Class Notes 02.19.15

+  Auxiliary offers college scholarships

Health Central Auxiliary, the volunteer association that supports Health Central Hospital in Ocoee, is offering $2,000 scholarships to high school and college students interested in pursuing a career in health care. A minimum grade-point average of 3.2 is required, and all applicants must be full-time students.

Scholarship applications are available at the Health Central information desk and the volunteer office, both located on the first floor of Health Central Hospital, 10000 W. Colonial Drive, Ocoee. Applications are also available at Health Central’s long-term care facility, Health Central Park in Winter Garden, and in the student services offices at the following high schools: Dr. Phillips, West Orange, Central Florida Christian Academy, Olympia, Ocoee, Wekiva, Maynard Evans, Bishop Moore and Foundation Academy.

The deadline for returning an application to the Health Central volunteer office is March 31.

Scholarship eligibility is based upon need and ability determined by a selection committee. Qualified applicants are subject to interviewing. 

For more information, call auxiliary office at (407) 296-1148.

+ Fla. Virtual School opens applications

Florida Virtual School has begun accepting applications for its new FLVS Campus program, a free, online and on-campus learning option available for the 2015-16 school year to rising ninth-grade home-education students in the Orlando area.

This approach to blended learning combines the flexibility of virtual education with a community-based learning center for face-to-face instruction. Students will choose when they work from home and when they go to campus. They also will explore hands-on opportunities to meet course requirements. Florida-certified instructors create personalized curricula to meet all ninth-grade standards from the FLVS headquarters in Orlando.

Students take an individualized, focused program to achieve what they need for advancement and college readiness. While they can work on their courses any time, students also schedule time on campus to meet with teachers and each other, as well as receive personal assistance helping them overcome any academic challenges.

For more information on FLVS Campus, visit flvs.net/campus. For more information on FLVS, visit flvs.net.

+ Former Spring Lake principal a state finalist

Dr. Angela Murphy-Osborne has been named a finalist for Florida’s 2015 Principal Achievement Award for Outstanding Leadership (Principal of the Year). The awards recognize principals and assistant principals for their exceptional contributions to their schools and communities.

Murphy-Osborne is the principal of Palmetto Elementary School and was formerly the principal at Spring Lake Elementary, in Ocoee. The other two finalists are Peter James McCabe, Clay County School District; and Michael Thorpe, Santa Rosa County.

Candidates for these awards were nominated by the superintendent from their respective school districts. 

In October, Murphy-Osborne was named the district’s nominee after she led Palmetto Elementary from an “F” letter grade to an “A,” according to the state grading system.

She is in her second year at Palmetto. Previously, she worked at Spring Lake Elementary for more than a decade. Under her leadership, Spring Lake was designated a “Top Performing School” by the district and a Title I Distinguished School by the Florida Department of Education. This is Murphy-Osborne’s second time as a state nominee.

The state’s top administrators will be named in a ceremony at the Commissioner’s Summit for Principals on Feb. 23. The recipient of the 2015 Principal of the Year will be awarded a cash prize of $5,000 and an exclusive overnight stay at the Cinderella Castle Suite inside the Magic Kingdom park, along with theme-park admission for the winner and his or her guests, provided by Disney Youth Programs.

+ OCPS sponsors after-school snacks

Through a sponsorship of the Afterschool Meals Program, a subcomponent of the Child Care Food Program, Lakeview Middle School now provides snacks and meals to children in after-school programs, the school district announced recently.

The food is available at no separate charge.

Lakeview Middle is located at 1200 W. Bay St., in Winter Garden.