Florida
Florida Continues to Lead the Way in Civics Education – Welcoming More Than 400 Students from Out-of-State and Across Florida to Compete in The Great Debate: The National Civics and Debate ChampionshipFlorida Continues to Lead the Way in Civics Education – Welcoming More Th
January 24, 2025
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Florida Continues to Lead the Way in Civics Education – Welcoming More Than 400 Students from Out-of-State and Across Florida to Compete in The Great Debate: The National Civics and Debate Championship
Top Five High School Overall (Hunter Hayes – 5th, Sahiti Reddy – 2nd, Oscar Rubio Flores – 1st, Grace Jackson – 3rd, Anabel Kirkland – 4th)
Top Five Middle School Overall (Aryana Sahai – 1st – Coach standing in, Nathan Moronta – 5th, Armaan Seth – 2nd, Lara Castineyra – 3rd, Sara Khial – 4th)
Inspiring Coach Awards, ToryAnn Stutts, K. Morgan Mousley, Kristin Potter-Oliveri
Freedom Cup Winner, Erabelle Conant, Keystone Heights Jr. Sr. High School
Orlando, Fla., January 24, 2025 – This weekend, the Florida Civics and Debate Initiative (FCDI) brought together 420 middle and high school students from 72 schools across Florida and out-of-state to compete in The Great Debate: Florida’s National Civics and Debate Championship (NCDC) in Orlando. FCDI was proud to name tournament champions in Impromptu Speaking, Extemporaneous Debate and Legislative Debate.
The Great Debate was held at the Rosen Centre Hotel and Lake Buena Vista High School in Orlando. Since the inaugural event in 2021, the event has grown exponentially and garnered the attention of students nationwide who want to compete. Students from schools from Texas, Oklahoma, Nevada and Florida participated in this year’s event.
“Florida is at the forefront of civics education, and we are committed to continuing to provide opportunities for students to learn about the founding principles of our great Republic,” said Commissioner of Education Manny Diaz, Jr. “Congratulations to the students who placed in The Great Debate competition. We’re excited to see how this initiative and this annual competition will continue to set the standard for civics education in the years to come, inspiring communities across Florida and the nation.”
“The Great Debate continues to evolve into a transformative event for students to access the highest quality educational opportunities – a cornerstone of the Florida Education Foundation’s mission,” said Rebecca Matthews, Board Chair of the Florida Education Foundation and University of West Florida Board Member. “Through this speech and debate competition, we have an opportunity for Florida students to compete at the highest level with students from across the country.”
As a hallmark event of FCDI, The Great Debate aims to inspire middle and high school students to engage in civics activities and elevate their civic knowledge. Established in January 2019, FCDI is dedicated to advancing civics education across the state.
The Great Debate named 8 winners between middle school and high school divisions. Judges scored students in Impromptu Speaking, Extemporaneous Debate and Legislative Debate, naming a winner for each event as well as an overall champion for both age groups.
Two additional awards, the Freedom Cup Award and Inspiring Coach Awards were also given during the ceremony. The Freedom Cup honors a student who embodies what it means to be a great citizen. Nominated by their students, three inspiring coaches are also honored for inspiring their students and excelling at the craft of speech and debate.
Overall – Middle School Division
- Champion – Aryana Sahai, A.D. Henderson University School
- 2nd Place – Armaan Seth, The Frazier School, Gainesville
- 3rd Place – Lara Castineyra, Kanapaha Middle School, Gainesville
- 4th Place – Sara Khial, Kanapaha Middle School, Gainesville
- 5th Place – Nathan Moronta, iPrep Academy North Middle School, Miami
Overall – High School Division
- Champion – Oscar Rubio Flores, Wildwood High School, Wildwood
- 2nd Place – Andria Antony, Hagerty High School, Oviedo
- 3rd Place – Grace Jackson, Hagerty High School, Oviedo
- 4th Place – Anabel Kirkland, Lake Nona High School, Orlando
- 5th Place – Hunter Hayes, Lake Nona High School, Orlando
Impromptu Speaking – Middle School Division
- Champion – Josh Kim, The Frazer School, Gainesville
- 2nd Place – Madison Lavidas, Randall Middle School, Lithia
- 3rd Place – Breanna Kopinski, Roulhac Middle School, Chipley
- 4th Place – Thomas Moywaywa, The Frazer School, Gainesville
- 5th Place – Ellington Smith, Oak View Middle School, Newberry
Impromptu Speaking – High School Division
- Champion – David Arutyunyan, FAU High School, Boca Raton
