Let's Talk TPS

Let’s have double the fun. After all, today is National Twin Day!

There’s something pretty special about being a twin when the twin birth rate is only around 3% in the U.S. (per latest CDC data). At TPS, we are closer to 5% with 91 sets of twin students; and we have twin teachers at our middle school. Mackay leads our elementary schools with 11 sets of twins, TMS has 36 sets (plus the Holis twins), and THS has 23 sets.

Did you know these facts about twins?:

• Around 40 percent of twins make up their own languages as babies.
• About 1 in 5 pairs are left-handed, or roughly double the rate of the general population.
• Most twins are fraternal (about 70%). Identical twins are typically the same gender, but not always.
• There are also mirror-image twins. This occurs when one twin is left-handed and the other is right-handed, and they have birthmarks on opposite sides of their bodies.
• Despite sharing nearly identical DNA, identical twins do not have the same fingerprints.
• The average time between delivering twins is 17 minutes. But you know that the “older” one always reminds the younger one who came first!

I hope our twins enjoy their special day; and I hope that all of you - our families, staff, and students - enjoy the upcoming holiday break. Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Happy Kwanzaa, and Happy New Year to all!

Yours in Education,

Michael Ben-David J.D./M.Ed.
Superintendent of Schools

NOTE: Below are pictures of our twin students at each school. The photo above is a picture of twin TMS teachers, Colin and Conor Hollis. View even more on our YouTube channel, Facebook and Instagram (@TenaflySchools or the school social media sites).

Reorganization of the Board/Regular Board Meeting - Monday, January 6, 2025

For the Board Agenda, click HERE. (Updated on Friday afternoon before Board meetings).

For the Zoom link, click HERE.

Our four elementary schools, and TMS' 8th grade, hosted their annual winter concerts last week. Everyone was in the holiday spirit - especially our talented students and staff members! Special thanks to our music, band, orchestra, and chorus teachers for all their hard work in preparing our students. Along with Mackay's concert at the top of the newsletter and Smith students on the left, below are some of the special moments from each of these concerts (and for more photos, be sure to check out our Facebook and Instagram accounts - @TenaflySchools).

NOTE: TMS' 6th and 7th grade, and Tenafly High School, will be hosting their winter concerts in January. Check the school websites for more details.

Earlier this month, we continued our tradition of surprising the winners of our Governor's Educators of the Year and Educational Service Professionals of the Year. Each school's teacher and education professional were greeted by our Superintendent, Assistant Superintendent, and their school principals and vice principals. The students in each classroom loved seeing their teachers and paraprofessionals recognized in this special way! Congratulations to our 2024-2025 recipients:

Educators of the Year

Mackay: Jennifer Bertolini

Maugham: Yunhee Kim

Smith: Kelly Powers

Stillman: Noelle Benz

TMS: Amanda Crawford

THS: Daniel Nyfenger

Educational Service Professionals of the Year

Mackay: Melvin Maclin

Maugham: Lisa Fleury

Smith: Nicole Lahanas

Stillman: Kathleen Giordano

TMS: Lisa DeNorscia

THS: Eileen Grieco

The 2024 Bergen County Band and Chorus recently performed to a packed house at Ramsey High School. The Bergen County Chorus was conducted by Ms. Lalla, Choral Director at Union Middle School in Rutherford, and the Bergen County Band was conducted by Mr. Bitner, Band Director at Mahwah High School.

For the second year in a row, a TMS student served as the concertmaster and gave the opening speech at the concert. Congrats to Alyssa Liu! Mr. Arhamjian, TMS Choral Director and Dr. Burja, TMS Band Director, couldn't have been prouder of the 13 students who participated in this year's performance.

CHORUS PHOTO (left to right): Mr. Ahramjian, Olivia Kim, Lena Van, Vera Tinmaz, Elizabeth Nonas, and Alexa Na

BAND PHOTO (left to right) top row - Nicholas DiMattia (tenor sax), Adrian Shim (flute), Dohyung Kim (clarinet), Louie Kim (clarinet), Dr. Burja (director); bottom row - Claire Xin (flute), Alexa Na (alto sax), Alyssa Liu (clarinet, concertmaster), Ayden Lee (percussion), and Jackson Park (trombone)

You are invited to join the next meeting of our Special Education Parent Advisory Committee (SEPAC) on Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025 @ 8:45 am - Central Office or join by Zoom.

What is SEPAC? The Tenafly Public Schools Special Education Parent Advisory Committee (SEPAC), is a state-mandated, district-level, parent-driven group that provides input to the Tenafly Public School District on system-level challenges in special education and related services. SEPAC is designed to benefit all students with disabilities, and is not intended to be a forum to discuss any individual IEP or particular student.

Be sure to also follow us on Facebook - @Tenafly SEPAC (private group)!

Kindergarten registration for the 2025 - 2026 school year will begin on January 20th for all four elementary schools. Registration is completed online via Genesis. For more information, visit our Registration website.

NOTE: Tiger Tots registration information will be announced next month.

In January and February 2025, Chinese Parents Association of Tenafly (CPAT) invites everyone to the SECOND exhibition in the Edna Kawulitzki Gallery at the Tenafly Public Library, to celebrate the Lunar New Year. The exhibition will feature the artwork of grade K through 12 students from Tenafly and Alpine. Please see the information below to participate:

• Eligibility：K-12 students from Tenafly and Alpine, one artwork per applicant
• Theme: Must include the color RED as an element
• Size: From 11x14 inches up to 20x24 inches
• Media：2D or 3D

Deadline for submissions: December 20, 2024

Please scan code in the poster or click here https://www.cpatenafly.org/event/2025-art-exhibition to register. If you have any questions, please email us at admin@cpatenafly.org

If you have a story idea for this newsletter, please contact Ms. Terry Corallo. Please provide at least two weeks advance notice.

If you have have a question or concern related to your student, please first contact their teacher. For additional support, you may contact your building principal:

• Mackay School - Principal Chizzik
• Maugham School - Principal Ferrara
• Smith School - Principal George
• Stillman School - Principal Lander
• Tenafly Middle School - Principal Fabbo
• Tenafly High School - Principal Morrison