Office of the Superintendent

Welcome to Okeechobee County Schools! 

The excitement of a new school year is upon us.  We return after a robust summer school program to face the 2022-23 school year with anticipation, hope, optimism, and enthusiasm. We have been preparing all summer for the return of students.  Collectively, thousands of hours of planning and professional development have occurred so that we can continue our academic momentum into the new year. Our maintenance and custodial staff have been feverishly working to make sure each campus is ready to receive our students.

As we reflect on last school year, we are fortunate that many schools reached proficiency rates and learning gains higher than prepandemic performance.  The graduation rate increased, industry certifications are up, thousands of meals were fed over the summer, and hundreds of credits were retrieved this summer. The dedication of our staff, the encouragement of our families and the resiliency of our students created opportunities for this rebound. Congratulations to you all!

As we redesign our programming, curriculum and way of work to concentrate on results this school year, several changes will occur. We have new math and English Language Arts textbooks for elementary, Freckle and Lalilo replaces i-Ready, new BEST standards will be taught at all grade levels and FSA is being replaced by a new progress monitoring system. Career and technical education opportunities are being expanded, PreK is now available at every elementary school and we will break ground on the new high school.

This guide contains a wealth of information to get school started.  However, daily attendance is crucial for students to absorb all of our instruction and curriculum on the standards for promotion.

We hope to see you at open house, at school events, volunteering, and joining together with us to make sure your child’s experience is rewarding and helps them achieve their next step of promotion, graduation, victory or certification. It is only after all of these are accomplished can we call ourselves a success. Together, Achieving Excellence by Putting Students First.

Sincerely,

Ken Kenworthy

Superintendent of Schools