Saint Leo offers three-year bachelor’s degree
ST. LEO — Saint Leo University will offer a bachelor’s degree that students can finish in three years instead of four.
The Reduced-Hour Bachelor of Business Analytics requires 93 credit hours instead of the traditional 120. The university says it is the first in Florida to offer an accredited bachelor’s degree with that few credits.
The program, approved this month by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges, starts in January 2027. Saint Leo says it will cut the time and cost of a degree by about a quarter.
“What should a bachelor’s degree look like in the 21st century?” said university President Jim Burkee. He called the program an important moment for Florida higher education.
The shorter degree drops some coursework in favor of core business and technology classes, including data analytics, finance, economics, marketing analytics and artificial intelligence in business. Students who want the traditional route can still take Saint Leo’s four-year Bachelor of Science in Business Analytics, which launched this fall.
Bryan DePoy, provost and vice president of academic affairs, said the university surveyed regional and national employers, who said the degree would meet their bachelor’s requirements.
“What they look for is accreditation, demonstrated competencies, and relevant experience, not the total number of credit hours,” DePoy said.
Three-year and reduced-credit degrees are spreading nationally, particularly in business and computer science.
For information, visit saintleo.edu.
Pasco EDC honors Cypress Creek Town Center developer
The developer behind Cypress Creek Town Center will receive the Pasco Economic Development Council’s top leadership honor next week.
The Pasco EDC Policy Council selected Michael J. Sierra as its 2026 Leadership Award recipient. The award recognizes an individual in economic development who has had a significant impact on Pasco County.
Sierra, a Tampa native, joined the Jack Nicklaus Development Corp. as a construction manager in 1985 and has worked in land development ever since. Cypress Creek Town Center, the Wesley Chapel-area commercial hub, is among his best-known projects. He has also worked on Avila, Tampa Palms and Lakeview Village, along with projects in Illinois and Georgia.
“Michael’s decades of experience in land development, including his significant contributions to Cypress Creek Town Center and the growth of Pasco County, have made a lasting impact on our community,” said Bill Cronin, president and CEO of Pasco EDC.
Sierra is a director of the Sierra Family Foundation, which has supported the YMCA, the Pasco Education Foundation, AdventHealth and BayCare, among other nonprofits. He has served on the boards of First Tee of Tampa Bay and Academy Prep Tampa.
The award will be presented Thursday, Oct. 1, at Pasco EDC’s 38th annual awards program at the Pasco-Hernando State College Instructional Performing Arts Center. A video tribute to Sierra will be shown. Registration is available at pascoedc.com.
Grant helps teach Pasco, Hernando preschoolers to brush
A Community Foundation Tampa Bay grant is helping Premier Community HealthCare Group bring oral health lessons to young children in Pasco and Hernando counties.
Foundation and Premier officials marked the grant with a check presentation and a demonstration featuring Dr. Flossy, Premier’s oral health mascot, who used an oversized toothbrush and a dental model to show children how to brush.
The grant supports Premier’s Bright Smiles Early Learning Initiative, which teaches brushing and other oral health habits to children in voluntary prekindergarten classrooms and other early learning settings through age-appropriate activities. Families receive bilingual resources and connections to Premier’s mobile and fixed-site dental services.
Community Foundation Tampa Bay, founded in 1990, has invested more than $516 million in nonprofits in Citrus, Hernando, Hillsborough, Pasco and Pinellas counties.
For information, visit cftampabay.org.
Cypress Creek High earns national Special Olympics honor
WESLEY CHAPEL — Cypress Creek High School has earned national banner recognition from Special Olympics for its work bringing students with and without intellectual disabilities together through sports and school activities.
Special Olympics Florida announced the honor Sept. 21. To earn it, a school must meet 10 national standards in inclusion, advocacy and respect, and show it can sustain its programs.
Cypress Creek is a Special Olympics Unified Champion School. The model combines Unified Sports, in which students with and without intellectual disabilities compete as teammates, with inclusive youth leadership and schoolwide engagement.
“When students of all abilities learn, lead, and grow together, they build understanding, strengthen relationships, and enrich the entire school community,” said Toni Zetzsche, chief impact officer for Special Olympics Florida.
More than 500 Florida schools and more than 12,000 schools nationwide take part in the program, which is supported by the U.S. Department of Education.
For information, contact Pasco County Schools spokeswoman Jessica Meek at jsmeek@pasco.k12.fl.us.
Pasco volunteers keep Florida rail history rolling
SPRING HILL — A volunteer-built railroad in Pasco County’s Crews Lake Wilderness Park is offering Halloween train rides this month.
The Central Pasco & Gulf Railroad will run trains from 5:30 to 10 p.m. Oct. 23, 24, 30 and 31.
Founded in 2006, the railroad runs 7½-inch gauge trains, large enough for riders to sit on, over more than 14,000 feet of track its members built themselves, along with bridges, stations and working signals. Volunteers maintain every locomotive and passenger car.
