Bellringer Newsletter

Good morning. I hope everyone had a great weekend. We are approaching the Mid-Point of the 2nd Quarter and Mid-Year Exams will take place shortly after we return from vacation. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me directly at everner@easthamptonct.org.

• December 20--Early Dismissal--EHHS
• December 20--EHHS Pep Rally
• December 21---January 1--Winter Recess
• January 2---Classes Resume
• January 8--Junior Parent Post-Secondary Planning Evening (6:00)
• January 20--Martin Luther King Day Holiday--No School
• January 23, 24, 27, and 28--EHHS Mid-Year Exams
• January 29--2nd Semester/3rd Quarter Begins
• February 4--DECA Trivia Night
• February 12--Winter Concert
• February 12--Tri-M Induction Ceremony
• February 14--No School---Professional Development
• February--17+18--February Recess--No School
• March 7---No School---Professional Development
• March 11--Step-Up Concert
• March 13--NGSS Testing
• March 14, 15, and 16--EHHS Musical--Newsies
• March 19--Winter Sports Awards
• March 19 + 20--EHHS Early Dismissal/Parent Teacher Conferences
• March 21--Junior Class Trip---Boston
• March 25--EHPS--District Art Show--5:00---6:30
• March 26--Music Department--Cabaret Evening
• March 29--EHHS Early Dismissal--Professional Development

For more than 20 years, EHHS has proudly hosted a holiday gift drive, where each homeroom is assigned the name of a child from the Middlesex area along with their holiday wish list. While each homeroom organizes its donations in unique ways, the collective effort ensures that our school helps bring joy to 50 children during the holiday season. All donations are due by Monday, December 9. Thank you for your support. Message Mrs. Keska with any questions.

Congratulations to our Fall All State and All Conference Athletes.

Cross Country:

All-Conference

Evan LoPresti

Jocelyn Gustavson

Brianna Gustavson

All-State

Evan LoPresti

Joelyn Gustavson

Brianna Gustavson

Volleyball

All-Conference

Olivia DeMartino

Chelsea Ryan

Sophia Long

All-State

Olivia DeMartino

Girls Soccer

All-Conference

Gabbie Wiesner

Rachel Boudreau

Olivia Correia

All-State

Gabbie Wiesner

Boys Soccer

All-Conference

Will Nafis

Parker Gustine

Gavin Ledas

Elliot Galovich

Jackson Rurka

Shane Ruggerio

All-State

Will Nafis

Parker Gustine

We will continue to update this list as more award recipients are revealed.

Winter Sports Registration has closed and practice begins this week. If you have any questions regarding athletics, please contact Mr. Russell at srussell@easthamptonct.org or through ParentSquare.

All athletic schedules, directions and results may be found at ciac.fpsports.org.

On Saturday, November 16th, nineteen members of the Bring Change to Mind Club traveled to NYC with Mrs. Field and Mrs. Smith. They participated in the organization’s BC2M NYC Summit along with other students and advisors from schools from New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. The theme of “Mind in Balance: Prioritizing Brain & Health Connections” was explored through a keynote speaker, an activity/wellness fair, and breakout sessions. EHHS students enjoyed participating in the sessions with students from the other schools. Topics discussed were: Self-care Essentials, Lines of Respect, and Talk it Out. Best of all, our EH Club won a pizza party for having the most participants at the summit!

English teachers Cristin Flannery and Delia Regan and school librarian Katie Tietjen attended the ALAN (Assembly on Literature for Adolescents of NCTE) workshop in Boston. This annual conference offers educators an opportunity to learn about issues and trends affecting young adult literature and ways teachers can continue to promote and encourage reading among their students. The workshop featured speeches and panel discussions from authors, publishers, and educators of many different backgrounds. The three E.H.H.S. teachers also networked with colleagues from around the country and came back to school with two hundred books and invaluable insights to share!

Davyan Burke

Davyan is consistently a positive student in class who demonstrates compassion. He ensures the classroom is clean at the end of each day, even if the mess isn't his own. He has also been helping out at the LMC's writing center where students have been very thankful for his help. Thank you Davyan for being an upstanding member of your school community!

