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Back to school

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Back to school

With just over a week remaining before Flagler County students return to school on Aug. 11, hundreds of families attended the Back to School Jam on Saturday, Aug. 2, inside Flagler Palm Coast High School’s gym.

The event featured over 70 vendors, district administrators and representatives from each school. Families could register their students for school, grab school supplies, get their transportation schedules and learn about extracurricular activities.

This year, school breakfast and lunch are free to all Flagler Schools students again thanks to the Community Eligibility Provision administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Students will need their Student ID Cards.

Florida’s Back-to-School Sales Tax Holiday will run through August. Tax exemptions include school supplies selling for $50 or less, clothing and backpacks priced at $100 or less, learning aids selling for $30 or less and computers and accessories selling for $1,500 or less.

State statute now prohibits cell phone use for the entire school day for middle and elementary school students. Flagler Schools had already prohibited cell phone use in elementary schools.

Here’s a school-by-school look at what’s new this school year.

Flagler Palm Coast High School: “We are excited about the newest members of our team,” Principal Bobby Bossardet said. Over 50 FPC alumni are working at the school in some capacity, including Bossardet himself and Assistant Principal Stacia Collier. FPC increased its overall school grade by 30 points in 2024-25 with every single area seeing academic growth.

Matanzas High School: The Pirates have a new principal in Mike Rinaldi, who had been the district’s coordinator of professional standards. Rinaldi has 25 years of education experience in Volusia and Flagler counties. Matanzas has added an Allied Health medical program preparing students for careers in the medical field. The program had been available at FPC only.

Buddy Taylor Middle School: Buddy Taylor’s Katie Hansen is the other new principal in the county. She received the news during her vacation in Hawai. “It was agreat place to be told you have a promotion,” she said. Hansen had been an assistant principal at Indian Trails Middle School. She said the new bell-to-bell cell phone restriction won’t be a huge change. “We’re making sure we’re communicating (the policy),” she said.

Indian Trails Middle School: ITMS has two new assistant principals in Ida Sierra and Efrain Gutierrez. The Mustangs are welcoming in over 400 new sixth graders, Principal Ryan Andrews said.

iFlagler Virtual School: The biggest change with iFlagler is not virtual. It has moved into Flagler Schools’ Engagement Center at the historic county courthouse. “This gives us more opportunities to invite kids to campus,” Assistant Principal Scott Bannon said. “We had restricted opportunities at the old campus (at FPC). Now with more space, kids can come to meet with their teacher in small groups or one-on-one.” iFlagler has 136 full-time students and hundreds part-time who take one or two classes at one of the middle schools or high schools,” Principal Erin Quinn said.

Flagler Technical College: FTC is offering Spanish and sewing lessons at its A1A Center at 5633 N. Oceanshore Blvd. FTC is also running Aqua Splash and Aqua Fusion water aerobic classes for seniors at the Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club pool. The pool has open swim 9 a.m.-3p.m. on Saturdays.

Belle Terre Elementary School: Lisa Gilbert joins Tim Ruddy as assistant principals. Jessica DeFord enters her sixth year as principal. The school is celebrating its 20th year with the theme, “Once Upon a Time.”

Bunnell Elementary School: BES has new technology for its garden and culinary program’s cooking show. The technology will also be used for the school’s new news crew, Principal Cari McGee said.

Old Kings Elementary School: PE teacher Jan-Michael Scott is starting an after-school flag football program. The marine science club’s partnership with the Flagler County Education Foundation and 4-H continues. The marine science and art teachers are collaborating to bring arts into the marine science career program.

Rymfire Elementary School: Rymfire is celebrating it’s 20th anniversary. with the theme “Legacy of learning, 20 years strong.” Rymfire has a partnership with AdventHealth for fourth and fifth graders in its medical sciences, health and fitness career program. The school is aiming for an A grade after missing it by two points in 2024-25.

Wadsworth Elementary School: Wadsworth has a new assistant principal in Rachel Hayes and a new dean in Emily Creel. It will also get new playground equipment for kindergarten and first grade this year. The current playground equipment was original when the school was built, Principal Amy Neuenfeldt said.

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New Wings West owner allegedly plans to raise costs for users

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Black Bear Sports Group is the private equity-sponsored organization that purchased Wings West in October and plans to reopen it next year. They’ve allegedly been buying struggling ice rinks and forcing their resident youth hockey teams to pay premiums for in-house services like insurance and game streaming.

