Newtown Public Schools

What an incredible day throughout the District as our schools celebrated the remarkable contributions and sacrifices made by those who serve or have served in our nation’s armed forces. Having our students in school on Veterans Day helps remind all of us of the courage, dedication and selflessness exhibited by our veterans, shaping the very fabric of our nation and ensuring the freedoms we enjoy today. For those of you who serve or have served, we thank you for your sacrifice!

I also want to take a moment to acknowledge our dedicated school psychologists throughout the District as we celebrate National School Psychologists Week. Thank you for the invaluable support you provide to our students, teachers, and families each day. Your expertise in mental health, academic guidance, and behavioral support is essential for ensuring safe, inclusive and welcoming learning environments. From counseling and crisis intervention to training and collaborating with staff, you ensure that every student has the resources and encouragement they need to succeed. Thank you for making a lasting difference and please know that we appreciate all that you do!

This week marks the first in a series of internal budget meetings with each of the district’s cost centers as we begin to develop the 2025-2025 budget. Principals and directors have built their budgets and these are reviewed in detail by me and my team at Central Office. As the meetings progress, a total picture of where we are and where we are looking to go begins to emerge. Once all the individual budgets have been reviewed, the full team will come back together to prioritize our wants versus our needs and to look at areas that may be able to offset new initiatives. My role in this process is to make decisions that are in the best interest of Newtown Public Schools, decisions that position us to deliver the best education possible to our students, while maintaining fiscal responsibility to the taxpayers of Newtown. Typically, the budget is finalized and presented to the Board of Education in January. It is important for everyone in the community to engage in learning about the budget as your input matters. I welcome discussions with any individual or group to discuss our budget and the development process in more detail and encourage you to reach out to me at any time during the process for more information or to schedule a meeting.

Several weeks ago I shared that we would be unveiling a new website around the first week of November. This will start with an update on the district pages and then later move to the school pages. We have hit a few snags but are working through them with our vendor and hope the new site will be up and running soon!

A gentle reminder that our middle and high schools ONLY will be dismissing early for conferences on Wednesday and Thursday.

Have a wonderful week!

Anne

The full district calendar can be found here.

Thank you to our school psychologists for the invaluable support you provide to our students, teachers, and families each day. Your expertise in mental health, academic guidance, and behavioral support is essential for ensuring safe, inclusive and welcoming learning environments. WE APPRECIATE YOU!

The American Legion Oratorical Contest is an exciting opportunity for high school students to showcase their public speaking skills and deepen their understanding of the U.S. Constitution. Through this contest, students prepare and deliver original speeches on constitutional principles, with the chance to earn scholarships and advance to state and national competitions. This program encourages civic awareness, confidence, and leadership among young Americans.

LETTERS TO SALA

Student directed by

Sadie Baimel and Parker Mauri

The show runs November 14, 15 & 16 @ 7:00 pm

and November 17 @ 2:00 pm.

Tickets are $12 for adults, $10 for seniors, and $7 for students.

All tickets will be sold at the door (cash or check only).

Adapted from the book Sala’s Gift by Ann Kirschner and based on a true account, LETTERS TO SALA is a remarkable story of a young girl’s survival during wartime Germany. Five years. Seven Nazi labor camps. Over 350 hidden letters. Sala Garncarz Kirschner kept her secret for over fifty years, concealing her incredibly painful history in a Spill and Spell box. Everything changes when Sala reveals the cache to her grown daughter, Ann. What is to be done with these letters? If Sala risked her life to hold onto them as a young woman imprisoned in a work camp, are they merely the emotionally rich relics of her past life? Or are they worthy and important historical documents that demand to be shared with the public? Three generations of Kirschner women must work together to sift through the past and come to terms with the true gravity of Sala’s letters.

Reed Drama Club presents...

The Wizard of Oz, Youth Edition!

Registration forms are available on the Reed Club Announcements Page. Forms are due no later than November 19th. Auditions will be on December 2nd, 3rd and 6th. Students will be asked to sing a song from the show and prepare one scene to read. There will also be an option dance audition on Monday, December 16th.

Please contact Erin Loucks at louckse@newtown.k12.ct.us with any questions!

