Page 4 - Florida Sentinel 3-7-17

Letter To The Editor
An Important Bill:
Features
Grant Park Cleanup Going On This Week
Senate Bill (SB) 0002 - Florida Excellence In Higher Education Act Of 2017
The Hillsborough County Rapid Response Team will hold a “Fight The Blight” Cleanup event in Grant Park. The cleanup began on Friday, March 3rd and will con- tinue through Thursday, March 9th.
The boundaries of the cleanup are: East Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Blvd., on the north side of Interstate 4, on the south and North 56th Street on the west.
The Rapid Response Team will continue work in the area to remove other un-
wanteddebris.Residentsare asked to place unwanted ma- terials to the curbside.
The material must be placed within 6 feet of curb- side. It cannot be left in al- leyways or on side streets. It must be placed on the ground and cannot block any streets or sidewalks, under power lines or under tree limbs.
During the cleanup resi- dents can place junk, trash, and debris that include metal, electronics, furniture and up to 5 tires per home.
Items that will not be ac-
cepted are tree debris and yard waste, commercial vehi- cle tires, and hazardous ma- terials.
Last Friday, more than 100 tires that had been ille- gally dumped in the area were removed from 5601 E. Chelsea Street.
Once the tires were re- moved, the organization erected a fence to prevent il- legal dumping on the prop- erty.
For more information about the cleanup call (813) 393-9670 or visit www.HCFLGov.net/code.
Institutions of higher education are an impor- tant pathway for stu- dents to achieve academic excellence in life. It is vital for State Colleges to have the best academic programs in order for students to achieve their academic goals and aspirations.
In order for this to occur, the executive ad- ministration of the insti- tutions has to annually evaluate the internal and external functions of important depart- ments such as the: aca- demics, operations, grants and scholarships departments.
There has to be an in- tentional and measura- ble evaluation of the processes and policies for students’ registra- tion and enrollment to adequately review on how many students earned the: Bright Fu- tures Scholarships, Making Scholarship Grants, Florida Aca-
demic Scholars Pro- gram, First Generation Matching Grants, and the Florida Resident Ac- cess Grant.
The students deserve to have attention given to the importance of their retention rate and scholarly pursuits with an examination of insti- tutional benchmarks and metrics.
Once the students successfully complete their academic journey from entry to graduation at the state college level, their transition to a uni- versity should be smoother. Senate Bill (SB) 0002 - Florida Ex- cellence in Higher Edu- cation Act of 2017, is a very important Bill for the enhancement of the academic function of the State College System and an added resource in helping students achieve academic excellence.
DR. SHANDALE TERRELL Lakeland, Florida
Wilbert Davis Boys And Girls Club To Be Renovated
BY IRIS B. HOLTON Sentinel City Editor
Recently, Lowe’s and the Boys & Girls Clubs of Amer- ica united to renovate and enhance clubs throughout the country. Through the ini- tiative, one boys & girls club in each state was selected as the recipient of the grant award.
The Wilbert Davis Boys & Girls Club, 3515 Sarah Street, was chosen as the re- cipient for the State of Florida.
Jerome Ryans, Presi- dent and CEO of the Tampa Housing Authority said, “These funds will help us to create a state-of-the-art space for our teens and will allow us to better serve this population. This grant was critical to improving the overall Club environment and experience for our Club members as well.
Ryans further said, “Many of our members and their families realize the value of Boys and Girls Clubs in bringing hope and strength to kids and teens in need of a safe and inspiring
JEROME RYANS President and CEO of the Tampa Housing Authority
place to go for meaningful after-school activities.”
Ms. Susan Johnson- Velez, Tampa Housing Au- thority Board Chairperson said, “Boys and Girls Clubs drive academic success, in- fluence positive health and wellness and build good character and citizenship. We look forward to working with Lowe’s to achieve the kind of Boys and Girls Club that we all can be proud of.”
Representatives from Lowe’s and DPR Construc- tion met with staff and club members to help create a space just for them. Working in teams of four, the youth
MS. SUSAN JOHNSON- VELEZ
Tampa Housing Authority Board Chairperson
put their skills to work and learned everything from cre- ating a blue-print to building a 3D model of a floor plan. The groups (teens and com- pany representatives), worked on research, design, marketing and development strategies, as well.
The project is the largest single initiative ever under- taken between Lowe’s and the Boys & Girls Clubs of America. Lowe’s will support a wide range of enhance- ments from kitchen repairs to amenities that include new flooring, internal paint- ing and new furnishings at the Wilbert Davis Branch.
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