Jack Salafia

Jack was invited to be a speaker at the Connecticut Children's Medical Center Gala to share his experiences as a cancer patient who required a bone marrow transplant. Jack advocated for funding for the construction of an Advanced Cellular and Gene Therapy Unit so lifesaving transplants could take place here in Connecticut. Jack had to travel to Boston for his transplant and much of his follow-up care. Congratulations Jack!

Join the CT State Department of Education on Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2024, as they host a free one-day virtual event! This live webinar series will guide you through submitting the 2025–26 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) form and is tailored for both independent and dependent students.

This event is for students, parents, and college/career professionals, and will feature the following:

• A live demonstration of the 2025-2026 FAFSA form
• An overview of the financial aid process, available federal student aid programs, and funding sources
• Key facts and common myths about finance aid
• A guide on creating and accessing your StudentAid.gov account
• A demonstration on where to find certain information on StudentAid.gov

Register Now

The Early College Advanced Manufacturing Pathway (ECAMP) at Goodwin University is a half-day Magnet School program serving 12th grade students. Students must apply into this program, but those who are accepted will receive free transportation to the Goodwin University Campus, where they engage in a half-day program, taking college-level manufacturing courses and learning from industry partners across the state of Connecticut. ECAMP students can attend either in the morning or afternoon, depending on their schedule at East Hampton High School, where they will complete their core academic courses. Students will earn 3.5 high school credits and 21 college credits from ECAMP.

The application will open on Tuesday, December 3rd. Students wishing to apply should visit www.chooseyourschool.org/ For more information, please contact David Salonia via phone at (860) 966-7737 or via email at Dsalonia@goodwinmagnetsystem.org

Bellringer Sideline Store. The store is available 24/7 and ships directly to you.

Please see the link below to grab your Bellringer gear.

https://sideline.bsnsports.com/schools/connecticut/easthampton/east-hampton-high-school

School Nutrition Announcements:

If you have any questions about meals in our cafeterias or MealMagic, please reach out to Kate at kcaselli@easthamptonct.org.

The Profile of the Graduate Portfolio process has begun for the classes of 2025, 2026, and, 2027. Students are developing a Google Site that they will use over the course of their high school career to provide students an opportunity to demonstrate their growth and development of the five attributes in the East Hampton Public Schools: compassion, innovation, perseverance, collaboration, and active learning. This portfolio will display various achievements, projects, and activities over the course of the high school experience that will show attainment of skills, broadening of horizons, and pursuit of passions. Students will reflect on experiences, strengths, and abilities to confidently approach challenges. During XBlock students used a template developed by the Portfolio Committee, wrote a brief autobiography and are crafting their paragraphs explaining their understanding of the core values. By the end of the school year, students will have written about each of the values and uploaded examples of their work. Ultimately, this work will become part of their Senior Capstone beginning with the Class of 2025.

We are proud to continue to partner with School Based Health in order to provide direct counseling or therapy services within the school. Our School Based Health Center Counselor here at East Hampton High School is:

Barbara L. Liguori, LPC
(Bi-lingual – Brazilian/Portuguese)
Regional Director-Behavioral Health
Phone: 860-365-4030
Zoom # 475-215-0577 text/call
www.chc1.com
www.sbhc1.com

Her hours are Monday through Friday 7:30 am to 2:15 pm. For Scheduling and enrollment please contact SBHC1 Community Health Center, Inc.475-231-6978 and https://www.sbhc1.com/enroll/ or visit the website https://www.sbhc1.com/ for more information.

Increasing and Improving Access to Care for Connecticut’s Kids!

During student drop-off in the moring and pick-up in the afternoon, please refrain from using the Bus Lane. At these times (7:00--7:25 and 2:00--2:25) cars are not allowed in the Bus Lane as vehicles block the busses and present a safety hazard to students. Thank you in advance for your cooperation in keeping our students safe.

Please review the EHHS Attendance Policy and Student Handbook as they contain important information.

Per the East Hampton Board of Education’s Attendance Policy and Connecticut statute, parents and guardians may only approve the first 9 absences of the school year with a parent note. Absences 10 and above can only be excused with further documentation and under specific circumstances.

In addition, if a student has four unexcused absences in one month or 10 unexcused absences in a year they are classified as truant. If a child misses 18 or more days in a school year – excused or unexcused absences – the student is classified as chronically absent.

Access to the East Hampton attendance policy is available HERE

It is also necessary for a student to be present at least half of the school day for the student to be recorded as present. When a student arrives after the mid-day point or leaves before it, the day cannot be counted for that student. Building principals will share the specific times in their communications with families.

