Dr. George Addresses Next Steps for Reopening Schools in the Fall
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Dear School Community,
The plan includes several requirements and considerations that a district must account for and include in their reopening proposal. Our schools must operate within necessary standards to ensure the health and well-being of our students and staff.
As stated by Governor Murphy in his address, there is no “one-size fits all” approach to suit the unique challenges faced by each school district across the state.
Our district’s initial plan for the reopening of schools was addressed at the June 24 Board of Education Workshop/Voting meeting. At that time, I discussed our intention to implement a
Reopening of Schools Committee
, which is divided into eight subcommittees, including Health & Safety, Social Emotional Learning (SEL), Learning - Curriculum Programs, Facilities/Operations, Transportation, Technology, Funding and Athletics, Co-curricular & Before/After School Programs.
To ensure the perspectives of all district stakeholders are considered, this committee is composed of over 150 district educators and staff members representing various disciplines and departments, Middletown Board of Education members, parents and students. These representatives will evaluate the state guidelines and requirements released today in order to provide input and make recommendations into the district’s reopening plan.
The district will also survey our school community to collect input from all stakeholders, including students, parents and staff, to inform our decision-making before a plan is implemented. Administration will provide an update at the July 22 Board of Education Meeting.
Sincerely,
William O. George III, Ed. D.
Superintendent of Schools
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MTPS Summer Learning Resources & Programs
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Please follow the links below to learn more about the district's summer resources and programs.
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Superintendent Search Survey Results
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The Board of Education recently asked for public participation in a survey that would help guide the district's search for the successor of our current Superintendent of Schools, William O. George III, Ed. D., who announced his retirement as of September 1st, 2020.
During the June 24th Board of Education Workshop/Voting Meeting, the results of that survey were revealed. To review the slideshow
please follow the link.
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June 24th BOE Meeting
Video is Now Available
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The Board of Education held a virtual workshop/voting meeting on Wednesday, June 24th via the district's Zoom platform.
The full meeting is now available for review by click the video icon to the right.
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SMART Fund Bill Calls for Additional $5oo Billion in COVID-19 Aid
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A new bipartisan bill in the U.S. Senate calls for the delivery of federal resources to states to assist in the fight against COVID-19.
This legislation, the State and Municipal Aid for Recovery and Transition (SMART) Fund, would develop a $500 billion reserve to aid the response by state and local municipal governments to this public health and economic crisis, while allowing them to maintain essential services.
The SMART Fund would build upon the existing $150 billion set aside in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act.
Additionally, the bill would expand eligibility for aid to counties and municipalities with populations of 50,000 or greater. Currently that threshold is set at 500,000.
For more information regarding the SMART Fund please find additional reading materials by following
this link
and
this link.
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MTPS Time Capsule Challenge Winners Announced
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Thank you to all of those students who participated in the 2020
Time Capsule Challenge
, sponsored by the District Librarians. There were more than 260 entries and 88% of the entries were from Bayshore Middle School students!
The following students were recognized as winners:
- Reed Rachinsky, Bayshore Middle School, for his amazing video “The Hope of 2020” in which he also narrated with his original poem.
- Lewis Forrest, Bayshore Middle School, for his simple but touching black and white photograph of Quarantine
- Avery Lassman, Thompson Middle School, for her poetry, Time Capsule
- Dominic Scalia, Bayview Elementary School, Virus, Domenic Scalia
We would like to thank the teachers and parents that encouraged these multimedia projects.
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Celebrating the Class of 2020 with Virtual Graduation and Promotion Ceremonies
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The Class of 2020 experienced unprecedented challenges this year, but rose up to clear each hurdle and cross the finish line this past week, as our eighth grade students celebrated their promotion to High School on June 17th, before our seniors were honored with virtual graduation ceremonies the following afternoon.
You can rewatch the middle school and high school promotion and graduation ceremonies below by following the links.
High School North and South students were also recognized with virtual graduation montage videos:
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A Single, United, Class of 2020
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For the first time in his tenure as Superintendent of Schools, Dr. George addressed the graduating Class of 2020 as a single, united, student body. Review his promotion and graduation speech to our middle school and high school students below.
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Mayor Perry Addresses Our High School Class of 2020
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A Vision for Social Justice in our Schools
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The Middletown Township Public School District is committed to providing opportunities for our students to openly discuss meaningful and relevant topics and assist them in reaching their full potential as lifelong learners and globally responsible citizens.
