Newtown Public Schools

Last week, I had the opportunity to address the Legislative Council (LC) regarding the 25-26 school budget. At their meeting tonight, the LC will continue deliberating on the number for our budget. They have three options, accept the $900,000 reduction proposed by the Board of Finance, increase that reduction or decrease it. All three possibilities were discussed at last Wednesday’s meeting. Some members expressed wanting to reinstate funds, some seemed comfortable with taking the $900K and putting it out to the voters. And there was also a somewhat surprising motion to reduce the budget by an ADDITIONAL $900,000. Although that motion was eventually tabled, I expect that it will be discussed further this evening. I believe that a total reduction of $1.8 million dollars, on top of the 28 positions eliminated in the original budget proposal, would be devastating for our schools.

To make it more tangible, if the $900K reduction holds, I plan to make the following recommendations the Board of Education: the elimination of K-6 Spanish, decreasing the number of electives offered at the high school, reduction of freshman sports, increased pay-to-play fees for high school athletics, cuts to security, maintenance, and other support roles and the absorption of the Director of Fine Arts position. These are very difficult decisions to make and certainly represent an impact on our students’ experience in our schools. As I shared with the LC, these reductions would shield class sizes and protect core instruction. But any additional cuts beyond the $900K will be felt — very directly — by students and staff through larger class sizes, fewer academic interventions, larger special ed caseloads and reduced mental health support across all grade levels

I urge all parents, grandparents, and staff to attend tonight’s LC meeting at 7:30 pm to speak your opinion on the budget as this will likely be one of the last opportunities to do so. (According to the posted agendas, the LC plans to approve the budget during the meeting on April 2nd.) If you cannot attend, please consider emailing the LC directly. Your support is both needed and appreciated.

In other news, both the Newtown Middle and High School graduation dates have been set:

Newtown Middle School - June 11

Newtown High School - June 12 (rain date, June 13)

Our anticipated last day of school is June 16th and the last three days of the school year will be 2-hour early dismissals.

Time is flying by!

I look forward to seeing many of you at tonight’s meeting.

Warm regards,

Anne

The full district calendar can be found here.

Last Wednesday, the Legislative Council held its Public Hearing on the town and school budget. There were many people in attendance and the majority of public comment was in support of the school budget with some urging the Council reinstate funds to the original proposed amount. You can view or listen to last week’s LC presentation by clicking on this link. A motion was made during that meeting to reduce the Board of Education budget by an additional $900,000 for a total of $1.8 million. The motion was eventually tabled.

The Legislative Council will meet again tonight at 7:30 pm in Council Chambers and it is anticipated that there will be further discussion on the additional proposed reduction. This will be one of the last opportunities to make your views known to your elected officials as they are expected to approve the final budget at their meeting on Wednesday, April 2nd.

Members of the school community are urged to attend this important meeting tonight and provide voter comment on the budget.

If you are unable to attend, please email the Legislative Council as soon as possible.

All meetings can be viewed via livestream at https://vimeo.com/event/729428.

Today, we want to take a moment to recognize and celebrate the amazing paraprofessionals in Newtown Public Schools. Whether they're working one-on-one with students, supporting classroom instruction, or helping things run smoothly behind the scenes, their impact is felt every single day. Our schools are stronger, more inclusive, and more connected because of their dedication and care. To each of our educators—thank you for all that you do. We see you, we appreciate you, and we’re so grateful to have you as part of our school community.

The application portal for tuition assistance awarded by the Newtown Scholarship Association is LIVE! The deadline to apply for our flagship award, the Hertberg Family Scholarship ($10,000/year) is Friday, March 28th. The deadline for the general pool (awards from $500 to $7,500 traditionally) is Friday, April 11th. Students who graduate from NHS (or live in Newtown but attend school elsewhere, ie. Immaculate) are eligible.

Link to the homepage: newtownscholarship.org

Link to the application form: newtownscholarship.smapply.io/

The K-12 art teachers are busy preparing the work of our talented artists for the upcoming district show. Our National Art Honor Society students will be assisting the art teachers in those preparations as they learn the ins and outs of running an art exhibition. The show runs March 31-April 10 at the Newtown Municipal Center and features work from every school. Music will be provided by Newtown High School students and the NHS Culinary Program will provide delicious treats. Thank you to the Newtown Cultural Arts Commission for their help and support of using the Municipal Center Gallery.

This show is a precursor to each of our building art shows in May. You can find all of those dates on the district calendar.

