Education - Education And Child Care

Education is what you make of it—in the Tampa Bay area or anywhere else.

We offer plenty of educational opportunities—intellectual water to drink, so to speak—here in the Tampa Bay area.

Our public school systems are among the largest in the nation and our schools place well in various rankings. Newsweek, for instance, ranked 14 Tampa Bay area high schools among the top 5 percent of public high schools in the nation in its “Top of the Class 2008” listing.

We’ll start by talking about child care. Both Hillsborough and Pinellas counties have agencies responsible for licensing day care centers and child-care workers. They also regulate after-care and summer programs for school-aged kids. And they have other resources for parents, too.

Then we’ll give you the scoop on the public school systems here in the Tampa Bay area. We’ll give you a mini-glossary of terms you’ll hear so you can begin making some sense of the alphabet soup the education bureaucracy serves up.

But public schools aren’t the only options parents have.

The Roman Catholic Diocese of St. Petersburg lists more than 50 schools ranging from early childhood centers to high schools. Other private schools, both religious and secular, operate on both sides of Tampa Bay.

Homeschooling has become more and more common in Florida, and many parents in the Tampa Bay area teach their children at home. Sometimes groups of homeschooling parents form cooperatives that offer enrichment opportunities for the children, and we’ll give you information about those.

From there, we’ll tour adult and higher education institutions in the Tampa Bay area. We’ll look at the University of South Florida’s campuses on both sides of the bay, at St. Petersburg College and the University Partnership Center, at Eckerd College and its Program for Experienced Learners, and at other colleges and technical institutes.

Finally, we’ll explore some non-typical places to learn such as the public libraries—which offer a whole lot more than just books!— the Extension Office, and more.

An observation before we move on: Part of what makes our country great is that we recognize there’s more than one way to do things. Nowhere does this show up quite so clearly, perhaps, as in how different places approach education and child care.

In Florida, for example, each county is one school district. In other states, each city may have its own school district—with or without consolidated purchasing programs in place. In Hillsborough County, some child-care programs come under the Department of Children’s Services. In Pinellas County, the same programs come under the Department of Health.

Both are equally valid ways of operating. Just be aware that similar information might be found in two different places depending on which side of Tampa Bay you’re on.

Thirsty yet? Good! Let’s start learning about learning in the Tampa Bay area.