Members of our student body, alumni and school community stand together in solidarity for justice and equity.
On Thursday, June 18th, Superintendent of Schools, William O. George III, Ed. D., delivered an
address in response to an
open letter
published by current MTPS students and alumni to he, the Board of Education and our faculty, which called for reflection and action.
"If personalized learning, self-reflection, and the ability to grow ethically and morally are foundational concepts we endorse and use to educate future leaders, then we must ask ourselves if we can do better to inspire the change we wish to see in the world," said Dr. George.
RELATED COMMUNITY LETTERS
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District Honors High School Seniors with Virtual Awards Ceremonies
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MTPS Arts Academy
Hosts Virtual Showcase
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B The Second Annual MTPS Arts Academy Showcase went virtual in 2020. To watch our district's rising stars place their talents on full display please click the image below. Be sure to review the showcase program by
following the link.
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Access the June 24th Board of Education Meeting via Zoom
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Thank you for your interest in attending the June 24th virtual Board of Education Workshop/Voting meeting.
Executive sessions will begin at 6 p.m. The public portion of the meeting will begin at approximately 7 p.m.
NOTE:
You will not be able to join the meeting until approximately 6 p.m.
Please follow the link, or the U.S. dial-in phone option, to attend.
- Please follow the link to join the meeting: https://zoom.us/j/94615942970
- Telephone: +1 312 626 6799
- If prompted please enter the Webinar ID: 946 1594 2970
YouTube:
If you do not wish to participate via the Zoom platform, the meeting will be streamed live on the district
YouTube channel
.
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Opinion: Racial Insensitivity Exists Everywhere, We Are Not Immune
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By Luke Ferrell, High School North Senior
NOTE: This article was previously published in another publication
Middletown, it’s time that we have a conversation about race. Merriam-Webster defines a conversation as “an oral exchange of sentiments, observations, opinions, or ideas”. Let’s “exchange” ways to make our community a better place without “exchanging” hate or negativity. I’d like to explain why even the “fifth safest city in America to raise a child” (SafeWise, 2016) cannot be excluded from hearing stories of overcoming racial adversity.
As a proud Middletown High School North senior and a Middletown resident, I would have never in a million years imagined that the community I love and cherish would ever be subjected to any sort of racial prejudice. Up until the past few days, I have confused what I now consider hurtful and insensitive comments and slurs with humor. We’ve always been taught to treat everyone equally, but have also often been taught that it’s better to “stay out of it” or “not get involved” when it doesn’t concern us. Standing up for what is right and speaking out, even when it is unpopular, has been demonized for too long. A statement made by my classmate and good friend will change the way I see the world for the rest of my life.
On Monday, June 1, Middletown High School North’s 2020 valedictorian, Jada Tulloch posted a video on Instagram, now with over 28,000 views, 7,754 likes, and 1,453 comments. Her video is in response to students organizing a protest outside of the Middletown Township Board of Education office to push for an in-person graduation. While we all desperately want a way to celebrate our accomplishments as a class, I think our greatest accomplishment can be uniting against an issue we’ve let persist for too long. Jada states, “For me graduation represents the fact that I’ve survived years of racial discrimination, oppression, and disgusting comments from the close-minded people that I surround myself with in this god-forsaken town”. This powerful statement has opened my eyes to realize that I have been quiet for too long. Whether I was walking down the sidewalk or the hallways of my high school, I have heard racially insensitive comments and made excuses for it– usually I brushed it off as humor. Meanwhile, a person of color could’ve overheard the same comment and felt threatened and worthless. Today, I realize that not only is it ignorant to allow these comments to reach my ears without hesitation or action but that my beloved hometown isn’t in a bubble secluded from the issues of the rest of the world. Every community displays instances of racial insensitivity, and worse; however not recognizing that this is a problem in a particular area just because of its location or socioeconomic class often normalizes racially inconsiderate sentiments. This ultimately allows a snowball effect of acceptance of more and more “jokes” and slurs that target minorities.
Jada has shared an important and disheartening message in an attempt to make our town a better place. It is simply impossible to dismiss her message without understanding her experience. Few of us have walked in the shoes of a person of color.
