Clinton Township Newsletter

1 7 F e b r u a r y 2 0 1 6 PaickMcGahScho The PMG school community is very fortunate to include Mrs. Erin Repsher, an amazing music educator, who is this year's Teacher of the Year! Mrs. Repsher learned she had been selected for this honor during an all-school sing-a-long she was leading. Students erupted in applause and Mrs. Repsher was swarmed by her colleagues, including Buddy the Bulldog, for congratulatory hugs. Since beginning at PMG in 2007, Mrs. Repsher has continued to grow and strengthen the musical program for students. Students are immersed in musical learning from the moment they walk in the classroom, greeted in song, to the moment they leave, self-assessing their effort for the class period. Trained in the Kodaly Method of instruction at Westminster Choir College, Mrs. Repsher exposes all children to high-level learning through vocal, instrumental and movement activities that flow seamlessly throughout each lesson. Students rise to meet the high expectations she has in place and thrive under her direction. This is evident, as over 100 students in each grade level volunteer to join the grade-level choruses each year. The spring concert performances are remarkable, and highlight all of the diverse learning students are provided. Mrs. Repsher has introduced a recorder program for all third grade students and has encouraged students to compose their own music and perform for peers, in addition to music classes and chorus. During extensions periods, she enhances the language arts and mathematics curriculum through music integration. Mrs. Repsher is also a well-respected Teacher Leader, serving on many committees and teams to support the school's growth. We are thrilled to be able to recognize Mrs. Respher with this very well deserved honor! Susan Ehlert - Educational Service Professional of the Year Mrs. Ehlert is our school's Library Media Specialist and is so deserving of her recognition of ESP of the Year! Mrs. Ehlert has created two developmentally appropriate libraries, at PMG and SRS. In addition to the research, purchasing, organizing and management of the libraries themselves, she is an amazing teacher. Students learn how to navigate a library, do research and other media skills from Mrs. Ehlert. She is warm and caring and fosters a true love of reading in students through her modeling, concern and dedication. She listens to students and incorporates their "wants" into the library regularly. She knows which series and genres are popular with each group of students and even of individual students. She works closely with teachers to make sure they have the supplies and resources they need. She volunteers for committees, writes grants and manages events. Mrs. Ehlert facilitates each school's summer reading program and is always thrilled to celebrate the completion with students who participate. Literacy is so important for primary-aged students and PMG is so fortunate to have a Library Media specialist who loves what she does and spreads this love of literacy, libraries and technology to the students and staff each year! RdVScho Round Valley School is happy to announce Mrs. Tricia Comly as this year's Teacher of the Year! The announcement was made during our monthly assembly where Mrs. Comly was surprised and deeply honored! It was not, however, a surprise to students and colleagues. When Mrs. Comly's classroom is called students and teacher answer the phone by saying, "Math Palace!" It puts a smile on everyone's face. Mrs. Comly is truly passionate about teaching math. Hers is a classroom where expectations are high and students learn the art of perseverance! A vocabulary term Mrs. Comly frequently uses to stress the importance of math is "grit." Students know that outcomes can be achieved by the amount of effort put forth to solve problems. Mrs. Comly has been teaching for nineteen years. She attended Mount Holyoke College for her undergraduate degree and the College of New Jersey and Fairleigh Dickinson University for her Masters Degrees. Congratulation Mrs. Comly, we are proud of you! Mrs. Susan Straight is our school Nurse and was named our Education Service Professional of the Year (ESP)! We are so thankful for all she does for our students, staff, school, and community. It is her caring and calm manner that allows all to approach her when they need help. Not only does she take care of the physical needs of all at RVS, she also provides psychological support to create a safe environment for all. Her efforts in helping the community seem endless. Whether food drives, blood drives, collecting clothing, gathering school supplies, helping families in need, or offering a listening ear, Mrs. Straight is driven by helping others. She takes the time to educate those in her care about their health needs. It is Mrs. Straight's compassion for all that we so appreciate. She too was surprised during our school assembly when it was announced that she was our ESP. She grinned from ear to ear when the student body erupted in cheers. Mrs. Straight attended Marymount College of Virginia for her nursing degree and obtained a Masters Degree from Marymount University. Thank you Mrs. Straight for taking such good care of us! ••tonTo•hipMidd-School We are happy to announce that Mr. Steve Schaefer and Mrs. Elizabeth Smolyn have been recognized as the Clinton Township Middle School 2015-2016 Outstanding Educators of the Year! Elizabeth Jane Smolyn, CTMS Educational Service Professional of the Year: "I love working with children and find it gratifying to see them grow and develop academically and socially. It is rewarding to work in an environment nt where the entire school community is professional, compassionate and focused on providing the highest quality of education for all of their students. I am truly fortunate to have the privilege of working with such wonderful individuals - many of whom I consider to be not just colleagues, but my friends. For the past 19 years, coming to work each day has been a pleasure. Learning by teaching is what I believe. I thank you for the opportunity of working with such amazing teachers and great students that I have learned from and been inspired by to do my best." Steve Schaefer CTMS Teacher of the Year: "This year marks my 5th year teaching instrumental music at Clinton Township Middle School and my 8th year of teaching in public schools. Throughout my career, I've enjoyed teaching instrumental groups as well as chorus and general music. I believe that learning music starts with inspiration and, as a teacher, it is a pleasure cultivating the same kind of passion in my students that first drove me to learn and perform music. It is my strong conviction that learning music will help students develop emotionally, intellectually and socially. It allows them to express themselves in ways that are very difficult to communicate through words and enhances their cognitive development in all subjects. Whether a student plays music as a temporary hobby or pursues it as a profession, the experience of it influences the rest of their lives in a positive way. As a middle school music teacher, it is my job to help light the spark for music in students and every year, I continue to enjoy being a part of that process." Kindergarten Round Up! Kindergarten Round Up is now occurring at Spruce Run School. A resident child must be 5 years of age on or before October 1, 2016 to be eligible for kindergarten during the 2016-2017 school year. If you have a child who will be eligible for kindergarten next year, please notify our school as soon as possible by visiting our SRS website at: www.ctsd.k12.nj.us/kindergarten-registration to download and return the Kindergarten Round Up Survey or completing the survey online at: https://goo.gl/SSjo5R. Kindergarten Registration will be held by appointment during the week of March 7, 2016. If you should have any questions regarding the kindergarten registration process, please contact Mrs. Paul at: npaul@ctsd.k12.nj.us or 908.735.7916, ext. 9208. Thank you!

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