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Mrs. Dorah-Leigh Lewis
School counselors foster the academic, career, and personal/social development of students so that they become productive and responsible citizens in a diverse and global community.
Meet South County Career Center Professional School Counselor
Mrs. Dorah-Leigh Lewis, MSCP
What services do I provide?
• Individual counseling • Classroom guidance lessons
• Small group counseling • Consultation with teachers, parents and administrators
• Classroom guidance lessons • 504 and ELL coordination •Special events such as Career Day!
School Counselors...
• Provide a comprehensive program that meets the academic, personal-social, and career needs of all students.
• Work CONFIDENTIALLY with students and inform stakeholders of critical information on a "need to know" basis.
• Implement effective interventions for students.
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Mr. David Best
Mr. Best is a native of New York where he earned his Master's in Social Work from State University of New York at Albany in 1991. After three years of work in a psychiatric setting with adults who suffered from chronic mental illness, he began his school social worker career in 1994 at Guilderland High School. He moved to the sunshine state in 2012 and began working for Hillsborough County Public Schools. He worked for 7 years at Eisenhower Middle School, 1.5 years at Sumner High School and is now in his 2nd year at South County Career Center.
Mr. Best is interested in helping students find their strengths, develop positive coping skills, learn the values of patience and perseverance, and understand the power of a positive mindset. He coordinates admission services and events for the students who enter the Teen Parent Program. He is a proponent of the school's Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports Program (PBIS) and also serves as a mentor for students. Having worked in schools with 1,250 to 4,000 students, Mr Best recognizes the value of individualized attention that a smaller setting like South County is able to offer to its students. The staff work collaboratively with one another and the students to create meaningful and realistic goals. After nearly 30 years of school social work, Mr. Best still enjoys working with teenagers.
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Mrs. Juanita Caplinger
The Exceptional Student Education (ESE) Department provides support and services to students with disabilities (SWD) who are eligible for special education services.
Meet South County Career Center Support Facilitation Teacher
Mrs. Juanita Caplinger, M.S.Ed
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Mrs. Diana Martinez
Meet South County Career Center Principal's Secretary
Mrs. Diana Martinez
Diana Martinez, principal secretary at South County Career Center, I work with the staff as we get students to strive for success. I work in the front office assisting with phone calls, new registrations, translations. I also keep up with record keeping. My main accomplishment is being a mother of 3 and grandmother of 3 active boys. Non-instructional Employee of the year 2021. I am a lifelong resident of Ruskin, Fl. I was also the 2018 Ruskin Tomato Queen. I have been with the District of Hillsborough County Schools for 34 years.
