Let's Talk TPS

With the month of November coming to a close, we take a moment to say goodbye to Superintendent Shauna DeMarco and hello to Interim Superintendent Bruce Watson.

For nearly five years, Superintendent DeMarco led us through a series of ups and downs here in Tenafly. However, despite the challenges, including COVID, the accomplishments of the district (academic, athletic, musical, and so many others), outsized all else, showing the strength, tenacity, and talent that defines our District.

We take this opportunity to thank Superintendent DeMarco for her service, leadership, and dedication to the Tenafly Public Schools District, and wish her only great things as she retires from the world of public education. Thank you, Superintendent DeMarco and best wishes in all you do.

Tenafly Public Schools extends a warm Tiger welcome to Bruce Watson who joins us this Friday, December 2nd as Interim Superintendent of Schools. Mr. Watson is an experienced teacher, Business Administrator/Board Secretary, Assistant Superintendent, and Superintendent. He has worked in both public schools and private corporations, and has filled the role of Interim Superintendent for several schools throughout New Jersey. Additional information about Mr. Watson can be found on the TPS website. We are excited and grateful to have someone with his well-rounded experience and extensive education to work with us as we search for our permanent Superintendent. Welcome Mr. Watson!

As you know, the Tenafly Board of Education is poised to begin its search for our new Superintendent of Schools. We want and need your input to ensure that we identify an individual that best meets the specific needs of our District.

Matt Lee, NJSBA Search Consultant, will oversee the process for the New Jersey School Boards Association.

TPS will hold a community information session on Wednesday, December 7th at 7pm in the THS Lalor Media Center. In addition, a community survey was sent to all staff, parents, community members who work with our students (e.g., crossing guards) and students on Monday, November 30th. The survey is also available online. The survey will be available through December 9th. Thank you for your anticipated support and input.

Seniors Claire D. Kim, Jayden S. Ko, and Casey J. Yom are Semifinalists in the 2023 National Merit Scholarship Competition! The highest scorers on the 2020 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test, semifinalists represent less than one percent of U.S. High School seniors.

In addition to semifinalists, Tenafly acknowledged 41 Commended Students. Commended Students placed among the top 50,000 scorers of more than 1.5 million students who took the 2020 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test. Our Commended Students are: Harrison M. Banks, Siyuan Bao, Ethan T. Chia, Michael M. Crosby, Sophie Fuentecilla, Brandon Gao, Libby H. Hod, Jessica A. Huang, Yicheng Huang, Paul T. Hui, Sernie S. Jang, Anjalip Jathavedam, Suchir Joshi, Christopher Kaloudov, Jacqueline Kim, Ryan J. Kim, Sean C. Kim, Abigail S. Kushman, Anglelina Lee, Alexander Lipton, Jamie Liu, John Minnetian, Angelique Mitchell, Arnav Patwardhan, Tamar Peleg, Rhea C. Raghu, Karen Ringler, Gia Shin, Joseph Y. Song, Zehang Sun, Ayano Tamura, Jacob A. Toboroff, Mia Villavicencio, Alexandria Yang, Crystal Ye, Kristen S. Yi, Meghan H. Yi, Seungkyu Yoon, Andrew C. Zhang, Andy Zhao, and Ilay Zubkov.

Nine THS students were also awarded academic honors by the College Board National Recognition Program. Congratulations to National African American Recognition Awardees (NAARA) and National Hispanic Recognition Awardees (NHRA) Angelique Mitchell NAARA; Elija Brooks NAARA, NHRA; Estaban Velasco NHRA; Felix Quiros-Keller NHRA; Isaac Levinson NHRA; Libby Hod NHRA; and Mia Villavicencio NHRA.

Congratulations to all of our recognized students!

More than 200 TPS community members came out to support the African Culture Festival coordinated by the Global Citizens Community Club advised by TMS teacher Dr. Mark Hyman. Authentic Guyanese food - egushie soup, jollof rice, waayke, goat and chicken stew, sweet plantains, turkey tail, puff puffs, wings African style, and more - was on the menu for all to enjoy before the entertainment began. And what a show it was! Thank you to everyone who attended and supported this incredible event. Additional photos can be seen in the slideshow below!

The Special Education Advisory Committee (SEPAC) meeting will be held in-person and virtually for those who wish to attend by Zoom on December 7th at 8:45am. the in-person meeting will be held at Central Office, 500 Tenafly Road. For Zoom, register using the registration form and the link will be provided.

Scan QR Code or Click to Register

Do you have questions or concerns related to your child? Please check the school/teacher websites for helpful information. Not finding what you need? Contact your building principal. They are here to help you and can be reached at:

• Mackay School - hchizzik@tenafly.k12.nj.us
• Maugham School - jferrara@tenafly.k12.nj.us
• Smith School - dgeorge@tenafly.k12.nj.us
• Stillman School - glander@tenafly.k12.nj.us
• Tenafly Middle School - jfabbo@tenafly.k12.nj.us
• Tenafly High School - jmorrison@tenafly.k12.nj.us