GPS District Digest (v5, i10)
Stories, news, and updates from Greenwich Public Schools
What a strange journey we had at GPS these past two weeks. Right? Snow days, snow delays, and holidays. We bet you can come up with more. But everything is ok now, no matter how discombobulated you were. We are back on track and the GPS District Digest is here to help.
So, plop down on the couch or sit back in your chair at the office, and read all good things GPS to put that smile back on your face. We have great news for everyone. Even you!
Since Issue No. 9, we have gained so many new readers and we cannot thank you enough. Spreading good news is what we here at the Digest are all about. No negativity. Just a little fun during your lunch break.
Enjoy Issue No. 10 and thank you for your support.
GPS District Digest
There were some laughs and even some tears at the Havemeyer Building when GPS staff celebrated the amazing Maria Keresey earlier this month. She recently announced her retirement.
For 30 years, Maria served the Town of Greenwich with professionalism, distinction, and dedication. While we know she will love the new chapter of her life in retirement, we will all miss her greatly.
What? You never tasted her pea soup? You have no idea. We always made sure to give it a stir when we walked by the galley kitchen.
The Connecticut State Department of Education has identified seven GPS schools as Schools of Distinction, based on the results from the 2022-23 Next Generation Accountability System, a system where schools and districts earn points on a broad set of 12 indicators that help tell the story of how well a school is preparing its students for success in college, careers, and life. Congratulations go out to:
Eastern Middle School for High Growth (All Students) - Math
Hamilton Avenue School for High Growth (All Students) - ELA and High Growth (High Needs Students) - ELA
International School at Dundee for High Performance and High Growth (All Students) - ELA
North Mianus School for High Performance and High Growth (All Students) - ELA and Math and High Growth (High Needs Students) - Math
North Street School for High Performance and High Growth (All Students) - ELA
Parkway School for High Performance and High Growth (All Students) - ELA
Riverside School for High Performance and High Growth (All Students) - ELA and Math and High Growth (High Needs Students) - ELA
GPS professional assistant, Ms. Eileen Brehm, is the recipient of the prestigious 2024 Myers Art Prize, an annual juried art competition open to all students in the Art & Art Education Program at Teachers College, Columbia University. This year, the jury was led by Mitra Abbaspour, the head of Modern and Contemporary Art divisions at the Harvard Art Museums.
Her artwork will be in a special Myers Art Exhibition at the Macy Art Gallery in New York for three weeks and will become a permanent part of the collection at Teachers College.
Students from Central and Eastern Middle Schools will be competing in the Connecticut Middle School Regional Science Bowl on Saturday, February 10 at Smith Middle School in Glastonbury.
The winning CT team will be flown, all-expenses paid, to compete in the National Finals held in Washington, D.C., from April 25-29. They will join 49 other regional winning middle schools and over 70 regional winning high schools for several days of science activities and sightseeing, along with the competitions.
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), sponsors the National Science Bowl, an extraordinary fast-paced question-and-answer competition that brings together thousands of our future scientists, visionaries, and leaders. This is considered the nation’s premiere academic competition for middle and high school students.
Let's go Cougars and Gators!
The Flinn Gallery at the Greenwich Library gave Greenwich High School students the opportunity to express both visually and/or in writing in its recent exhibition entitled, “Home Sweet Home.” Their visual expression used a range of mixed-media to communicate their ideas – paints, textile, collaged images (decoupage), colored sharpies, etc. The writing portion was electronically distributed and shared.
The Flinn Gallery is a non-profit, education-oriented exhibition space that presents art in all mediums from a wide range of periods, visions and techniques.
More than 50 students contributed a very short writing piece. Nine students contributed a visual element that goes with the community "door" project: Caroline Boyea, Monika Brown-Smith, Ciaran Collins, Yume Inagawa, Morgan Kelley, Sam Kim, Layla Morris, Isabella Quevedo, and Sophie Trudeau.
The artwork, part of a community project developed and organized by curator Ellen Hawley, will be on display through Wednesday, February 28.
On Tuesday, January 30 at 1:00 PM, in partnership with Eastern Middle School PTA, Perrot Library will live stream on Zoom a conversation with award-winning reporter Jennifer Breheny Wallace, the author of "Never Enough: When Achievement Culture Becomes Toxic–and What We Can Do About It."
