Page 14 - Florida Sentinel 6-25-21

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Educator’s Business Bridges The Virtual Gap For Students
Hillsborough County Public Schools Students Honored With Scholarships And Laptops
The students from left to right are: Corbin Trottier, Plant City High School; Chidiuto Anunobi, Newsome High School; Alejandro Lopez, Jefferson High School; Rebecca Rodriguez, Brandon High School; and Christiana Dirks, Plant High School; (not pictured, Nicholas Salvo, Strawberry Crest High School). Supt. Addison and School Board Members are in the background.
After 13 Straight Years of Perfect Attendance
Six seniors in Hillsborough County Public Schools were honored for achieving perfect attendance during their entire educational career, from kindergarten through 12th grade. Each student has at- tended 2,340 consecutive school days; that’s 180 days for 13 straight years.
To mark this impressive achievement, these six stu- dents were guests at Tuesday night’s (June 15th) School Board meeting where they re- ceived a brand-new laptop and a $500 scholarship from Sun- Coast Credit Union Founda- tion.
“These incredible students
are an exemplar of determina- tion, discipline, and persever- ance. They demonstrate a phenomenal level of commit- ment by never missing a day of school which contributed to their success over their educa- tional careers. I want to com- mend the families behind these extraordinary learners who provided a strong support system that allowed each stu- dent to thrive and ultimately reach this amazing achieve- ment.
“I am confident these stu- dents will be successful in fu- ture endeavors and will continue to exhibit the same amount of diligence they have shown thus far in their lives,” said Superintendent Addi- son Davis.
BY MONIQUE STAMPS Sentinel Staff Writer
Lee’s Learning Loft is a spe- cial place for our children. Of- fering a wide variety of tutoring and virtual assistance programming, the Loft was a lifesaver for many Hillsbor- ough County children.
Owner and teacher/coach, Shannon Lee is a product of Hillsborough County public schools, graduating from Hillsborough High School. After college, she began her educational career. She has taught language arts, reading, and geography.
In her first year, she won the Teacher of the Year Award. In 2013, she was named reading coach at Greco Middle School.
When COVID hit, Lee de- cided to put her family first and take control of her fam- ily's health and safety by cre- ating Lee's Learning Loft.
Lee lives in an intergener- ational family unit with her mother and daughter. She also has two other daughters and two grandchildren. In her position as reading coach, Lee would have been in several classrooms and meeting with several hundred children
SHANNON LEE
... Owner of Lee’s Learning Loft
every week. That was a risk that Lee felt she could not take.
Lee had dreams of open- ing Lee’s Learning Loft long before COVID. The model was different, more of an after- school program for remedial students.
She took a leave of absence from the school system and decided to start Lee’s Learn- ing Loft.
She had been tutoring chil- dren for the past 11 years, and felt that this was a natural progression, and something
she loved to do.
The center offers many dif-
ferent things. The children are still in virtual school, but they come to the Loft. One of the most important roles in addi- tion to tutoring was to be a virtual school facilitator.
The students each had their own six-foot desks and were masked when they left their desks and during recess.
All assignments were com- pleted by the students, then turned over to “Ms. Shan- non” for review of completion and accuracy. If the student got stuck, Lee would ask guid- ing and coaching questions, just like she did in the class- room.
Depending on the student, Lee provides either remedial guidance for struggling stu- dents or enrichment for ex- celling students.
Her business provides a full experience by offering Loft students exposure to many different areas, includ- ing entrepreneurship, finan- cial literacy, and career paths.
Throughout the school year, Lee’s work with chil- dren helped build a bridge with the teacher, student. This collaboration helped the chil- dren be as successful as possi- ble. Every child in her program did well. “It was an amazing partnership,” says Lee.
This summer, Lee’s Learn- ing Loft is offering a Summer Accelerate Program. Although the program has already started, there are some spaces open.
“Since e-learning is no longer an option for Hillsbor- ough County students next school year, Lee's Learning Loft will continue to serve the community as an educational hub for students that need tu- toring, student life skills courses, parent educational events, and educator consul- tations,” Lee states.
The business can be con- tacted by phone: (813) 368- 5377 or email: leeslearningloft@gmail.com. The hours of operation are 8:00am to 4:30pm.
You can visit their website at https://www.leeslearn- ingloft.com.
The Learning Loft is located at 11966-68 N. Florida Ave.
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