That’s according to a report by investigative news outlet The Lever published last month.

The report says that parents are not allowed to record their kids’ games. Instead, they can opt to use Black Bear TV, the company’s streaming service that costs between $25 and $50 per month. Black Bear also charges each player $50 a year for registration and insurance fees.

A source connected with a Kalamazoo ice user group that uses Wings West spoke to WMUK on the condition of anonymity so they don’t jeopardize their relationship with Black Bear. They said that Black Bear has proposed an hourly ice rate that’s 30% more expensive than the previous owner’s rate. For locker room rentals, they plan to charge about twice as much annually.

Black Bear is allegedly forcing the source’s group to purchase their uniforms from a partner in New Jersey called Breakaway Sports – business that, in the past, went to local manufacturers.

They’ve also been asked to tack a brand partnership onto their longtime club name. According to the source, Black Bear has threatened the group with heightened fees if it fails to comply.

At the time of publication, Black Bear Sports Group has not responded to WMUK’s requests for comment by phone and email.

Brad VandenBerg — managing director of Stadium Management Corporation, which sold Wings West to Black Bear in October — declined to comment.





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The DICK’S Sporting Goods Foundation Quarterly Giving Series: Q3 2025

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Together, We Change Lives

NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESS Newswire / December 5, 2025 / Originally published on DICK’S Sporting Goods Sideline Report

Today we’re bringing you the latest quarterly giving series from The DICK’S Sporting Goods Foundation to highlight the great work being done in support of our mission to help inspire and enable youth sports participation.

In our third quarter of 2025, we:

  • Committed up to $2 million in matching funds to The Josh Gibson Foundation to build a new state-of-the-art youth sports facility in Pittsburgh.

  • Supported coaching summits in Chicago and New York City to give coaches tools to communicate with and empower youth athletes.

  • Put more gear that gives back on store shelves.

Read on to learn more.

Coming Soon: The Josh Gibson Champions Club & Sports Matter Center

The DICK’S Sporting Goods Foundation will contribute up to $2 million in matched donations to The Josh Gibson Foundation to build a new state-of-the-art youth sports facility in the Pittsburgh area.

The new facility, which will be called The Josh Gibson Champions Club & Sports Matter Center, will be developed and managed by The Josh Gibson Foundation. Designed to promote the mental, emotional and physical well-being of children, the facility will offer modern sports amenities, safe spaces for play and programming to help youth grow both on and off the field.

Read more about this powerful new partnership here.

The Power of Youth Sports Starts With Coaching

The DICK’S Sporting Goods Foundation and GameChanger recently joined Nike for its coaching summits to Chicago and New York City. Sports Matter grantees in those cities were invited to a free training experience led by the Center for Healing & Justice Through Sport (CHJS). Coaches walked away with tools for communicating with athletes, building team engagement and belonging and empowering youth athletes to be brave, not perfect.

Take a look back at the Chicago summit here.

Meet the Sports Matter Impact League Organizations

This year we launched the Sports Matter Impact League, making three-year commitments to nine incredible organizations in nine cities across the country. Now we want to introduce you to those organizations! Watch this video to learn more about them and all the great work they do to support youth athletes.

Gear That Gives Back

DICK’S Sporting Goods athletes (consumers) helped us turn shopping into support! Through a grant made possible by DSG’s giveback program, The DICK’S Sporting Goods Foundation’s Sports Matter Program donated a $100,000 grant to Kesem, a national nonprofit organization helping children cope with a parent’s cancer by offering free summer camps, day programs and virtual meetups.

DSG, a DICK’S Sporting Goods vertical brand, contributes 1% of all sales directly to The DICK’S Sporting Goods Foundation’s Sports Matter Program.

dditionally, new Maxfli golf balls are driving impact with every purchase! A portion of every Sports Matter box of Tour, Tour S and Tour X Max Align golf balls goes to help fund youth sports programs nationwide.

Supporting Schools

Sports Matter provided a $500,000 grant to DonorsChoose in support of a classroom match campaign this back-to-school season. Educators across the country can apply for grants through DonorsChoose to put towards school sports and physical education programming that motivates students to get active and play!

Follow the Cause. Fuel the Impact.

The DICK’S Sporting Goods Foundation’s Sports Matter Program is now live on social media!

