NORTH HUNTERDON HIGH SCHOOL
Annandale, NJ
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January 2023 E-Newsletter |
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Upcoming Events
The following is a list of important upcoming events:
- January 3: School Reopens
- January 9: NHEF Meeting, 7-8 pm
- January 10: 8th Grade Student Orientation, 9:15-12:15pm
- January 11: 8th Grade Student Orientation, 9:15-12:15pm
- January 11: Course Selection Opens for 2023-2024 school year
- January 11: 8th Grade Parent Orientation, 6:30-8 pm, Theater
- January 12: Science League Competition, 2:30, Room 201
- January 16: School Closed, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
- January 20: First Semester/2nd Marking Period End
- January 20: Course Selection for 2023-2024 Ends
- January 20: Early Dismissal Students only at 11:55 am, Staff In-Service
- January 23: Second Semester/3rd Marking Period Begin
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December Students of the Month |
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Avni Kondra
Class of 2023
Senior Avni Kondra is Vice-President of the Key Club and President of the Spanish Club. Avni is the foil squad captain for the Girls Varsity Fencing Team. The team placed third in the district tournament and placed in the top 10 for the state tournament last season. She is part of the National English Honor Society, National Science Honor Society, National Spanish Honor Society, Rho Kappa Social Studies, and National Honor Society. Avni’s favorite class at North is Anatomy with Mr. Owdij. Her lab group had a lot of fun dissecting their cat they named Cement. Avni is also enjoying Economics this year with Mr. McSweeney because he always makes the class interesting. Outside of North, Avni volunteers with the non-profit organization Asha-Jyothi, through which she earned a Gold President's Volunteer Service Award. She loves to paint and runs a small business through which she sells hand-painted shoes. Anvi’s favorite NHHS memories are feeding Mr. Pritchett's lizard during APES with her friends Micaela, Anokhi, and Danica. As well as doing Just Dance during Baile Viernes in Spanish. Next year, Avni plans to major in Business at college. She liked her experience at North because it is where she met some of her closest friends.
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Clayton Tomlinson
Class of 2023
Clayton Tomlinson has had four amazing years at North Hunterdon. Clayton is part of Model UN, the Latin Club, and the Boys Fencing Team. He is also in Technical, Social Studies, Math, Science, and National Honor Societies. Clayton is part of the Senatus for Latin Club to help plan Latin-themed events, has received a gold and silver medal as a result of his scores on the National Latin Exam, is one of the Youth Secretariats in Model UN, is the foil squad leader of the Boys Fencing Team, is the secretary for the Technical and Math honor societies. Clayton’s favorite classes at North have been the Biomedical Sciences Academy and Latin. He enjoyed the content of the AP Bio course when the curriculum went deeper into the concepts he had learned in Honors Biology. Clayton appreciated being able to form a more detailed understanding of many complex biological processes and thought the labs were amazing. Despite having to work around COVID restrictions, Mrs. Flynn made an incredible effort to make sure her students had great lab experiences. Clayton is currently completing a three-month EMT course which has required approximately fourteen hours of classroom instruction and ten hours of homework each week. Soon, he will be certified and licensed to practice as an EMT in New Jersey once he turns 18. With the rescue squad, Clayton currently volunteers as a cadet, which allows him to ride the ambulance. Since February, he has volunteered over 300 hours with some life-changing experiences, from actually performing CPR on a patient to responding to car crashes. Clayton fences competitively outside of North at a local club and competes in regional and national competitions. He has been named to the USA Fencing All-Academic Team his sophomore and junior year, an honorable mention for the USA Fencing All American Team his sophomore year, and qualified for the 2021 Fencing Junior Olympics and the 2022 Fencing Summer Nationals. This summer, Clayton attended the Governor’s School of New Jersey Program in Engineering & Technology at Rutgers University, where he was able to study and work on research projects. He also volunteers for the annual book drive organized by the Friends of Hunterdon County Library and works during the book collection days, where he is in charge of stacking and storing books to be sorted for the final sale. Next year, Clayton plans to attend Johns Hopkins University, his dream school, but is also interested in the University of Virginia, Boston University, and Rutgers. Wherever Clayton goes, he hopes to major in Biomedical Engineering or other biological sciences-related fields, as he intends to apply to medical school after college.
