Palatka Jr.-Sr. High School -

🎉 Join us in congratulating Michael Chaires, Assistant Principal of Palatka Jr.-Sr. High School, for being named Florida's 2024 Assistant Principal of the Year! 🌟 Chaires' achievement serves as an inspiration to educators across the state, illustrating the profound impact that dedicated leaders can have on the lives of students and the success of their schools. Congratulations, Michael Chaires, on this well-deserved honor! Read about his remarkable achievement here: https://www.putnamschools.org/article/1557897 #ProudtobePCSD

May is Mental Health Awareness Month. This year we invite all students from 3rd to 12th grade to participate in our poster contest. There will be awards for winners in both the elementary and secondary age groups. Our theme this year is Mental Resiliency – “Show us How You Bounce Back from Stress.” All posters must be completed and turned in to your guidance counselor by April 30th, 2024, and awards will be given to our winners in May. We would love to see as many posters as possible this year, so get your art supplies out and show us how you “Bounce Back.” We are also asking that everyone wear green on each Monday in May, to show our support for Mental Health Awareness. The only way we can stop the stigma is to work together! #ProudtobePCSD

ALL PANTHER FAMILIES ARE REQUESTED TO COMPLETE THIS SURVEY FOR PJSHS! PLEASE HELP US REACH OUR GOAL THIS WEEK. The PCSD 2023-24 Survey for families & staff is open March 28th- April 12th. We appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts as we work to serve you better! https://putnamschools.typeform.com/PCSD23-24Survey

There is still time to submit your nominations for the Product of Putnam award at PCSD! This is your chance to recognize outstanding individuals who have made significant contributions to our community. If you know someone who embodies the spirit of excellence and dedication, nominate them today for this esteemed honor. Let's celebrate the incredible achievements within our community and shine a spotlight on those who truly make a difference. Nomination window closes April 5th. Submit your nominations and let's honor the best of PCSD & Putnam County! Link to Nomination Form: https://www.putnamschools.org/forms/6025 Link to see past Product of Putnam Honorees: https://www.putnamschools.org/page/product-of-putnam #ProudtobePCSD

Please join us for the monthly Superintendent's Community Engagement Session on Tuesday, March 26th, at 10:00AM at CL Overturf, Jr. District Center in the former cafeteria closest to Moseley Ave. If you are unable to join in person, there is a live zoom link available!

Nominations are now OPEN for the Product of Putnam award at PCSD! This is your chance to recognize outstanding individuals who have made significant contributions to our community. If you know someone who embodies the spirit of excellence and dedication, nominate them today for this esteemed honor. Let's celebrate the incredible achievements within our community and shine a spotlight on those who truly make a difference. Nomination window closes April 5th. Submit your nominations and let's honor the best of PCSD & Putnam County! Link to Nomination Form: https://www.putnamschools.org/forms/6025 Link to see past Product of Putnam Honorees: https://www.putnamschools.org/page/product-of-putnam #ProudtobePCSD

Nominations are now OPEN for the Product of Putnam award at PCSD! This is your chance to recognize outstanding individuals who have made significant contributions to our community. If you know someone who embodies the spirit of excellence and dedication, nominate them today for this esteemed honor. Let's celebrate the incredible achievements within our community and shine a spotlight on those who truly make a difference. Nomination window closes April 5th. Submit your nominations and let's honor the best of PCSD & Putnam County! Link to Nomination Form: https://www.putnamschools.org/forms/6025 Link to see past Product of Putnam Honorees: https://www.putnamschools.org/page/product-of-putnam #ProudtobePCSD

PJSHS Spring BBQ is Friday March 15th. They will be selling Rib plates and Chicken plates. Chicken plates are $12. Rib plates are $15. They come with 2 sides. There will be 2 pick-up times (11AM-2PM & 4PM-6PM) at the Drivers Ed Range at PJSHS. All PJSHS Football players have tickets - you can also reach out to Coach Turner Directly.

Congratulations to Mrs. Fales, our ceramics teacher, & Isabella (Bella) Thomas! Bella's ceramic submission entitled "Lungs of the Ocean" has been accepted for display at this year's national exhibition during The National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA). This annual National K-12 Ceramic Exhibition in Richmond, VA spans from 03/20/2024 to 03/22/2024 when it will be seen by thousands of visitors from all over the world. She is commended for the quality of her work and can be very proud for having attained this level of achievement. These submissions demonstrate the inspirational impact ceramic education is having upon a wide range of students. This year the council experienced an enormous number of entries, 1169, making the selection process very difficult, as there was so much outstanding work submitted. From the total entries, 150 were selected for the exhibition. Congratulations again, Bella, we are proud that your work will represent Palatka Jr-Sr High School at such a prestigious exhibit!

