UCP Charter Schools says enrollment at its Kissimmee campus has grown from 220 students last year to 315 this year, and it still has a waitlist of several hundred. The school serves children from 18 months through fifth grade, with and without disabilities.
Community
City leaders and family members dedicated a plaque Wednesday, Sept. 23, renaming Ruby Plaza at Kissimmee Lakefront Park as Bill Hansen Plaza. Hansen, who died in 2023, owned the Osceola Star newspaper and helped create Viva Osceola and the local Three Kings Day celebration.
The Duke Energy Foundation awarded the Education Foundation Osceola County $20,000 for its Career Pipelines program, which connects students with local employers. Osceola High School also received a $5,000 Toshiba America Foundation STEM grant for its Forensic Science 2 program.
Spectrum donated $15,000 to support the Digital Learning Lab at Buen Vecino, the Osceola Council on Aging's 60-home affordable senior housing community in Buenaventura Lakes.
The Healthy Start Coalition of Osceola County held its Infant Mortality Awareness Walk Saturday, Sept. 19, from 9 to 11 a.m. at Kissimmee Lakefront Park's Lighthouse Lawn, 201 Lakeview Drive, to raise awareness of infant mortality and support affected families.
The Rotary Club of Kissimmee raised $32,000 through its annual charity poker tournament, presenting $8,000 checks on Aug. 17 to Help Now of Osceola, Hope Partnership, HOME, and the Osceola Council on Aging.