March 4, 2024
Community Experiences Take Learning on the Road
As part of the District's Strategic Plan, all fifth, seventh, and 10th grade students have the opportunity this school year to go on a field trip to explore the arts, science, nature, history, social studies, or civics. The District plans to continue to grow this initiative to offer community experiences to students in more grade levels in the future. Click here to learn more about the District's Strategic Plan.

It's The Final Round of the 2024 Academic Challenge! See Which School Takes Home the Championship Title
Students’ knowledge is tested in this fast-paced tournament on various academic subjects. The top six scoring students from the winning team will be asked to represent the School District of Palm Beach County at Universal Studios in Orlando this April. These schools are competing for the championship:

  • A.W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts
  • Boca Raton High School
  • West Boca High School
  • Spanish River High School
  • William T. Dwyer High School
  • Olympic Heights High School
Students Debut Their Creativity and Artistic Talents Through Street Painting
Chalk one up to the student artists inside the Palm Beach County School District! Several District schools participated in the 30th annual Legacy Lake Worth Street Painting Festival on February 24-25, with students showing off their artistic talents through collaboration.
This Week's Thank a Teacher Has Made His Passion a Source of Inspiration for Students
This week’s Thank a Teacher winner has a great appreciation for the freedoms we have in this country. Michael Gallo is a Social Studies teacher at Independence Middle School who shares his passion for government and history with his students. Mr. Gallo is known for coordinating an annual Veterans Day ceremony to honor the men and women who have served our nation.

For his hard work and passion, Mr. Gallo has earned a $250 check from HCA Florida Healthcare as this week's Thank a Teacher winner.
Students Give Back to the Community Through Volunteerism
District students, teachers, and administrators came together through Project Uplift to give back to the community by cleaning local neighborhoods.

Project Uplift is organized by District 7 Palm Beach County School Board member Edwin Ferguson, and the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity along with the city of West Palm Beach.
Deaf Student Athletes Thrive On and Off the Court as Their Stories Inspire
If you go to a John I. Leonard basketball game, freshman, Lovinske Louis, and senior cheerleader, Gaenia Bertrand look like any other student-athlete, but their backstories are anything but the norm.

"I can't hear the words or the cheers, so I have to be able to see all the cheerleaders so I can be in sync with them," Bertrand said.

"In basketball so far, I've had a lot of support. My coaches have been learning ASL (American Sign Language), so that has helped me a lot being on the team," Louis said.

Louis and Bertrand were both born deaf and grew up in rural Haiti with limited access to education to learn sign language and no access to interpreters. The two students aren't related, but both moved to Palm Beach County and now are thriving with John I. Leonard's resources for deaf and hard-of-hearing students, which includes full-time interpreters in the classroom and on the court.