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45 Highland Avenue
Whippany, NJ 07981
Call Us
973-884-2030
Visit our Website
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THE CALAIS COURIER
Fall 2015
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Students perform at The Calais Foundation's Passport to Excellence Gala at Paul Miller Porsche.
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This festive time of year is the perfect time to pause and reflect on all the wonderful things our students, staff, families, friends, and supporters do for the Calais community. Our students are busy making music, sending cards, performing random acts of kindness, and working in the community... all while working hard in the classroom!
Our newest staff members do not feel so new anymore! We are thrilled to welcome new staff members as we as a community continue to learn, grow, and improve.
Our together, we succeed campaign is off to a great start. Our spirit wear drive raised almost $2,000 for school programs. We will soon include more Calais School items and an online store for your shopping pleasure. Our Patriots-Jets ticket raffle raised several hundred dollars for the school and the winning ticket went to a Calais School 12 Plus student! We could not be happier.
The Calais School's 45th year providing special education to students
and the year is flying by!
In between newsletters, please visit our school blog and Facebook page to see what's going on here at Calais...
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| A Letter from the Principal |
Dear Parents, Guardians, and the Calais community,
As we are filled with gratitude this holiday season, I would like to express my gratitude for the opportunity to come to The Calais School each day to work with your children and our terrific staff members. I would like to express my thanks to all the parents and staff who are so dedicated to the care of The Calais School students. It is with your support and participation that The Calais School can make a difference in the lives of our students.
Our PTO and monthly Parent Support group is growing this year!
New members are welcome! ... It's a good night to get out... childcare is provided for you!
The Kindness Initiative coordinated
by Ms. Butler and Cali has reached 155 acts of kindness on the Kind-o-meter! When students are "caught in the act of kindness" their name is put up on the bulletin board
in the
hallway! This is positive reinforcement for our students and a great way to encourage and recognize them for being kind to their peers.
The Twice Exceptional program is in full swing for students who are Gifted and Talented in Science as they study Forensics. Our drama department is preparing for the production of
Peter Pan
, and our Twice Exceptional Technology program is hard at work on App Design and Game Development.
The Second Annual Transition Fair, coordinated by Michelle Primiano, Guidance Counselor, was a huge success this month! Twenty five representatives from various organizations came to The Calais School to discuss services for special education students. It is never too soon to gather information for supportive services.
There is so much to see each day, so join us on Facebook, read the Blog, and visit the Parent Portal!
This is an important time to stop and realize all the positive gifts in our lives.....
Have a safe and happy holiday season!
Warm Regards,
Dr. Diane Manno
Principal
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Our kindness board gets fuller and fuller...
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Anna sings a solo at The Calais Foundation's Passport to Excellence Gala.
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THE CALAIS FOUNDATION ANNUAL GALA RAISES $75,000 FOR THE CALAIS SCHOOL AND THE GREATER SPECIAL NEEDS COMMUNITY
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Jennifer Tedeschi
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Calais Foundation founders David Leitner, David Rostan, and Bill Claxton present Charles McClafferty with the Making a Difference award.
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On December 3, 2015, The Calais Foundation hosted our annual gala, Passpor
t to
Excellence
at Paul Miller Porsche in Parsippany.
The evening was dedicated to Mr. Charles McClafferty, one of the founding fathers of The Calais Foundation and CEO o
f Sage Realty in New York City, who received The Making a Difference Award.
Mr.
McClafferty is a dedicated philanthropist, especially to children with special needs. In 2006, he co-founded and was the first President of The Calais Foundation in order to support programming at The Calais School. Along with his
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Honoree Charles McClafferty addresses more than 125 Gala guests.
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wife Beverly, also a founding trustee, Mr. McClafferty has enhanced the lives of Calais students and other special needs students in neighboring communities in many ways.
