Highview Happenings
June 6, 2025
From the Principal's Desk...
Dear Highview Families,
Happy Friday! It seems as though Mother Nature is gracing us with summer weather, which is very exciting! It is hard to believe there are only three weeks left to the 2024-2025 school year. Many thanks to the Nanuet Elementary PTA that hosted the K-4 Spring Fling event last night at the G.W. Miller Fields. It was great to come together and celebrate what has been an incredible school year. The last PTA meeting will take place on Monday, June 9 at 7:30 p.m. in the Library here at Highview. Please join us as there will be voting for the 2025-2026 Elementary PTA board seats.
Today our Grade 3 orchestra students performed in their annual String Recital. Under the direction of the fabulous Mr. Andrew Brett, the orchestra students dazzled us with a variety of musical numbers. We are very proud of our orchestra students as they wrap-up their first year playing an instrument. Next year, in fourth grade, students will be able to either continue with an orchestra instrument or switch to a band instrument. We are fortunate to have an outstanding music department in our district!
As we continue through these beautiful months of spring, it is a perfect time to provide our students with reminders about our K-4 Code of Conduct and Behavior Response Plan. We will continue to review this with students at school, and I would be grateful if parents/guardians can review it at home as well. I am very appreciative of your partnership and support!
I hope you and your loved ones enjoy a wonderful weekend. We look forward to welcoming our Highview Knights back to school on Monday, June 9.
Sincerely,
Matthew Lutz
Principal
Charter Shout-Outs for the Week
On a rotating basis, classroom teachers nominate two students from their classes to receive a Charter Shout-Out. The class charter is a RULER tool used in all classrooms to help students develop expectations for success as learners and members of the community. The Charter Shout-Out gives teachers the opportunity to highlight students who are living up to their classroom charters.
This week, students from the following classes received shout-outs and were recognized over morning announcements: Mrs. DeGennaro (3PD) and Mrs. Cooney (4LC). Congratulations to Hudson (3PD), Sofia (4LC), and Alexander (4LC). See their proud picture below!
Eat-and-Play Challenge
At the beginning of the year, we re-launched a monthly Eat-and-Play Challenge for our students. The goal is for classes to work together to follow the Eat-and-Play rules during the lunch/recess periods. They have the opportunity to add a sticker in a square on an incentive chart. The classes with the most stickers at the end of the month get to shop on our FABULOUS prize cart! There will be at least one winner each month in both grade levels.
For the month of April, Mrs. DeGennaro's class won the third-grade challenge. Mrs. Collins' class won the fourth-grade challenge. Congratulations classes 3PD and 4HC! We look forward to seeing which classes will win for the month of May!
Grade 4 Moving-Up Ceremony
On Monday, June 23, 2025, we will celebrate our fourth-grade students and their upcoming transition to A. MacArthur Barr Middle School during our annual Moving-Up Ceremony. This is an opportunity for us to come together to celebrate all of our fourth-grade students' accomplishments in elementary school. The event will take place at 9:45 a.m. in the Nanuet Senior High School Auditorium. Doors will open to parents/guardians and guests at 9:30 a.m. This is not a ticketed event; however, seating is first come, first served. Your fourth-grade student will bring home an informational letter about the ceremony on Monday, May 19, 2025. If you have questions about the ceremony, please contact our Main Office by calling (845) 627-3460.
🔶🔶🔶🔶 REPEATED REMINDERS🔶🔶🔶🔶
Affirmations
Take a look at our daily Morning Affirmations that we recite together as a school community. The purpose of this practice is to encourage our students to use positive self-talk to get themselves excited and ready to conquer the day. We want our students to feel empowered and productive at Highview. You are more than welcome to use these at home as well.
Arrival and Dismissal Procedures
During arrival and dismissal, the safety of our students is our top priority. Please review this document, which outlines our arrival and dismissal procedures for the 2024-2025 school year. We must all work together to ensure the safety of both students and staff during these important blocks of time. We thank you in advance for your cooperation and partnership in following these procedures each day.
Bus Information
As always, the safety of our students and staff is our top priority. When riding the bus, students are expected to follow three bus rules:
- Be a good listener.
- Use a quiet voice.
- Stay in your seat at all times.
Please note that beginning in 2024-2025, no student in Grades K-4 will be released from the bus without an adult present at the bus stop. This is to ensure the safety of all students.
We appreciate your partnership in reiterating these expectations for a safe bus ride. Please note that unsafe behavior on the bus will result in a loss of bus riding privileges at the discretion of Principal Lutz, Assistant Principal Mehu, or their designee(s).
Code of Conduct
The Board of Education is committed to providing a safe and orderly school environment where students may receive and district personnel may deliver quality educational experiences without disruption or interference. We ask that you read and review the Code of Conduct for Grades K-4 with your child. Our goal is to ensure students are engaged in learning while making positive contributions to our school community.
