Communications Corner June 2022

News and Happenings at EPS!

Welcome to our NEW Quarterly Newsletter - Communications Corner!

Greetings Ellington Families!

Welcome to the new Communications Corner for Ellington Public Schools. This quarterly newsletter will be brought to you by the EPS Board of Education's Communications Committee. It's our goal to share with you exciting, relevant information on many platforms. We want you in the know!

To kick off the first edition, we want to CONGRATULATE the Class of 2022! We wish you much success as you begin your next chapter!

Happy Reading,

Committee Chair Jenn Mullin

Board Chair Jennifer Dzen shared her Commencement Address

"Commencement address is meant to be the dance of youth and wisdom", said Board Chair Jennifer Dzen. Ms. Dzen shared five principles that have guided her:

Fine tune your moral compass
Own your actions
Make meaningful mistakes and mistakes that are meaningful
Respect the most and the least powerful person in the room
Give back - your time, talent, knowledge and gifts

You can watch the full Commencement address HERE.

Meet Your Communications Committee:

Jennifer Mullin

Committee: Communications (Chair)

District Liaison: Board of Selectmen

Contact: jmullin@ellingtonschools.net

Marcia Kupferschmid

Committee: Communications, Curriculum

District Liaison: Center School

Contact: mkupferschmid@ellingtonschools.net

Angela Moser

Committee: Communications, Policy (Chair), Curriculum

District Liaison: Ellington High School

Contact: amoser@ellingtonschools.net

Exciting things happening around the District! Check them out below!

Welcome Anderson! EPS' new Director of Athletics and Wellness

Ellington Board of Education appoints Anderson Rawlins as Director of Athletics and Wellness - Mr. Rawlins, with his wealth of experience playing, coaching and leading athletic programming, will begin duties on July 1, 2022.

Newly Appointed Board Liaison - Rik Roy!

On June 15th, the Ellington Board of Education along with EHS Administration, appointed Rik as the new student liaison for the 22-23 school year! Congratulations, Rik!

Thank you to Maddie Willett, 21-22 Board Student Liaison

On June 15th, the BOE recognized Maddie for her outstanding work as the student liaison for the 21-22 school year! On behalf of the Ellington BOE, thank you!

Agricultural Science and Technology Student Graduates

Jessica Donavan and Abigail Griffin both graduating Seniors from Rockville High School class of 2022, shared that their involvement in the program was positive and offered many life skills which would benefit them in the future. Congratulations, Graduates!

$2000 Donation of Flight Simulator Experience

Tom Palishaw (EHS Class of '66) reached out to EHS Administration to donate a flight simulator experience ($2000) from the New England Air Museum. What a wonderful opportunity for EPS!

Thank you, Tom!

CABE Leadership Awards - Ellington High School

Congratulations to Ryan and Maddie! Awards presented by Principal John Guidry.

CABE Leadership Awards - Ellington Middle School

Congratulations Faithe! Award presented by Mr. Ferraro.

CABE Leadership Awards - Ellington Middle School

Congratulations Bryan! Award presented by Ms. Herrick.

Congratulations EDUinnovate Grant Recipients!

Mr. Jon Moser and Mr. Tim McDonough of EDUinnovate to introduce the Spring EDUinnovate Grant Recipients. Ms. Gomathi Ramachandran, Ms. Darry Thomas, Ms. Linda Robinson and Ms. Tracy Mercier were awarded grants to support the students in EPS!

National Finalist - Mr. Chris Messier

Mr. Messier is a CT State finalist for the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching. This prestigious award involves a rigorous application process. Mr. Messier shared with the Board that he found his passion in math and teaching 5th and 6th grade soon after graduation. Congratulations, Mr. Messier!

Micro Grant for Music - Congratulations Ms. Sharon Bigge

Principal Hill recognized Ms. Bigge at the April BOE meeting for her work and selection as a recipient of a $1000 Grant to support Music Education for the Windermere Community! Ms. Biggie, with 47 years of teaching experience, has a passion for music and her work at EPS!

Skype a Scientist at Windermere School

Board Member Viens visited Windermere School 6th grade for the neat opportunity to interact with real Scientists from across the continent! This session was all about Marine Science.

"Truth about Hate" Program at Ellington High School

The goal of the "EHS Truth About Hate" program is to help to educate our students on how to acknowledge acts of hate and empower them to become advocates for a more inclusive community. Board Member Moser was honored to attend.

Congratulations, Thomas!

Ms. Murray recognized Thomas for his outstanding work and receipt of many awards including a $30,000 Scholarship to Quinnipiac University at the CT Science and Engineering Fair. Thomas shared with the Board and explained that he developed the tubing attachments for soft robots.

Wellness Committee Raffle!

An amazing all staff raffle was sponsored by the Wellness Committee! Prizes included Travelers tickets, brand new EPS swag and generous gift cards from local businesses! Board Member Miriam Underwood was pleased to announce this amazing appreciation raffle at the March BOE meeting!

EHS Author Visit- Anna Goss!

EHS hosted cookbook author, Anna Goss for a live cooking demonstration. Board Members, Marcia Kupferschmid and Angela Moser joined over 130 students for this unique opportunity! Thanks to Ms. Hartling and Mr. Helmin for organizing this great event!

Get cooking with this read: Heirloom Kitchen

Congratulations Kashish!

Kashish was recognized at the February BOE meeting by Ms. Martha Malone-Reiss, Windermere Teacher for her placement in Senator Murphy’s Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. essay contest for middle school as the 2nd Congressional District Winner.

Ellington Appreciates our Teachers and Staff!

Teacher Appreciation Week 2022 was celebrated with notes of thanks, breakfasts, luncheons, special treats and gifts. Big thanks to the PTO at each school for their work to honor Ellington Teachers!

Board Member Appreciation Month!

March was Board Member Appreciation Month! We had a great time with delightful desserts made by our EHS culinary students!

EHS Treble Chorus performs at BOE Meeting!

For Board Member Appreciation Month, EHS Treble Chorus, directed by Richard Diamond, performed this is the garden, words by e.e. cummings, music by Vincent Persichetti and Wings, as recorded by Little Mix, arranged by Andy Beck.