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🗓️TAKE NOTE! Important Dates 🗓️

2/15-2/23: NO SCHOOL
2/27: 100th Day of School! Spirit Day: Dress to look like you're 100 years old!
2/26: Parent Engagement Night at Pine Brook, 6-7
2/27: PTSA Panera Fundraiser Info Linked Here!

February 14, 2025

A Message from the Principals

Happy Friday, Pine Brook Community!

Welcome to the start of Winter Break! We are excited to share a new mindfulness program and app that your Panther (and your family) have access to, called Inner Explorer. All of our students have access to it in Classlink and you can gain access too, by following the link here. Mindfulness (or mindful awareness) is the practice of paying attention to the present moment. Mindful awareness - when practiced regularly - helps children avoid distraction and unhealthy mental habits, while allowing them to improve their focus, regulate their emotions, and engage more effectively with classmates and teachers.

By practicing mindful awareness your entire family will benefit by:

Reducing Stress - Audio-guided exercises are easy to do and promote relaxation for children and adults.
Foster Connections - Practicing mindfulness together provides the chance to have conversations about the experience and how to use it at home.
Cultivates Social Emotional Skills - Mindfulness teaches lifelong skills such as empathy, compassion and resilience, that are important at home, in the classroom and beyond.

If you would like to read more about the research around mindfulness, you can check-out the studies. We also included some mindful activities to do with your student over the break below in the Pine Brook Press!

Happy break!

Andrea and Allie

Panther Pride Ticket Winners

Congratulations to our Panther Pride Ticket winners: Jackson, Briar, Everella, King, Vlad, Martin, Kayden, Gemma, Jayden R., Mrs' Day's Class, Ms, Weise, Ms. Binn, Ms. Callon, Miss Regelsberger, and Mr. Pollock!

Our attendance winner for most improved attendance is Izzy!

Celebrating Black History Month

Click the video below to see how our students made the mural!

BHM mural

drive.google.com

🏆 Golden Tray Award 🏆

🎉 Congratulations to Mrs. LaBue's Class 🎉

Family Engagement Night

February 26th

PTSA Fundraiser

Community Schools News

March Madness 3v3 Basketball Tournament: The Community Schools team invites all GCSD students in grades 3-9 to participate in this fun tournament. See the flier for more information, and register here.

📣 Volunteers Needed 📣

We Want to Hear from You!

Greece Central School District Superintendent Jeremy Smalline invites you to take this brief ThoughtExchange Survey and share your thoughts on what the district is doing well and where we can improve. Your feedback will help us identify key priorities and set goals for the 2025-26 school year. Once finalized, these goals will be shared with the entire school community as part of his commitment to transparency and collaboration.

For those who may not know, Mr. Smalline began his role as superintendent on January 2 and is currently implementing a six-month entry plan focused on listening, learning, and leading Greece Central forward. You can learn more about him, his leadership team, and their plans in the district’s winter newsletter, which is on its way to your mailbox. If you prefer, here is a link to the electronic version.

Please take a few moments to share your honest feedback. The survey is open now through Feb. 28. Together, we can help shape the future of the Greece Central School District. Thank you for your input and support.

Your support is critical in making this effort a success. Together, we can use this feedback to inform our work and continue striving to meet the needs of our school community.

🔆 Have a Mindful Break 🔆

Here are some other mindful activities to try over the break:

Attune Your Tunes - Put on your favorite music and notice the words and sounds. How does it make you feel? Do you want to move or quiet down? Does it make you feel happy or sad? As you listen, become aware of the way the music changes. Does it pick up speed or slow down? By noticing all the qualities you will become fully present!
Create a Mindful Calendar - Mark on your calendar one mindful activity per day or use the example here.
Shark Fin Breathing - Watch the video to learn how to Shark Fin!
Other Mindful Activities - Check out the slideshow to learn about some other mindful activities.

⛄ Ideas for Winter Fun ⛄

🐸 Early Childhood Information 🐸

Registration Now Open for Free Playschool at Arcadia High School

Greece Arcadia High School is beginning open enrollment for its annual Playschool Program. This program is part of the Early Childhood Education curriculum and provides high school students with an opportunity to work with young children in a mock preschool setting. All activities are planned and implemented by our high school students and focus on early childhood development.