Digital Backpack
Each week, documents will be loaded to our Digital Backpack, which is linked to the bottom of the Highview homepage. We encourage you to check the Digital Backpack, which is updated every Friday, to ensure you have updated information on important dates, events, and opportunities being offered to students and families.
Electronic Devices and Valuable Items
Students in grades K-4 should not bring electronic devices, large amounts of money, or valuable items to school. This includes cell phones/smart phones, iPods, iPads/tablets, smart watches, personal computers/laptops, electronic games, expensive jewelry, card collections, and large amounts of money. Even if the student who brings in the item is not at fault, there are no funds to pay for its repair or replacement. The school carries no insurance that is applicable to these matters and there is no money budgeted for this purpose. Principal Lutz, Assistant Principal Mehu, and/or their designee(s) reserve the right to determine whether an item is an electronic device and/or valuable.
Parent Square Notification System
Over the next few months, the district and buildings are moving to a new communication system to send alerts out to parents, guardians and the community. Please check your email for an invitation from Parent Square or register on the website. Follow the video linked below to set notification and language settings in the app or website. The Parent Square app can be downloaded from your app store.
Registration Website:
https://www.parentsquare.com/signin
Video for how to change notification or language settings:
Parent-Teacher Association (PTA)
We are fortunate to have a wonderful Parent-Teacher Association (PTA). We encourage our parents to get involved with the PTA. If you have questions, you can always reach out to our PTA via email at nanuetpta@gmail.com.
Here are the 2024-2025 Board Members for the Elementary PTA:
- Jennifer Falzon, President
- Debbie Harris, Vice President for G.W. Miller School
- Linda Metress, Vice President for Highview School
- Kelly Ann Trombley, Secretary
- Stephanie Gannon, Treasurer
- Gillian LaTorre, Delegate
Additionally, please check out the PTA's website for more information on how to join this amazing group! Thank you to our fabulous PTA for all you do to support the students, staff, and families in the Nanuet School District!
Safety and Security Protcols
As you know, the safety of our students and staff is our top priority in the Nanuet Union Free School District. The Safety/Security Protocols for 2024-2025 are outlined in the document below. We thank you in advance for your cooperation with and prompt attention to these protocols.
Snack and Water Bottles
Students do have a snack time daily and at the discretion of the classroom teacher. Your child's teacher will communicate this to you when they share their specific schedules. We encourage you to send a healthy snack to school with your child. If your child's classroom is designated as Nut Aware, you will receive a letter as well as a notification from the classroom teacher. Please do not send any products containing nuts.
Every student can have a water bottle in class. Water bottles must be capped (no straws or glass) and should be a personal size (16 oz. or less). There are opportunities to refill water bottles during the school day. Please be sure your child’s water bottle can fit in their backpack for transport purposes. Please label your child’s water bottle with their name and class code. Students cannot bring open containers, energy drinks, or coffee-related drinks to school.
Strive for 25
Our students at Highview Elementary School participate in a reading incentive known as Strive for 25. The goal is for every student to read 25 books by the end of the school year. Classroom teachers keep track of books read in their individual classrooms for this incentive. This year, we are adding some benchmarks along the way so that students have more opportunities for recognition. Please see the benchmarks below.
- Students who read 10 books will be recognized and given a small prize.
- Students who read 20 books will be recognized and given a small prize.
- Students who read 25+ books will be recognized and will receive a certificate and book.
Dates to Remember
Monday, June 9
Elementary PTA Meeting
7:30 p.m. at Highview (in the Library)
Wednesday, June 11
Grade 4 FUN Day
at Highview School
Friday, June 13
Grade 4 FUN Day RAIN DATE
at Highview School
Monday, June 16
Board of Education Meeting
7:30 p.m. at Nanuet High School
Thursday, June 19
Juneteenth
All Nanuet Schools Closed
Friday, June 20
Grade 3 Field Trip to Turtle Back Zoo
Rain or Shine
Classes 3KA, 3JM, 3KS, and 3AM
Monday, June 23
Grade 4 Moving-Up Ceremony
9:45 a.m. at Nanuet High School in the Auditorium
Thursday, June 26
Early Dismissal for Students
11:35 a.m. Dismissal
Friday, June 27
Last Day of School
Early Dismissal for Students
10:05 a.m. Dismissal
Friday, June 27
Report Cards Sent Home
Parent Portal Opens
Highview Elementary School
Email: mlutz@nanuetsd.org
Website: highview.nanuetsd.org
Location: 24 Highview Avenue, Nanuet, NY 10954
Phone: (845) 627-3460
Facebook: www.facebook.com/NanuetPublicSchools
Instagram: @nanuetschools