Newtown Public Schools
Weekly Update - October 28, 2024
Message from the Superintendent
Dear Newtown Families, Faculty and Staff,
The month of October has been the gift that keeps on giving when it comes to beautiful weather! That will continue through October 31st, a night on which many of our children will be trick-or-treating down Main Street, a long-standing Newtown tradition. Thank you to all of the residents who invest a significant amount of time and money to support this amazing event for our community. Residents who participate open their doors to as many as 3,000 trick-or-treaters! Families are reminded that they can help out by making candy donations at the Newtown Community Center, Caraluzzi’s or Trinity Episcopal Church, where collection boxes have been set up. You can also bring extra bags of candy to share directly with those welcoming you to their homes. Most importantly, please use extra caution when driving on the evening of October 31st. Excited children may not always pay attention to their surroundings. If you have a young driver in your household, please remind them to be extra careful on that night.
The rate of parked buses has been slowly declining and with new drivers coming on this week, I am hopeful that we will see that trend continue. Still, the challenge remains and warrants further consideration as to the impact our two-tier system has had on All-Star’s ability to provide timely transportation to and from school, to provide after-school transportation and to recruit and retain drivers. We will be working to analyze what financial implications this system, which was put in place in 2017 in order to delay the start time for our high school students, has on the district today in 2024. This is by no means an indication that I will be looking to make any type of change but I believe it is important to have a full understanding of our current situation so we can work on finding long-term solutions.
We are looking forward to tomorrow’s Board of Education meeting where we will continue our series of presentations on how our schools are prioritizing their work for the year ahead in alignment with the NPS Strategic Plan. This week we look forward to hearing from Mr. Jim Ross, Newtown Middle School Principal, and Dr. Kim Longobucco, Newtown High School Principal. As always, I encourage you to take some time to view our Board meetings either in person or virtually. You can find the link to this week’s agenda and livestream below.
For those in our community celebrating Diwali this week, may the festival bring you peace, happiness and beautiful memories with loved ones.
Warm regards,
Anne
Important District News and Reminders
Newtown Youth & Family Services
Newtown Youth and Family is licensed non-profit mental health clinic & youth service bureau offering high quality programs & services for the well-being of the our community. They offer a full range of supportive services. Some examples are:
REC is a social and recreational club for children, teens, and adults with social difficulties or moderate to high-functioning Autism Spectrum Disorders.
The Life Skills Program is for young adults with social difficulties or Autism Spectrum Disorders to increase knowledge and skills necessary for everyday living.
Sibshops offers support for siblings of brothers and sisters of special health and developmental needs.
For more information, see the flyer below or visit their website at Newtown Youth and Family.
American Legion Post 202
The American Legion Post 202 is seeking to recruit at least one member from each school in order to serve as a liaison between our schools and the Legion. Those of you who have worked in our schools, are likely aware of all the Legion offers to our students. Prospective members do not have to attend meetings if you are unable. Please see the flyer below for details. If you have interest, please reach out to Donna Monteleone for more information. Thank you in advance!
Wait Until 8th Pledge
Newtown Public Schools encourages parents to consider taking the pledge Waiting Until 8th. The Wait Until 8th pledge empowers parents to rally together to delay giving children a smartphone until at least the end of 8th grade. By taking the Wait Until 8th pledge, you are committing to protecting our children from the distractions and the dangers of having a smartphone in the elementary and middle school years. Banding together helps decrease the pressure to have a smartphone at an early age. Ten years old is the average age children get their first smartphone. You can change this!
Through the pledge, parents gain support in resisting societal pressures and expectations surrounding early smartphone ownership. Instead, they can opt for basic phones or watches for communication purposes while avoiding the pitfalls associated with smartphones.
More than 75,000 parents have said yes to waiting on the smartphone for their families. This is making a tremendous difference in communities across the country!
Recently, a second pledge has become active in our schools with the addition of Reed Intermediate school 5th grade. This means 10 or more families have signed on to the pledge. This is great news! We encourage you to take the pledge today!
For more information or to take the pledge:
Website: https://www.waituntil8th.org/
Instagram: Waituntil8th_Newtown
All-Star
WE NEED YOUR HELP!!!
If you are interested in driving a bus, please reach out to All-Star for more information on how to become a driver.
October Calendar
November Calendar
The full district calendar can be found here.
Board of Education Special Meeting - October 29, 2024
Click on the link to view the agenda for this week's Board of Education meeting.
To view this meeting, the livestream link is: https://vimeo.com/event/729428
To make a public comment, the call in number is (US) 1-310-736-2265 PIN 605 130 324#
NHS Athletics
NPS Athletic Trainer, Doug Michlovitz
On any given day, you can find NHS Athletic Trainer, Doug Michlovitz, in his training room helping athletes getting taped, iced or treated. Everyone needs attention as quickly as possible so they can head out to practice, and Doug does not disappoint.
Doug has been an athletic trainer since 1995 and is in his 3rd full year as the Athletic trainer at NHS. We are so lucky to have him.
Doug's "first job" is a PE teacher in Newtown, a job he has held for 30 years! We have been lucky to have him in Newtown for 26 of those years. He spent many years at Hawley but now splits his time between Sandy Hook and Head O'Meadow.
Doug starts his "second job" at NHS at 2pm preparing for the afternoon ahead. On a typical day he might be on the back field at 3pm for football practice, or racing to a Field hockey game in Blue and Gold stadium at 6pm. Some days he may even make a pit stop in the main gym at 5pm to check on Volleyball. Thank goodness for his trusty golf cart that can take him quickly around the campus!
Doug is an invaluable member of all the teams at NHS.
Fun Fact:
Doug has his own Baseball Card from his time with the Milwaukee Brewers farm team the Helene Brewers.
2024 SWC Tournament
We are in the thick of the SWC Tournament for a number of teams.
On Sunday October 27th, #3 seed Field Hockey took on #1 seed New Milford and came away with a 2-0 win to claim the top spot as the SWC Champions!
Congratulations to Rachel Albrecht, MVP of the Championship, scoring both goals for the Nighthawks!
Next up: Volleyball #2 seed will face #1 seed Joel Barlow in the Championship on Tuesday October 29th, at Westconn.
Congratulations to Soheib Dissa, who won the Boy's Cross Country Class L 5KM with a time of 15:43!
NHS Pep Rally
On Friday October 25th, the gym was packed with Teachers & Students dressed in Blue and Gold for the annual NHS Pep Rally!
Everyone was treated to an intense Lip Sync battle from several teams like Football, Cheer, Dance & Field Hockey, to name a few. In the end, Team Best Buddies stole the show!
There was a fierce Tug of War battle and the NHS Girls Volleyball team tugged their way to the top!
We can't forget Musical Chairs.....Senior Mo Murphy claimed the last seat!
More Photos from the Week
Join Our Team!
Love working with kids? Join us!
Several of our schools are in need of student support services staff. If you enjoy working with kids, we encourage you to visit our employment opportunities page.
Join the PTA
More than just fundraising!
Did you know that joining your PTA offers several benefits for both you and our school community? Our PTAs do many wonderful things throughout the school year that support and enhance the educational experience for our students. In addition to raising funds for educational programs and classroom resources, members have the opportunity to have their voices and ideas heard, meet new people and build connections within the school and greater community, as well as gain leadership skills that can be both personally and professionally valuable. In addition, being involved in your PTA gives you a closer look at what is happening in your child’s school by participating in or organizing events that foster a positive school culture.
You can find a link to each school's PTA by clicking on this link.
Thank you for your support!
Newtown, CT 06470
(203) 426-7600