Sarasota County Schools will remain closed until further notice while we continue to assess, clean, and repair extensive damages to our facilities. We will reopen once we can ensure the safety and wellbeing of all our students and employees while they are in our schools & facilities throughout Sarasota County. Today was the first time our school assessment teams have been able to get into our North Port area schools to survey damage. Assessment teams are also still working through their review of all our school campuses and district facilities – the damage and repair work needed varies at each location. Some schools have power and minimal amounts of debris; others have no power, need extensive repairs, and have massive amounts of debris. Additionally, we are still hosting guests from the community at two of our school shelters since power outages, flooding, and downed power lines – among other storm-related issues – are still prevalent throughout Sarasota County and beyond. Communication is still unstable throughout the county, not only local connectivity but within our own school district capabilities. We appreciate your patience and understanding during this time of recovery and will be sure to share updates as soon as information becomes available. Please continue to follow us on social media (@sarasotaschools) and be sure to visit www.sarasotacountyschools.net/hurricane for the latest updates.

We would be remiss not to mention how moving the outpouring of support and care has been on the Suncoast – not only to our school personnel and families within the community, but to all that have been impacted by Hurricane Ian in our region. If you are interested in/able to donate items to those in need, please do not bring these items to our schools. A number of community organizations are assisting with collection – some of these opportunities are already posted on www.sarasotacountyschools.net/hurricane and we will be sure to share other opportunities as information becomes available.