PJSHS Yearbook sponsor ad space still available! 🐾⏳💙💛 We still have business Ads available for our Palatka Jr - Sr High School Yearbook. The yearbook costs more to produce than what we're currently charging students, but thanks to last year's business partners, I can offer savings and deals to our Panther family. Interested in supporting us? Send me a message! ** Total Sidenote but the company that prints our book has once again asked to feature our cover!! You are not going to want to miss this year’s book! 320 pages of amazing memories.These are the current prices in the picture below. You would just need to send a check into the school made out to PJSHS memo yearbook Ad and email Ms. Kristy Thomas, our yearbook coordinator and course instructor, at k1thomas@my.putnamschools.org with your design or art work.

During the month of March, we celebrate Music In Our School month. We will be highlighting all things music here at Palatka JSHS along with some great info to share in the community. Today is National Marching Band Day. As we March Forth and grow, we highlight the 2023 Marching Panthers! We have marched with the Gators, played for the Jacksonville Icemen, and returned to the field in competition for the first time in a long time! Please let our Marching Panthers know how much they are appreciated! Also check out our Facebook page later today for a glimpse into the 2024 marching season! https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100086580487657

"Respect the Past. Embrace the Future." is our theme this school year. To tie that in with the 2024 Black History Month theme, African Americans & the Arts, we invited several past Panthers and Putnam County community members to share their success in their respective artistic fields with our students. From culinary arts, to music, to photography, to dance and musical theatre, to painting and digital design we have hosted a variety of Panther alumni this month. PHS graduates from as far back as 2003 to as recent as 2023 helped to educate, encourage, and enlighten us with their accounts of networking, entrepreneurship, and post secondary training that carried them through their journey in the Arts. We are grateful for their passion and their commitment to our community by accepting our invitation to share their paths with our Jr and Sr High students. Tyrone Bennett- Owner of Heart & Soulfood Eatery in Palatka Derris Lee- Percussion Musician Candace Kollas- Published Author and Attorney Facia Lee- Independent Theatre Artist Chef Sevarrest Allen- Entrepreneur Cora Fells- Published Author, Counselor, and Caterer Lafarrah Davis- Choreographer, Motivational Speaker, Author, Event Host Makari Nealy- Dance Student Brandall Kearse- Musical Theatre Student John Alexander- Musician, Teacher, and Painter April Alexander- Abstract Artist

🚌 Today is National School Bus Driver Appreciation Day! THANK YOU to our hardworking bus drivers and transportation staff members who get our kids safely to and from school every day 🙌! Your dedication & care make all the difference! #ProudtobePCSD

Sr High AVID students recently toured SJR State! What a beautiful campus, right here in our hometown. Don’t sleep on the Vikings!

The Florida Lottery is a proud sponsor of the Sunshine State Scholars Program! Congratulations to Madalene Hodge for being selected as Putnam County School District’s Sunshine State Scholar! Each of Florida’s school districts select their top 11th grade students in the areas of Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics (STEM) and Madalene was selected over all of the other 11th graders in our district! In May, Madalene will travel to Orlando for the state recognition event where she will get to meet with employers that specialize in STEM fields, network with other scholars from around the state and meet with Florida’s Commissioner of Education, Florida’s Senior Chancellor and representatives from Florida’s colleges and Universities. Congratulations to Madelene! We are proud that you are representing PJSHS and PCSD.

Save the date! “Own Your Education” Jan. 23 @ 5:30. Data check, 7-12 student status for promotion and graduation.

We have a fun opportunity for all of the girls in 10th and 11th grade! The Girls Can Event is making a comeback (we have not been able to hold this event since March 2020)! Those who attend will get to experience the following: Hear advice and inspiring stories of journeys from accomplished women. Be exposed to careers requiring differing levels of education ranging from workforce certificate programs to advanced degrees. Rotate through breakout sessions to hear the amazing women we have invited that represent STEM fields, manufacturing, energy generation, public service, scientists, engineers, educators, law enforcement officers, small business owners, elected officials and many others. If you are interested in attending, please come by guidance to pick up a permission slip - all permission slips are due by Friday, January 19th, 2024 to Mrs. Sharp, Mrs. Barber, or Ms. Driggers in Guidance.

Palatka Jr-Sr High School's special guests, Cartaveon Valentine and Ymira Passmore, were honored to share in the Martin Luther King, Jr. celebration brunch on Saturday, January 13, 2024. These two panthers know first-hand about perseverance and community. They were invited to participate in the event hosted by the African American Cultural Arts Council of Putnam County for their aspiring leadership and service during their high school experiences. We are proud to call them Panthers and applaud their efforts to drive more positivity in Putnam!

👩🏽‍🎨Mrs. Fales’ ceramics students spent 3 weeks building and glazing their own functional mug. ☕️They worked on new building and glazing techniques, texture and color theory. 🎨 Mrs. Fales described the annual tradition, “We experimented, restarted, self-assessed, hoped, worked and learned. Now we celebrate!” ☕❄️🌲👏 🖥️⌨️🧑‍💻🖼️ Digital Art students developed their photo editing skills and created their own custom pattern based holiday wrapping paper. This is a new elective this year in which Mrs. Fales is growing to love learning with her students too!

Term 1 Honor Roll Congratulations, Panthers!🤩🏆🎯 Your names will be listed for FREE Kona Ice on Tuesday, November 14th, during lunch.🍧