Clinton Township Newsletter

1 6 F e b r u a r y 2 0 1 6 www.ClintonTwpNewsletter.com C L I N T O N T O W N S H I P S C H O O L N E W S www.ctsd.k12.nj.us A L e t t e r f r o m Dr. Drucilla Clark, Superintendent of Schools Dear Members of the Clinton Township Community: On January 4 I shared with the Clinton Township Board of Education that I am retiring as of July 1, 2016. It has been my distinct honor to have worked for this community. I am very blessed to have been able to share this time with you all and most especially with the children, but after over ten years as a Superintendent in the State of New Jersey, it is time for me to spend more time with my family and grandchildren. The Board has some important plans to find a new leader for the district and will be including you in the process. You will see here the letter the Clinton Township Board of Education has written to the community. In the meantime, I will be in the classrooms and hallways of our most special buildings, working with a great staff and finishing out the school year continuing to work on making a difference for our kids. Please watch this column and our district website for more information on the search for a new district leader. Thank you for the opportunity to be part of a wonderful community like Clinton Township! With appreciation for a great community, Dr. Drucilla Clark CLinton township sChooL DistriCt mission stAtement: The Clinton Township School District, in partnership with the community, achieves excellence for each child by ensuring a meaningful and challenging educational experience in a supportive environment, developing life-long learners who are responsible and productive citizens. Clinton Township Board of Education P . O . B o x 6 , A n n a n d a l e , N J 0 8 8 0 1 (9 0 8 ) 2 3 6 - 7 2 3 5 January 6, 2016 Dear Community Members: As you may have already heard, Dr. Drucilla Clark informed the Board of Education at Monday night's board meeting that it is her intent to retire at the conclusion of the 2015/16 school year. We are grateful for her dedication to our students, staff and community. As a proven and successful educator, Dr. Clark has led the Clinton Township School District through very challenging times, including the alignment and implementation of the district's curriculum with the Common Core and the new PARCC Assessment. As our children became more reliant on technology, Dr. Clark led the integration of curriculum and technology into the classroom in which she met the needs of the 21 st Century learner, while also working diligently to improve the vertical alignment of our curriculum with North Hunterdon High School. Dr. Clark implemented a needs based budget process, which allowed the district to meet the academic rigors of our children and staff in the classroom, while being fiscally responsible to the taxpayers in the community under a challenging 2% annual CAP. She will leave the Clinton Township School District in a much better place than when she arrived four years ago. The Board of Education would like to thank Dr. Clark for her years of service and wish her well in her retirement. The members of the Board of Education have begun the process of searching for a firm to help us identify a new superintendent. Our intent is to include the staff, students, parents and members of the community in this hiring process. In the very near future, we will communicate to you the milestones associated with the search process and their target dates. As the search progresses, the Board of Education will continue to communicate the status of this ongoing process. Please take a moment to congratulate and wish Dr. Clark all the best as she prepares for her new life of retirement. Also, please do not hesitate to contact us should you have any questions. Kind regards, The Clinton Township Board of Education SuRScho Educators of the Year at SRS: We are happy to announce that Mrs. Ellen Sidbury and Mrs. Marianne Pendlebury have been recognized as the Spruce Run School 2015- 2016 Outstanding Educators of the Year, and we are so proud to have them represent our amazing staff at Spruce Run School! Mrs. Ellen Sidbury is being recognized as our Teacher of the Year at Spruce Run School. Mrs. Sidbury is an intelligent, caring and creative Enrichment Teacher whose world experiences and insight make her a sought-after resource in our building! Mrs. Sidbury works in the classroom and behind the scenes to foster excellence in education. She has embraced the opportunity to enhance the school-wide enrichment opportunities for all of our students at SRS. Mrs. Sidbury strives to develop her methods as an educator, consulting regularly with colleagues to ensure that students of all abilities learn to their fullest potential in her classes. She is also dedicated to her growth as a professional, and will complete her Master's degree this summer. Mrs. Sidbury wears many hats in our school, as she is not only our enrichment teacher, but also our all-school meeting coordinator, our assembly planner and she is on almost every committee in the school; she is even our photographer! Mrs. Sidbury has applied for and received many grants to further our students' learning experiences. We are very fortunate to have Mrs. Sidbury as part of our faculty at SRS, and she is a wonderful representative of all of the very special teachers we have at Spruce Run School. Mrs. Marianne Pendlebury is being recognized as the Educational Services Professional at Spruce Run School! Mrs. Pendlebury is a Teacher Assistant in our preschool program, and has been a part of our program for the past 25 years. Mrs. Pendlebury can always be seen with a smile on her face, and always has something positive to say about those around her, so she is the perfect addition to our preschool program. She creates an atmosphere of utter joy, comfort and safety for her students (and her parents and colleagues, too!) In addition to being a Teacher Assistant, she is also a certified nurse, so she brings an additional feeling of security in her presence. Anyone who walks into her classroom will see her talking, laughing, learning and playing with our students. Mrs. Pendlebury's cheeriness and positivity are such a wonderful part of our school, and we are so pleased to have her represent of all of the fabulous educational services professionals in our school! In Our Schools continued next page... I N O U R S C H O O L S :

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