Graduation rate and school grade soar at Milton High School


  • August 27, 2015
  • /   Reggie Dogan
  • /   education,report-pensacola-metro-2014
Milton High School Prinicipal Mike Thorpe
By focusing on giving at-risk students more one-on-one help, Milton High School's leadership turned the school from a D in 2009 to an A in 2010.

We’re committed to making lives better for people here


  • August 24, 2014
  • /   Quint Studer
  • /   leadership-tips,quint-column,quint-studer,report-pensacola-metro-2014
Quint Studer
The Studer Institute exists for one reason: To improve the quality of life for people.

Focus on education, skills and modern economy


  • August 24, 2014
  • /   Rick Harper
  • /   studer-community-institute,report-pensacola-metro-2014
Foggy weather highway
In important ways, the last dozen years have been kind to our community. We’ve made up lost ground in personal income and we’re adapting to changing demographics.

Our best teachers' influence never ends


  • August 24, 2014
  • /   Reggie Dogan
  • /   education,report-pensacola-metro-2014
Studer Community Institute researcher/writer Reggie Dogan
I've always admired teachers. Through my years of school, I can pinpoint wonderful teachers who had an enormous impact on my life. When I became a teacher, my admiration became adoration.

Are our children ready to learn?


  • August 24, 2014
  • /   Reggie Dogan
  • /   education,report-pensacola-metro-2014
Shemetri Charley watches over her pre-K class at Wee Kare Academy in Pensacola.
Nearly a third of children entering kindergarten in Escambia County aren’t ready for school. That’s sobering news because the future of Escambia’s economy and workforce very likely depends on those preschoolers and how well they are prepared for school.

Escambia public schools worked for me


  • August 24, 2014
  • /   Admin
  • /   education,report-pensacola-metro-2014
Carly Borden’s at N.B. Cook Magnet School of the Arts. Photo by Michael Spooneybarger
Education means different things to different people. For my parents, it meant leaving a house and a familiar neighborhood on the west side of Pensacola to move to East Hill in search of better schools for me and my brother.

Last year, 1 in 3 Escambia students didn't graduate


  • August 24, 2014
  • /   Reggie Dogan
  • /   education,report-pensacola-metro-2014
Hannah Gainer prepares for Pine Forest High School’s graduation.
On a sunlit June afternoon, Hannah Gainer beamed as she zipped up her scarlet gown. After a senior year filled with perils and pitfalls, Hannah graduated from Pine Forest High School.

Fix education; high-income jobs will follow


  • August 24, 2014
  • /   William Rabb
  • /   education,report-pensacola-metro-2014
Claire Hedgepeth uses a magnifying glass to investigate along with others in a pre-K class at Myrtle Grove Baptist Church Pre-School Learning Center
In Pensacola, our economic prospects are all about education. When asked what our area needs more than anything to develop more high-quality jobs and a vibrant economy, many Pensacola leaders stress improved education, particularly early education...

What if we spent as much on our schools as we do on incentives?


  • August 24, 2014
  • /   William Rabb
  • /   government,report-pensacola-metro-2014
Pine Forest High School prepares for a commencement. The school boosted at-risk students’ graduation rate by eight points in a year, going from 52 percent in 2012 to 60 percent in 2013. / Photo by Michael Spooneybarger
Go big or stay home, the saying goes. In that spirit, if public education is, in fact, a problem in Escambia, as so many local leaders seem to believe, then perhaps it’s time to do something about it — and something big at that.

We lag in economic development subsidies


  • August 24, 2014
  • /   William Rabb
  • /   government,report-pensacola-metro-2014
Manfred Laner, president and CEO of Custom Control Solutions, is among companies where small subsidies make no difference. Photo by Michael Spooneybarger
State and local officials agree that Alabama has had success in attracting big-name manufacturers in part because, unlike Florida, it can pull from an extra source of revenue — the residential income tax.