Th
e evening included music by students in the Calais School band, violinists Karl Schlegel and Thomas MacKinnon, and DJ Express: a wine tasting by Martin Scott Wines: a silent and live auction; and an incredibly motivating speech by our Master of Ceremonies and Former NFL Player and International Speaker, Keith Elias.
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| Emcee Keith Elias inspired everyone to make a difference. |
The Calais Foundation also presented the Wyatt Service Dog Award to Finn, a highly trained, Merlin's Kids(TM) Rhodesian Ridgeback, who was a guide dog for a 5 year old boy who suffers with blindness and other disabilities.
The evening was enjoyed by all and successfully raised approximately $75,000. One of the most exciting events was a giving challenge for a Calais School vehicle for SLE job transportation and field trips.
Our generous donors gave on the spot!
If you missed the event, please visit our YouTube channel for highlights from the evening, courtesy of Calais School media teacher Maureen Damer:
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The Calais Foundation Passport to Excellence Gala 2015
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For more information about The Calais Foundation, please visit our newly-launched website at
www.calaisfoundation.org
. Thank you to our generous donors, sponsors, attendees, students, parents, and staff that joined us for an evening celebrating Calais School students and the special needs community!
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Our student musicians impressed the crowd!
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| Calais School Celebrates Thanksgiving |
Mrs. Russo and Culinary Arts Students Prepare Delicious Thanksgiving Dinner
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Once again this year, The Calais School celebrated the Thanksgiving holiday with a school-wide feast. Mrs. Russo and our culinary students prepared a traditional Thanksgiving dinner for students and staff on Wednesday. Our staff served dinner to students and staff members, dishing out turkey, stuffing, macaroni and cheese, mashed sweet potatoes, green beans, gravy, and cranberry sauce.
Mrs. Russo's desserts are a school favorite, from pumpkin
rolls,
to cookies, to oreo cups. Mr. Catalano and the stage crew class made beautiful large-scale decorations for the walls while Mrs. Vitaletti and the Calais class representatives helped set up for Thanksgiving by creating beautiful decorations for the gym, including banners and placemats.
Though the food was delicious, the highlight of the dinner was our discussion
about what we are thankful for. Principal Dr. Manno opened the dinner with her words of thanks to all of the students, staff and families who support Calais. Then high school students shared what they are thankful for, from "moms who wake up before everyone else to put the turkey in" to "friends and family" to "the Calais School teachers."
We are so thankful for the Calais students and families. We hope you and your family and friends enjoyed your Thanksgiving celebrations as much as we enjoyed ours!
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Jake addresses the entire school community with a thoughtful speech on thankfulness.
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Ms. Perillo's Class Makes Holiday Cards for Local Children's Hospital
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In the spirit of the season, Ms. Perillo and her class decided to do something positive and spread some cheer by helping others. They made holiday cards for the kids at
Joseph M. Sanzari Children's Hospital at Hackensack Univeristy Medical Center in Hackensack, NJ.
Many of the children there are very ill and unable to go home for the holidays. Some of these children have serious illnesses, including including cancer(s) and diabetes. Many are waiting for blood or bone marrow transplants.
Students designed and drew beautiful cards for the children in the hospital and had a lot of fun working on the project.
We all hope these cards will put a smile on the children's faces! Thank you Ms. Perillo, Ms. DelliSanti, and all of our wonderful students, who designed beautiful, thoughtful cards for to help cheer up other children!
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Students Perform Holiday Favorites at Winter Concert
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Teachers, administrators, students and families were in the audience for The Calais School's annual Winter Concert on December 11th.
The Calais band performed "Believe," "Let it Snow," and "We Wish You a Merry Christmas," while our lower school choir performed a rousing rendition of "The Big Chill," a song about the joy of snow days.
Music teacher Margaret Mutchler led the symphonic band, guitar ensemble and Calais choirs in a spirited concert. The Calais Guitar Ensemble performed "Ode to Joy" from Beethoven's Ninth Symphony. The Calais Upper School choir wowed the audience with their renditions of "Lean on Me," "I'll Stand by You," and Leonard Cohen's heartfelt "Hallelujah."
