded that Okeechobee County School Board Food Service is offering free meals to all students 18 and under. For more information or locations, contact Amy Medina at by email at Amy.Medina@okeeschools.org or by phone at 863-462-5148. So far, 5,627 meals have been served.