In "Never Enough," Wallace investigates the deep roots of toxic achievement culture and finds out what we must do to fight back. Drawing on interviews with families, educators, and an original survey of nearly 6,000 parents, she exposes how the pressure to perform is not a matter of parental choice but baked into our larger society and spurred by increasing income inequality and dwindling opportunities. As a result, children are increasingly absorbing the message that they have no value outside of their accomplishments, a message that is reinforced by the media and greater culture at large.
Register for the live Zoom streaming of this program.
Our very own, Coach Evan Dubin, has been selected by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association as the 2023 Girls' High School Cross Country Coach of the Year for the State of Connecticut.
This honor is based upon his leadership and the success of the GHS cross country team throughout the season. It is also a reflection of his hard work and the dedication of the student-athletes, the coaching staff, as well as the administration of the school.
One boys coach and one girls coach from all 50 states – as well as the District of Columbia – were honored for their successes during the fall of 2023, as selected by a committee of experts from around the nation.
Each honoree will receive a trophy from the USTFCCCA recognizing their achievements. The winners from each state are in consideration for the Association’s National High School Cross Country Coach of the Year award. One boys coach and one girls coach from among all the states will be selected by a panel of experts and be announced next month as the national winners.
Way to go Coach!
While every day is PJ Day at Western Middle School, loyal Digest readers know all about the efforts of one of our amazing GHS seniors, Sophie Lenschow, who will lead “PJ Day” district-wide on Friday, February 9.
The day has been set up to raise funds and create awareness for children battling cancer at Connecticut Children’s Hospital. Last year, the fundraiser raised more than $19,000.
For more information, contact your school’s principal or head to Sophie's fundraising web page if you would like to assist.
Please consider helping to send a GPS eighth-grader in need of financial assistance to Washington, D.C. this spring. This long-standing trip is highly valued in our community, and we want to see every student have the chance to attend.
Our three middle school PTA’s stepped up to take on this new fundraising challenge to keep the trip alive. While the trip cost this year is $809 per student, it is a significant and unachievable burden for many eighth-grade families. The district-wide total need for financial assistance exceeds $40,000.
For more information on the trip and how to make a contribution on any level, email the 8th Grade D.C. Trip Fundraising Committee at dcfundraisingcomm@gmail.com or reach out to your school’s PTA. The committee is a group of parents from all three GPS middle schools committed to ensuring that the trip continues for years to come, for all eighth grade GPS students, regardless of financial need.
On January 12 and 13, Greenwich High School hosted the Western Region Music Festival. This music festival garners the most talented high school band, choir, and orchestra musicians in the western region of Connecticut.
These talented musicians came together for two days to make incredible music with one another, under the leadership of nationally-recognized conductors.
GHS was proud to have 70 student musicians at the festival this year! GHS Music Department members Mr. Michael Breaux, Ms. Bethany Fuscaldo, Ms. Barbara Freedman, Mr. Jason Polise, and Mr. Luke Rosenberg coordinated the music spaces for all 450 student musicians and their music teachers, which resulted in a seamless weekend for the directors, and a memorable experience for the students.
Kudos to all involved!
The GPS District Digest just loves hearing from Distinguished Teachers.
Ms. Esra Murray, a 2013 honoree, recently told us how she introduced the 3Doodler printing pens to second grade students at Julian Curtiss School. From trying it out, to free flowing, to more intentional designs, she told us that the students are making steady progress.
With a 3D pen, you can draw a raised graphic on a piece of paper or any flat surface. But what makes a 3D pen truly unique is its ability to “draw” in mid-air, allowing you to instantly form 3D structures right in front of you, which you can pick up and hold in your hand.
Ms. Murray shared this story: "One young creator had a frustrating start. The learning curve seemed a bit steeper. She might have even set it aside at one point to come back to it later. Over time, however, the more she started seeing her own successes, the more she stayed with it. In every makerspace class, she started choosing the 3D station to work on her idea. Today, she is the proud creator of a 3D box."
The Honor Band will perform a special free concert on Wednesday, February 7, 7:00 PM, at the GHS Performing Arts Center, with guest conductor, Ms. Meghan Cabral.
This band consists of 90 students in fifth and sixth grade who have been selected by their band teachers to participate in this program. All three middle schools and 11 elementary schools are represented in this ensemble.
Come by for some great music!
We love sharing good news with our 2,096 closest friends on the GPS X (Twitter) account, @GPSDistrict.
Follow us, but only do it if you are family, student, staff, or community member that wants to see all of the good things happening around the District. No negativity from us!
At the Digest, we love to show you some of our favorite posts from around the GPS social media world, including from some new accounts on Instagram.
Do you have a favorite social media account? Let us know!