  • Follow us on Instagram here

  • Follow us on TikTok here

  • Follow us on Facebook here

Each of these channels gives us a new outlet to share our impact; highlight inspiring stories; and connect with our community of athletes, coaches and partners who continually support our mission to give every kid a chance to play.


THESE MOMENTS ARE MADE POSSIBLE BY CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE SPORTS MATTER FUND. IF YOU’D LIKE TO DONATE, VISIT WWW.SPORTSMATTER.ORG.

Written by Hilary Totin

View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from DICK’S Sporting Goods on 3blmedia.com.

Contact Info:
Spokesperson: DICK’S Sporting Goods
Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/dicks-sporting-goods
Email: info@3blmedia.com

SOURCE: DICK’S Sporting Goods

View the original press release on ACCESS Newswire



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‘Horrible location:’ Proposed Eagle Costco sparks heated backlash and traffic concerns in a neighborhood meeting

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Tensions flared as nearly 200 Eagle residents packed a gymnasium to oppose Costco’s plans, voicing concerns about traffic safety and community character.

EAGLE, Idaho — Nearly 200 Eagle residents filled the gymnasium at Eagle Academy High School on Thursday night to voice concerns about a proposed 160,000-square-foot Costco warehouse and fuel station at the intersection of Highway 55 and Hill Road.

The membership-only retailer wants to build on 27 acres that once housed the Masterpiece Quarry, which closed in 2003. The site has sat largely vacant since, though previous plans for a Village at Meridian-like concept never materialized. A for sale sign is currently on the property. 

Highway 55 is one of Idaho’s most heavily traveled roads, and residents told KTVB traffic is already a major concern.

“There’s been a lot of development and a lot more traffic than it used to be,” said Greg Drabek, who lives near the intersection. “Eagle is not the little town it used to be.”

Erika Lunbeck, who lives just 500 feet from the proposed site, said she learned about the project only recently.

“48 hours prior to this meeting, I received a notice on my door that there was going to be a question-and-answer session here tonight,” Lunbeck said.

When the meeting turned out to be an informational open house rather than a group question-and-answer format, tensions rose among attendees.

“It’s a waste of our time to be here,” said Ray Gillenwater, who also lives near the project. “We get a three-minute spiel from a real estate developer, and then he says, now it’s an open house. Go and walk around. It’s like, well, no, we’re here to give you our feedback. We’re here to have a conversation.”

John Shaw, a director of real estate development for Costco, facilitated the meeting. He told KTVB this is the typical style of neighborhood meetings they’ve held in the past, and once a formal application is submitted with the city a public hearing opportunity would be held. He added that a neighborhood meeting is a requirement to hold before a formal application for the project to the city. 

Residents could ask questions individually to engineers stationed around the room at different poster boards. The majority of people KTVB spoke to were against the project, mainly due to traffic concerns, while a few saw the project as a good economic opportunity for the area. 

Engineers at Kittleson and Associates, who completed a traffic study for the project and submitted it to Ada County Highway District (ACHD), said they estimate thousands of vehicle trips to and from the Costco each day. They’ve drafted plans to widen roads and add roundabouts in the area to help with any concerns. The engineers said the traffic study could be modified before Costco submits a final application, with a traffic study to the city for consideration. 

Costco is planning for approximately 900 parking spots at the location. Even with proposals for traffic improvements, residents still worry traffic will spill over into the nearby neighborhoods and roads. 

“You put a business with that much volume right next to all these houses, and it just destroys the whole community,” Gillenwater said.

“It’s a horrible location,” Lunbeck said. 

Lunbeck said the location is particularly dangerous because it sits across from the Optimist Youth Sports Complex.

“There are so many children crossing the streets. The amount of cars going through is astronomical, astronomical, and it’s only a matter of time before something seriously tragic will happen,” Lunbeck said. “It is a horrible location.”

She also raised concerns about local wildlife but said project members didn’t have many answers. 

“We have prong horn on our street,” Lunbeck said. “We have golden eagles flying above it. These are supposed to be protected habitats, and I see no protections happening.” 

Shaw did not indicate when Costco plans to submit land use applications to the city of Eagle. 



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GEAR FOR GOOD INITIATIVE NAMES FIVE YOUTH SOCCER PROGRAM BENEFICIARIES TO HELP GROW THE GAME IN 2026

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