The railroad honors the Orange Belt Railway, the 19th-century line that helped shape West Central Florida and led to the founding of St. Petersburg. Its stations carry the names of Orange Belt stops, including Trilby, Lacoochee, Macon, Lenard and Dade City.
Also on the grounds is the Carolwood Barn Museum, a tribute to Walt Disney’s love of railroading, with artifacts and exhibits on miniature railroads.
Regular public rides are held the second Saturday of each month. The next one is Oct. 10.
The group is seeking volunteers, and no experience is needed. Members are trained in train operations, maintenance and construction.
The park is at 16739 Crews Lake Drive. For information, visit cp-grr.com.
Pasco Kids First names Rebecca Lemanski CEO
NEW PORT RICHEY — Pasco Kids First has named Rebecca Lemanski, a nonprofit executive and licensed social worker, as its chief executive officer.
The New Port Richey-based nonprofit works to prevent child abuse and help children heal from trauma in Pasco and Hernando counties. It provides prevention, assessment, advocacy, treatment and family support services.
“I have spent my career strengthening the systems that support people during some of the most vulnerable times in their lives,” Lemanski said. “I’m excited to bring that experience to Pasco and Hernando counties and work alongside our staff and community partners to help children and families feel safe, supported and empowered to thrive.”
Before joining Pasco Kids First, Lemanski was chief operating officer for two Connecticut nonprofits. One supports survivors of domestic violence and the other serves people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Her experience includes program and clinical operations, quality assurance, regulatory compliance and staff development.
Lemanski has a master’s degree in social work, with a concentration in administration, from the University of Connecticut. She is a licensed master social worker. She is trained in the Community Resiliency Model, Circle of Security and Triple P — Positive Parenting Program, and she has taught as an adjunct faculty member in undergraduate and graduate social work programs.
Her priorities include investing in employees, strengthening community partnerships and supporting accountable, high-quality programs.
“One of my first priorities is to listen to our employees, families, board members and community partners to understand what is working well and where we have opportunities to grow,” Lemanski said.
Pasco Kids First works with families, law enforcement, child welfare professionals, health care providers and other partners to coordinate responses to abuse and neglect. Its services include child protection and advocacy, trauma treatment and Healthy Families Pasco-Hernando, a voluntary home-visiting and parent support program for expectant parents and families of newborns.
For more information, visit pascokidsfirst.org.
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Photo courtesy of PASCO KIDS FIRST
Rebecca Lemanski is the new chief executive officer of Pasco Kids First, a New Port Richey-based nonprofit that works to prevent child abuse in Pasco and Hernando counties.
Pasco County Utilities rates rise Oct. 1
Pasco County Utilities customers will see higher water, wastewater and reclaimed water rates beginning Oct. 1.
The average residential water and sewer customer, using 6,000 gallons a month, will see the monthly bill rise $4.33, from $91.99 to $96.32.
Residential reclaimed water customers will also see changes to the rate structure, the base charge and the backflow prevention device fee.
The monthly reclaimed water base charge, which covers the first 8,000 gallons, will increase 60 cents, from $12.66 to $13.26. The rate for each additional 1,000 gallons, up to 13,000 gallons, will increase 6 cents, from $1.27 to $1.33. Above 13,000 gallons, the rate for each additional 1,000 gallons will increase 10 cents, from $2.17 to $2.27.
The monthly backflow prevention device fee will increase 33 cents, from $6.89 to $7.22.
The increases are the second year of a four-year rate schedule that took effect Oct. 1, 2025. The schedule is based on a cost-of-service rate study approved by the Pasco County Commission, and it sets annual adjustments to rates, fees and charges through Sept. 30, 2029.
Revenue from the rates, fees and charges pays for the operation, maintenance, repair and replacement of the county’s water, wastewater and reclaimed water systems, according to the county.
A full list of rates and fees is available at mypas.co/PCU-Rates. For more information, visit pascocountyutilities.com.
Pasco declares local state of emergency over dengue fever
The Pasco County Commission has declared a local state of emergency in response to dengue fever, a mosquito-borne viral infection that has been identified in Pasco County and surrounding areas.
The declaration allows the county administrator and the emergency management director to waive routine procedures and take the steps they believe are necessary to protect public health, safety and welfare.
The state of emergency is in effect for seven days, unless the county administrator rescinds it sooner.
The county is supporting the Pasco County Mosquito Control District and the Florida Department of Health in Pasco County as needed.
Residents are urged to follow the state health department’s “drain and cover” guidelines. These include draining standing water where mosquitoes breed, covering skin with clothing and repellent, and covering doors and windows with screens.
For more information, contact the Pasco County Mosquito Control District at pascomosquito.org or 727-376-4568, or the Florida Department of Health in Pasco County at pasco.floridahealth.gov or 727-619-0300.