Tom Hanson: School lets Olympic hopefuls skate toward their dreams

With the Opening Ceremony of the Winter Olympics tonight in Torino, Italy, many dreams will come to fruition.

In Fort Myers, thanks to a new school, a group of youngsters are pursuing the same dreams.

Yes, kids in sunny Southwest Florida have visions of wintry grandeur.

The Edison Academic Center, a new skating and academic school that opened at the Fort Myers Skatium only three weeks ago, has given children a chance to enjoy time on the ice without freezing temperatures outside.

From 8 a.m. until 5 p.m., these kids have their fill of common denominators, the Proclamation Line of 1763, conjunctions and flower dissections. But they also get to work on their stick handling skills, slap shots, and sit spins in between.

With the school situated in the Skatium in downtown Fort Myers, hockey players like Derrick Corby, 15, are able to lace up their skates every day.

“I like this school because of the flexibility,” Corby said. “We are able to get on the ice and get your school work done all at the same place.”

Frank Scarpaci and Greg Williams, the new operation and general managers, respectively, at the Skatium, brought the new school and many of the students with them from Bradenton.

Scarpaci, the hockey coach, expects to have 60 students, an extra ice rink and four classrooms by next fall. To make room for the new amenities, the Skatium will be eliminating the in-line skating rink and laser tag.

The non-profit school, which has grades 3 through 12, currently boasts two figure skaters and seven hockey enthusiasts in its student body of nine. The cost is about $9,000 a year.

“This is exciting for the Fort Myers area because this is really baseball, football and soccer country,” Scarpaci said. “But with many Northern transplants, we have found that there is a big demand for ice sports.”

Academics at the school are handled by Barbara Iannarelli, an educator for 23 years. She founded the original Edison Academy in Bradenton five years ago and is expanding the operation with the satellite school in Fort Myers.

Iannarelli finds that by combining specialty sports, like tennis, golf and ice skating, with schooling, students are more interested.

“We certainly don’t have an absenteeism problem like other schools,” she said. “Students want to be here. And because they want to be here, they learn more.

Plus, we have a better teacher/ student ratio.”

For 16-year-old Brittany Puskarich, the new school also doesn’t have the problems of her old school. Now, she only has to worry about being cross-checked into the boards.

“Drugs and gangs are just so bad at my old school,” said Puskarich, who transferred from Mariner High School. “Here, I feel safe.”

Stormy Keen, 14, dreams of playing goalie for the U.S.

women’s hockey team. She certainly has a perfect name for the position. Her brother, A.J.

Bell, also attends the school.

Tammy Keen, their mother, worries more about her son getting hurt than her daughter.

But she doesn’t have any concerns about them getting a proper education.

“I’ve seen a big difference in their attitudes in just a short time,” Tammy Keen said.

“They’re excited about school.

And they’re able to chase their dreams at the same time.”

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E-mail columnist Tom Hanson at tahanson@naplesnews.com