Parent Magazine St. Johns December 2018 | Page 7

FROM THE SUPERINTENDENT O n behalf of the School Board and staff of the St. Johns County School District, I want to wish you all a joyous holiday season. This is a wonderful time of year in our schools with students, teachers and staff putting in the effort to finish the semester strong while eagerly anticipating a well-deserved break. As I visit schools this time of year I witness the spirit of giving at every turn. I am filled with pride at the effort put into helping those in need and am humbled by the overwhelming generosity. The collaboration of our schools and organizations throughout the community to collect, give, distribute and provide items to our families that will make the holidays even better. Hugs across the County has partnered with our schools to serve 1,000 students with its No Hungry Holidays bags and our ASSIST program has more than 418 homeless students identified to date. These students’ individual needs are vast and varied. We are currently working with the St. Johns Fire Rescue Department on screening for its Firefighters for Families program. Many schools have Angel Trees and clubs and community organizations are supporting families directly. If you have interest in supporting a family during the holidays with gifts, food or other items, please contact our Student Services department at 904-547-7797. We have also welcomed students and families who left the devastation in the Panhandle from Hurricane Michael to start anew in our schools this semester. This transition can be difficult and I applaud our students and teachers for making these students feel welcome. I am humbled and honored to be your superintendent and look forward to continuing our learning and achievement journey together in 2019. May you enjoy this time with your loved ones and find time to enjoy the peace of this special season. TI M F ORSON , S UPERIN T EN D EN T OF S C H OOL S , S T. JO H NS CO UNT Y SC H OO L DIS TRIC T VI SI T US ON L I N E AT WWW.PAREN T MAGAZIN EFLORIDA .COM S T. JOHNS parent MAGAZINE | 5