The 5-week program is set to begin on April 21 at Arcadia High School and is open to all children ages 3-4. This year the playschool will run every Monday from 8:30-10:30 a.m. For additional information, or to register your child, contact Patricia Taylor at 966-3143

Universal Prekindergarten

Children who will be four years old on or before December 1, 2025 are eligible for our free Universal Prekindergarten (UPK) programming during the 2025-2026 school year.

The UPK application opened on January 13, 2025 and applications are due March 1, 2025. Click here to complete the application or call 966-2472 to have a printed application mailed to you. To learn more about our GCSD UPK program and lottery system, please see our website.

Follow the link below if your family is in need of assistance:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfVnPlzusVqrcWClPJoM0ndWbXkryEwjikevYKQIIZ2TTQD5g/viewform

💙🖤 Pine Brook Apparel Store is Still Open 💙🖤

Big News, Panthers! Our apparel store is open for business! Orders can be placed now! A portion of each sale goes toward helping the PTSA provide Field Trips, Grow Your Genius Club support, School-wide celebrations and more! Wear your gear AND help the school at once!

Click the link for Pine Brook apparel: https://www.bonfire.com/pine-brook-ptsa-2024

Click the link for Pine Brook hats: https://www.bonfire.com/pine-brook-hats/

Donations Needed

🏫 Pine Brook PTSA 🏫

Please follow this link to sign up to volunteer! We need a few parents to help with future events.

Upcoming Meetings

We will meet on the following dates at 7:00 pm for the remainder of the 2024-2025 school year:

March 10th - Form an Election Committee
May 12th
June 9th - Elections

Upcoming PTSA Fundraisers

Please support Pine Brook through the following restaurant fundraisers:

2/27 - Panera Bread Company at 800 Greece Ridge Center Drive from 4:00pm-8:00pm
3/13 - Red Robin at 104 Greece Ridge Center Drive ALL DAY

Link for PTSA Membership!!!

Click the button to join!

Follow us on the App formerly known as Twitter!

Click on the Photo to Give a Panther Pride Shout-out!

From Previous Editions of the Pine Brook Press

📱 Who to Call 📱

Who to Call With Questions is a Resource for Families

Building trust and ensuring that there are open lines of communication between home and school are essential for student success. We want to be sure you know who to contact with questions or concerns. In December, the district shared a new resource for families. In case you missed it, this linked Who to Call with Questions, Concerns and Compliments reference guide is a step-by-step guide families can use to ensure questions are answered quickly and effectively. Please refer to it whenever you need to speak to someone about your child’s progress. Whether your inquiry is about academics, safety, or services and supports, there are people at the school and district level who are ready to help whenever a question or concern arises.

For Step 1 concerns at Pine Brook, please start with the person closest to the situation. They should be able to help you navigate the situation. If the concern rises to a Step 2, please contact the Assistant Principal. For your convenience there is a list below of contacts at Pine Brook:

Step 1:

Safety, Health and Wellness:

Nurse: Jen Curatalo jennifer.curatalo@greececsd.org

Registration, Daily Schedules, and Other Questions:

Main Office Secretary: Janine Layne janine.layne@greececsd.org

Mental Health, Counseling and Social Work Questions:

Counselors: Anne McAdam anne.mcadam@creececsd.org

Counselor: Debbie Schneider deborah.schneider@greececsd.org

Social Worker: Danielle Binn danielle.binn@greececsd.org

Academics and Instructional Questions:

Please contact your student’s teacher

Step 2:

Principal: Andrea Geglia andrea.geglia@greececsd

Assistant Principal: Allie Weise allison.weise@greececsd.org

🧃 Help Pine Brook Collect Box Tops 🧃

Authors: Andrea Geglia, Pine Brook Principal

Allison Weise, Pine Brook Assistant Principal

The Greece Central School District does not discriminate in employment or in its educational programs and activities against qualified individuals on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, pregnancy, disability, veteran status or age and provides equal access to the Boy Scouts and other designated youth groups.

The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding the non-discrimination policies:

Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources

Compliance Officer

P.O. Box 300 (585) 966-2300

North Greece, New York 14515 gina.larsen@greececsd.org