Good Thursday Afternoon Wildcats,

Today marks very fond farewell to our amazing students and families for the summer; and, a not so “fond” farewell to end of the 2019-2020 school year. I know that lately it has been difficult to focus on the positives when all we seem to see and hear lately are our world related to COVID-19 and the devastating impact it has had on our country, our state, and our local community. I wish to stay positive however as, amidst the chaotic ending of the year, there were so many things to be thankful for. We saw huge successes in academics, athletics, co-curricular and extracurricular activities alike, and for three quarters of the school year, our students engaged in so many positive growth experiences. I am of the mindset that there are always positives that come out of negative situations and our students did, in fact, experience tremendous growth in the final quarter, albeit in a rather unconventional sense. I was comforted to see and hear heartwarming stories of families banding together, sharing resources, spaces, and most importantly — quality time together.

I also wanted send a heartfelt “thank you” to all of our families for your time and patience over the past few days as we collected items from our students. I know it was far from perfect however seeing all the smiling faces was certainly powerful for our staff and I hope it was as equally rewarding for our families as it was for us. We unfortunately got sidetracked by some inclement weather, therefore if you were unable to turn in items we will communicate a plan in early June to have another chance to do so. Stay tuned!!

As we look to what lies ahead, there is tremendous uncertainty in what things might look like in the Fall and I am hopeful that we can return to some semblance of normalcy. I wanted to let our school community know that whatever the future holds, our West Shore teachers and staff will be ready to serve our families with the very best we have to offer. I ask that you please stay informed through our website, the PTA list-serve, social media, and our Blackboard Connect phone messaging as those platforms will be regularly updated with timely information about all of our summer plans for July and the ensuring registration process for the 2020-2021 school year. For now, our front office remains closed to the public for walk-ins, however we are always available by phone or through email so please feel free to reach out to us should you have questions, comments, or concerns.

On a final note, please once again accept my warmest wishes for a great summer break!!! We remain hopeful to a Graduation ceremony for the Class of 2020 on June 20 at 7 p.m. at the Space Coast Stadium; however, we are driven by directives from the state and district therefore we will communicate out as timely as we can on this issue.

Best wishes.

Sincerely,

Rick Fleming