New PTO created as PSJ transitions to Jr./Sr. High School
In an effort to support school needs and build school-community through volunteer opportunities, special events, fundraising, and ongoing projects, parents and staff in Port St. Joe have formed a PTO (parent teacher organization).
The PTO will work alongside Superintendent Jim Norton and Principal Sissy Godwin to support needs and advance towards goals that support fresh learning opportunities and new program offerings that Norton and Godwin look forward to implementing.
The high school will transition into a Junior/Senior high school beginning the 2024-25 school year by welcoming entering sixth graders as part of their student body.
The PTO is a group of parents, staff members, and administrators who volunteer their time and talents for the benefit of students and their success. Through fundraising, the PTO will provide equipment and campus upgrades, resource materials, engaging learning opportunities for students, as well as connect the school and parents together for the sake of community.
“This is a great way to improve and keep our sense of community intact,” said Godwin. “Small town Port St. Joe is unique and special. The goal is to set our students up for success from the time they enter the school, and support our faculty and include our families, making sure they have opportunities to be involved in their child’s, or children’s student life.”
The PTO will also provide information and facilitate communication between and among parents and the school and the school district. Other ongoing activities and initiatives include teacher appreciation, schoolwide events, recognitions, and celebrations.
The board of officers with the new PTO include President Brittany Golson; Secretary of Grants Stephanie Sundlof; Vice President Lisa Forehand; Academic Chair Stephanie Petersen; Board Secretary Maggie Weems; Special Projects Coordinator Erika Norton; Treasurer Ashley Payne; Fundraising/Events Amy Pitts, Elizabeth Wynn and Madeline Carnes.
If you are looking for a way to give back to your community, consider a contribution to Tigershark PTO PSJ, servicing student-families at Port St. Joe Jr./Sr. High School. The PTO functions as a separate 5013c entity from the school and the Gulf County School district.
For questions or more information, please visit the Facebook page Tigershark PTO PSJ or email board members directly at TigersharkPTO.PSJ@gmail.com.
Meet the Editor
David Adlerstein, The Apalachicola Times’ digital editor, started with the news outlet in January 2002 as a reporter.
Prior to then, David Adlerstein began as a newspaperman with a small Boston weekly, after graduating magna cum laude from Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts. He later edited the weekly Bellville Times, and as business reporter for the daily Marion Star, both not far from his hometown of Columbus, Ohio.
In 1995, he moved to South Florida, and worked as a business reporter and editor of Medical Business newspaper. In Jan. 2002, he began with the Apalachicola Times, first as reporter and later as editor, and in Oct. 2020, also began editing the Port St. Joe Star.