SUPERINTENDENT

March 1, 2023

From the Desk of the Superintendent

NCSD Families,

I cannot believe that we are already in the first week of April! Where has the time gone!? I hope you all had an enjoyable Spring Break and are ready for the crazy sprint to the end of the year! There are so many upcoming events of significance for our students over the next couple of months. I have a few items to highlight for you here, but please take the time to check out some of the other articles referenced in this edition of Wildcat Happenings!

Kindergarten Enrollment - It is that time of year when we are planning for our incoming kindergarten students! If you will have a kindergarten student next year or if you know someone in Novi who will have a student starting next year, please see the information in the article below to get started. We need to plan for staffing purposes, and knowing the students who will be joining our family next year is a critical part to that effort!
State of the District Address - If you have not yet replied, please RSVP to our State of the District Address using our Google Form, no later than April 15, 2023. That will be our cutoff date for our food and childcare planning purposes. If you need childcare, please indicate it on the form as well. We really hope you will consider spending an evening with us and celebrating our district!
Artificial Intelligence in Schools - In case you are not aware, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is something that schools will need to be grappling with very soon. I recently held a Courageous Curiosity Podcast episode on this topic (view here), and what we know is that AI skills and competency will be a required skill for employees over the next decade and into the future. This creates a very unique position for schools and how we proactively and appropriately introduce these types of tools in a school setting to ensure students are prepared. This is something the district is going to be studying and exploring as we move forward.
Board Roundtables - On Thursday, April 6 at 4:30 at the Educational Services Building, we will be hosting our first Board Roundtable with Trustees Cook, Roney, and Beaudoin. This experience is an open-ended opportunity to have 2-way communication with board members about topics that you may want to discuss with them. We will have two other opportunities with other board members on May 9, at 6:30 p.m., and June 1, at 8:30 a.m.
Summer Programming - Our team in the Department of Teaching and Learning, led by Assistant Superintendent Mike Giromini, is preparing a wonderful slate of summer programming for students. Offerings will include advancement options, support offerings, and enrichment experiences. Stay tuned over the next few weeks as they start to roll out and communicate our various summer programming choices for students!
Class of 2023 Graduation - Just a reminder that the Class of 2023 graduation ceremony will be held at Eastern Michigan University Convocation Center (AKA George Gervin GameAbove Center) on the evening of Thursday, June 1. We are excited to celebrate our seniors!

Go Wildcats!

Ben Mainka, Superintendent
Novi Community School District

Stemi - Mobile Technology Comes to 5th Grade

The STEMi traveling mobile lab will return to Novi Meadows from April 3-7. The STEMI is a way to excite fifth grade students about STEM learning to get them ready for the Robotics class that is only offered to 6th graders.

"It is an opportunity for all of our 5th graders to have some hands-on experience with autonomous vehicles, collaborative robots, extended reality, and smart manufacturing,” said Novi Meadows Principal Lisa Fenchel.

This is the second of a five-year program with Oakland Schools to bring STEMi to the district. The STEMi experience cultivates discussions around career readiness and awareness in our school district. Each fifth grade class will visit the STEMi for a 45-minute session during the week.

This event is only for our 5th grade students and is not open to the public.

Autism Acceptance Spirit Week

We encourage all students to participate in a district-wide spirit week from April 10-14, 2023 for Autism Acceptance Month.

Magnificent Minds Monday (April 10): Wear a hat to celebrate how amazing it is that our minds all work differently, not one is the same!

Autism is a neurological variation, which means the brain of a person with autism works differently than the brain of a neurotypical person-- and that’s magnificent!

Neurodiversity Tuesday (April 11): Wear tie-dye or rainbow to celebrate the beauty of the diverse spectrum of the human mind.

Neurodivergent describes people whose brain differences affect how their brain works. That means they have different strengths and challenges from people whose brains don’t have those differences

Autism Acceptance Wednesday (April 12): Wear Blue to show support for Autism Acceptance

According to the World Health Organization, approximately 1 out of every 100 children, worldwide, has a diagnosis of Autism.

Sensory Friendly Thursday (April 13): Dress in your most comfy clothes. Try using natural lights or wearing sunglasses.

Some people who have Autism have a variety of sensory sensitivities and preferences.

What’s Our Passion Friday (April 14): Wear your green and white to represent our passion and pride for our NOVI4ALL Wildcats.

A characteristic of Autism is sometimes an incredibly focused passion for a topic of interest.

UMATTER Week (April 17-21)

Sisters Lina and Priya Iyer and other members of the Student Mental Health Committee are busy helping to plan for the annual UMatter Week at Novi High.

