GPS District Digest (v6, i19)
Stories, news, and updates from Greenwich Public Schools
Thank you for reading the GPS District Digest.
Wait a second. We are going to try this again.
Thank you for reading the award-winning GPS District Digest.
That is right! Greenwich's favorite newsletter is now Connecticut's favorite newsletter, walking away with the 2024 Bonnie B. Carney Award of Excellence for Educational Communications from the Connecticut Association of Boards of Education for the second time in three years. We feel a dynasty coming on, don't you?
It could take us a full day to thank all of the great people that made this happen, including you, our loyal readers, but who has time for that? There are all good things GPS to share, including more about this amazing honor.
Enjoy Issue No. 19 and thank you for your support.
GPS District Digest
Superintendent Dr. Toni Jones announced recently that 64 GPS employees have been named GPS’s “Difference Maker” award recipients for the month of May as staff members who have made an overwhelming impact on the lives of others inside and outside of our schools.
“I truly believe that our staff is the foundation of what makes Greenwich Public Schools such a special place for the children in our community,” Dr. Jones said. “The outpouring of support for these ‘Difference Makers’ shows that we are all making a positive impact every day.”
The Greenwich Public Schools “Difference Maker” award is presented monthly to full or part-time employees who, through their unique commitment and humanitarian spirit, have made exceptional and lasting contributions to the GPS community through one life-changing event, extraordinary long-lasting efforts, or making a difference in the lives of others every single day. Each building holds its individual celebrations to honor winners with certificate presentations and other recognitions.
What's more fun than a barrel of monkeys? How about a fifth grader and a handful of kittens trying to pose for a photo?
With the support, encouragement, and help from Cos Cob principal, Mr. Kerry Gavin, fifth grader and Cos Cob representative for the 2025 Community Service Awards, Ms. Arabella McKersie recently collected food, supplies, scratching posts, toys, and much more for the Connecticut Humane Society. All supplies and donations were delivered to the Westport location and the recipients were so excited to see Arabella, they could not sit still.
Students in grades K-5 participated, and the class with the greatest number of items donated won a pizza party.
Seven Greenwich High School students have been selected for a 2025 Achievement Award in Writing, given by the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE).
The NCTE Achievement Awards in Writing is a school-based writing program established in 1957 to encourage high school students to write and to recognize some of the best student writers in the nation. Only students who are juniors may participate. Schools in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, US territories, Canada, and American schools abroad are eligible to nominate students for the writing program.
Congratulations to Miller Fishback, Lila Mootabar, Abigail Otterstedt, Claire Sario, Lilia Vine, Hannah Weaver, and Ella Whitridge on this amazing honor.
This year, schools nominated 680 students. From the United States, students were nominated from 41 states and Washington, D.C. Internationally, teachers nominated students from China, Guatemala, Jordan, South Africa, South Korea, Switzerland, Taiwan, and Thailand. Two to three independent judges evaluated each submission holistically on content, purpose, audience, tone, word choice, organization, development, and style.
Old Greenwich School recently upheld their beloved Dolphin Day tradition by getting out of the classroom and playing for mental health and wellness. The surprise theme this year was “country western.”
As a result of the unexpected Nor’easter that hit the area, events of the day were moved inside.
Professional cowboy, Ernie Sites, dazzled the students and staff with his yodeling, singing, and impressive rope work. Raised on a family ranch in southern Idaho, Mr. Sites, a former bull-rider, bronc-rider and rodeo clown, has been inducted into the Idaho Cowboy Hall of Fame, and was a recipient of the 2015 National Day of the Cowboy "Cowboy Keeper" award for his work in educating students of all ages about cowboys.
All of the students learned the cowboy code of honor with a focus on social emotional learning and caring for others. Students also learned line dances, created cactus paintings, and played games in PE about the four corners of the west.
We were told it was a "dolphintastic" day.
Loyal Digest readers know how much we love essay contests.
That is why everyone in the newsroom was so excited to hear the amazing news about Greenwich HS junior, Abigail Meyers. Her work was a runner-up essay in the 25th Annual James W. Cooper Fellows Quintin Johnstone Statewide High School Essay Contest. Her entry on the topic, “From Flags to Factions: Examining Student Expression and School Policy,” was evaluated by a panel that included Connecticut Supreme Court justices, other esteemed judges, law school professors, and practicing attorneys from across the state.
We hear she attended the Essay Contest Awards Ceremony at the Connecticut Supreme Court in Hartford earlier this month.
You are encouraged to read her amazing work on the subject "Political Expression Versus Maintaining Order," online.
The PTAC Essence Awards were recently held at Town Hall to honor six nominees: Tom Casazzone, John Fisher, Elizabeth Rutledge, Katrina Sabeti, Lisa Sylvester, and Heather Woodworth.
Tom Casazzone was awarded the 2025 PTA Council Award for Excellence in Voluntarism, and Lisa Sylvester was awarded the 2025 PTA Lifetime Award for Excellence in Voluntarism.
