IB End of the Year Breakfast in the Park

Where: Largo Central Park
When: Monday, May 23rd - 7:30 - 11:00 AM
Info: Students will walk with administrators and teachers from school to the park.
Sign-up: HERE to register to bring food/drinks, etc.

Come celebrate the end to another great IB year! Games, food, and fun!

Welcome Incoming IB Freshman

Wednesday night Largo High School's IB program welcomed 50+ incoming freshman to its 2016-2017 IB school year. The students came from various middle schools around Pinellas County including Largo Middle School, Country Day World School, Seminole Middle School, and Morgan Fitzgerald Middle School. The students participated in a candlelight welcome and got to meet several of the faculty members and many IB students.

Next year's class is already at 80 students and counting making it one of the largest incoming classes and the first IB freshman class in the new school.

March & April IB Information

• CAS Project Information - Please join the Facebook Page, IB Helpin' You. This is a CAS project by IB junior Sarina Patel devised to help students and parents learn their way around Largo's IB program. Students and parents are welcome and encouraged to join the Facebook group. They can ask questions, read articles, and watch videos of what Largo's IB program is all about.
• Elections - Election time is just around the corner! We have openings on the board for Vice-President (2 year position), Treasurer (2 years), Student Representatives (1 year position), and Class Representatives (1 year) for next year. Interested parties should email us at largoibbooster@gmail.com to submit your name. Entries are due by May 3rd.
• 2016-2017 Freshman Candlelight Ceremony - Wednesday, April 20th at 6:00 pm. We will need parent and student volunteers that evening. Please email us if you are able to volunteer that night.
• SENIORS - Don't forget to purchase your Largo IB stoles to wear at graduation. Please see Mr. Liem in the office. Stoles are $25.
• End of the Year Breakfast - May 23rd from 7:30 - 11:00 am. in Largo Central Park. We are asking for donated food items. Please email us if interested in volunteering or donating.
• Leadership Pinellas - 10th, 11th, and 12th grade students can now fill out applications to join Leadership Pinellas and make a difference. See the website here for the application.
• General Meeting - Wednesday, May 11th at 6:30 pm. Come an join us for elections and a virtual tour of the new school!

IB Student Recognitions

Scholastic Art Award Winners

• Amanda Moody
• Sarah Nguyen
• Vanessa Garcia
• Celine Haddad
• Rachel Piper
• Malyna Reed

All-County Choir

• Fei Fe Hu
• Vanessa Garcia

HACK THE SACK...and the ACT too

Join author and tutor Eliot Schrefer

 as he reveals strategies and shortcuts for taking the college entrance exams!

February 21st at 2:00 pm.

Countryside Library

2642 Sabal Springs Dr.

Clearwater, FL

Eliot Schrefer, popular New York City novelist, National Book Award finalist, Countryside High Grad, Harvard University Honors Grad and in-demand SAT tutor, shares secrets of the college admission process. Schrefer discusses tips on how to improve your SAT scores from his book, HACK the SAT. Visit his website at eliotschrefer.com.

For more information, call 727-562-4970 or visit myclearwater.com/cpl.

Largo's IB Guidance Website

Largo's IB Guidance Counselor Mrs. Wolfe has created a new website for all things IB Guidance related. Check it out HERE!

General Meeting

The next General Meeting will be Wednesday, January 20th at 6:30 pm. in the school cafeteria. The meeting is open to all students, teachers, parents, and administrators in the IB program. This meeting will have pertinent information on various topics for all class grades and parents and students are urged to attend.

Topics include:

• CAS information for freshman and sophomores
• HL/SL class schedule information for freshman and sophomores
• The upcoming USF Field Trip for juniors
• Extended Essay information for juniors
• Proctoring for Senior Exams in May

There will as always be an Open Forum at the end of the meeting for questions or comments. There will be student and parent representatives, teacher representatives, and an administrator representative at the meeting to help answer any questions.

2015 IB Junior Pinning Ceremony

Our third pinning ceremony for the IB junior class was held November 18, 2015 at Crossroads Christian Church in Largo. IB Coordinator, Mr. Liem, took over the hosting duties this year as well as being one of the pinned recipients as our new IB coordinator. He was eloquent with a touch of humor that had everyone in attendance at ease.

Forty two students of the class of 2017 were given advice from fellow seniors Shay Bidani and Rachel Piper who both spoke to the students about staying true to themselves and to building the bridge from the old school to the new school due to open in August of next school year.

Largo Principal, Dr. Brad Finkbiner, was also in attendance. He thanked former IB coordinator, Adam Lane, who was in attendance and welcomed the class to the IB program. The IB teachers were called forward to be thanked and the new teachers to the program were pinned.

Teachers new to the IB program who were given pins were drama teacher, Mr. Durst, Spanish teacher, Ms. Parks, History teacher, Mr. Koehler, and Psychology teacher, Mr. Penberthy. Mr. Liem and Ms. Wolfe, the new IB guidance counselor, also received pins.

 

One by one, the students crossed the stage to a slide show of their baby pictures and received their pins from Mr. Liem and a congratulatory handshake from Dr. Finkbiner. The evening ended with a speech from 2015 IB graduate Brad Mostowski who is a Math major at the University of Southern Florida. He encouraged the students to not be afraid to take risks as they venture through the program and out into the world. 

IB Booster president Jyoti Patel closed the evening with a reminder of the goals of the organization and she thanked Pinning Chairwoman, Elizabeth Cottrell, for putting together the warm and wonderful evening. A reception was held afterwards. Click here for more photos of the evening.

October IB Information

Sunday, October 4th - 1:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. - Pinellas County College Fair - University of South Florida St. Petersburg Student Center - Visit with admission administrators from various universities and colleges.
Monday, October 5th -  6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. - Countryside High School College Fair - Visit with admission administrators from various universities and colleges.
Wednesday, October 14th - 9:00 a.m. - Largo IB Booster Organization Board Meeting
Saturday, October 24th - Tampa Bay Times Festival of Reading - University of South Florida St. Petersburg Campus - Free event open to the public that includes book signings, author forums, a book market, activities, and an outdoor food court.
Saturday, November 7th - 8:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. - University of South Florida St. Petersburg Open House - Chat with college deans and professors, learn about admissions and financial aid, and tour our waterfront campus. -
Monday, November 9th - 8:00 a.m. - Eckerd College Open House - An Open House for students interested in Eckerd College - Click here for more info

Spanish Teacher Update

We currently have two substitute teachers teaching in IB Spanish. The freshman and sophomore classes will have their returning teacher, Ms. Olivero, in November after her maternity leave. The juniors, seniors, and those students coming from the Spanish immersion program will have their returning teacher, Ms. Hermann, as soon as the state deals with a certification issue. In the meantime, Ms. Hermann will be on campus as a volunteer starting this week. Both teachers are working closely with their substitute teachers and can also be reached by email.