For centuries dating back to ancient times when the Olympics were first held in Greece, humans have been fascinated by sports. Even in the modern day, many of us are consumed with cheering on our favorite teams and sports talk dominates many conversations both in person, around the water cooler and on social media. In the Robinson household, we are a house divided—I am a Miami Hurricane, my husband bleeds orange and blue and my children are now forming their own sports-related traditions (I am still not sure how my oldest became a Green Bay Packers fan). In Sarasota County, we are known for many things, including world-famous beaches, year-round warm weather and the abundance of amenities our community has to offer. More and more, however, we are also becoming known for our varied sports-related venues and activities, leading to the potential long-term impact and value of sports tourism—thanks to an active sports community.

As we attract more and more sports tourism, the economic impact generated for Sarasota County businesses will grow. This strategic diversification of our tourism economy from a large reliance on beach tourism is important so we can further economic stability. Sports tourists generally spend more and we see the benefits though sales tax infrastructure projects and tourist development tax projects that benefit the tourism industry and give the community benefits as well.

The Argus Foundation acknowledges and encourages this positive synergy between business and sports. Recently, Brian Ford, the chief executive officer of The Tampa Bay Buccaneers, spoke at a Meet the Minds luncheon on September 8. Over 100 people attended to hear Ford discuss the business operations of the hometown National Football League (NFL) franchise and this year’s happenings, including the power of the NFL, exciting new updates to the stadium, community outreach, future hosting of the Superbowl and more.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a regional sports attractor and we have our own attractors unique to Sarasota County.

Many of our public sports facilities, including the recently renovated BMX track at the Youth Athletic Complex, Nathan Benderson Park, Ed Smith Stadium and the expanded sporting clays courses at Knight’s Trail Park as well as our privately held facilities like Fox Lea Farms, the Sarasota Polo Club and others attract sports competitors from around nation and the world, infusing money into the local economy and benefiting area businesses and, therefore, our residents.

The effect of the sports dollar is a powerful one. According to Sarasota County’s Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Department, Sarasota County has hosted 79 various sporting events in 2015, bringing in a direct economic impact of more than $33 million to the community.

The benefits of sports tourism leaves its mark on the spectator with a great impression of our community with the possibility of a return and the spectator leaves their economic investment in our businesses and also in tax dollars. Sport tourism is a win-win for our community and we should continue to support this diversification.

Christine Robinson is executive director of The Argus Foundation. 

One of the myths I hear is what I will call “the myth of geography.” It goes something like this: “If I want to transfer to the University of Florida, the only way is to go to the community college in Gainesville.” You can substitute Tallahassee into the same scenario. There is of course a grain of truth in every myth. Santa Fe College and Tallahassee Community College are outstanding institutions—these two schools, along with the State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota and 25 other state and community colleges make up one of the nation’s best public college systems. But I will bust the myth by pointing out that thanks to Florida’s two plus two system, students graduating with an associate degree from any of our state’s college system institutions have the same opportunity to transfer to a state university.

There are many benefits to going the two plus two route—with financial savings being the most recognized and appreciated. A student at SCF will spend about one-third as much as a university student over the same two-year timeframe. I like to focus on the dedicated faculty and smaller class sizes we provide as well. Our faculty’s first priority is engaging students in the classroom; publishing and research are important but secondary. Early alert systems identify students who are struggling academically and ensure assistance is provided.

Florida’s Statewide Articulation Agreement guarantees the transfer of 60 credit hours earned as part of an associate degree to a state university in Florida. This does not mean guaranteed acceptance into the student’s university and program of choice, but it does provide a direct path to completion of a bachelor’s degree. With the Statewide Course Numbering System, the math course you take at SCF is the very same course you would take at any Florida public college or university.

Students aiming for a specific program and university must fulfill the prerequisites and program requirements for their targeted degree and school. Our advisors will work with students and help them identify those requirements to ensure they stay on track while at SCF. This keeps students from taking unnecessary classes or falling short of acceptance at their chosen university.

At SCF, we are committed to helping our community’s students achieve their educational goals and providing them the academic and advising support to prepare them to graduate and transfer. We are constantly working to create defined four-year degree pathways for our students, especially with our local partners—New College, the Ringling College of Art and Design and the University of South Florida. We want our students to have a clear picture of what it will take to go from associate degree to bachelor’s degree the day they start their college education with us.

By starting at SCF, you can get anywhere from here. Thanks to Florida’s outstanding two plus two system, our students have the same opportunities for admission at our state universities as students from any college in the state. That is no myth.

Please take a look at www.scf.edu if you would like more information.

Dr. Carol Probstfeld is president of State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota. 

“I never thought I would see this kind of transformation in our schools during my lifetime. It is truly life-changing.” This is Karen Rose describing the revolutionary change that is nearly complete in 290 Sarasota County middle-school classrooms.

What is Rose, the school district’s executive director of middle schools, talking about? Gulf Coast Community Foundation and Sarasota County Schools have already transformed every middle-school math and science class into a STEMsmart TechActive classroom. Equipped with interactive technology and configured so students work in teams and are empowered by newly trained teachers who are more coaches than lecturers, these classes hit all the marks for helping students enjoy—and excel at—learning. 

Teachers and students embrace technology. Students collaborate on real-world problems. Teachers encourage students to be responsible for their learning—and to one another. No longer do students sit in rigid rows of desks that most of us remember from school, the product of an “assembly-line, mass-production mentality,” as our friend and futurist Peter Diamandis describes it.

