Clinton Township Newsletter

1 4 O c t O b e r 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 check out our new website: www.ctsdnj.org I N O U R S C H O O L S : Su R Scho We are so pleased to welcome the following new staff members to our school! Tracy Denkovic is joining the Clinton Township School District this year as a first grade teacher at Spruce Run School. Although new to Spruce Run, Mrs. Denkovic taught fourth grade at Patrick McGaheran School for 9 years prior to staying home with her son, who was born in 2007. In 2013, Mrs. Denkovic was a first grade leave replacement teacher in Lebanon Township. For the past two and a half years, she worked in the Inclusive Preschool in the High Bridge School District. Mrs. Denkovic is very excited to be back in Clinton Township and is looking forward to a fantastic year in first grade! Robyn Stein is very excited to be joining Spruce Run School as the Music teacher. Ms. Stein recently completed her first year of teaching in the Millburn Township School District as a leave replacement K-5 General and Choral Music Teacher. Prior to that, Ms. Stein attended Westminster Choir College in Princeton, NJ, where she received her Bachelors of Music in Music Education. While at Westminster, she was a member of the Westminster Symphonic Choir, which performed with many orchestras, including the Philadelphia Orchestra and the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra, in venues such as the Kimmel Center and Carnegie Hall. In addition to her choral experience, she has directed and performed in various musical theatre productions throughout Central New Jersey. Most recently, Ms. Stein completed her Level I Kodály Certification and intends to continue the certification process in years to come. Ms. Stein is thrilled to continue her teaching career at Spruce Run School and cannot wait to provide students with a fun and exciting musical learning experience! Kristi Neff is joining Spruce Run School as a first grade teacher. Ms. Neff recently graduated from Centenary College where she received a Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education. She's also earned her Special Education Certification and holds a minor in Environmental Science. Ms. Neff was the Valedictorian of her graduating class at Centenary! While at Centenary College, she was a First Year Leader to help the incoming freshmen and transfer students transition comfortably. Last year Ms. Neff was a Special Education teacher at Patrick McGaheran School. She's incredibly happy and grateful to be back in the district. Ms. Neff is looking forward to having a wonderful and exciting school year with the amazing students and staff at Spruce Run! Paick McGah Scho Second Grade Welcomes New Students! As a school, we are thrilled to see our third graders return to us in September and are always especially excited to meet our incoming second graders. We love new faces! As a second grade team, we work hard to acclimate our new students and be sure to make them feel as secure and happy as possible. Our special area teachers, as well as some beloved staff members, help our new students find their 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. t h e C l i N t o N t o w N s h i p F o u N d At i o N F o r e d u C A t i o N A l e x C e l l e N C e Please consider partnering with the Clinton Township Foundation for Educational Excellence by commemorating your child's educational journey with the purchase of a seat! Personalize your inscription in the In Honor of section to make it extra special! To do so, please visit the Foundation's website: www.ctsd.k12.nj.us/foundation-for-educational-excellence and select DONATE NOW. Thank you in advance! During the Spring 2016, students throughout New Jersey participated in the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC). For the families who may have their first school experience this year or who have moved to New Jersey from another state, I want to take the opportunity to provide information about the assessment. The PARCC assessment is conducted online. It was designed to replace the New Jersey Assessment of Skills and Knowledge (NJ ASK) and the High School Proficiency Assessment (HSPA) and match the content and skills outlined in the new standards that are guiding instruction. These new assessments moved away from fill-in-the bubble tests and ask questions that require students to explain their answers. The results from PARCC, along with your child's educational learning experience, including performance in the classroom, provide an overall picture of his or her academic success and progress towards graduating high school ready to succeed at college-level work. The PARCC assessment measures more complex, real-world skills such as critical-thinking, writing and problem-solving. For these reasons, the PARCC scores cannot be compared to the NJ ASK or the HSPA. Last year's PARCC scores were used to set a new, more accurate baseline from which progress can be measured moving forward. As the first year of testing (2014-2015) was a transition year, great lengths were taken to make sure scoring was done accurately, involving teachers from across the nation. Since it was the first time the assessment was scored and analyzed, it took longer. This year, we were fortunate to receive the results of the spring administration in September. In mid-September PARRC score reports from this administration of the assessment were sent home to the families of all current 4th through 8th graders. The Individual Score Report (ISR) each family received provides more detailed information about student learning than the old NJ ASK and HSPA reports. Each subject is broken down into categories of skills and content to identify where a student is doing well and where he or she needs additional assistance. In addition, you can find grade level learning resources that can be accessed at home at the following websites: • Video explaining the score reports: www.UnderstandTheScore.org • Additional resources for parents: www.BeALearningHero.org • Information about the PARCC assessment: www.PARCConline.org/resources/parent-resources • New Jersey specific information: www.state.nj.us/education/assessment Parents and students may also familiarize themselves with the PARCC assessment by taking a practice assessment. The practice assessments are available in English/Language Arts for grades 3-11 and Mathematics for grades 3-8 and Algebra I, Geometry, and Algebra II. Answer keys are also available to check your work. As a reminder, the PARCC assessment is currently one option to fulfill high school graduation requirements for graduating classes through 2019. Beginning with the Class of 2020, high school students must take the PARCC to graduate. Beginning with the class of 2021, high school students must take and pass the PARCC assessment to graduate. This means that the current 8th grade class at Clinton Township Middle School, as well as all subsequent classes, must take and pass the PARCC to graduate high school. High school graduation requirements updated as of August 2016 can be found at http://www.state.nj.us/education/assessment/ parents/GradReq.pdf. While no one test measures the success of any child, together with other assessments we can use this information to more clearly understand your child's learning and better meet his or her needs. Thank you, Ga M. Vi Gina M. Villani, Ed.D, Superintendent of Schools A L e t t e r f r o m Gina M. Villani, Ed.D, Superintendent of Schools Dear Clinton Township Community Members:

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