GPS District Digest

Stories, news and updates from Greenwich Public Schools

March 5, 2020 (v1)

Coronavirus Update and Health Services Information

As you may have seen on the news, there have been confirmed cases of Coronavirus in the tristate area. GPS continues to monitor the situation on a daily basis, taking guidance from Greenwich's Health Department, the CT State Department of Health and Center for Disease Control.

As a reminder, our Facilities Team continues to be proactive about cleaning our high-touch areas (door knobs, sinks, etc.), including the use of additional hours to deep clean our buildings to further prevent the spread of germs; buses are wiped down daily; and staff continuously remind students to wash their hands.

Many families have asked how we plan for disruptions to our school schedules. The Board of Education has a policy regarding Emergency and Disaster Preparedness, which contains thorough details of our action steps. In parallel, the District is making preparations for potential distance learning (digital tools, hard-copy print worksheets, etc.). Any changes to school schedules or school closures will be communicated at the District level, based on guidance from the above mentioned agencies. If you have a child who is immune compromised, please work with your School Principal for any necessary accommodations.

We are monitoring all field trips, and we ask that families be aware that events with large gatherings, usually in the evenings, may be cancelled out of an abundance of caution, if recommended by the Department of Health.

For previously shared resources, please visit our Health Services page, which includes helpful information about how to discuss this issue with your children (National Public Radio (NPR) created a helpful cartoon and the National Association of School Psychologists shared a robust list of guidelines).

Thank you,

Dr. Toni Jones

Superintendent, Greenwich Public Schools

GHS Students sign kindness cards in the student center as part of their 'Say Something' Week of awareness

GHS Roots & Shoots Club Hosts "Say Something" Week

This week, Greenwich High School’s Roots & Shoots Club and Assistant Deans, in partnership with Sandy Hook Promise, took part in the National Say Something Week.

Say Something teaches students how to look for warning signs, signals, and threats – especially on social media – from individuals who may want to hurt themselves or others and to “say something” to a trusted adult to get help.

The Say Something weeklong series of events include a number of activities carried out by the GHS Roots & Shoots Club, Student Activities, and the GHS Assistant Deans who promote the Greenwich Public School’s norms Be Here, Be Safe, and Care for Self and Others. Events included: Kindness Card Making, a Tree of Hope Activity, and a culminating "Selfie Station" happening tomorrow in the GHS Student Center.

Greenwich Public Schools Celebrate 'Read Across America'

Monday, March 2, 2020 marked the birthday of Dr. Suess and the annual "Read Across America," celebration. To mark this milestone, schools across the District participated in several reading activities throughout the week. At Cos Cob, students, staff and parents read "Green Eggs and Ham," aloud in 14 languages. At New Lebanon School students, staff and parents kicked off "Reading Month" with books and bagels to unveil the March Book Bracket for sharing favorite books across the school.

Greenwich Japanese School visits ISD

Several first graders at The International School at Dundee's shared a visit from the Greenwich Japanese School a few weeks ago. Together, the students had fun engaging in the use of Keva planks, as seen in the pictures. They also worked together doing math games.

Principal Terry Ricci shared, "This visit is part of a cultural exchange program we do with the staff and students from this school. Our first grade students visited their school a few weeks ago, and we had a similar exchange experience with a third grade class earlier in the year. We find that the language barrier does not hinder the students from fully participating in activities with each other."

ISD students shared a visit with students from the Greenwich Japanese School as part of their exchange program

Annie Lamont Visits GHS for Moderated Discussion

In celebration of the 100th Anniversary of Women’s Suffrage in the United States, Greenwich High School will honor this milestone year throughout several months of special events, ahead of the official anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment in the month of August.

This week, First Lady of the State of Connecticut, Annie Lamont, was at GHS for a moderated student discussion led by student representatives from the school's "We the People" Club. Annie Lamont is one of the country’s most successful women in the high-stakes world of venture capital. She has worked in this area as a role model and groundbreaker for women for more than three decades. As a venture capitalist she has assisted entrepreneurs in financing their grand plans in a field that is still largely dominated by men, gaining success and recognition in helping ideas become a reality.

Annie Lamont participated in a moderated panel at GHS

Distinguished Teachers Award Submissions -- One Week Left to Submit!

The 2020 Distinguished Teachers Award Program is open for submissions for one more week! The Distinguished Teachers Awards Committee, Inc. is a nonprofit organization established in 1984 to recognize and celebrate excellence among the dedicated teaching staff of the Greenwich Public Schools. The Committee is comprised of approximately 20 members and is a balance of representatives from the Greenwich Education Association (teachers), the Greenwich Organization of School Administrators, PTA Council (parents), and Board of Education, and members of the community. Members serve a three-year term. The awardees are selected based solely on the written information provided in each candidate’s Nomination Packet.

Information about the submission process is available on the program's website. Submissions are due no later than: Thursday, March 12, 2020 at 5:00 pm.

Greenwich United Way’s Reading Champions Program

Since 2008, the Greenwich United Way’s Reading Champions Program has supported literacy and fluency growth for over 4,000 students in all 11 Greenwich Public Elementary Schools. This program is the largest volunteer-based program focused on reading fluency in our community. GUW and GPS partner to deliver one-to-one, weekly reading sessions throughout the academic year.

Reading Champions will host a Literacy Summit and Volunteer Workshop on Wednesday, March 11th from 11:30am to 2:00pm at the YWCA, located at 259 East Putnam Avenue. This event will further educate the local community and program partners about the importance of early intervention and student assessments to support literacy development.

For this event, Reading Champions proudly welcomes its keynote speaker, Literacy Expert, Dr. Margie Gillis, Founder of LiteracyHow.org, who is an expert teacher, researcher and school district consultant. She will share her extensive experience on how to implement research-based practices for literacy and how best to use data to support student learning. In addition, she will discuss her work with policy makers, legislators, administrators/teachers, analyzing research results and how student outcome data shapes these conversations. This lecture is open to the public, please RSVP to Cecile Meunier, Reading Champions Program Coordinator, via email at cmeunier@greenwichunitedway.org or call 203-869-2221 for more information.

Greenwich Alliance Raises over $12,000 on Fairfield County's Day of Giving

The Greenwich Alliance for Education shares a huge thank you for the contributions given on February 27 during Fairfield County’s Giving Day. Over $12,000 was raised from generous Greenwich community supporters and many Alliance friends, with special thanks to Greenwich High School for inviting the Alliance into school to promote the event. The funds will go directly to programs that benefit Greenwich Public School students and teachers.

Projects Update

Western Middle School Fields

At the March 26, 2020 Board of Education Meeting, the Western Middle School Fields will be on the action agenda for consideration to move forward with a Voluntary Remediation Action Plan.