“We want students to feel like they have a voice in bettering the mental wellness of our community,” said Priya Iyer. “We want them to feel heard and seen by their community, understanding that we, as the SMHC, are working towards bettering their mental health. Additionally, we want them to take away new ways to care for their mental wellness.”

SMHC members will decorate the high school with posters displaying positive messages.

“Every year, we try to make UMatter week better than the year before by using student feedback,” said Lina Iyer. “This year we want to incorporate a Speak Out in the Auditorium during advisory, where students can share their own mental health journey and connect with each other in a collaborative setting. We also hope to bring more attention to the mental health support already offered by Novi High School, so that students can have somewhere to go when they are struggling with their mental health throughout the school year.”

Priya Iyer said has “felt surrounded by positivity” during UMatter Week in the past.

“UMatter Week helped me feel more open and optimistic about my mental health.” she said. “During the week, staff at the High School made it clear that they care about our mental wellness and want to work towards breaking the stigma around mental health.

“Moreover, many staff members at Novi have always been open to having conversations about mental health. My teachers have made it known that they care about how I am doing personally by asking how I am daily, prompting questions curious about my life, and creating activities to make me feel heard.”

The SMHC has also associated a mental health theme with a spirit day throughout UMatter Week.

“On Monday we are doing Pajama Day and Stuffed Animals for Relaxation,” said Lina Iyer. “Tuesday is Tie Dye Day for Friendship. On Wednesday we are doing Yellow Day for Positivity. Thursday is going to be Wacky Hair Day for De-Stressing. On Friday we are doing Novi Day for School Pride.”

The Little Mermaid Performed at Novi High School

A little scheduling change will hopefully result in more elementary students attending this year’s high school musical, “The Little Mermaid.”

Instead of three evening shows over three days, the musical will have three shows over two days, including a Saturday matinee that should make it easier for families with younger children.

“Everyone is totally welcome to come,” said Milan Thurman, who plays Eric in the musical, and also serves as co-publicity head, programs head and student vocal director. “We want as many people in the community to see it because – biased opinion – it’s an awesome show. It’s just a really nice experience that lets you stay connected to the high school and local theatre.”

Tickets are available at https://search.seatyourself.biz/webstore/accounts/novihs/buy-tix.

The first show will be Friday, April 21, from 7-9 p.m. at Fuerst Auditorium. The second show will be from 1-3 p.m. on Saturday, April 22, followed by the final show the same day from 7-9 p.m.

“I think it is just a fun, relaxing story,” Thurman said of why Little Mermaid was chosen for this year’s musical. “We did Cinderella last year and we really loved it, so we wanted to keep it going with that kid-friendly, storybook musical. That’s what it’s really all about.”

Thurman said he’s excited to be student vocal director for the first time because “the music for this show is iconic. You have all these uplifting harmonies going around. It’s a lot of fun working with that. And then, obviously, musicals are our biggest show publicity-wise. It’s super fun.”

The students recently began building the set for the musical and will continue that work throughout spring break.

“I’m excited about building the set,” said senior Jessi Harrison. “I think it’s going to be a really cool set.

“We’re going to have this really big ship that splits open to show King Triton’s throne… it’s one of the most complex sets I’ve ever seen us do. There’s more people involved. There’s more leadership involved. There’s just more of everything.”

Set designer Purani Murukachas said she is excited to “go big” with the musical and “show the full extent and potential that Novi Theatre has” to offer.

Murukachas said she plans to study architecture and is excited to expand on her past theatre experience and “doing what I’ve done on a bigger scale.”

Green Gala - Back In-Person

The Novi Educational Foundation’s signature fundraiser, the Green Gala, will be held on April 15 from 6:30 p.m. to midnight at the Suburban Collection Showplace. Tickets ($135) are available at novieducationalfoundation.org/2023-green-gala

“I am so excited for this year's Green Gala!” said Novi Educational Foundation President Alison Dolin. “I have missed dancing to the Killer Flamingos these past three years!

“The silent auction is always a highlight for me – over $15,000 in prizes – and I am really hoping to win the Diamond Earring Draw. That the evening's proceeds benefit the NCSD students, staff and teachers makes the evening very impactful – some of the funds will be used for NCSD Therapy Dogs.”

A ticket includes dinner, one drink ticket, Casino (for fun) and live entertainment by The Killer Flamingos. Proceeds from the Green Gala support students and teachers in the Novi Community School District through grants, scholarships and district programs.

2023-2024 Kindergarten Enrollment Started March 1st

NCSD Families please visit our website for detailed information on how to enroll your student(s). After completing the required online pre-enrollment and uploading all the required documentation, the Central Enrollment Team will contact you once the enrollment process into the Novi Community School District is complete.

Please register early to help NCSD prepare for the incoming Kindergarten class!