NFPS Update

We've settled into the school year as autumn has arrived. The leaves on the trees are on the verge of changing their colors as the days get shorter and cooler. I can hardly wait to see the view of the surrounding hills from Rebels Stadium as the fall colors are on full display.

Stadium Lights Illuminated

We are thrilled to announce that new and improved lights have been installed on Rebels Stadium ahead of schedule! Our high school sports teams, youth programs and the community as a whole will once again be able to use the stadium in the evenings. Everyone's flexibility and patience this past month is greatly appreciated. We can all look forward to having home football games under the lights as our players, cheer team and marching band perform.

Town Referendum Vote - Saturday, September 28

A referendum is scheduled for tomorrow to vote on the use of the Town's American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds, which includes an allocation for the remaining funds required to replace the Stadium Turf and Track. Votes may be cast from 10 am to 8 pm at the New Fairfield Senior Center Community Room.

Strategic Plan

The Board of Education has adopted an ambitious and innovative Strategic Plan that will guide the continuous improvement of our District. Three aspirational goals, addressing Curriculum, Instruction, and Wellness, have been established in support of our Vision of a Learner. Each goal is defined by a series of action steps that will be enacted to achieve the goal. Each action step notes specific deliverables that the work will yield in order to have observable outcomes and demonstrate progress over time. We launched this important and adaptive work this summer with over 60 teachers collectively working over 200 days on 11 different summer curriculum projects. We look forward to providing periodic updates regarding our progress and its impact.

Each month, we will share updates on the Strategic Plan for one of the three goal areas. This month, we bring to your attention our work on the Wellness Goal within this newsletter; see below for information about the Family Wellness Series Survey coming in early October to all NFPS families. We look forward to providing you with continued updates on how are taking NFPS to new heights.

Sincerely,

Ken

Kenneth G. Craw, Ed. D.

Wellness Goal: As part of the NFPS Strategic Plan in support of student wellness, we have a goal of partnering with families to provide education and resources in support of student wellness related to a variety of topics, from technology use to anxiety, from behavioral challenges to social skills. Be on the lookout in early October for the 2024-25 NFPS Family Wellness Survey that seeks input from parents and guardians regarding topics of interest and the preferred modes of communication for resources ... Do you prefer in-person presentations? Would you like to see information posted on our website? Video messages or flyers? Your input will allow us to plan for the year ahead and ensure that we can partner to best meet the needs of our students and families.

There are wonderful traditions at each of our schools as we welcome our students back each year, and these traditions made for a memorable start again this year. From the Senior Parade at the high school to music on the bus platform as buses unloaded at New Fairfield Elementary School, students were welcomed back with a sense of community and strong school spirit for the year ahead. We have had a fantastic start to the school year, filled with lots of positivity among staff and students!

We are thrilled to welcome a group of more than 25 new staff members to the New Fairfield Public Schools this year! These new staff members started in August at our New Teacher Orientation days, and they brought with them tremendous energy and excitement for teaching and learning. Our students will benefit from the range of experiences and expertise they are bringing to our district, and we look forward to a wonderful year ahead!

We are thrilled to announce that our new New Fairfield Elementary School sign has been installed at the front of the building. The new sign looks beautiful and maintains the child-centered commitment of our staff and school community. Congratulations to New Fairfield Elementary School on a wonderful opening of the 24-25 school year and we look forward to the year ahead with the spirit of collaboration strong as our students PreK-5 grow across the years.

Recently many cell phone and email providers have implemented additional anti-spam and anti-phishing measures to help protect customers. This has come with unintended consequences of some school communications being blocked by the carriers. In order to help prevent this we recommend adding 203-312-5692 to your phone's contact list as "New Fairfield Public Schools Alerts" and "No-reply@newfairfieldschools.org" to your email contacts. It may also be beneficial to add your child's homeroom teacher to your email contacts as well.

If you have any issues with school communications, or any other technological issues, please email helpdesk@newfairfieldschools.org

We are excited to announce that the new STEAM classroom is now open at New Fairfield Middle School! This state-of-the-art learning space was made possible thanks to the work of our NFPS facilities team working throughout the summer to redesign and renovate existing space in the middle school. It includes an instructional area, a video production area, and a robotics field. We are thrilled at the opportunities and inspiration for innovation and design-thinking that this space will provide for our students across the middle school years.

We are excited to announce the opening of the new STEAM classroom at New Fairfield Middle School! This space has been redesigned thanks to our own NFPS facilities team to provide a wonderful environment for innovative thinking and design. This state-of-the-art learning space includes an area for instruction, a video production area, and a robotics field. We are thrilled at the opportunities and inspiration this space will provide to our students across the middle school years.

The NFHS School Counseling Team, in partnership with the College and Career Center provides programming to students in grades 9-12 to support students in setting academic goals, exploring career options, building interpersonal skills, and developing coping strategies. This year's program began this month with a grade-level “Welcome Grade 9—Know Your Supports” lesson and a grade 12 “Welcome to Senior Year—Post-High School Planning” class meeting. This year's programming will continue to focus on providing tailored guidance and support to students at each stage of their high school journey.

Throughout the school year, students participate in additional enrichment opportunities. These are exciting opportunities for our elementary school to bring forward new experiences for students in a variety of high-interest areas. During PE enrichment, for instance, students had an opportunity to learn about the skills and discipline of Taekwondo. We are thrilled that we can grow the whole child in all of these ways and look forward to more enrichment opportunities as the year unfolds.

In honor of National Constitution Day on September 17th, students and staff of New Fairfield High School were invited to the Learning Commons to watch a livestream from the National Constitution Center in Washington, DC as the Honorable Neil M. Gorsuch, associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, presented stories of ordinary Americans who have navigated the complexities of the nation’s legal system. Justice Gorsuch also shared interesting details from his career, the important role played by the judiciary, and what it’s like to serve on the Supreme Court.