L.A. Ainger Middle School

08/21/2026

🐾 RUNNIN' IT BACK-2027: WEEK TWO! 🐾
Cougar Nation, we brought the energy for Week 2 and kept the momentum going strong! ⚡ From the courts and classrooms to the stage and library, our Cougars are making every single moment count!
Here is a look at all the exciting things that went down this week:

📋 Front Office & Guidance Support
Welcoming New Cougars: A big shoutout to our incredible Guidance Counselors and Front Office staff! They have been working tirelessly behind the scenes to welcome and enroll all the new Cougars still joining our school family this week. Thank you for making every new student feel right at home! 🤝📝✨

🎨 Art, Band & Media Center Highlights
Art: Our Ainger Artists were hard at work crafting paper quilt squares representing their unique names and interests to help Ms. White get to know them! Ms. White "sewed" them together into class quilts now proudly displayed in the H-Building for a year full of color and belonging.

🎷Band: Shoutout to the nearly 300 parents who joined us for our Band Pizza Social and Parent Meeting on Thursday! We kicked off our Band T-Shirt sponsor drive, and we’re so grateful for all the parent volunteers stepping up to support our student musicians.

📚🧠💪Media Center: 7th & 8th graders loaded up on fresh checkouts, while 6th graders crushed their orientation scavenger hunt! Friendly Reminder: The library is open every morning before school for checkouts. Make sure you have a book ready to read during 4th period to keep exercising those brains and building those reading logs!

🏀 PE & Sports Action
Team PE: Keeping everyone safe and cool by bringing out the water misters for a refreshing cool-down after intense cardio sessions! 💦🏃‍♂️ Hosting exciting, competitive basketball tournaments right in class! 🏀🔥
CONGRATULATIONS! 🏀🎉 A huge round of applause to the talented student-athletes who made the 2026-2027 Cougars & Lady Cougars Basketball Teams! We can't wait to cheer you on this season! 🏆
🔥 TWO WEEKS DOWN, 34 WEEKS TO GO! Keep pushing, Cougars!
🐾GO COUGAR NATION! 🐾

08/21/2026

🌟DONATION SPOTLIGHT!🌟
Thank you Living Hope Church for your donation!

08/20/2026

🔥 READY TO SHINE! Presenting Your 2026-2027 Lady Cougars Basketball Squad! 🏀✨

Huge shoutout to every girl who brought the energy, hustle, and heart to the court this week! The talent level was so high, and the positivity and determination made us so proud to be Cougars.
If your tryout number is below, congrats! Get ready to bring that energy to team practice:
👑 THE 2026-2027 LADY COUGARS 👑
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Important Next Steps for Team Members:
📣 Mandatory Parent Only Meeting: Tuesday, August 25th at 5:45PM in the gym after practice.
👟 First Official Practice: Thursday, August 20th from 4:15 PM – 5:45 PM
To everyone who tried out: keep holding your head high and keep playing! Your hard work doesn't stop here, and we can't wait to see you back on the court working on your game.
Drop some cheer in the comments below to support our Lady Cougars this season! 🏀🐾

08/18/2026

THE WAIT IS OVER! Introducing the 2026-2027 Cougar Boys Basketball Team!

Huge congratulations to every athlete who came out and brought the heat to tryouts this week. The energy, hustle, and heart on the court made these decisions incredibly tough, and we are so proud of the grit everyone showed! 🏀💪
If your tryout number is listed below, pack your sneakers, you made the roster! 👟📋
🏆 YOUR 2026-2027 COUGARS 🏆
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Next Steps for Roster Athletes:
📣 Mandatory Parent Only Meeting: At Ainger Room B-7 Tuesday, August 25th 5:30pm
🗓️ First Official Practice: Wednesday August 19th 4:15-5:45
To those who didn't make it this year: keep your head high, keep grinding, and keep shooting. The work you put in now sets up the comeback for next season! 📈
Drop a comment below to congratulate our new Cougars, and let’s make this season unforgettable! 🐾🏀

08/15/2026

🖤🧡 WELCOME BACK, WELCOME BACK, WELCOME BACK! 🖤🧡

Cougar Nation, we made it through our very first week, and what a week it has been! We are so thrilled to open our doors, fill our halls with energy, and welcome our amazing students back for another incredible school year!

It has been an amazing first week packed with hands-on learning, life lessons, and great food. Here is a quick look at some of the fun happening around campus:

🍎 Classroom Highlights
Our teachers have hit the ground running with creative ways to welcome their students!

Mrs. Dausy: 📚✨ The library is back in action! Mrs. Dausy opened the library this week and welcomed students in before school for book checkout!

📖❤️ Mrs. Hedges and Mrs. Cox’s classes also stopped by during class to find their next favorite read. Nothing better than seeing our Cougars excited about books!