A student is considered to be “in attendance” if present at his/her assigned school, or an activity.

sponsored by the school (e.g., field trip), for at least half of the regular school day.

At East Hampton High School, half of the regular school day arrives at 10:55 a.m. This means that if a student arrives after 10:55, even with a note, the student will be marked Tardy Absent. If a student dismisses prior to 10:55 and does not return to school, the student will be marked Early Dismissal Absent. Please contact the school with any questions regarding our attendance policies.

To increase the ease of reporting an absence and documenting parent approval of the absence for a student’s first 9 absences, the East Hampton Public Schools has created email addresses that parents can use to contact their student’s school and report an absence. Effectively immediately, the following email addresses can be used by parents to report and document their approval of an absence:

EHHS_Attendance@easthamptonct.org

If you have successfully emailed the school, you will receive an autoreply that notifies you that the absence communication has been received and recorded. This process is effective for your student’s first 9 absences. After your student has more than 9 absences, additional documentation or communication will be required to excuse the absence. Please use the email to continue to notify the school that your child will not attend. You may call your child’s school at any time to report an absence, as well.

School Meals are a great value to our students! Prepayment is expected for all cafeteria purchases.

Families eligible for free and reduced meals may qualify by completing an application online on Easthampton.familyportal.cloud or by paper application here: Application for Free and Reduced School Meals(also available in the school’s Main Office). Families with children enrolled in HUSKY or Temporary Family Assistance programs will have their status transmitted directly by the State of Connecticut to the District.

To deposit funds on your child’s account, please visit Easthampton.familyportal.cloud . Our Cafeterias also accept checks made payable to “East Hampton Cafeteria Fund”.

If you have questions, please contact Director of Nutrition Services, Kate Caselli at kcaselli@easthamptonct.org or 860.316.7324.

As a reminder to members of our school community, Board Policy #5145.122 allows the schools to work with the East Hampton Police Department to protect the health and safety of students and staff by conducting sweeps of school property by trained sniffing dogs. Please review the policy and procedures below. Our goal is to ensure that the East Hampton Schools are free of illegal substances. Annually, we provide notice of this policy to our school community. Should a sweep be conducted, parents and the Board of Education will be notified upon completion.

Use of Dogs to Sweep School Property

The Board permits the administration to invite law enforcement agencies to sweep school property with dogs trained for the purpose of detecting the presence of illegal substances, when necessary to protect the health and safety of students, employees or property or to detect the presence of illegal substances or contraband, including alcohol and/or drugs. The use of trained canine sniffing dogs and their associated law enforcement personnel is for the purpose of “alerting” on property only, and is subject to the following:

1. Parents and students shall be notified of this policy through its inclusion in the student/ parent handbook and the Superintendent and Principal or their designees, shall explain the policies and procedures followed in sweeps and searches to students and staff on an annual basis. Once notification has been given to parents and students through the handbook and assembly respectively, the school district will have met its obligation to advertise the sweep and search policy and associated procedure. Additional notices need not be given and actual times or dates of planned sweeps need not be released in advance.

2. The Superintendent or designee shall authorize the sweep. Immediately prior to the sweep, an announcement will be made for students and staff to ‘stay put’ in their classrooms while the sweep is taking place. Representatives from school administration shall accompany dogs and handlers while on school premises.

3. The Board shall be informed by the Superintendent of Schools that a sweep has taken place.

4. Parents shall be informed through the school’s mass communication system by the Superintendent of Schools that a sweep has taken place.

5. All school property which students have access to during the day, such as lockers, classrooms, parking areas and storage areas may be swept.

6. Individuals shall not be subjected to a search by dogs.

a. Dogs shall not be used in rooms occupied by persons except for demonstration purposes. The handler and representative from school administration will always be present with the dogs

b. When used for demonstration purposes, the dog may not sniff any student and/or staff.

7. Only the dog’s official handler will determine what constitutes an alert by the dog. If the dog alerts on a particular item or place, that locker or vehicle will be identified for later search. Upon completion of the sweep, the school administration will then search the identified property in the presence of a witness.

8. Searches that disclose evidence of misconduct shall result in disciplinary consequences in accordance with Board policy and may also result in referral to law enforcement agencies.