Thank you for your interest in the Newtown Public Schools Preschool Program. The program offers quality educational services to children who have disabilities and to typically developing peers, referred to as Play Partners. Play Partners are role models to their disabled peers and benefit from instruction aligned to Connecticut Early Learning Development Standards.

If you are interested in having your child participate as a Play Partner, please complete the Play Partner Questionnaire 2025 - 2026 (LINK) by February 15, 2025. Play Partners are required to be three years of age on or by September 1, 2025 and be toilet trained before they are admitted to the program. You are still encouraged to complete the questionnaire if your child turns three shortly thereafter. We accept play partners throughout the year, accordingly. Children five years of age by September 1, 2025 are kindergarten eligible and will not be considered for participation as Play Partners. Kindergarten eligible children may not remain enrolled as a student in the Newtown Preschool Program.

Following submission of your questionnaire, the preschool team will contact you to invite your child to participate in a Play and Meet the Teacher activity scheduled for the afternoon of Friday, March 14, 2025 at Newtown Preschool Program located at Sandy Hook School. A preschool staff member will email you prior to the play session to confirm the details of the activity. Only one adult may accompany the child for the play activity.

You will receive notification through email by April 4, 2025 regarding your child’s Play Partner status. Parent confirmation of Play Partner participation will be due on April 25, 2025.

Newtown Public Schools Preschool Program Details are as follows:

Program Days: Mondays through Thursdays

Program Hours: Morning sessions run from 9:00 to 11:45

Afternoon sessions run from 12:45 to 3:30

Location: Newtown Preschool located at Reed Intermediate School

Rate: $2,400.00 for a full year four half day program

If you, a caregiver or an educator have any questions or concerns about your child’s development in any of the aforementioned developmental domains, rather than moving your child’s application forward as a Play Partner, it may be more appropriate to discuss your concerns and provide you with specific information regarding early childhood development or consider an evaluation. Please feel free to call Ms. Laura Pellerito, School Psychologist, at (203) 426-7683, if you have any questions about your child’s development.

Sincerely,

Laura Esposito

Supervisor of Special Education

Tel (203) 426-7626 • Fax: (203) 270-6185

Please ensure your child's lunch account is up to date so they can enjoy nutritious meals at school. If your family is facing financial challenges, we’re here to help! Reach out to your child's counselor or principal for assistance and resources. Every student deserves a healthy meal!

Please take a few minutes to complete the survey on school meals from Chartwells.

Beetlejuice Jr.

Newtown Middle School Drama Club

April 4 - 6

The next musical will feature Newtown Middle School students in their production of Beetlejuice, Jr. “With music and lyrics by Tony Award-nominee Eddie Perfect and a book by Tony Award-nominated pair Anthony King and Scott Brown, Beetlejuice was nominated for eight 2019 Tony Awards including Best New Musical.” (Music Theater International).

Click here to purchase your tickets!

The Wizard of Oz (Youth Edition)

Reed Intermediate School Drama Club

May 2-4

The RIS Drama Club will be performing another fan favorite - The Wizard of Oz. Originally written in 1900 by L. Frank Baum, follow the adventures of Dorothy and Toto when they land in Oz.

Band-o-Rama was a celebration of the band program in Newtown! 430 band students in grades 5-12 gathered in the NHS Gym to perform for each other and then as a combined ensemble. Families and students were able to see and hear the journey that every band student takes from when they start at Reed Intermediate School to where they finish at NHS. Here is the program for the evening!

Listen in to the Grand Finale:

Families, friends, and the Newtown community can enjoy the Unified Music class performance of their rap songs in the NHS Chorus Spring Concert on May 19. Here is a link to the district calendar: https://www.newtown.k12.ct.us/calendar as well as the district’s Visual and Performing Arts Calendar of Events: https://hiscavichm.wixsite.com/nhs-fine-arts/calendar-of-events

Saturday 4/5

Boys Baseball vs Berlin

Varsity-2:30

Saturday 4/5

Softball vs Fairfield Warde

Varsity-3:00

Saturday 4/5

Girls Lacrosse vs Ludlowe

JV-1:30

Varsity-3:00

Even the weather has been cooperating!

Saturday kicked off a day of scrimmages for the Nighthawks. Many of our teams were on the road, but Girls lacrosse was at Blue and Gold Stadium scrimmaging Simsbury.

