Friday Spotlight on Mr. Myers

Vincent Myers

Principal

West End Memorial School






•Name:
Vincent Myers

• College(s) and degrees(s):
West Chester University -- B.S. - Elementary Education
The College of New Jersey – MA - Educational Administration

• Work experience:
Taught first grade for five years. Assistant Principal and Reading Recovery Teacher for two years.

• Favorite books
o fiction: My Many Colored Days
o nonfiction: Tug McGraw Autobiography

• Favorite television show:
Lost

• Last movie I loved:
Shrek

• Person (living or not) that I’d like to have lunch with:
Martin Luther King, Jr.

• Visiting this place makes me peaceful:
The park to go for a run.

• One item on my “to do” list that I can’t seem to get to:
Go on vacation

• Favorite animal (domestic or wild):
Cats

• Favorite sports team:
All Philadelphia Teams

• Destination of my fantasy vacation trip:
Caribbean

• Details about the teacher I will never forget who inspired me to enter the profession:
My social studies teacher never gave up on me. As much as I struggled in his class, he kept pushing me to do well and succeed. I finished the year with a B, but it was overcoming the struggle that made me realize that even as far down as we get, we can always overcome adversity.

Think Spring

An article in the Gloucester County Times today indicates that spring starts March 20 but references a meteorologist who says it can snow up to the second week of April. Let’s hope that we are done with snow.

As far as schools are concerned, spring should be here. Our high school spring sports have officially started practice – some as early as last Friday. We are ready for the warmer weather.

As we look ahead to the board meeting at the end of this month, the agenda will include the approval of the school calendar for the 2007-08 school year.

In addition, the board will formalize the changes to this year’s calendar due to the closings we had for snow. As I noted earlier in a post, the two days that we have to make up will be added to the end of the days scheduled in June.

And so – “think Spring!” Last Saturday’s fifty degree temperatures will be nice to return to -- permanently -- after such a cold February.

Health and Physical Education Trip

Three WHS students were invited to attend the New Jersey Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (NJAHPERD) conference in East Brunswick, NJ on Feb. 26, 2007 -- Senior Danielle Harvey and Jr. High School students Sydney McKeown and Zoe Mowl.

The conference is for Health & Physical educators. The young ladies, accompanied by Mrs. Joyce Woodrow, participated in fun activities while learning the value of physical education. Danielle Harvey found the conference of particular interest because she will be attending Rowan University in the fall as a Health & Exercise Physiology major.

Budget Season

The school administration has been assembling budget information for the 2007-08 school year. This process has involved dialogue, input, and direction from the board’s Finance Committee. The next step in the process is for the district’s budget to be approved by the full board for submission to the Gloucester County Department of Education.

There will be a special meeting for this approval next Monday, March 12, at 7:00 p.m. The meeting will be held in the Board Conference Room on the first floor of the Jr.-Sr. High School.

Once this preliminary approval is complete, the board will await comment from the county office. Any comment directing change will be factored into the budget. Then, a formal public hearing on the budget will take place at this month’s regularly scheduled board meeting – Tuesday, March 27.

Ultimately, the residents of the city will vote the budget on Tuesday, April 17.

More detail on the budget will be provided once the board’s preliminary budget is finalized and submitted to the county office for review.

More on Today's Technology

I have written about this year’s technology initiative at our elementary schools – laptop labs that roll into classrooms for a week at a time and link the technology with the learning. It has been a very rewarding experience. The students are anxious for their next week to come around again in the cycle!

The difficulty is keeping up with the changing face of technology. There was a time when “learning the computer” meant learning to navigate the web or learning how to use a Microsoft product – Word, Excel, or PowerPoint.

Now, digital photography, video, interactive web pages, blogs, and numerous other advances have transformed how information is stored and conveyed.

The link below gives a taste of that change. After viewing, you will appreciate how important it is for today’s students to feel comfortable working with the computer as a tool for learning, sharing, and growing.

The video is primarily about digital text . . . but, as stated above, there is more to today's information age. This link is also example of the increased ease of use of video. So, this is a first for this blog. Video.

Pictures, videos -- what will be next . . . a podcast?

Digital Text

Gloucester Alert

Woodbury Public Schools would like to introduce the members of our school community to the Gloucester Alert System.

Using the Roam Secure Alert Network “RSAN,” Gloucester County has begun implementing web-based alerts for important notices.

By establishing Woodbury Public Schools’ connection with the Gloucester County Alert System, our school community members can now benefit by receiving school and other alert types (county, city, weather, etc.).

Benefits:

• Easy signup

• Follow the link on Woodbury's website: www.woodburysch.com.
• There is a "sign up" selection on the main screen of the Gloucseter Alert site.
• The process should only take a few minutes!

• Receiving Alerts

• Multiple types of alert methods can be chosen: text messaging or e-mail.

• Levels of Alerts

• There is a capability for individuals to select emergency, non-emergency, or both. But, at this time, the school district is looking to establish this as our emergency contact only.
  

We plan to run some “tests” once community members have signed up to be sure the system works for all. We have already tested the system “in-house,” and it is very impressive in terms of the speed it sends out messages to various destinations.

Jr.-Sr. High School Evacuation

Dear Parents and Guardians:

Today, the Junior-Senior High School experienced a false alarm bomb threat. The school administration evacuated the building and then chose, in conversation with our local city police, to move the children to our relocation sites – Jr. High students to Kemble Methodist Church and the Sr. High students to St. Patrick’s parish hall.

The police worked quickly to assess the situation and provided the school administration with the word when all was safe to return to the building. We were at the evacuation sites for less than an hour and the entire process was under two hours – including walking to and from the sites.

The police helped to ensure safe passage to and from the evacuation sites. The students were under the supervision of the professional staff at all times. Our students were cooperative and well behaved during this event. The police will continue their investigation to help ensure that similar disruption to school time does not occur again.

