Superintendent’s Corner
Dr. Katherine Bertolini
8.17.24
Let the countdown begin!
The excitement is building for the return to school events and activities. It is time for the quiet in our buildings to come to an end. This week, we welcome our teachers back for professional development on Monday and Tuesday and on Wednesday August 21st, we welcome back our students for the new school year! I want to highlight some of the events coming up in anticipation of our new year.
This week our staff will be returning for professional development on the 19th and 20th. We will be working on numerous skills and knowledge areas for our staff including Science standards, advisory planning, student engagement, values clarification, Positive Behavior Intervention Supports (PBIS), school safety, team building and other general information to get our year started.
Tuesday evening, August 20th will be our Open House for our families in all three of our buildings. Fuller Street will welcome our families from 4:30-5:30 pm, Maplewood will host our families from 5:15-6:15 and the Jr./Sr. HS and Pathways Program from 6:00- 7:00. Given some changes in our teacher staff over the summer, it is important to attend Open Houses to get finalized schedules and learn if teacher assignments may have changed due to teacher movements.
We have created a school within a school concept for our 8th grade students and we call those courses Foundations. Our plan is to provide additional academic and behavioral supports for these students prior to the transition year of 9th grade. The freshman year is critically important to student persistence for graduation and we want our students to have everything they need as they start high school next year. We have planned a meeting for those families and have sent them invitations in the mail for 6 pm on Tuesday the 20th in the HS Library. We look forward to partnering with our families and students.
Our Principals and Administrative Support staff returned last week and are busy sending out lots of necessary information as everyone continues the count down to the first day!
Athletic Practices started on Monday August 12th. After enjoying the Olympics from Paris this summer, we now get to look forward to our local competitions. Our Cross Country team is growing steadily under the enthusiastic drive of Coach Blakely and our football team expands back to 11-men on the field with the guidance of Coach Harvey and his extensive coaching staff. Many camps were held over the summer months for our teams and the board was pleased to hear the many benefits that emerged from their team building opportunities.
As kids return to bus stops and walking to and from school, please be mindful of our little ones and slow down near all bus stops and crosswalks. Thank you for looking out for our students’ safety.
In the meantime, as summer flies by so quickly, I hope all of you are enjoying the beautiful weather and summer events fully as we embrace the advance of fall!
It is a great day to be in the Valley!
Dr. B