The Girls Lacrosse Team will be led by an impressive

group of Seniors and 4 of the 5 will continue playing in College:

Jenna Lagan - LeMoyne University - Women's Lacrosse

Jenn Socci - CCSU - Women's Lacrosse

Abby Ihlfield - Florida Southern- Women's Lacrosse

Brooke Bulkley - UCONN - Women's Lacrosse

Mo Murphy - undecided

Congratulations to Sam Diaspro on being named CIAC Class L All State!

Congratulations to Girls Basketball Senior Captain, Mo Murphy on being selected as the Newtown Representative for the CIAC Scholar Athlete. Congratulations Mo!

The Western Connecticut Superintendents Association (CAPSS) recognizes students through its Superintendent's Student Award Recognition Program, which focuses on community service, academic prowess, and leadership within the school community.

Lily Walker

Lily Walker is a highly engaged, active and collaborative student, a member of Newtown Middle School’s 8 Gold cluster. She works really hard and achieves exemplary grades. Lily is also a three-sport athlete, competitive in cross country, basketball and lacrosse, bringing the same high level of work ethic to her sports. She participates in community service through her church, such as making food baskets for those in need.

Lily personifies what it means to be kind. She is a quiet leader who not only believes in doing what is right and treating others fairly, but models for others in her daily life. Lily hopes to become a pediatric nurse in the future.

Madeline Zupan

Madeline Zupan, a member of Newtown Middle School’s 8 Purple cluster, has strong academic motivation as evidenced by her strong academic performance. She is very supportive of her peers and always willing to lend a helping hand. Madeline is very engaged in the school community as a member of the Student Council and is a Peer Mentor for our Unified Sports Team. She also participates in soccer and track. Madeline has a desire to make her community a better place and has the leadership skills to do just that. Madeline hopes to become a teacher in the future.

Mary Guion

Mary Guion is an invaluable member of the Newtown High School Theatre department. In her four years at NHS, she has participated in every show and has been an integral part of the success of our performing arts program. Mary has tackled just about every job in the production of our performances, including being part of Stage Crew for both the drama and the musical, then later being promoted to Stage Manager for multiple productions. She was also Co-Director of the fall drama as a junior. Mary is also dedicated to helping younger students succeed and find their passion in theater, serving to mentor and guide them on their journey. Mary has been an exemplary student while also showing compassion and kindness to her peers.

Charles Massett

Charles Massett is kind, caring, and diligent. He is a student athlete that is a leader in the classroom, on the field, and in the community. He has maintained an outstanding GPA in a demanding course schedule, while juggling many commitments outside of school. Charlie has been named to the National Honor Society, STEM Honor Society, World Language Honor Society, Link Crew and was awarded the St. Michael's Book Award. In athletics, Charlie was a member of both Cross Country and Lacrosse teams for all 4 years, and is also a captain in each sport. Charlie has dedicated himself to serving his community. He has given over 70 hours with a work camp that built houses for families in Mississippi. Additionally, he is a counselor in training for a youth triathlon camp and has run his own youth lacrosse clinic.

Our administrative team recently engaged in a variety of learning experiences all aimed at improving student performance.

On March 21st, our principals, directors of teaching and learning and pupil services, as well as our assistant superintendent and superintendent participated in a collaborative learning experience to help inform them about the importance of rolling out Netown's Portrait of A Graduate.

Our K-8 school leaderhip teams have been meeting regularly throughout the year to examine performance data and build plans to address the areas of need. The outcome of those meetings has been "Data Commitments" which outline specific steps that each school team intended to improve student performance. On March 25th, they met to review their progress on those action steps.

We are all lifelong learners!

High School Leadership Team - Building the Portrait of a Graduate

Did you know that joining your PTA offers several benefits for both you and our school community? Our PTAs do many wonderful things throughout the school year that support and enhance the educational experience for our students. In addition to raising funds for educational programs and classroom resources, members have the opportunity to have their voices and ideas heard, meet new people and build connections within the school and greater community, as well as gain leadership skills that can be both personally and professionally valuable. In addition, being involved in your PTA gives you a closer look at what is happening in your child’s school by participating in or organizing events that foster a positive school culture.

You can find a link to each school's PTA by clicking on this link.

Thank you for your support!

Being the parent of a student with special needs can be confusing, isolating and frightening. Newtown Special Ed PTA, or SEPTA, is a great way to connect with a supportive community. We look forward to you joining us!

For more information, please visit the Special Ed PTA's website by clicking on this link.

Several of our schools are in need of student support services staff. If you enjoy working with kids, we encourage you to visit our employment opportunities page.

All-Star is actively seeking drivers. Flexible schedules and a paid training program.

Consider calling today!