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December Athletes of the Month |
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Bella Hoffman
Class of 2023
Senior Bella Hoffman has been swimming competitively for ten years. Bella also swims for a club team called the Greater Somerset YMCA, when she isn’t swimming for North. One of the strongest skills she has when it comes to swimming is her competitiveness. Swimming is a very individual sport so you have to be competitive to want to win or beat the person in the lane next to you. Bella’s best events are the 200 backstroke, the 100 backstroke, and the 200 IM. She is excited to compete in the upcoming Meet of Champions. The meet is always fun and she is looking forward to seeing how well she will do. Bella will be attending the University of Connecticut next year and will be swimming Division 1 for UConn. She will major in Business and will most likely minor in Photography and Videography, in which she is very interested. She has been taking pictures for many of the fall sports at North, including football, field hockey, soccer and volleyball. Bella says her experience at North has been a rollercoaster. The years have brought a lot of ups and downs, but in the end, she got to be who she is now and it was a great time she will never forget.
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Isabel Sojka
Class of 2023
Senior Isabel Sojka has been dancing since she was three years old. Isabel started competing in fifth grade at Broadway Bound Dance Center on their Tap Team. She later joined the competition team at BBDC in seventh grade and then North’s Dance Team in her freshman year. The dance team has been hard at work for their first competition on January 15. They will be competing in both Jazz and Pom. One of the team's goals for this season is to place with either of the routines. Last year, the Lady Lions placed first overall with their Pom routine, which was a huge accomplishment, as it was the first time ever competing in Pom. Isabel is also a part of the music department at North and has been a member of many of the choirs. She was in Freshman Choir and Concert Choir her sophomore and senior years, Madrigal Singers her sophomore and junior years, and is now in Show Choir. Just like dance, music has been a big part of her life ever since she can remember. Isabel is also a member of the Interact and Diversity Clubs at North. Next year, Isabel plans to continue dancing in college. She hopes to join the dance team at whatever college she ends up attending. Isabel used to do competitive ski racing at Belleayre Mountain for five years. After her junior year of high school, she decided to quit to focus more on dance. She still loves racing and will continue to ski in her free time. Isabel says her experience at North has allowed her to dive deeper into the things she loves most and has let her meet many new people with similar interests. Her time at North has allowed her to grow as a student academically, but also as a person.
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December Department Students
of the Month
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English: Madison Pastore '23 and Trevor Brotons '23
Fine Arts: Giselle Guerrero '24 and Shannon Lacey '24
Mathematics: Madeline Barton '23 and Olivia O'Neill '25
Music: Morgan Treece '23 and Lily Want '23
PE/Health: Regan Spichiger '24 and Ryan Gilhooly '23
Practical Arts: Jack Shea '23 and Nicholas McManus '23
Science: Piper Doyle '25 and Danielle DiEsso '24
Social Studies: Morgan Treece '23 and Paul Smith '23
World Language: Lily Want '23 and Alyssa Klimas '23
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December Good Citizens of the Month |
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English: Morgan Sullivan '23 and Justus French '23
Fine Arts: Julia Mackenzie '26 and Zoe Weiswasser '26
Mathematics: Lea Chukrallah '24 and Danny Kawwa '23
Music: Aria Spinetti '25 and Aleksander Lipinski '23
PE/Health: Madilyn Thompson '24 and Edward Appollina '23
Practical Arts: Emily Zhang '26 and Riley Conaty '25
Science: Spencer Poe '25 and Chwukuebuka Emeaso '25
Social Studies: Ryan Gilhooly '23 and Caitlyn Farrell '23
World Language: Lea Chukrallah '24 and Liam Kane '26
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Top December Tweets from Dr. Greg Cottrell @nhprincipal
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Congratulations to Dr. Carolyn Wilhelm for being named the Teacher Of The Year for NHHS. She is an exemplary teacher that combines her knowledge and compassion to create an environment where students thrive. #LionPride
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Congratulations to Mrs. Rose Szamreta for being named the Education Support Professional of the year for NHHS! Mrs. Szamreta is a compassionate and energetic educator who strives to bring out the best in her students. #LionPride
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Congrats to Jacob Zengel, Shane Cooley, Madison Heller, and Jordan Pai on winning the Warren Hunterdon Academic Meet!!!! #LionPride
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Congratulations to Avni Kondra and Clayton Tomlinson for being named Students of the Month and Bella Hoffman and Isabel Sojka for being named Athletes of the Month. #LionPride
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January is Healthy Weight Awareness Month. Start out the New Year on the right foot by refocusing on your health. The holiday season can take its toll on your waistline, so it's only fitting that January is Healthy Weight Awareness Month.
Please click here for more information on tips for maintaining a healthy weight.