Congratulations!
Greenwich HS’ head girls' track and field coach, Mr. Peter Watson, recently checked in with the GPS District Digest to share the great news that the boys' and girls' outdoor track and field teams both won their respective FCIAC Championships.
This is the first time the girls' team has won the FCIAC since 1984, and for the boys', this marks their third title in four years. This is the first time in school history that both the boys' and girls' have won in the same year.
For the full results of the meet, head to the meet dashboard online.
Remember that time when we told you the GPS District Digest won a Bonnie B. Carney Award of Excellence for Educational Communications? That plaque will not be alone in the trophy case.
Greenwich Public Schools also came away with a recognition for the 2024 Community Service Awards ceremony. Since 1986, students are annually selected from each elementary school to accept the Community Service award on behalf of the entire school for service activities and projects that they have participated in throughout the year. Community Service Awards are presented to middle school students, representing each of GPS’ three middle schools and five high school students, representing each GHS house. An additional high school student is also selected to receive the Fleishman Service Award. Dr. Ernest Fleishman, a former Greenwich Superintendent of Schools and the Community Service Awards founder, presents this award to a GHS student who has made significant contributions to their school and community. Last year's ceremony impressed!
In recognition of the good work that is being done on a daily basis, the Connecticut Association of Boards of Education established the Awards of Excellence for Educational Communications in 1975. They say that effective communications with parents and taxpayers in a school district is a very significant part of the district's operation. They add that it is important for the community to be aware of the exciting activities and events taking place in our schools each day.
In 2016, the award was renamed in honor of longtime CABE staff member Bonnie B. Carney, who spent much of her 47 years at CABE focused on communications.
For a full list of awardees, head to CABE's website dedicated to the awards.
Q&A time!
- Are you turning back the clock with another Havemeyer Building postcard? Yes.
- How many postcards of this building do you have in your collection? This is number 14.
- Haven't we seen this one before? Yes! You have a great eye. We featured a similar postcard on November 18, 2021. In the Digest newsroom, we call that volume 3, issue 6.
- That is not like you. Why show us the same "New High School" postcard? That is a great question! Quite honestly, we were disappointed with the first showing because it was unused. In our little Digestverse, nothing is sadder than a postcard that was unable to fulfill its destiny. This card traveled from Greenwich 92 miles away to the Jersey Shore in Belmar, NJ in 1906. Now it is back home.
- Who received this postcard? Miss Ethel Camp, a resident of Wall Township, NJ for most of her life, went to the post office in neighboring Belmar to pick up this awesome postcard when she was 24 years old from someone in Greenwich.
- Who sent this postcard? We have no idea. Do you know?
- I do not know how you figure all of this stuff out, but can you tell us anything interesting about Ethel? We wish we knew more. We do know that Ethel was the youngest of four children to Charles and Margarette Camp. Charles' occupation was a carpenter. We do not believe Ethel had any children. She died at age 74 in 1956 and was buried on Glendola Cemetery in her hometown. That is all we know.
- What kind of tree is blocking the view of the Havemeyer Building in the current image from June 2025? The Greenwich Tree Conservancy placed a small plaque on this massive tree that says it is a pin oak.
Brigid B. was the first to spot the typo on the postcard featured in the last issue of the Digest. Your eagle eye is admired by all of us here in the newsroom.
Do you have any cool postcards in your collection? Share it with us!
Nobody, and we mean nobody, loves the music of Bruce Springsteen more than the folks in the GPS District Digest newsroom, but we need to admit, our friends over at the Bruce Museum have more programs for your entire family than the Boss has hit songs.
- Bruce Experiences: Indigenize the Plate (June 7)
- Bruce Museum Lunch and Learn (June 7)
- Museum Movers: Yoga for Kids (June 7)
- Science Solvers: Imagination Playground Sculptures (June 7-8)
- iCreate 2025: Opening Reception (June 8)
- ASL Tour Jeremy Frey: Woven (June 10)
- Bruce Beginnings: Woven Paper Baskets (June 10-11)
- Bruce Beginnings, Junior: Woven Paper Baskets (June 11)
- Bruce Experiences: Japanese Folk Dance Performance (June 14)
- Bruce Experiences: Japanese Folk Dance Workshops (June 14)
- Birding at the Bruce Museum with Greenwich Audubon (June 14)
- Art Adventures: Paper Weaving (June 14-15)
- Bruce Beginnings: Backyard Bugs (June 17-18)
- Bruce Beginnings, Junior: Backyard Bugs (June 18)
- Bruce After Hours: Solstice Celebration (June 21)
Social media, when done responsibly, can be a great tool to share information. Here at GPS, we use social media to give you a behind the scenes look at what is happening in our buildings, celebrate staff and student achievement, and to break news.
Are you one of our 2,176 followers on X (formerly known as Twitter)? If not, why aren't you? We know the world can be a very mean and nasty place and it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. But here, it's all sunshine and rainbows.
Are you active on other social media platforms? Should the district join you? Let us know!
