March 4, 2026
In the Eye
Written by Student Writers: Riley Watkins and Delaney Laurence
The TV Production class at Citrus High School has launched a new digital venture: “In the Eye”, a student produced podcast dedicated to exploring campus life and community leadership. Under the guidance of TV Production teacher Ms. Kirby, the program provides students with hands-on experience in broadcasting, interviewing techniques, and digital storytelling.
This week’s highly anticipated episode features a deep dive conversation with Thomas Kennedy, a prominent figure in local education. Kennedy, who was first elected to the Citrus County School Board in 2010, has spent over a decade representing District 1. The interview was conducted by juniors Olivia Smallridge and Campbell Bennett, who navigated topics and advocated for students with learning differences.
Celebrating Diversity: Lecanto High International Baccalaureate Culture Night
By Student Writer: Amadeus Solis
One of the learner traits of the International Baccalaureate (IB) program is open-minded. An aspect of open-mindedness is the awareness and the embrace of other people’s cultures in addition to one’s own. The Lecanto IB program is lucky to have students from a range of ethnicities and backgrounds. Culture Night allows the students to share their own cuisine and traditions.
Culture Night is the initiative of Amy King, President of the LHS Culture Club.
“I wanted to continue the tradition of getting people interested in exploring their own and others’ global cultures,” commented King, who added that “everyone seemed to enjoy the event.”
The school cafeteria was filled with presentation boards filled with information about the countries represented in Culture Night, alongside decorations corresponding to each country. Among the countries represented were Brazil, China, France, India, the Philippines, Russia, South Korea, and Spain.
Most of the students who chose to present their respective countries are ethnically connected to them. James Lu, who is of Chinese origin, presented his project on China; he included a Chinese twist on a tiramisu mousse cake.
“It brings all cultures together,” remarked Lu, who was enthusiastic about participating.
Speaking of food, the highlight of Culture Night was the variety of dishes and drinks attendees could enjoy. Amy King believed that the food “made the event a lot more engaging and enjoyable for everyone.” There was a selection of food ranging from appetizers to desserts. Dinner was taken care of for the night. Visitors could enjoy Filipino Lumpia (spring roll) and Brazilian Brigadeiro (sweet balls covered in chocolate sprinkles) with an Indian chai as a beverage.
Branden Neveau brought the Lumpia and was very happy to see his container of lumpia empty by the end of the night.
The time passed quickly with participants enjoying the food and sharing information with each other about fun facts about their countries, such as the Russian matryoshka dolls being inspired by Japanese nesting dolls, the Philippines having over a hundred spoken languages, and France having regions with distinctive cultures with different influences.
When it was time to pack up everything, some of the attendees were able to take food home, such as samosas that were courtesy of the Indian booth.
Culture night was more than the knowledge learned and the food eaten. It was a demonstration of respect and understanding between humans of different ethnic origins and the celebration of the beauty of multiculturalism in a small, yet growing town. The experience helped nurture lifelong learners of different cultures and create camaraderie among students, parents, and teachers in the International Baccalaureate program over food and traditions.
Lecanto High International Baccalaureate Students participated in an exhibition of the cultures of multiple countries (Photo Courtesy: Dr. Ashley Shidner, IB Coordinator)