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NHHS Teacher and ESP of the Year |
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North Hunterdon High School Teacher of the Year is Dr. Carolyn Wilhelm of the Science Department. Dr. Wilhelm has been an exceptional educator at North for the last 15 years! |
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North Hunterdon High School Educational Services Professional of the Year is Mrs. Rose Szamreta of the Special Education Department. Mrs. Szamreta has been part of North Hunterdon for the last 15 years! |
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First Semester Classes-
Final Exam Schedule
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January 11 and 12
Fine/Performing/Practical Arts, Tech. Ed
January 13 and 17
English, Health, Physical Education, Science
January 18 and 19
Social Studies, Business, Math
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Emergency School Closing - Winter Weather |
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In the case of actual or predicted inclement weather, the decision to close school, delay an opening or dismiss early is made after the Superintendent confers with various area superintendents, county road officials, police departments, and maintenance departments, in addition to several weather services. Any change to the normal schedule due to inclement weather will be communicated to parents and staff via the methods listed below.
If school is canceled:
A decision will usually be made before 5:30 a.m.
A decision on after school activities will be made later in the day depending on campus and road conditions.
Outside groups using the facility will also be canceled. To check the rescheduling of athletic events, please visit the athletic department’s website or Twitter feed for the most up-to-date information
If school is delayed:
A decision will usually be made before 5:30 a.m.
School will begin two hours later at 9:45 a.m.
All bus routes will be delayed exactly 2 hours from their original pick-up times.
The decision is based upon safe traveling conditions predicted for later in the morning.
When school is delayed, there will not be an AM Polytech session. PM Polytech will be held as usual.
If school is dismissed early:
Students will usually be dismissed at 11:55 a.m. if weather conditions call for an early dismissal.
The decision will be made by 10:45 a.m.
PM Polytech will be canceled.
Please note: when schools are dismissed early, all afternoon, evening, and athletic activities are canceled.
The high school district uses an automated notification system called School Messenger to contact parents and staff members in the event of an emergency or if the school day schedule will be changed, such as a school closure due to snow. School Messenger contacts the phone numbers listed in our system for each student’s family and our staff members, sends an email to parents, and can also send a text message.
For more information on other resources to find out if school has been canceled, delayed, or will be dismissed early please click on the link below:
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The Ski/Snowboard Club will be traveling to Blue Mountain after school on the following dates: January 5, 12, 19, 26, and February 2, with make-up dates of February 10 and 17.
On the mornings of the ski/snowboard club trips, members should drop off their equipment on the baseball side of the building, lower lot inside garage doors.
Any questions, please contact advisors:
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At its Fall 2022 meeting, the Commissions on Elementary and Secondary Schools of the Middle States Association of Colleges voted to award ACCREDITATION to North Hunterdon High
School.
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The Dance Team is off to a great start! They have completed learning their new choreography for both their Jazz routine and their Pom routine for this season. They are so excited about both and can’t wait to share it!
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North Cheer continues its impressive run on the competition circuit. On Saturday, December 3, North Cheer competed in the UCA Pocono Regional Cheer Championships for a chance at a regional title. The North Cheer team won the Regional title in both divisions that they competed in, placing 1st out of 4 teams in the Large Varsity Game Day Division and 1st out of 8 teams in the Medium Varsity Traditional Division. With these top placements, the team also earned bids to compete in both divisions in the national arena at what is arguably the most prestigious high school competition in the country - the UCA National Cheer Championships in Florida in February.
On Saturday, December 10, the team also competed in the Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex cheer competition, placing first in both the Large Game Day and Medium divisions, as well as being named overall grand champions in Game Day!
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The Girls Winter Track and Field season is well underway. The girls have been braving some cold temperatures to work hard on their running, jumping, and throwing events! North came away from the season-opening meet at the Essex County Track Coaches Association Season Opener Invite at Ocean Breeze in Staten Island, NY, with two first-place wins:
Danielle DiEsso with a first-place win in the 400m run – with a State Top 10 and USA Top 50 time of 59.20!
Liz Manatse with a first-place win in the pole vault as she cleared the 9-0 mark – this is a state Top 25 height! Awesome start, ladies!!
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In addition to the two wins, there were some PRs and a number of girls competing for the first time in HS Track and Field.
Also – post-Girls XC season, there have been some published Individual Honors:
Skylands Conference – Delaware Division 1st team: Paige Boyce, Saralyn Frederick, and Cassidy Roop, with an honorable mention to Aubrey Carlson.
NJ.Milesplit All-State 2nd team: Cassidy Roop.
NJ.Milesplit All Group 3 1st team: Cassidy Roop
NJXCTFCA All Hunterdon County 1st team: Paige Boyce, Saralyn Frederick, and Cassidy Roop, 2nd team: Aubrey Carlson.
