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| Photo by Mira Bozhko on Unsplash |
I almost forgot if your family is fortunate enough to have the little ‘elf on the shelf’ visitor you are likely setting an alarm at some strange time in the middle of the night to make sure his/her magic is working and they have moved to a new location – EVERY SINGLE NIGHT! Heck, in our house, we have two elves and their reindeer since we have two children. Despite all of the parts of this time that are stressful and overwhelming, it is also a wonderful time of year.
The school year is well underway and you have made strong connections with the young people you care for each day. The snow on the ground (the first couple of times) is beautiful to see. The lights on the homes and the smiles on the faces of our students are equally bright. We all work tirelessly each day for others please make sure that this time of year you make a bit of time for yourself – your loved ones – and if you are able to help make someone less fortunate have a better Holiday please do so. You will not regret the feeling of adopting a family for the Holidays. Watching others who otherwise would have done without this time of year open presents, or eat a great meal really goes along way to honor the true spirit of the Holiday Season. Have a great weekend, make sure you check off the ‘to do’ items on your lists. As always, be kind to each other because you know who also has a list, and he is checking it twice!
Shout Out Section
“Our two day custodians, Confessor Velez and Melissa Sorantino, keep this building clean and as “germ free” as possible. They are in constant demand for clean-ups on playgrounds, hallways and classrooms. EVERY room has a bathroom, two sinks and a floor abused by sand and water tables and three and four year old exploration. There are evening family events every month and classrooms have family events on regular basis requiring special room arrangements, additional chairs, tables etc. Then there is the popularity of being the “Fix It” people to 600 charming children’s play equipment and materials.”
~ JoAnn Burns
“Janette Herbert works tirelessly behind the scenes with mountains of data needed for a variety of required reporting. She is always going above and beyond to accomplish what is asked of her.”
~ Dan Wright
“Kudos, to Dr. Gentile for organizing the district staff and community in a Strategic Planning process where all stakeholders’ voices can be heard”.
~ Maggie Colina
“Special thanks to Diane Carpenter who keeps the Elementary Child Study Testing Team on track with scheduling, parent contacts, multiple meetings and report dates and makes sure that timelines are met, which is a very big deal in special education. She also has a great and generous heart for our kids. For all of this, she is much appreciated!!”
~ Nora Zielinski
“I would like to send a shout out to Steve Platt and Kristin McManus who have been working tirelessly for the past three months preparing the student files for PARCC testing. This is in addition to all of their regular duties at Memorial and Senior High School. Thanks to the time and energy these two have put in PARCC testing is running smoothly and effortlessly at each of their locations. This work is tedious at times, but these two have persevered through it all. Thanks again to you both!”
~ Pat Wulk
“A special thanks to Wendi Wolfe for all that she does to ensure Silver Run students and staff receive great care during the school day. She goes above and beyond to assist our students and their families by providing them with the resources they need to live a healthy and productive lifestyle.”
“In addition to being a fantastic teacher, Amy Kimmel is a valued member of our SCIP Team. This year Amy led the charge to improve student attendance. I am excited to report that through the first 3 months of school we have seen our # of chronically absent students fall almost 8 percentage points. Congrats Amy! Nice Job Team!!”
~ Eric Reissek
“A shout out to our great Warehouse Team - Kato Brown, Jorge Montalvo and Kim Robinson who go above and beyond to meet the needs of our schools. You remain calm and professional in all circustances and I am proud to have such an outstanding, honest and hard working individuals on my team. Thanks for all you do!!!”
~ Toni Basich
“Mike Saul started working with us as a long term sub and has had a huge impact on the students at Bacon, Wood and Rieck Avenue Schools. He also was involved in the district with All-City and Marching Band. As he begins his new journey, he will be missed by the students and staff in Millville.”
~ Henry Hartman
“Holly Heights would like to give a big shout out to our Music Department. David Laird and Donna Terry do an awesome job with our students and their hard work is very much appreciated. The holiday concert was an amazing showcase for our instrumental and choral programs.”
~ Steve Saul
“We were so excited to see hundreds of MPS students and dozens of staff participate in the Hour of Code during Computer Science Education Week (last week). Special thanks to educators like Robin Rivell, Angie Finch, Dianne Worthington, Ashley Bartholomew, Jennifer Salvati, Amanda DeVita, Sarah Fryling, Heather Rowland, Kristina Messina, and more for bringing coding into their learning environments and expanding 21st Century learning opportunities here at MPS.”
~ JoAnne Colacurcio
“I’d like to recognize Melissa Colon at Lakeside Middle School. Mrs. Colon goes above and beyond to meet the needs of the students in her bilingual class. She advocates for each student and makes sure that their parents are well informed and able to actively participate in their child’s education. Mrs. Colon works closely with families who have been separated due to Hurricane Maria. She even communicates with parents who have remained in Puerto Rico creating a strong home-school bridge. Thank you Mrs. Colon!”
~ Maris Lynn
“Congratulations to Elaine Haughey on having a portion of her memoir published. Elaine shared selected readings from the memoir with members of our staff last year. She has now been published in the online literary journal wonderworks.org. This online journal is written by people with disabilities and those close to them. You can read the selection at http://www.wordgathering.com/issue44/reviews/haughey.html .”
“Eric takes great care of our ESL students during the day. His compassionate approach with our students is resulting in them gaining English skills confidently. In addtion to that, he's been working in our Club 21 program, where he's been using creative approaches to teaching and the projects, which the students are really enjoying. There is never a time that Eric is less than enthusiastic about his students and his belief in their ability to learn. Thank you, Eric.”
~ Brian Robinson
"I’d like to give a shout-out to Eileen Sorantino who is our secretary on the 3rd floor at Culver. She has done an amazing job helping get everything organized, ordered, and delivered for both our math/science mini-grants and our STEM day we are having at Lakeside next week. Everything she does is done well and quicker than anyone could expect. Thanks, Eileen!
~ Bobby Barber
“I would like to send a heartfelt shoutout to the entire staff at Lakeside Middle School for their patience, teamwork, and support for each other during this difficult week!”
~ Spike Cook
“This week I would like to put a spotlight on Dr. Spike Cook, Lakeside Middle School. As the principal of more than a thousand students, the students’ families, and a large staff, there is a prodigious demand on Dr. Cook’s time and energy. He constantly works to find solutions that are in the best interest of his students while also keeping a close eye on how his decisions impact his staff and the larger community. He is a caring leader who truly wants to create an exceptional learning space for the MPS students. As he is often the person ‘filing the buckets’ of those around him. I would like to take this moment to recognize him – and hopefully fill his bucket!”
~ David Gentile
Enjoy your weekend!
Regards,
Dr. David N. Gentile
Superintendent of Schools
“Lead Learner”
@drgentile_mps (Twitter)
856-327-6001
#MPSWC (MPS World Class)
#greatdaytobeabolt
Published by Dr. Spike Cook, Millville, NJ
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