LAKE PLACID — School superintendents in the six-county Heartland area agree there is a need to review educational practices at the high school level. ...more

January 1, 2008

I can't believe so many negative articles on Lake Istokpoga. I have people using my boat ramp every day (today a 26-foot pontoon put in with no problem) and last year too. The water isn't that low. The businesses that rely on fishermen are going to go out of business just from all the bad publicity. Last year all the scare about how the lake was going to go down to maybe 35.5 stopped a lot of fishermen from coming over the summer. We went down to about 37.4 and we are now at 38.6. ...more

December 23, 2007

SEBRING — As Florida goes into its second winter of a drought that is expected to persist as far as official projections can go, growers are complaining that ongoing water restrictions are leaving their plants parched. Highlands County Lakes Manager Clell Ford told Highlands Today that Joe Collins, an engineer with Lykes Bros., complained that Lykes could use any water they could get from Lake Istokpoga for some of the crops it was growing. The South Florida Water Management District had shut off the water permits using the lake's canals since October. ...more

December 14, 2007

In a place where there's few things for children to do, the Children's Museum of the Highlands is special. But the museum is more than just easily accessible to county residents. It's fun, it's educational and it's affordable. Those who've got children in the family have had to have made at least one trip to the museum, and many leave its doors with children who'd rather camp at the museum for life. This popular destination now wants to be bigger and better and needs the community's help to expand. Museum director Linda Crowder, who unveiled plans Wednesday, said the museum is seeking to build a second floor, which will double its space. ...more

December 14, 2007

SEBRING — When Linda Crowder started the Children's Museum of the Highlands about 17 years ago, she had big plans, but she never knew if they would pan out. Now the museum director has more than exceeded the original dreams, and she is planning to continue upward - literally. The museum, located at 219 N. Ridgewood, has announced plans to build a second floor, doubling its space. The additional 6,000 square feet of space will feature new exhibits, allow current exhibits to expand, provide another classroom for the expansion of the summer Discovery Camp and include additional bathrooms, storage, workrooms and offices. ...more

December 13, 2007

AVON PARK — It may have been a long holiday weekend, but Avon Park used a suffocating defense and a balanced offense to make short work of Okeechobee by a score of 67-31 in girls basketball on Saturday night. The Class 4A Red Devils, who improved to 3-1 with the win, used their athleticism and quickness to force 23 Brahman turnovers to break the non-district game open in the second half. "We played our game tonight," junior guard Daija Barrett said. "We played as a team, ran the floor well and played as one. "Our offense was clicking, our defense was solid and this is the kind of effort we need to bring every night." ...more

November 26, 2007

Clewiston enters Friday's regional final contest against Tampa Catholic sporting a 5-6 record. ...more

November 22, 2007

Heed ye these words with the coming of fall Step up to adventure, bid farewell to all ...more

November 2, 2007

SEBRING — Time to run. The boys and girls cross country teams from the Heartland compete today and Friday in the Class 3A district meets. Avon Park and Sebring run today in the District 5 meet at Lake Park in Tampa, while Lake Placid runs on Friday at the District 6 meet in Naples. Only the top six teams advance to next Saturday's regional competition in Estero, and Avon Park's boys squad has the talent and desire to be one of those teams. ...more

November 1, 2007

This week, the Florida Senate passed legislation to place a constitutional amendment before the voters that would change how property taxes are calculated across the state. ...more

October 21, 2007