Photo 1:  Big yellow buses were back on the road Monday as the school year started in Alachua County. Santa Fe High School students congregated at the bus zone waiting for their ride home at the end of the first day. Photo 2: Students at Mebane Middle School in Alachua leave campus as the final bell rang marking the end of the first day of school in Alachua County.

Students were back to the books, back to the busses and back to school Monday morning.  But Monday marked a first of many things, not just the first day of school.

Eva Copeland has checked off her first school day as the new principal at Alachua Elementary School, where roughly 425 students welcomed her.

Copeland was tapped to fill a vacancy left by retiring principal Jim Brandenburg.  After some 20 years as the school’s principal, Brandenburg decided over the summer he wanted to spend more time with his family and community organizations.

But Brandenburg apparently left Copeland in good hands.

“It has been an extremely smooth start to the school year,” said Copeland.  “Students were quickly placed and it’s been great.”

Copeland is no stranger to Alachua Elementary.  She previously taught at the school for some 16 years.

“This has just felt so natural coming back home. The way things are done around here came back so quickly,” she said.

Down the road at High Springs Community School, Principal Jeff Means welcomed aboard two full-time teachers.  Ms. Jamie North, who previously taught at Ft. Clarke Middle School, and Ms. Heather Fultz, who was a part-time music teacher at Mebane Middle School, have both been hired at High Springs Community School.  The school also has a new part-time agriculture teacher.

With a combined total of some 840 middle and elementary-aged students, Means said the first three days have gone off without a hitch.

“We’ve had a terrific start to the school year,” he said, crediting a high level of participation at the school’s Meet the Teacher event Friday.

Students at Santa Fe High School walked into a newly constructed expansion on campus.  An excited Principal Bill Herschleb said the school officially opened the doors on eight new mathematics classrooms and two teacher planning rooms, all of which are part of a science building that opened on the campus last year.

The classrooms are equipped with the latest audio/visual technology.  Using a digital setup similar to a SMART Board, the classrooms have a system called Sympodium, which includes wireless slates that can be passed around the room, allowing students to interact with instruction media.  The rooms also have student response systems, allowing the teachers to gauge student comprehension of subject matter in real time.

The new addition also includes two computer labs, each of which are outfitted with 34 computers.

Along with the expansion of the science and mathematics building, the school is now an official WeatherBug reporting site, Herschleb said.

Complete with an anemometer for measuring wind speed and direction, a thermometer, barometer and a live camera, the system has been operational for just a few weeks, said Herschleb. Weather measurements and video from the site can be found by searching for the zip code 32615 on www.weatherbug.com.

Herschleb echoed the sentiments of Means and Copeland, saying the first few days have been smooth-running.

“We’ve had very few requests for schedule changes because we do a lot of personal contact with parents and students over the summer to ensure that schedules are indeed what students had requested,” he said.

Santa Fe High School has about 1,000 students on campus and another 100 or so who are dual-enrolled at Santa Fe College.

The adoption event will be held at the Alachua County Humane Society on Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. each day.

An estimated 550 cats will be available for adoption this weekend through the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), which worked with Alachua County Animal Services on the June 7 seizure and now has custody of the felines.  Cats looking for new homes include those of all ages and types, the Humane Society says.

An adoption fee of just $5 is being charged for each cat adopted.  There is a limit of two cats per household.  Humane Society officials say each cat has been “fully vetted” and spayed/neutered, vaccinated, FELV/FIV tested, and received internal and external parasite control, microchips and veterinary exams. Health information will also be available on all cats, officials say.

Prospective adopters should bring to the adoption event, identification, cash and a pet carrier if possible.  Residency in Alachua County is not required to adopt.

Prospective adopters will also receive a group orientation at the Alachua Humane Society and then be transported to the nearby adoption site.

Humane Society officials say coordinators will be on site to assist in interviewing prospective adopters, help match adopters with cats and answer questions.

The event will be held at the Alachua County Humane Society’s new location at 4205 NW 6^th Street, Gainesville, Fla.

Of the original 697 cats taken from the sanctuary, Alachua County Animal Services Director David Flagler said 626 remain.  More than 70 of the felines died or were euthanized after veterinary staff determined they were beyond treatment, he said.

Pennie and Steve Lefkowitz, who operated Haven Acres Cat Sanctuary, were charged last week with 47 animal cruelty charges related to the seizure.  The allegations of animal cruelty were accompanied by a report detailing such conditions of the cats as muscle atrophy, fleas, ear mites, missing and abscessed teeth, emaciation, dehydration, feline leukemia virus, alopecia, feline immunodeficiency virus, severe upper respiratory infection, ocular discharge, nasal discharge and several others.

Lotus Mango Blanchard, age 30, of Alachua was arrested Friday morning at his home. 

According to a police report filed by the Alachua Police Department (APD), the child claims the molestation occurred about 10 times.  The incidents date back to as early as December 2010.  The last such incident reportedly took place in July.

Blanchard has been charged with two counts of lewd or lascivious offenses committed upon or in the presence of persons less than 16 years of age.  The first charge is for lewd or lascivious battery.  The second charge is lewd or lascivious molestation.  Both charges are second degree felonies.  If convicted, Blanchard could be sentenced to a maximum of 15 years in prison for each of the felonies, APD officials say.

Blanchard was released from jail earlier this week on a $50,000 bond and ordered not to have any contact with the victim.

Alachua Police Department (APD) and the Police Explorers will be at Walgreens and Hitchcocks from 10 am to 2 pm to accept the prescription and over-the-counter drugs, which will then be destroyed.

The Lions Club will be at the Hitchcock’s location to provide free diabetes testing. They will also be handing out a limited supply of glucometers, which will be donated by the Hitchock’s pharmacy.

In addition to helping clear your cabinets of unnessary bottles and pills, these events will help society in a broader sense, said APD Public Information Officer Jesse Sandusky.

“This is important so that these drugs do not get into the wrong hands,” Sandusky wrote in a press release. “It’s also important to dispose of these drugs properly so that children do not get a hold of them.”

Those with questions about this event may contact APD Detective Carrie Lund or Officer Sandusky at 386-462-1396.