Students return to the classroom in Collier County

It was the first day of school for Collier County. Students were excited to be back, and the staff greeted them to the new year.

Superintendent Leslie Ricciardelli visited Palmetto Elementary. She ate breakfast with the kids, rode the buses with them and visited their classrooms, definitely putting them in high spirits for their first day of school.

“It was a great morning, Ricciardelli said, “great way to start the day to go to a bus stop. I rode a bus when I was a student. I loved my bus driver.”

After joining some of the students on their bus ride, Ricciardelli took to the halls.

“Those children are being walked to class individually. Everybody knows where everybody’s supposed to be,” Ricciardelli said. “I mean, just even watching them going to class, those kids were already in lines. They look perfect. You would never have known today was the first day of school.”

This may ease first-day jitters for some, but for PTO mom Rebekah Thomas, who has a 1st, 2nd, and 3rd-grade boy at Palmetto Elementary, that wasn’t a problem.

“You get to know the other children here and all of the teachers, and it’s just a fantastic way to get to know your own kid, really, and they love it. When you come in as a parent, they’re like, ‘Hey, Mom, it’s fun,'” Thomas said.

But the new principal of Palmetto Elementary, Tiffany Wind, does have a word of caution.

“We promise you, they’re going to be tired when they get home, but they’re going to have a great first day,” Wind said.