- 2nd Place – Grace Jackson, Hagerty High School, Oviedo
- 3rd Place – Jackson Buzzard, Broken Arrow Senior High School, Broken Arrow, Oklahoma
- 4th Place – Jordan Miranda Juarez, Wildwood High School, Wildwood
- 5th Place – Peter Moywaya, The Frazer School, Gainesville
Extemporaneous Debate – Middle School Division
- Champion – Aryana Sahai, A.D. Henderson University School, Boca Raton
- 2nd Place – Nathan Moronta, iPrep Academy North Middle School, Miami
- 3rd Place – Gage Papp, A.D. Henderson University School, Boca Raton
- 4th Place – Lara Castineyra, Kanapaha Middle School, Gainesville
- 5th Place – Sara Khial, Kanapaha Middle School, Gainesville
Extemporaneous Debate – High School Division
- Champion – Noah De Haan, Tocoi Creek High School, St. Augustine
- 2nd Place – Nicholas Ostheimer, FAU High School, Boca Raton
- 3rd Place – Evden Tilley, Broken Arrow Senior High School, Broken Arrow, Oklahoma
- 4th Place – Elizabeth Grounds, Broken Arrow Senior High School, Broken Arrow, Oklahoma
- 5th Place – Graham Bowser, Broken Arrow Senior High School, Broken Arrow, Oklahoma
Legislative Debate – Middle School Division
- Champion – Angela Ostheimer, A.D. Henderson University School, Boca Raton
- 2nd Place – Armaan, Seth, The Frazer School, Gainesville
- 3rd Place – Vincent Wen, The Frazer School, Gainesville
- 4th Place – Sara Khial, Kanapaha Middle School, Gainesville
- 5th Place – Emery Brooks, Seaside Neighborhood School, Santa Rosa Beach
Legislative Debate – High School Division
- Champion – Hunter Hayes, Lake Nona High School, Orlando
- 2nd Place – Sahiti Reddy, Tocoi Creek High School, St. Augustine
- 3rd Place – Andria Antony, Hagerty High School, Oviedo
- 4th Place – Grace M. Rivera Gonzalez, Lake Nona High School, Orlando
- 5th Place – Samantha Faucette, Apopka High School, Apopka
Inspiring Coach Award
- K. Morgan Mousley, Tocoi Creek High School, St. Augustine
- Kristin Potter-Oliveri, FAU High School/A.D. Henderson University School, Boca Raton
- ToryAnn Stutts, Orlando Science High School, Orlando
Freedom Cup Award
- Erabelle Conant, Keystone Heights Junior/Senior High School, Keystone Heights
View a full list of winners and learn more about the NCDC at www.TheGreatDebateFL.com.
ABOUT THE FLORIDA CIVICS AND DEBATE INITIATIVE:
Florida is leading the way in strengthening civics instruction and education in Florida’s kindergarten through post-secondary schools. In 2019, the Florida Department of Education and the Florida Education Foundation established a statewide debate program that focused on civics education. The Florida Civics and Debate Initiative (FCDI) is the first of its kind to use debate specifically as a tool to enrich civics education and to have incredibly strong support from state leaders. FCDI continues to grow exponentially and will soon have debate teams in every school district in Florida.
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Florida
FBI asking for help locating missing truck driver after suspected car hauler hijacking in Florida
BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. – The FBI is investigating the suspicious disappearance of truck driver Alejandro Jacomino Gonzalez and is asking for the public’s assistance in locating him.
On April 16, investigators say Gonzalez picked up multiple vehicles from the Port of Brunswick, in Georgia. He departed the Brunswick port headed South for Miami, Florida, the drop off location for the vehicles.
Timeline of disappearance
At approximately 1:21 a.m., the FBI says Gonzalez arrived at a truck stop in Brevard County, Florida, where he rested for several hours. At 7:49 a.m., GPS from the truck driven by Gonzalez indicates the truck drove South one exit and then turned North towards Jacksonville. Soon after, Gonzalez became unreachable and the truck was reported missing.
On April 17, the truck was located in Port Wentworth, Georgia, however Gonzalez was not located in the truck. Additionally, several vehicles were missing from the hauler. Since the discovery of the truck, three vehicles have been located in Florida. Others are still missing, along with Gonzalez.
The FBI is seeking photos and video footage from any people located in or around the Brevard County Rest Area in Grant-Valkaria, Florida, between the hours of 1 a.m. and 8 a.m., on Friday, April 17, specifically focusing on the southern portion of the rest area near the ramp that enters back onto I-95 South.
The public is encouraged to share those photos and videos here.
Copyright 2026 by WJXT News4JAX – All rights reserved.
Wildlife researchers have found an unconventional way to help control invasive Burmese pythons in the Florida Everglades – by using one of the snakes’ favorite prey.
