👥 Who: Okaloosa County School District, Superintendent Marcus Chambers, Assistant Superintendent Sheila Lightbourne, community leaders, and Neko Stubblefield of Eglin Federal Credit Union
📚 What: Launch of the Champions of Education initiative to engage community members with schools
📅 When: September 29, 2025 (with additional sessions scheduled throughout the school year)
📍 Where: Okaloosa County School District, including a tour at Edge Elementary School and sessions at the district’s Central Office
❓ Why: To foster engagement, understanding, and collaboration between the school district and the community, and to showcase district operations and innovation
The Okaloosa County School District has launched a new program designed to connect community members with the inner workings of the school system. The initiative, called Champions of Education, began with its first session on September 29, 2025.
The program includes four sessions throughout the school year, each highlighting different areas of district operations such as curriculum, student services, budgeting, facilities, and classroom innovation. The goal, district officials said, is to increase community understanding and build stronger partnerships between schools and local leaders.
Superintendent Marcus Chambers opened the inaugural session with an overview of the district’s six guiding pillars: Academic Excellence, Continuous Learning, Student Focused, Safer Schools, Modern Innovation, and Community Engagement. Attendees also heard presentations on the school district’s budget, enrollment numbers, and capital improvement projects funded in part by the Half-Cent Sales Tax.
Assistant Superintendent of Academic and Student Services Sheila Lightbourne led a presentation on curriculum, which included interactive test-style questions for participants.
The group then toured Edge Elementary School, where students introduced community members to extracurricular clubs such as C.A.R.E. Crew, Space Raiders, Robot Design, and Lego League. Visitors observed classrooms during lessons before returning to the district’s Central Office for demonstrations of hands-on math and science lessons using PRISMS VR Goggles.
Neko Stubblefield, senior vice president of membership and community development for Eglin Federal Credit Union and a participant in the program, said she was honored to take part. “It’s inspiring to witness the work being done to elevate education for our youth,” she said.
Chambers said the district views the initiative as a way to strengthen ties with the community. “By inviting community members into our schools, we not only showcase the incredible work happening every day but also strengthen the partnerships that help our students thrive,” he said.
The second session of Champions of Education is scheduled for October and will spotlight additional district departments.
Pro Communi Bono
St. Francis De Sales, Ora Pro Nobis!
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