NJ.com runner of the year: Cassidy Roop.
Congratulations to these great runners for their accomplishments this year!
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North Hunterdon Field Hockey Team was named the Skyland Conference Team of the Year! The Final Rankings for Field Hockey were #5 Max Field Hockey, #7 NJ.com and #1 Group 3 Team.
The following players received post-season honors:
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Lauren Masters was named 1st Team All-State, 1st Team All Group 3, 1st Team All-County, 1st Team All Conf - Delaware Div, 1st Team All Hunterdon, 1st Team All-Region - Max FH H/W/S MVP, Player of the Year Skyland Conf & Player of the Year Hunterdon County! She is also the all-time goal and points scorer for a single season and career at North Hunterdon.
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Sarah Bisson:1st Team All County, 1st Team All Conference-Delaware Div, 1st Team All North Jersey, 2nd Team All Group, All County Team
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Molly Claus: 1st Team All-County, 2nd Team All Conference-Delaware Div, 2nd Team All North Jersey, 3rd Team All Group, All County Team
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Sara Roberts: 1st Team All-County, 1st Team All Conference-Delaware Div, 1st Team All North Jersey, 1st Team All Group, All County Team
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Brooke Cahill: 2nd Team All-County, 2nd Team All Conference-Delaware Div
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Annika Hoyer: 2nd Team All-County, Honorable Mention All-Conference -Delaware Div
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Maggie Sampson: 2nd Team All-County, 2nd Team All Conference-Delaware Div, All County Team
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Kendall Varty: 2nd Team All County
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Caroline Muller: Honorable Mention All County
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Zoey Zahorchak: All County Team
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Boys Basketball has gotten off to a great start so far! The three teams kicked off the season with a pasta party before their regular season games began. Varsity is off to a 2-0 start, JV is 1-1 and Freshman are 1-0! Looking forward to a great season!
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North Girls Soccer wrapped up the year with a final record of 11-9. The team celebrated their accomplishments at a fun year-end banquet. Congratulations to the 2022 season award winners: Defensive MVP- Kayla O’Connor, Offensive MVP-Maddy Lesica, and Coaches Award-Ashley Scott.
In addition, we are very proud of our players who received 2022 All Skyland Conference honors:
First Team: Kaitlyn Brewi, Maddy Lesica, Zoey Pipher
Second Team: Kayla O’Connor, Lily Rogers
Honorable Mention: Taylor Joshi
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The Booster Club has North Spirit Wear available at the Clinton Pharmacy if you ever need to pick up a few items for gifts! They have an assortment of t-shirts, sweatshirts, and knit hats.
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Indoor Snack Shack will be open at most of our home Boys & Girls Basketball games and Wrestling Meets. Thank you to all of our teams who are volunteering their time to work in the Snack Shack so we can offer it to our fans!
Girls Lacrosse will be hosting a Clothing Drive on January 7, 2023 in the North parking lot across from the tennis courts.
Best of luck to all of our winter teams as they begin their regular seasons!
Facebook: North Hunterdon Booster Club (be sure to answer the questions!)
Instagram: NHHS Booster Club
Twitter: @NHHSBoosterClub
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NHEF Mission
The North Hunterdon Education Foundation (NHEF) is an all-volunteer, non-profit foundation dedicated to enhancing the quality of education at North Hunterdon High School. We work together to fundraise and support grants researched and requested by NHHS staff that provide unique opportunities and experiences for North students. The NHEF's mission is to enhance education by funding innovative programs and experiences for all students.
NHEF Grants in Action:
The NHEF is pleased to support a new grant that allows therapy dog to come visit NHHS. Visits from these furry friends are planned throughout the remaining school year in an effort to provide comfort and emotional support to the students at North. Therapy dogs are known to help increase emotional well-being, promote healing, and improve the quality of life at stressful times. We hope the students welcome and enjoy our 4-legged guests!
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Please see our Family Pledge Donation Form. Coming together with support goes a long way! #LIONPRIDE
NHEF Grants in Action:
The NHEF is pleased to support his volunteer organization, whose primary objective is to provide comfort and emotional support to people by sharing their personal dogs. The dogs help increase emotional well-being, promote healing, and improve the quality of life at stressful times.
NHEF Fundraising Campaign:
The NHEF raises money to invest in our North students directly. We have supported over $225,000 in grants written by the NHHS teachers and staff!! All donations are tax-deductible.
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Please click on the following link to read a letter from the NHEF CLICK HERE
Thank You! We wish everyone a Happy 2023 New Year! Our heartfelt thank you to all who support the efforts of the North Hunterdon Education Foundation.