Our Newtown Public Schools and their PTAs are teaming up with the Bridgeport Islanders and the Newtown Middle School Student Government to help Fight Cancer. Join us Saturday, November 23, at 7pm for a fun night of activities and hockey! A portion of the discounted ticket fee of $24.99 and all chuck-a-puck proceeds will be donated to Ann's Place (a local organization that provides support & resources to people living with cancer and their loved ones) in honor of those in our schools battling cancer. Cancer in some way affects everyone, and many in our community are or have loved ones directly affected by cancer, so come help us support our community Fight Cancer!

See flyer below for more or click this link for more information.

FYI...Other cool things associated with 11/23 Hockey Fights Cancer Night:

1) Rally towel giveaway to the first 2,000 fans

2) LED bracelets to the first 2,000 fans

3) Specialty retail items

4) Bounce into excitement with inflatable games and face painting for kids in the atrium

Governor Ned Lamont announced that teenage students and high schools in Connecticut can win up to $26,000 in prizes by entering a submission into Connecticut’s 16th annual Teen Safe Driving Video Contest hosted by the Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) and Travelers.

The contest calls on teens to create video public service announcements with compelling messages that motivate their peers to always practice safe driving whenever getting behind the wheel.

The contest is open to all public, private, and home-schooled high school students in Connecticut between the ages of 14 and 18. Students are required to produce a creative, unique, and effective video public service announcement no longer than 45 seconds in length that highlights interactions between drivers and other teens and illustrates ways to practice safer driving habits while obeying Connecticut’s teen driving laws. The videos must also address at least one specific Connecticut teen driving law.

This year, Travelers has increased the number of contest prizes and will award up to $26,000 in cash and other prizes to the winning students and their high schools.

To read the full contest rules and instructions on how to submit a video, visit ct.gov/teendriving/contest. The deadline for submissions is February 3, 2025.

To watch winning videos from previous years, click here.

Friday Night Lights were shining a little brighter at Blue and Gold stadium as the Nighthawks took on the Bulldogs from Bunnell.

The game was chosen as the NBC game of the week, as well as the CIAC game of the week. If that wasn't special enough, we celebrated our Veterans, Active Duty and First responders.

We also observed a moment of silence to recognize and honor Assistant Fire Chief of Botsford Fire and Rescue, Pete Blomberg, who passed away unexpectedly on October 28, 2024.

An amazing night for our community. An absolute honor to be a Nighthawk.

Before the game on Friday night, a few of our Nighthawks were interviewed by Taylor Kinzler from NBC Connecticut for live segments at 4:30 & 5:30.

The Hawks Nest student section leaders were on hand to discuss their involvement with NHS Sports teams. Our Hawks Nest is the reigning CIAC best fan section for 2024 as well as the Best Student Section in the Northeast.

Pictured: J Edwards discussing our Veterans day celebration and his job as teacher and announcer at NHS. J just recently called his 2000th game at NHS.

Also pictured: Brendan Connors, Brendan McAnaspie, Quinn Harris & Curtis Verdi.

We are coming to the end of Fall Sports 2024 at NHS. Most of our fall teams have wrapped up, with just a few in the remaining days of their season.

What a Fall we had!

• Two teams (Boys Golf and Field Hockey) were named SWC Champions! Way to go!
• Boys Cross Country saw Soheib Dissa win every race he ran! He recently won New Englands in 15:13 (11 seconds faster than the CT open)
• There were pool records broken. Alexa Kwarcinski broke the previous record in the 200 IM that was set in 1998 with a time of 2:12:00.
• Our football team continues to shine on Friday night! They are currently 8-0 with some exciting games coming up!
• Girls Swim & Dive are in the middle of Trials, with Finals set for later in the week. They will wrap up with State Opens on 11/17.
• Our Unified Soccer team never disappoints. Their end of the season tournament held at NYA with many teams from the surrounding area was a treat for all involved.
• NHS received the Michaels Jewelers Achievement cup for the 4th consecutive year! This is awarded to schools who create positive environments for their athletes through a high standard of sportsmanship.

In addition to practice and games, our teams held fundraisers/charity events and even hosted camps and clinics for youth teams. They also found time for community service, all while keeping up with their schoolwork and maintaining their status as Student Athletes!

Needless to say our fall athletes have earned a well deserved break! We are so excited to see what the Winter Season will bring.

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!

Being the parent of a student with special needs can be confusing, isolating and frightening. Newtown Special Ed PTA, or SEPTA, is a great way to connect with a supportive community. We look forward to you joining 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.

All-Star is actively seeking drivers. Flexible schedules and a paid training program. Consider calling today!