The teacher choir performed "Hanukkah Shalom" and "Carol of the Bells" along with the classic, "Jingle Bell Rock."
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| The Upper School choir sings "Hallelujah". |
Students and staff have been rehearsing for the show for the pa
st
few months
and we are all proud of the beautiful music they make!
We'd like to thank everyone that made the concert a success: Mrs. Mutchler
for putting together a wonderful and exciting show, Ms. Eilert for accompanying on the piano, Ms. Geise for joining the band
on the flute, Mr. Rosocha for accompanying t
he chorus
on the bass guitar
Thank you to Assistant Principal
Mr. Sokolewicz,
who learned to play the drums for a day!
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The teacher choir meets every Friday at 7:30 so they can join in our concerts!
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We would also like to send a special thank
you
to
our student
pe
rformers for their hard work and our great parents, friends, and families for being
such a great audience.
We had a full
house and are so thankful so many of you joined us for a great show.
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SLE Rocks the 21st Century!
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Lisa Vallo
The Calais School's Structured Learning Experience students are on their
way to becoming responsible, informed, and prepared citizens.
Designed to enable students to actively participate in the global workplace, the SLE program engages students in the challenges and opportunities of the 21st century.
SLE students demonstrate what they've learned in the classroom by applying creative and critical thinking skills at work sites throughout the community. Encouraged to work independently, students use problem solving skills and develop interpersonal social skills as they navigate the complexities of living and working in the 21st Century.
Recently, SLE
students participated in the Novartis Disability Mentoring Day and practiced TIPs (Training for Independent Practices) at the Livingston Mall, ShopRite of Greater Morristown, as well a local luncheonette Fercho's Deli. Also, a representative from the New Jersey Travel Independence Program is working with students to plan an outing using public transportation.
In the meantime, SLE students continue the process of career awareness, exploration and preparation to navigate the competitive work environment of today.
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Students Send Letters of Gratitude to our Troops
To commemorate Veterans Day, studen
ts in Mr. Maturo's class s
ent our service men and women letters and artwork thanking them for their service to our country.
Letters
were sent through Operation Gratitude, a letter-writing campaign
for students to send letters of thanks and appreciation to veterans and current service members. We are so proud to have such wonderful, thoughtful students and staff who went our of their way to thank our troops.
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Record-Breaking Behavior in Class 201!
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Barbara Perillo
Congratulations to Class 201 for their outstanding behavior for 8 weeks in a row! They are continuing to maintain Platinum Level and have been awarded the Platinum Cup to keep in their classroom. My students have been motivating each other to stay Platinum in order to hold the cup. I am so proud of them! Keep up the great work!
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The Calais School
5K Walk/Run
May 22nd, 2016
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The Calais Foundation
2016 Golf Classic
June 30th, 2016
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Please stay tuned for two big events coming up in 2016! Our first annual Calais 5K Walk/Run will be in May. Please let me know if you are interesting in volunteering or participating in an event that is sure to bring us all together for a good time! In June, The Calais Foundation will host a golf outing at Crystal Springs in Sussex County. Start practicing your swing...
If you have not joined our PTO, please consider doing so!
Support program development for your children and become part of a vibrant community of parents and families. The PTO's latest meeting offered a holiday movie for children and a cookie swap for the adults.
On a personal note, I want to thank you all for sharing your time, your talents, your generosity, and your children with us. It is a pleasure to be a part of Calais, a school that encourages our students to become the people they were meant to be. I look forward to seeing you all in the weeks and months to come.
On behalf of all of us at The Calais School, thank you.
We wish you all the joy and happiness of the season.
Warmest regards,
Megan LoBue
Communications and Development Coordinator, The Calais School
Trustee, The Calais Foundation
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