Opossums are a key food source for Burmese pythons, which are top predators in the Everglades and have established a permanent breeding population in South Florida, severely harming the ecosystem by wiping out native animals, according to the Conservancy of Southwest Florida.
In 2022, researchers discovered the new technique accidentally while studying the movements and behaviors of small mammals. The team had fitted GPS collars to opossums and raccoons on Florida’s southern coast and discovered an added side effect: They could also track the enormous snakes after they swallowed the tagged animals whole, LiveScience reported.
“We need everything that we can find to remove as many pythons as possible,” Michael Cove, one of the researchers and curator of mammals at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, told The South Florida Sun-Sentinel in 2023.
With that in mind, Cove, A.J. Sanjar and other researchers expanded the effort to track and euthanize invasive pythons as part of Florida’s conservation work. Here’s how they do it.
How the GPS-collared opossums are tracked
Researchers hope to have at least 40 GPS-collared opossums in their conservation program by later this summer. It’s almost a given that some of these furry creatures will meet their doom in the coils of an invasive python diet in the food chain, the South Florida Sun Sentinel reported.
Although the use of live prey as bait has drawn criticism, the scientists insist that they are researching natural behavior and that the collars do not limit the mammals’ range or raise their risk, but rather use predatory patterns as a means of detection.
“We’re not putting these animals out there and in harm’s way,” Crocodile Lake National Wildlife Refuge manager Jeremy Dixon told the South Florida Sun Sentinel on April 19. “Harm’s way is there. We’re just documenting what’s happening.”
Where Burmese pythons have been reported in Florida
Burmese pythons in the Sunshine State have reduced the population of raccoons by 99%, opossums by 98% and bobcats by 88%, causing a massive ecological collapse in Florida’s Everglades.
A U.S. Geological Survey report shows that Burmese pythons are expanding their range so quickly that it can be marked in miles per year in some areas.
Here’s where they’re most prevalent in Florida:
About the invasive Burmese python
Originally from Southeast Asia, the Burmese python has been introduced to South Florida either through accidental escape or intentional release of captive animals.
In 1979, the first observation of a Burmese python in the wild in South Florida was recorded in Everglades National Park. The heaviest python ever caught in Florida was an 18-foot, 215-pound snake. It was caught by a biologist with the Conservancy of Southwest Florida in Naples in 2022.
How big do pythons get?
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission keeps track of the length and weight of Burmese pythons after sightings are reported. The longest Burmese python ever captured in Florida, in July 2023, measured more than 19 feet.
Since their arrival in Florida, the snakes have brought harmful, non-native parasites and reduced medium-sized mammal numbers by more than 90%, changing the ecosystem, according to the Florida Museum of Natural History.
Source: North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, South Florida Sun Sentinel, Popular Science, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Naples Daily News and USA TODAY research
Disease and cold temperatures killed nearly 30 sloths at a Florida animal import warehouse in 2024 and 2025, according to a report from state wildlife authorities.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation inspection report from August found that 21 sloths imported from Guyana died at an Orlando facility called Sanctuary World Imports in December 2024 when temperatures dropped into the 40-to-55 degree Fahrenheit (4.4 to 12.8 degrees Celsius) range.
Sloths are unable to regulate their body temperature as well as other mammals and do best in the 68-to-85 degree Fahrenheit (20 to 30 degrees Celsius) range, according to the United States Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
Peter Bandre, listed as the facility licensee in the report, said that the animals died of what he called a “cold stun.” The building had no water and no electricity and wasn’t ready to receive the animals, he said, but it was too late to cancel the shipment. The facility purchased space heaters but the heaters tripped a fuse and shut down, leaving the sloths alone without heat for at least one night.
The facility later ordered 10 sloths from Peru, which arrived in February 2025. Two were dead on arrival. The rest appeared emaciated and died of what the report termed “poor health issues.” Bandre said that he planned to interview for a new veterinarian, the facility’s third, according to the state report.
Bandre did not immediately return a message The Associated Press left at a number listed for Sanctuary World Imports on the August report.
According to reports detailing follow-up state inspections in March 2026, Sanctuary World President Benjamin Agresta said he had changed the name to Sloth World Inc. and that Bandre was no longer affiliated with the business. A voicemail and text that the AP left Sunday at the number listed in the March reports for Sloth World Inc. were not immediately returned.
Inspectors reported the March inspections at the facility where the sloths from Guyana died revealed independent heat and air conditioning with a temperature constantly set at 82 degrees Fahrenheit (27.8 degrees Celsisus). They did not observe any issues with the sloths the facility was holding.
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