Legal Reference: Connecticut General Statutes

Policy adopted: March 15, 2016

10-221 Boards of education to prescribe rules.

New Jersey v T.L.O., 53 U.S.L.W. 4083 (1985)

54-33n Search of school lockers and property

Students who are being dismissed due to illness, MUST FIRST see the School Nurse. Additionally, we ask that parents familiarize themselves with our attendance policy which is in the EHHS Student Handbook. Some of the main policies/procedures that we are mut be followed are listed below:

• EARLY DISMISSALS: A written request (no phone calls) from a parent or guardian must be presented to the main office before school begins so student may obtain an early dismissal slip. Students will wait in the main office for their parent/guardian to call the office and we will send your child out to meet you after they sign-out.
• NURSE DISMISSALS: In case of illness during school, dismissal will be arranged through the school nurse, or in her absence, through the office. Students feeling ill should report directly to the nurse's office. Students should not be texting or calling home when not feeling well.

Please note that having a parent’s written request before the start of the day allows the students name to appear on the Daily Attendance sheet so their teachers will be aware that they may not be in class on that day. This also eliminates the office staff from calling in and disrupting a classroom to dismiss the student. We do realize that there may be occasions when you may need to unexpectedly pick your child up early. In those cases we will call the student down when the parent/guardian arrives to the school.

Students that are dismissed from school will not be allowed to return without appropriate documentation from their visit/provider. In the event that doucmentation is not available, a parent will be required to sign their student into the main office upon return.

1. Dropping off on items--the table to drop off items for students has been moved inside the first set of doors. Parents will be able to drop items of for students, but will no longer be admitted to the main lobby.
2. Appointments--for security reasons, parents and visitors who are requesting to meet with a teacher or administration should call in advance to ensure that the requested party is available to meet rather than show up unannounced.
3. Effective immediately, there is an anonymous tip line to enhance a safe environment in our schools. Students, parents, and community members have access to the front page of the website to report self-concerns, mental health concerns of a friend, or concerns of violence. https://www.easthamptonps.org/

The East Hampton Board of Education is committed to a safe and secure learning environment that honors and celebrates the diversity of our students, our community, and our nation. The Board of Education in partnership with the school community will not tolerate any threat of violence in the schools or any hate speech that targets any race, religion, sexual orientation, or disability. Each student is held to the highest standards of responsible decision making within a culture that is expected to foster compassion, caring, and empathy.

Parents are asked to join our schools and speak to children about marijuana edibles. While legal for purchase by adults in CT, please note that the psychoactive ingredient, THC, is still considered a controlled substance in school.

We have had recent incidents at the High School of students consuming THC gummy candies - with and without knowing what they contain.

The school district treats consumption and distribution of a controlled substance very seriously. Students who ingest or bring gummies to school will face consequences up to and including 10-days of suspension. Those who distribute gummies on school grounds will face consequences up to and including expulsion from school.

https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/teen/substance-abuse/Pages/Edible-Marijuana-Dangers.aspx

The school community of East Hampton is committed to the mission of honoring and celebrating the diversity of our students, our community, and our nation. We strive to guide our students to conscious, deliberate, individual and collective actions that cultivate the respect of all races, religions, and social backgrounds. Our school community endeavors to produce graduates who are equipped with a greater understanding of the concepts of diversity, equity, and inclusion.

The East Hampton Board of Education, in compliance with federal and state law, affirms its policy of equal educational opportunity for all students and equal employment opportunity for all persons. It is the policy of the District to promote nondiscrimination and an environment free of harassment regardless of an individual’s race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, national origin, ancestry, disability (including but not limited to, intellectual disability, past or present history of mental disorder, physical disability, or learning disability), genetic information, marital status, or age or because of the race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, national origin, ancestry, disability, genetic information, marital status, or age of any persons with whom the individual associates. The District shall provide to all students without discrimination, course offerings, counseling, assistance, employment, athletics, and extracurricular activities. The District shall provide equal access to the Boy Scouts and other designated youth groups. The District shall make reasonable accommodations for identified physical and mental impairments that constitute disabilities, consistent with federal and state statutes and regulations.

Email: everner@easthamptonct.org
Website: www.easthamptonps.org
Location: 15 North Maple Street, East Hampton, CT, USA
Phone: 860-365-4030
Twitter: @EH_CTPrincipal