Cousteau, Canterbury Create History Together

A re-dedication of the marine studies building took place at Canterbury’s Knowlton campus, branding a one-of-a-kind relationship between Pierre-Yves Cousteau and the St. Petersburg prep school.

A leisurely paddle along the blueway near the Canterbury School of Florida campus Thursday afternoon underscored the friendship that the St. Petersburg prep school has formed with Pierre-Yves Cousteau, son of ocean explorer Jacques Cousteau. The kayak trip – with Cousteau, Canterbury students, and science teachers – amid the mangroves that border the school's campus preceded a much more important ceremony that brought the 28-year-old conservationist from Paris to the Canterbury School of Florida. Canterbury’s marine studies building was rededicated officially as the Cousteau Marine Studies Center, in honor of the elder Cousteau's contributions and his youngest son's organization, Cousteau Divers, which is a non-profit dedicated to the …

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Canterbury to Teach Three-Year-Olds

The youngest students at the St. Petersburg prep school will get lessons in Chinese, in addition to music, movement, books and art,

The new 3-year-old program at Canterbury School of Florida does not start until next school year. But already parents are flocking to it with their little ones. The idea of prep-school tuition for toddlers is not a deterrent either. Hillary Heath signed up her daughter for next school year’s launch at the St. Petersburg preparatory school, which had taught students from pre-school (4 years old) to 12th grade, on two campuses. Heath is new to the area and had tried two preschools. Neither was a good fit. She is excited for her little one, Rose, to attend Canterbury’s three-year-old program next year. “It was a no brainer for us,” said Heath. “Once we heard about it, we jumped on it.”  The program's flexibility may be part of the appeal. It …

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Canterbury Softball Standouts Sign Letters of Intent

Canterbury School honored a pair of softball stars for the colleges they have chosen to attend.

If four straight trips to the state tournament with wins over some of the largest schools in the area weren’t enough to convince local softball fans Canterbury School’s softball coach Jody Moore has built powerhouse, perhaps the 2011 state title finally convinced them.  It is the first state title in any sport for the northeast St. Petersburg school. Another sign that the Canterbury School of Florida is on the softball world’s radar is the number of players going on to play college softball. Last year’s team captain, Krissy Longstreet, currently plays for Francis Marion University in North Carolina. Today two more Canterbury students were added to the list of Canterbury collegiate softball players. Lacy Adams signed a letter of intent to …

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Canterbury Named First Cousteau Divers School

Students will catalog and track biodiversity in the Gulf of Mexico, create wildlife guide books for the Gulf and monitor water quality through data loggers.

ST. PETERSBURG – Pierre-Yves Cousteau, son of legendary ocean explorer Jacques Cousteau, announced Friday that the Canterbury School of Florida will be the first Cousteau Divers school in the world. Cousteau Divers is an international not-for-profit organization fostering scientific programs that monitor and conserve marine biodiversity around the world, and Canterbury will now be part of this global program. Students will catalog and track biodiversity in the Gulf of Mexico, create wildlife guide books for the Gulf and monitor water quality through data loggers. Reflecting on his visit last fall, Cousteau said he was “amazed by the incredible facilities and the work and education” going on at the school, which also has a new SCUBA …

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Whiz Kids

Meet a 15-Year-Old (Local) Pop Star

Zack Biss is like any other freshmen in high school, except he plays music around town and gets paid for it.

His first guitar was a gift from an uncle that sat in a closet collecting dust. "I was really little, and I never even picked it up," Zack Biss said. It would be years before he started to develop his natural gift for playing music. Now at the ripe old age of 15, Zack is a well-known musician in the Tampa Bay area, who regularly plays gigs in downtown venues in St. Petersburg. He will be an opening act at First Night St. Pete on Dec. 31. Even though this Whiz Kid is a wunderkind when it comes to singing and playing the guitar, Zack is not that different from other kids his age. Growing up in St. Petersburg, he took karate and was hooked on the popular video game, Rock Band. The difference between Zach and other Rock Band players was that …

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Canterbury Football's Signature Win

The Crusaders' victory over Admiral Farragut was the biggest win in the program's history, coaches say.

