An estimated 17-thousand children in Collier County lack access to dental care, but that's about to change. WGCU's Valerie Alker reports.

The public is invited to weigh in on Florida’s juvenile justice system Wednesday in Bonita Springs. WGCU’s Mike Kiniry reports.

Florida’s new Children and Youth Cabinet held its inaugural meeting – and is quickly getting down to business. Margie Menzel has more.

Representative Connie Mack, Republican of Fort Myers, toured Liberty Youth Ranch in Bonita Springs on Friday and came away impressed. The ranch's founder guided Mack and his two children over the 156 acres. WGCU’s Luis Hernandez was there.

Naval crews from some Caribbean and Latin American countries will soon do part of their training here in southwest Florida…thanks to a collaboration between the U-S Department of Defense, and the Lee County School District. The new program is called Operation Enduring Friendship. The Defense Department contracted with Naples Yacht, and ‘Nor-Tech Hi-Performance Boats of Cape Coral’ to build 8 interceptor ships. They’ll be used by the militaries of several Caribbean & Latin American countries to combat smuggling.
Lee Schools spokesman - Joe Donzelli – says once built, the vessels will need crews to maintain them…and that’s where the district comes in…

“We were approached because of the programs we have in place – specifically the facility at High Tech Central, which is located right here in Fort Myers. We were asked if we could provide the training component for this program…and we couldn’t jump at it quick enough.”

Donzelli says the new partnership comes with little cost to the district.
The first class gets underway in January with a crew from Panama. Another one from the Dominican Republic will follow after that.

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The Lee County School District’s High Tech Central will soon be home to a training program for naval crews from Latin American and Caribbean countries. The U-S Defense Department has tapped two local companies – Naples Yacht, and ‘Nor-Tech Hi-Performance Boats of Cape Coral’ –to build 8 military vessels.

District spokesman – Joe Donzelli – says they’ll provide the ships – and Lee County Schools will provide a place to teach their crews how to maintain them…

“As far as the military procedures that’ll all be done by the militaries of the respective countries. The training that’s going to be going on here is to make sure that those boats can operate so these individuals can do their job.”

Naples Yacht will hire specialized instructors…and pay for tools needed for the training.The first crew will come from Panama…and will get started in January. Next it’s the Dominican Republic and other countries after that.

A three-day anti-bullying conference kicks off this afternoon in Fort Myers. Organizers hope to draw more attention to the kinds of bad things that can happen in schools. It seems virtually everyone has a personal bullying story. For many, the incidents are long forgotten. But some of the teasing sticks with people and can cause plenty of problems down the road. Last year, a Cape Coral teenager committed suicide after years of being cyber-bullied. Educators say it’s time for bullying to stop. Kathleen Saucier is a school counselor at Mariner Middle School and is helping organize the conference.

“It’s a culture that’s been accepted for a long time and one of the things that we talk a lot about with the kids and the adults is that we need to start changing the culture. And how do we do that? By increasing the awareness, by talking about alternatives, by working on strategies to help people make better choices, be more successful in the classroom which includes how they get along with others.”

Saucier says about three-dozen people will participate during the bullying conference at Mariner Middle. She says the sessions are geared to educators who teach elementary and middle school.
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Bullies have been in schools as long as there’s been recess. Now a group of Lee County educators is holding a conference to look at ways to curb the teasing. The impact of bullying hit home last year when a Cape Coral teenager committed suicide after being cyber-bullied. Several dozen educators are holding a three-day conference at Mariner Middle School this week. Counselor Kathleen Saucier says they’ll look at ways to minimize bullies and help teachers do a better job cracking down on it.

“I think it’s very, very common. And I think a lot of it, it’s gotten better in that we’ve increased awareness for the students. That they can actually have an avenue, something that they can do so it doesn’t have to be that way. For the teachers to be more aware of what’s going on. But we still have a lot of work to do.”

Earlier this year, the Florida Legislature failed to pass anti-bullying legislation. The measure would have given school districts more power to punish those who tease other students and it also would have created anti-bullying programs.

Tuesday was the first day for Lee and Charlotte County Public Schools. Lee County Superintendent Dr. James Browder visited four schools and chatted with students during lunchtime. With 80,000 students in Lee County alone, Browder explains some of the challenges.

“A usual challenge is academic preparation and getting them ready to be successful as they go through school. / and get every youngster reading and computing on grade level and being successful. /When you have 90 nationalities in your school system you have a lot of challenges in relation to that.”

Although many challenges remain, some note the accomplishments that have been made. The district’s transportation director says the bus system has improved drastically and a shortage of drivers has decreased. Collier County Public School students head back to school next Monday.

Essayist Andrea Carter of Fort Myers has been thinking about one half of the mothers in the country – stepmothers – this week before Mother’s Day.Essayist Andrea Carter is a librarian at the Three Oaks Library in Estero.

Protective barriers are the key to preventing drowning. That’s the message often repeated at the National Drowning Prevention Symposium held last week in Ft. Myers Beach. WGCU’s Valerie Alker reports.

A two-year-old Marion County toddler drowned in a backyard pool on April 3rd after walking through an open sliding glass door. Every year, an average of 250 children under age 5 die in swimming pools nationwide. In Florida, there are more than 1 million residential pools. Drowning is the state’s leading cause of death among young children. In Lee County, the April Pools day campaign promotes child water safety in an effort to avoid such tragedies. Janette Janero has more. (AUDIO)