Do you own a business or work for a business that supports non-profits? Please see our Business Donor Form.
Coming together with support goes a long way! All donations are tax-deductible.
Follow the NHEF on Facebook (@NHEdFoundation) and Twitter (@NHHS_NHEF) for announcements and tips.
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Happy New Year to our NHHS students, faculty, and families!
The North Hunterdon Music Association would like to thank our amazing music students and faculty
members for a magnificent first half of our school year. It was chock full of enjoyable events/happenings
and we’re very much looking forward to 2023 and what the rest of the school year will bring.
Also, a HUGE thank you to all of the volunteers that support our students and their programs. Your
efforts are appreciated beyond words!
What’s Next? ….
Winter Musical, “Les Miserable” - many of our music students are involved in various aspects of
this show. You’ll find them on stage, backstage, in the tech booth…. just about EVERYWHERE! Come out
March 2,3,4,5, and enjoy!
PRISM Concert – March 23rd – this is a most unique experience for our students and audience! A variety of musical offerings with professional sound and lighting. Remember – HOLD the applause – it’s a seamless montage of performances with no pauses – just MUSIC.
Future Lions Festival – April 1st - Our High School and Middle School students will work together for a memorable experience.
Spring Concerts – May 11th and 18th – Performances by all our amazing ensembles.
Lions Cabaret – Early May - More details to come! Another amazing show put on by our many talented
North students.
Spring Music Department banquet – May 24th – Our Music Department and the NHMA honor our music students; join us!
Ongoing support for the NHMA:
Our parent-run organization supports our music students and department through various programs
such as master classes, scholarships, and program needs that arise.
Membership drive – one of our largest fundraisers of the year! Please remember that your household
does need to be a member for your student to qualify for NHMA scholarships.
We would love to hear from you if you have an interest to volunteer. Please consider joining our group
and even taking on some roles form our “graduating” parents of seniors. We have a few board and
coordinator positions needing to be filled for 2023/24 – drop us a line and explore the opportunities!
We’d love to see you at our next NHMA meeting: Tuesday, January 10, 2023, Music Room #124
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PTSA Gift Card Raffle
The drawing for the NHHS PTSA Gift Card Raffle was held on Monday, December 19th. Thank you to all who participated and supported this event! We want to congratulate our winners listed below:
1st PRIZE: $ 1000 GIFT CARD Mark & Lina Errico (ticket #5572)
2nd PRIZE: $ 750 GIFT CARD Leonela Santos (ticket # 0582)
3rd PRIZE: $ 500 GIFT CARD Tara O’Brien (ticket #13089)
4th PRIZE: $ 250 GIFT CARD Joe Wrba (ticket # 16908)
Join the PTSA
North Hunterdon High School’s PTSA mission is to foster a unified parent, teacher, and student community. We work with the school administration to plan and financially contribute to traditional class activities and events and we invite you to JOIN THE PTSA!
We are still looking for volunteers to fill officer positions for the 2023-2024 school year. The PTSA sponsors and helps with costs for all NHHS students. Our biggest event each year is Project Graduation and without volunteers, this will come to an end for NHHS graduates. This is an event the high school cannot take over. So please consider getting involved. If you have any questions or if you are interested, please contact us at nhhsptsa@yahoo.com.
PTSA Meetings
The next PTSA meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, February 8th, 7 PM in the Athletics’ Conference Room.
Amazon Smile!
Every time you shop, you support your school! Shop by clicking here, and a portion of your purchase goes to PTSA! It’s simple and easy to set up. Click here now for more information on how to get started!
Stay connected
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Board of Education Updates |
Each month, we will include key topics discussed or approved at the most recent Board of Education meeting. Meetings are livestreamed and you can find the link on the district website prior to each meeting date. Please click here to view agendas, recordings and minutes.
The Board of Education held its annual Reorganization Meeting on January 3, 2023. Re-elected members Kimberly Solino and Jessica Viotto were sworn in, along with newly elected members Nicole Gallo representing Lebanon Township/High Bridge and Beth Kotran representing Clinton Township/Lebanon Borough. The Board elected Robert Kirchberger as President and Debra Bonomi as Vice President for 2023.
The next regular meeting of the Board will be on January 24, 2023 at 7:00pm in the district administration office.
For more information on Board meetings and agendas, please visit the district website at www.nhvweb.net and click on the District & BOE Services menu tab.
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North Hunterdon High School
1445 State Route 31, Annandale, NJ 08801
(908) 713-4199
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