Twelve Sarasota County elementary schools earned Everglades Champion School recognition for the 2025-26 year, and a Cranberry Elementary teacher presented her environmental curriculum work before more than 200 educators statewide this summer, the district announced Wednesday, Aug. 12.
The honors cap a year in which 213 teachers from 17 Sarasota County schools completed Everglades Literacy professional learning through the district's partnership with the Everglades Foundation. The program puts standards-aligned environmental science kits directly into classrooms, connecting students to Florida ecosystems through hands-on lessons rather than textbook-only instruction.
Sarasota County Schools serves Lakewood Ranch families in the Windward and Waterside neighborhoods south of University Parkway. Tatum Ridge Elementary, the district school most directly serving those families, does not appear on this year's Champion Schools list, though the district distributed more than 200 curriculum kits to teachers across the 17 participating schools.
Twelve schools split across gold, silver and bronze tiers
The district recognized schools at three tiers based on how deeply they integrated Everglades literacy into projects and school culture, according to the district:
Gold: Atwater Elementary, Brentwood Elementary, Cranberry Elementary, Fruitville Elementary and Roots Nature & Leadership Academy
Silver: Englewood Elementary, Lakeview Elementary, Taylor Ranch Elementary, Toledo Blade Elementary and Wilkinson Elementary
Bronze: Emma E. Booker Elementary and Southside Elementary
Twelve schools made the cut.
Cranberry Elementary's Kemble presents 'Finding My Why' at statewide symposium
Laurie Kemble, science lab teacher at Cranberry Elementary, was selected as a featured presenter at the Everglades Foundation's ninth annual Teacher Symposium on July 22. Her lightning session, titled "Finding My Why," described how she found her purpose as an educator through the Champion Schools program. The symposium drew 202 attendees from across Florida.
Program has trained 480 Sarasota County teachers since launch
The district hosted 16 professional development sessions during 2025-26: 12 school-based trainings, one districtwide session and three outdoor learning experiences at Big Waters Land Trust, Big Cypress National Preserve and Charlotte Harbor Environmental Center. Since the partnership began, 480 teachers from 40 Sarasota County schools have completed the training.
Statewide, the Everglades Literacy Program trained 1,475 educators and designated 119 Champion Schools in 2025-26, according to the Everglades Foundation. Sarasota County's 12 recognized schools represent about 10% of that statewide total.
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