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Education
Sunland Center
Sunland Center has shined as a leader among the Developmental Services Institutions, providing residents with quality care and services. This facility, situated on beautiful pecan grove acreage in Marianna, offers a humane, clean, professionally staffed, safe and caring environment for its severely developmentally disabled and psychiatrically diagnosed residents.
Sunland is a therapeutic environment, with a talented, capable staff of skilled nurses, conscientious physicians, trained behavioral specialists, behavioral analysts, dietary specialists and other staff members. The center offers specialized programs for learning and using vocational skills, an autism program, Therapeutic Equine Program at the center’s ranch facilities, an Environmentally Engineered Developmental System for residents who have been arrested for serious crimes but are incapable of participating in standard legal proceedings, individualized resident support plans, geriatric patient care, and other programs geared toward individuals’ needs.
Chipola College
As Chipola College prepares to mark its 60th anniversary in 2007, students at this traditional community college have more opportunities than ever before.
Chipola’s most popular program continues to be the Associate in Arts degree which provides the first two years of college for students planning to transfer to a university at the junior level.
Chipola also awards Bachelor’s Degrees in Secondary Education with majors in Mathematics and Science, and Middle Grades Mathematics and Middle Grades Science. The Foundation’s Beall Endowment and SUCCEED Florida! provide free tuition for qualified students.
College officials have made application to begin offering a new Bachelor’s of Applied Science (BAS) in Management as early as August of 2007.
Chipola also offers several Associate in Science (AS) programs, as well as a number of Workforce programs which provide training for high wage jobs.
Baptist College of Florida
Snuggled away in the Northwest corner of the county is the unassuming town of Graceville, Florida, the home of The Baptist College of Florida (BCF). Graceville’s peaceful tranquility only heightens the appeal for the school that has played a significant role in transforming Florida, the Southeast United States, and even the far reaches of the world.
In 1953, an institution that was then known as Baptist Bible Institute made Graceville its home. Over the subsequent decades, the school has enlarged its vision and broadened its reach by expanding academic programs, while never deviating from the original purpose of training men and women for ministry. Today BCF is central to the life of Florida Baptist as well as to the local community. From its home in the Panhandle, BCF has launched men and women on the single mission of “Changing the World through the Unchanging Word.®”
Education - Primary through Secondary
There are more than 20 schools in Jackson County, 18 of which are operated by the Jackson County School Board. Quality educational services are provided to more than 7,700 students. Committed teachers, support staff and administrators conduct classes ranging from pre- Kindergarten through twelfth grade, plus extensive adult education and adult-handicapped programs. Each of the Jackson County K-12 schools are fully accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. The majority of Jackson County School District’s graduates continue their education by attending community colleges, universities or technical schools.
School Board meetings are typically scheduled on the third Tuesday of each month in the Board Room at the School Board Office. The public is invited to attend. Several of Jackson County’s teachers have received their National Board Certification. Four schools are currently designated as “A” schools, and three of them have consistently maintained that status during the past three years. The community plays an active role in supporting Jackson County’s schools, which utilize volunteering and mentoring programs. The schools have received numerous Gold and Silver School awards for outstanding volunteer support.