Dear NIS Families,

Happy New Year! I hope this letter finds you and your family well-rested and ready for the exciting months ahead. As we begin 2025 together, I want to share a few updates and reminders to help us all stay connected and informed.

As many of you know Dr. Eddie Wilkin has moved from his role at NIS to continue and grow the music program at CPS. I’m happy to introduce Mr. Arroyo Castillo as our new Band Teacher for grades 4 and 5! Mr. Arroyo Castillo will be stepping in to lead our band program while Ms. Brum continues her amazing work with our orchestra students. We are also actively in the process of hiring a new General Music Teacher to fill the position at NIS. In the meantime, we have a great guest teacher in place, Mr. Dias. I want to thank you for your patience and support as we make this transition as smooth as possible.

I’m also excited to share that the School Council will soon begin work on our third goal of the year—building opportunities and processes for volunteering at NIS. We’re looking forward to creating ways for families to engage with and support our school community. As a reminder the school council completed their second goal of the year just prior to Parent/Teacher Conferences where each family was given a NIS Handbook Highlights page to help give an overview of the important information contained in our handbook. Digital copies are available below as well.

• NIS Handbook Highlights 2024-2025 (English)
• NIS Handbook Highlights 2024-2025 (Spanish)
• NIS Handbook Highlights 2024-2025 (Portuguese)

Finally, as we look ahead to spring, I want to remind families about MCAS testing. Testing will take place at the end of March, April, and May, with ELA and Math for grades 3, 4, and 5, and Science for grade 5. We will send home specific dates next week to help you plan accordingly.

Thank you for being such an important part of our NIS family. Your support makes all the difference in creating a welcoming and successful learning environment for our students.

Wishing you a joyful start to the new year,
Ms. Becky Janda
NIS Principal

Thank you to all those who have been ensuring that the Backus Lane lot in spaces marked in yellow as "Staff" and numbered have been left open for our NIS staff.

In addition this is another friendly reminder that the Surfside Road NIS parking lot is designated for NIS staff only, and the circle is reserved exclusively for buses (families should not be using that entrance for drop-off or pick-up during school hours.)

We appreciate your cooperation in keeping these safety procedures and parking spots available for NIS staff so they can be present and ready to support our students each day.

Thank you for your continued understanding and partnership!

All visitors must check in at the front office upon arrival at the school.

During school hours, visitors are required to present an ID for a visitors badge. You may not enter the school without a valid form of ID and a visitor's sticker.

SAVE THE DATE!

Vaccine Clinic for Island Kids
Saturday, January 11 and Sunday, January 12, 2025
Located at Nantucket Cottage Hospital, 57 Prospect Street, Physician Practices
8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. No appointments, walk-ins welcome – stop by at your convenience
Interpreters and translators will be available
Free food, treats and goodies will be available
Free, no co-pay

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THIS EVENT: www.nantuckethospital.org/kids

Parents of Nantucket Cottage Hospital patients can find their children’s vaccine status on the Mass General Brigham Patient Gateway (My Records > Immunizations) OR through their parent NPS Aspen account (Family tab > Health side tab > Immunizations).

Parents with questions about a child’s vaccine status can ask their school’s nurse, Nancy Small, 508-228-7290 x4107 email smalln@npsk.org or call the hospital at 508-825-1000.

January 20 - No School - Martin Luther King Jr. Day

January 22 - Early Release at 12pm

February 12 - Early Release at 12pm

February 13 - Multicultural Literacy Night - 5:30pm - 6:30pm

February 17 - No School - President's Day

February 24 - 28 - No School - Winter Break

The SEL team has put together a summer camp document to share with families all the information they may need for local summer camps.

Celebrating a birthday is such an exciting day for our students and we want them to be and feel special on their celebration day. However, at NIS families and students are encouraged not to bring in sweet food items to celebrate their birthday with their class. There are some great alternatives to bringing in sweets that may contain allergens or abundant amounts of sugar. We would like to encourage you to donate a birthday book to your child's classroom library in honor of their birthday. Other fun ideas include bringing in a special pencil, a healthy treat like a fruit tray or a sticker for everyone in the class.

In addition families and students cannot bring in balloons or other large items to celebrate.

NPS Vision Draft

We commit to provide equitable, inclusive, and challenging learning experiences where every student and adult feels seen, heard, valued, and respected.

NPS Mission Draft

Nantucket Public Schools, in partnership with a caring community, will create a dynamic and equitable learning environment which engages each of us to be inspired learners and responsible citizens, prepared to meet local and global challenges.

NPS Core Values Draft

Nantucket Public Schools values collaboration, communication, and reflection that supports:

• Equitable access to multiple pathways for individual and collective success.

• High expectations and a student-centered educational approach that integrates academic progress, extra-curricular participation, personal responsibility, and community involvement.

• Inclusive and sustained family relationships that respect all cultures and the experiences each child brings to our schools.

• Challenging ourselves to embrace and advocate for the needs of every student, adult, and family within our school community.

30 Surfside Road

Nantucket, MA 02554

Telephone: 508-228-7290

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