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5 High School Students Nominated
for Count Basie Awards
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Every year, the Count Basie Center for the Arts' Education department forms an evaluation committee who then attend and score upwards to 50 local school productions. Several weeks later, a capacity crowd typically packs the historic Count Basie Theater in Red Bank to watch selections from school performances and cheer on the nominees and winners. This year, due to the pandemic, the Basie Awards were hosted virtually on Tues. June 9th.
Middletown High School South came out with two nominations for their fall production of "U- A Play", directed by Alexis Kozak. The nominations included Danny Decrescenzo for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama and Camille Pugliese for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama. We also congratulate Seniors
Camille Pugliese and Gianna Dinardo who both won Arts Impact Scholarships!
Middletown High School North came out with three nominations for their fall production of "Our Town", directed by Amanda Faria. The nominations included
Mackenzie Kanach for Outstanding Featured Performer in a Drama, Joshua Yantin, (Sophomore Middletown School's Arts Academy student) for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama, and New drama teacher to High School North this year, Amanda Faria for Outstanding Direction in a Drama. Ms. Faria added "It is a very prestigious honor to be nominated against so many competitive theater arts programs, actors, and directors. Ms. Faria also added "we look forward to future productions!"
Although our nominees did not win, it is a nod to the expertise and talent that our students and arts staff possess in the Middletown School District. I am so proud of all the nominees and can't wait to see what our students will bring forth in the future!
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District Poetry Contest Winners Unveiled
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Hosted by the district's Library team members, there were an incredible 630 poems entered into our MTPS Poetry Contest!
Of those entered, four winning poets were selected and are listed above. Please note, at the middle school level there was a first place tie.
Thank you to everyone who participated and congratulations to our winners!
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Bayshore Students Earn
Recognition In NPR Podcast Contest
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For the second year in a row, Mrs. Strongarone’s 7th grade social studies classes participated in the national NPR Student Podcast Challenge.
The challenge asks students in elementary, middle, and high school to record a 3 to 12 minute podcast on a topic of their choosing. Over 2,000 entries were submitted to the contest and the podcast “Brain Breaks for Students” by Olivia Badrick, Sara Burdzy, and Ayva Cappadona received honorable mention recognition.
Their podcast included interviews with Mr. Gannon and Mrs. Berg. They discussed the benefits of short breaks for students to socialize with friends, have time to themselves, or participate in another activity to help their brain relax during the day. Olivia, Sara, and Ayva’s podcast has been announced publicly as an honorable mention by NPR and the girls will receive certificates for their achievement. Listen for their podcast on your local NPR station or by
following this link.
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Interested in Learning More About the Virtual Advanced Placement Experience?
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Middletown Township Public Schools advanced placement students and teachers recently engaged in a round table discussion regarding their virtual experience with Advanced Placement course work and assessments. The group came together to help prepare future advanced placement students.
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District Presents Strategic Plan Goals & Objectives Draft; BOE Seeks Community Input
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During the May 27th Board of Education Workshop/Voting Meeting, a presentation was delivered to inform our school community about the 2020-2025 Strategic Plan Goals & Objectives, which were developed with public input expressed in a district survey and during seven public forums.
Watch the presentation by following the link to the right, and review the slideshow by
following this link.
The Strategic Planning Committee is seeking community input on the 2020-2025 Strategic Plan Goals and Objectives Draft through Wednesday, June 10. Community members should email their comments to
strategicplanning@middletownk12.org.
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MTPS Recognized for Developing Equitable Virtual Learning Plan
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The District was recently recognized by the Alliance for Excellent Education for the development and implementation of its virtual learning plan.
An excerpt from the article reads...
"Like many districts across the nation, Middletown Township transitioned its nearly 9,500 students to full-time remote learning in mid-March when it closed schools to slow the spread of the
novel coronavirus (COVID-19)
. In many ways, the suburban school district already had most of the necessary elements in place to support a successful transition, thanks in part to the
five-step planning process
district leaders undertook in working through the
seven gears
of the
Future Ready Framework
. The district had an existing one-to-one initiative that provides each student in third through twelfth grade with a personal device. Additionally, to implement that program successfully, the district enhanced its
infrastructure
, particularly the bandwidth available at its schools, and provided teachers and other school staff members with
personalized professional learning
to support student-centered instruction."
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Interested In Employment
Opportunities with the District?
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Throughout the year new employment opportunities arise for educators, paraprofessionals, and more.
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