It’s really the hands-on learning, real-world connections and creation of their own knowledge that jazzes students when they work in the new classrooms. So, why couldn’t the same tools be turned toward the humanities?

That’s what the Charles & Margery Barancik Foundation asked, and in 2014 it funded a pilot project through Gulf Coast to extend our STEMsmart technology to every English and Social Studies classroom in Sarasota Middle School. An evaluation showed that students in these classrooms found learning more fun, engaging and interesting. Teachers raved too. “It’s more exciting for them to be learning through the computers and research than listening to a lecture or following notes,” says one teacher. 

Such evidence inspired Gulf Coast and the Barancik Foundation to scale the TechActive approach to all Sarasota County middle-school classrooms. That $3.5-million effort, in collaboration with the school district, will be complete next year. And when it is, says Dr. Kevin Baird, a national expert in college and career readiness, there will be “no comparable implementation in the United States,” making Sarasota County “a model site for all schools” across the country.

For our students and teachers, meanwhile, these 21st-century, technology-integrated classrooms are bringing history and language arts to life. Like the history class that was studying ancient Indian emperor Ashoka. As small teams of students huddled around their tables’ touchscreen computers, they analyzed primary and secondary sources, “really digging deep into the text,” according to their teacher. Was Ashoka an enlightened leader or ruthless conqueror? The students next created their own newspapers electronically to explore and debate the question, weaving in details about ancient India and the Mauryan Empire. Sounds more meaningful than copying notes or following along in a textbook like I remember (or don’t).

Another teacher says, “The bottom line is, they need to be able to put their hands on something and they need to be able to get involved, and that’s what this is offering. They tell me they want to work.” How about that? Middle-school students who want to work, whether the lesson is algebra or Ashoka.

What started as an idea to move the needle locally on STEM performance is revolutionizing how the next generation will experience education. Still one more teacher tells us, “If someone were to come in tomorrow and take away my workstation monitors and my tablets, I would cry a lot. It would be a horrible, horrible day.” Nobody wants to see that. And thanks to visionary partners like the Barancik Foundation, many more Gulf Coast donors, and our innovative school district, we won’t have to. 

Mark Pritchett is president and CEO of Gulf Coast Community Foundation. 

Selah Freedom is excited to report they have secured the first of two beautiful, warm and welcoming homes in Chicagoland. These homes will serve as the perfect place for trafficking survivors to rest and restore, especially around the holidays. The safe house will open its doors on November 1, 2016. Selah Freedom is setting the standards and leading the implementation of best practices, programs and services in the fight against sex trafficking.  

Selah Freedom

During Goodwill Manasota’s Young Guns of Country concert, 92.1 CTQ, Diamond Vault, Jennifer Matteo Event Planning and a gentleman named Nathan Bookout came together to surprise Bookout’s longtime girlfriend Karrie Jewell with a sweet and sentimental proposal. Jewell, a US Navy Veteran and Veteran Services Program Advisor at Goodwill Manasota, ecstatically accepted and is overwhelmed by all the support she has received. Jennifer Matteo Event Planning and Katelyn Prisco Photography both offered their services free of charge to the newly engaged couple on their wedding day.   

Goodwill Manasota

Did you know by 2020, there will be 1 million more computer science jobs than students to fill them? That is a loss of $500 billion in salaries. From coding to design to project management, there is something for everyone. The #SRQHacks Hackathon will connect underserved 13- to 18-year-old Sarasota County students with talented mentors from the top technology, design and business companies in our community to help bridge that gap.  

Education Foundation

Center for Architecture’s October 2016 programming has been announced and the line-up includes: The Building a Day daily digital publication, Bayfront Sketches exhibit, a historical walking tour, a members-only tour of the Eide Center and a lecture from architect Marlon Blackwell on public architecture. Throughout the year the tours, lectures and exhibits will highlight the best of public architecture in the US. “We are dedicating the 2016–2017 program year to public architecture and our October programming highlights the importance of good design in the public realm,” says Board Chair Cynthia Peterson. 

Center for Architecture

The Sarasota family YMCA’s Babe Weiller Branch located in Downtown Sarasota will consolidate with the Frank G. Berlin, Sr. Branch on October 7, 2016. This consolidation will offer members a bigger and newly renovated facility with more amenities such as pools, social areas, child watch studio space and new programs. The Y will continue to serve the downtown community through programs and services out of the other branches—Frank G. Berlin, Sr. (1.8 miles away from Babe Weiller branch) and Evalyn Sadlier Jones Branch (10 miles away). 

Sarasota YMCA

Smiles, laughter and plenty of hugs were the order of the day at Children First recently as the area Head Start provider welcomed more than 550 local preschoolers and their families to the first day of school. For many of the children, it was their first time learning and interacting with other students in an organized setting with professionally trained teachers. This year marks the 55th anniversary of the founding of the agency, which provides infant and toddler care, early childhood education, nutrition and healthcare support as well as family strengthening and parenting classes to at-risk children and their families living in Sarasota County.  

Children First

Pineapple Yoga Studio, the newest premier yoga studio in town, joins a healthy ecosystem of health and wellness offerings in Sarasota. Pineapple Yoga Studio's story is unique by the foundation on which it was built. Claudia Baeza, owner and yogi, recently moved here from Fort Lauderdale, with her partner Robert, after spending many years in the Boston area raising her family. The studio is a project from her heart and soul with the purpose of creating a place for wellness, community and spirituality. From the moment you step in the door, you feel this sense of warmth and compassion.  

Pineapple Yoga Studio