ST. PETERSBURG – On paper, Canterbury's 12-10 victory over Admiral Farragut Friday was just one win among hundreds of high school football games played throughout Florida. Lost in the jumble of football games was the significance for Canterbury. Even though Canterbury has had a football program for years, the program doesn't have as much history. It's a small private school with the results of games buried amid the exploits of much star-studded, higher-profile, larger schools. In Pinellas County alone, Canterbury – except for the coaches, players, a few alumni and immediate families – is an afterthought compared to the exploits of state powers that play locally, such as Countryside, Largo or even Clearwater Central Catholic. But Canterbury…

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Canterbury Expands Mandarin Chinese

The St. Pete prep school strengthens its language studies, with Mandarin Chinese offered at all grade levels: pre-K through high school.

ST. PETERSBURG – At the beginning of the Mandarin Chinese class, the fifth-graders called out, "Ni Hao," or "Hello!" to greet a classroom visitor. This group of students took Chinese last year, when it was first introduced at Canterbury School of Florida. They are a little restless, as they arrive from physical education class for their last class of the day. "Ting," said teacher Nicole St. Leger, as she raised her fingers in the air. Her command to "Listen!" in Chinese gets their attention, and the room quiets down. St. Leger begins class by reviewing tones. She repeats the Chinese words, "ma," "maa," "maaa." While it sounds almost the same to a visitor, the students know the difference. The extra emphasis on the "a" sound changes it to a…

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Touchdown!

High School Football Kicks Off

Here's a season-opener look at gridiron teams for St. Pete High, Northeast, Shorecrest and Canterbury.

Here's a look at what to expect as Patch-area high schools take the field as the regular fall season kicks off all across Florida. Canterbury There a lot of change at Canterbury but despite the change, there is a lot of consistency as well. The Crusaders had a change in coaching staff when Steve Dudley left the school this spring to take over St. Petersburg Catholic. Despite Dudley moving cross-town, his offensive coordinator, Bill Jones, decided to stay put. Good thing for Canterbury and good thing for Brent O'Neal. The Canterbury bruising running back, O'Neal is expected to be the school's first Division-I football recruit. O'Neal is getting interest from Florida International, Florida Atlantic and Furman. But the key for O'Neal may be …

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Innovative Science Project Will Let Canterbury Students Track Ocean Currents in Real Time

Students at the private St. Petersburg high school will build seaworthy flotation platforms and equip them with satellite communications.

ST. PETERSBURG – Kids have the summer off, but many teachers use the break to update skills, learn new technologies – or plan an awesome hands-on project to show students in the fall.  Jenna Cummings, incoming director of Marine Science Studies at Canterbury School of Florida, is doing all three, as she develops a student-led project for collecting real-time data about the Gulf of Mexico. Called the Ocean Drifter Program, the project will allow students to build a floating platform equipped with sensors and satellite communication that will stream data to classroom computers. No other Florida schools have made the Ocean Drifter Program part of their science curriculum, though it has been introduced in California.  “The kids learn how to …

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Canterbury Football Coach Upbeat Over Team's Promise

A lopsided 42-7 win in their spring game gives Crusaders coach Bill Jones reason for optimism.

Canterbury High School football coach Bill Jones has only been on the job for a short couple of months and already he's a pretty happy man. Having been the Crusaders offensive coordinator before he took the head coach position, Jones figured he had a good team and that was reinforced when Canterbury beat Southwest Florida Christian 42-7 at Fort Myers. Not surprisingly the guy who carried the load for Canterbury was running back Brent O'Neal. Fresh off a 2010 season where he rushed for 1,000 yards, O'Neal is getting offers from several Division-I colleges. In the spring game, O'Neal was dominant, running for 236 yards on 10 carries. "He pretty much dominated," Jones said. "He will be one of the focal points of our offense." But for O'Neal…

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