🐾📚🧡Mrs. Chacon’s Class: Kick started the week with a super fun “Brown Bag” Show & Tell, helping students share a piece of who they are! 🛍️

Mrs. Montano’s Class: Bringing the ultimate comfort food vibes by making delicious pancakes this week! 🥞😋

Ms. White’s Class: Getting creative right out of the gate—Art class is as colorful as ever! 🎨🖌️🌈

PE Department: Pushing our Cougars to new heights! They’ve been working hard on muscular strength, endurance, and cardio—all while keeping it fun with exciting challenges like Rock, Paper, Scissors Connect Six! 🧗‍♂️⚽🏆

🖤🧡 Heroes Behind the Scenes
A HUGE shout out to the incredible teams that keep our school running smoothly and safely every single day:

👮‍♂️🛡️ Our New SRO & Guardian/Security: A massive thank you to Deputy Farrands and Guardian Wiggins for keeping our campus safe, secure, and welcoming every day!

🚌 Our Bus Drivers: Delivering our Cougars safely with bright smiles every morning and afternoon.

🧹 Our Custodial Staff: Working tirelessly to keep our school sparkling clean, safe, and ready for learning.

🥪 Our Dietary Team: Serving up nutritious meals to keep our minds and bodies fueled.

💼 Our Front Office Team: Handling every phone call, question, and smile with grace and heart.

We are beyond excited to have our students back in the building. Their energy, laughter, and enthusiasm make our school a family, and we simply cannot wait to see all the growth, achievements, and memories the rest of the year will bring! 🌟

🔥 ONE WEEK DOWN, 35 WEEKS TO GO! Let's make every moment count!

GO COUGAR NATION! 🐾🖤🧡

08/14/2026

🔥🏆 WHEN YOU’RE THE TOP SCHOOL IN THE DISTRICT… 🏆🔥

Your principal has EARNED THE RIGHT to walk in like THIS! 😎👑

An A-rated school. 🅰️
The TOP school in the district. 🏆
A Cougar family that continues to raise the bar. 🐾🧡🖤

That championship belt isn’t just an accessory—it’s a symbol of the hard work, dedication, and SUCCESS of our students, staff, families, and community!

So go ahead, Principal Smith… WALK IN LIKE YOU OWN IT! 😎🔥

LA AINGER: WHERE THE STANDARD IS SET.
🐾🧡🖤 COUGARS RUN THIS! 🖤🧡🐾

08/13/2026

🚨 STOP EVERYTHING AND DROP SOME LIKES & CONGRATS IN THE COMMENTS! 🚨

Big, BIG news for our L.A. Ainger Middle School family! 🥳🎉

A massive congratulations to our very own Coach Courtney Jackson from the PE Department for being named a FINALIST for the prestigious SHAPE Florida Middle School Teacher of the Year award! 🏆👟✨

This isn't just a big deal—it’s a HUGE deal! Being named a state finalist puts Coach Jackson among the absolute best physical educators in the entire state of Florida.

This award is the highest state honor given to PE professionals, recognizing teachers who go above and beyond, inspire healthy habits, and act as incredible role models for our kids every single day. 🏋️‍♂️💪

Coach Jackson is heading to the SHAPE Florida Convention & Expo in St. Augustine as one of the elite top candidates for this honor, and we couldn't be prouder to have her representing Ainger and our entire community on the big stage! 🌟🙌

Thank you, Coach Jackson, for setting the bar high, keeping our kids moving, and showing us what true excellence in physical education looks like!

Let’s show her some massive L.A. Ainger love! Drop a message, a high-five, or your favorite hype emoji in the comments below to let her know the whole community is rooting for her! 👇📣💙

08/11/2026

Kids Needs Greater Englewood FL, Inc.

The Boutique will reopen Wednesday Aug. 12th. Hours are 4-6PM. We will resume our normal operating days and times:
Wednesday and Thursday, 4-6pm
Saturday 10-Noon
You will need proof of residency, a photo ID or proof of which school your child attends.
EVERYONE WILL NEED TO FILL OUT A REGISTRATION FORM AND PRESENT ID!
Welcome Back! We missed you!

08/10/2026

🎷 BIG NEWS FOR THE COUGAR JAZZ CATS! 🎺

A massive congratulations to our incredible Cougar Jazz Cats on being officially accepted to perform at the prestigious 2027 Florida Music Educators Association (FMEA) Conference this coming January!

Being selected for this state-level honor is a true testament to the energy, effort, and dedication of our talented student musicians. Get ready—this year's ensemble will be grooving, swinging, and bringing the heat like never before as they prepare for this phenomenal stage! 🔥

✨ A Historic Milestone ✨
This performance holds extra special meaning for our music family as we celebrate Mr. Ostrow’s 20th year as Director of Bands at L.A. Ainger, alongside the 16th anniversary of the Cougar Jazz Cats—a program built entirely from the ground up!

Concert Band and Jazz Band represent two of America’s richest, most uniquely original art forms, and we couldn't be prouder to foster such a thriving, high-caliber music program right here on our campus.

👇 Check out the links below:
📄https://drive.google.com/file/d/1G_kJGj1dyblNeOw3SMOc00WEl0YpBOuH/view?usp=sharing

08/10/2026