Military-Connected- Families
The mission of Sigsbee Charter School is to use innovative approaches to inspire critical thinking and promote empathy, focusing on the unique needs of the military child.
Do you need help transitioning to Sigsbee? We're here to help.
Melinda Labbe- school counselor and military family liaison - Melinda.Labbe@sigsbee.org
Dawn Mills- school liaison officer - Dawn.m.mills.naf@us.navy.mil
Leslie Rosch- enrollment specialist - Leslie.Rosch@sigsbee.org
Eli Jannes- principal - Eli.jannes@sigsbee.org
Link for Next Year's Application (August 2024 - May 2025)
If you have received orders to transfer to Key West and are looking to enroll your children at our school for the 24-25 school year, please use the application link above. If you are looking to enroll your students this year, (between August 2023 - May 2024), please use this link. Contact our Enrollment Specialist with any questions or concerns.
You are welcome in our classrooms.
We thank you for your service.
Come celebrate the Month of the Military Child with us! (April)
Special Programs
Anchored4Life
Anchored4Life a peer-to-peer program to connect military-dependent and civilian youth while building transition and resiliency skills. Peers enhance each others’ social skills, learn leadership skills, build character, improve self-esteem, and integrate into their community. Students are selected by their teachers to become leaders in the program. For more information, visit:https://anchored4life.com/
Student2Student Ambassadors
The Sigsbee Ambassador Program is intended to welcome new students and ease their anxiety about transitioning to a new school by providing a welcoming friend to help them become comfortable. On the new student's first day, a student ambassador from the classroom is assigned to the new student. The ambassador welcomes the student in the office and escorts him/her to class. During the student's first few days, the ambassador will answer questions for the student, sit with him/her at lunch and ensure the student has friends to play with at recess. Ambassadors are trained by our Military Family Life Counselors.
Month of the Military Child
April is the Month of the Military Child. Every Friday, we celebrate our military-connected students with exciting events for our whole student body.
You can expect glitter, bling, high fives and special visitors throughout the month. Our favorite event is Truck Day - including boats, subs, trucks, cars, dogs, horses and motorcycles.
Veteran's Day Parade
SCS participates in the Key West Veteran's Day parade to show our support for our military-connected families and local veterans. Parents are also welcome to help the PTO organize this event.
Purple Up 4 Military Kids
On Purple Up day, we recognize our military-connected students. Local military leaders acknowledge each military-connected child personally and present them with a certificate for their service. The whole school celebrates with bracelets and popcorn.
Service Days
Our tenant commands commit to helping out at Sigsbee several times throughout the year. You may see them working the garden, moving furniture, painting, or playing at recess. We invite service members to read with students or talk about the service as guest lecturers.
DoDEA grant recipient
SCS is currently working with a DoDEA STEM grant to bring problem-based-learning to our student population. Read the news coverage below to see how the school is using the $500,000 to enhance learning and create career pathways.
Helpful Resources for Military-Connected Families
SIGSBEE IN THE NEWS
Sigsbee Charter School is excited to announce a recent $500,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA). The half-million-dollar grant will allow Sigsbee to improve the self-efficacy of Grade 3-8 students in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) through a Problem-Based Learning (PBL) curriculum.
Sigsbee Charter School serves military-dependent students from all five branches of the Armed Forces alongside students from the local civilian population and has established innovative partnerships with eight local military installations and environmental agencies. This federal grant will address challenges including diminished participation in STEM courses during the last two years, issues with the sustainability and transferability of curriculum, and a decline in students’ mental wellness since the Covid-19 Pandemic.
To increase self-efficacy, an individual’s belief in being able to excel, in STEM, Sigsbee educators will create a curriculum that is rooted in real-world problems. Problem-based learning is a student-centered approach that involves analyzing and finding solutions to authentic and relevant issues. For example, Reef Relief will work with seventh graders to teach students about water quality and the effects it has on marine ecosystems. This curriculum will be transferable and sustainable, and these PBL tasks will deepen community and military partnerships with the school. Local Sigsbee partners include Reef Relief, MOTE Marine, the College of the Florida Keys, and the local military installations.
Over the next five years, the DoDEA will closely monitor the planning and implementation of this grant as Sigsbee Charter School works to increase students’ self-efficacy in STEM and create a sustainable STEM curriculum centered around Problem-Based Learning.
DoDEA's Education Partnership and Resources Division strives to ensure all military-connected K-12 students have access to quality educational opportunities through engagement in partnerships with school districts and professional organizations. The division provides school personnel and stakeholders with evidence-based resources and supports to increase understanding and awareness related to the unique challenges faced by military-connected students and families. Learn more about the DoDEA Grants at dodeagrants.org
About DoDEA
The Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) is a field activity of the Office of the Secretary of Defense. DoDEA's mission is to plan, direct, coordinate, and manage the education programs for eligible dependents of U.S. military personnel and civilian personnel of the Department of Defense. The DoDEA has congressional authority to provide resources to public schools to support the continuity of education for military-connected students through a competitive grant program. DoDEA’s vision of “Excellence in education for every student, every day, everywhere” is realized through this partnership with public school districts.