This letter has been provided to our students to communicate to you information regarding the event. Additionally, this letter has been posted on the district’s web site. Due to the fact that the high school kitchen prepares lunches for the elementary schools, there was some impact on their schedule as well. Plans were put into place to ensure that all students would be fed – the fact that we returned so quickly to the building helped in this process.

After an event like this, we assemble administratively to assess our emergency management plans and look for ways to improve for any future occurrence. As you are aware, we practiced an emergency evacuation earlier this year. Today’s happening will take the place of our scheduled second practice of an emergency relocation.

We do believe that our planning and practice helps us during these unexpected events. We are appreciative of our supportive and cooperative students and staff.

Sincerely,


Joseph Jones, III
Superintendent

High School Musical -- Starts Tonight

Don't miss Woodbury Junior/Senior High School Theater Club's presentation of Footloose –

Thursday March 1, 2007, at 7:00 p.m.
Friday March 2, 2007, at 7:00 p.m. and
Saturday March 3, 2007, at 1:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m.

Tickets are $5.00 for students/seniors and $7.00 for adults. Seniors free for Saturday Matinee only.

A Question

So, who is out there reading this blog? Have you found this new form of communication to be valuable . . . interesting . . . helpful?

Would you be willing to talk to a report from the Gloucester County Times who is planning to do a story about this blog?

He is looking to find a parent, a school employee, and a student (are there any students out there reading this blog?).

If you are a “regular” reader, and are willing to give the reporter a couple minutes of your time, please let me know ASAP – today! You can e-mail me at josephjones@woodburysch.com. (There is a link on the right hand column of this screen.) Come on now . . . don’t be shy.

Thanks so much. And, have a good day.

Board of Education Meeting Tonight --- 7:00 p.m.

The regular, monthly meeting of the Woodbury Board of Education is scheduled for this evening at 7:00 p.m. The meeting is held in the Board Conference Room on the first floor of the high school building.

Our Teachers of the Year will be in attendance and formally recognized. Additionally, Board President, Frank Gwalthney, will provide an update from his recent participation in the Federal Relations Network Conference with the National School Boards Association. The board will also receive reports on the ongoing construction projects and the bids associated with the final HVAC work scheduled for Walnut Street School.

The agendas for all board meetings can be found on the school district's website: www.woodburysch.com.

Regular Opening

Well, we seemed to have dodged most of the storm.

It would be complicated to always be posting -- on websites, newscast, and other forms of communication – that schools are OPEN AS USUAL. That is why you will typically only see it noted when schools are either delayed or closed.

That doesn’t mean that people are not up early assessing the situation to make the call that we actually are ready to open on time. Today, our facilities director and custodial staff were in very early to check on the school grounds and begin any necessary clean-up work associated with the snow/sleet/ice mix from yesterday and overnight.

Additionally, I am at that same early hour to assess the situation, make any necessary calls to Woodbury personnel, and then participate in a countywide conference call with Gloucester County superintendents.

All of that to simply determine that will be opening as normal. So, we do NOT make any calls to KYW – or Channel 13, the phone chain does NOT get started for teachers and other school staff, and a special announcement is NOT placed on the website.

Nonetheless, since I am up, wide awake and needing to craft a Monday morning blog posting, I figured I would let anyone who is checking in at an early morning hour know – see you at school today – regular time!

Have a great week.

Friday Spotlight on Ms. Rizzi

Antoinette Rizzi

Math Teacher

Woodbury Jr.-Sr. High School





•Name:
Antoinette Rizzi

• College(s) and degrees(s):
BA – The American University, Washington, DC – 1984 – Mathematics & Political Science with minor in Economics
JD – The George Washington University National Law Center, Washington, D.C. - 1987

• Work experience:
Adjunct Faculty – Mathematics – The American University, Washington, D.C. – 23 years
Immigration Attorney – 19.5 years

• Favorite television show:
Monk, Criminal Minds, Deal or No Deal

• Last movie I loved:
Batman Begins

• Music CD that I have almost worn out from repeated playing:
Mama Mia

• Person (living or not) that I’d like to have lunch with and why:
Santa Claus – to find out how he can do so much and be in so many places at one time on one night. I sure need to know how to do that myself!

• Visiting this place makes me peaceful:
The ocean at night

• One item on my “to do” list that I can’t seem to get to:
Take a vacation

• Favorite animal (domestic or wild):
lion


• Favorite sports team:
Philadelphia Eagles

• Destination of my fantasy vacation trip:
Fiji

• Details about the teacher I will never forget who inspired me to enter the profession:
My high school physics and calculus teacher made learning challenging and FUN. My kindergarten teacher inspired me to be a teacher from the first day of school when I went home, lined up my dollies, and began to show them what I had learned in school.

100 Wins for Swim Coach Pegues

Woodbury Athletic Director, Grant Shivers, reported that our swim team coach, Joe Pegues, recorded his 100th career coaching victory on Jan 16th versus Haddon Heights. Coach Pegues started coaching at Woodbury HS during the 1989-1990 season.

Congratulations, Coach Pegues!

A nice article ran in the Gloucester County Times last week:

Gateway/Woodbury's Pegues Wins 100th

$162,560 Grant Awarded to Woodbury Public Schools

I want to draw your attention to yesterday’s press release by the New Jersey Department of Education announcing the awarding of 55 grants across the state to school districts for the purpose of implement autism programs.

Woodbury’s submission, one of 250 school districts who made application, was selected for funding!

Congratulations to our district grant writer, Dr. Jeffrey Adams. Dr. Adams happens to also be our Supervisor of Special Services. Therefore, this opportunity is a double win for him in that the programming that will be impacted is directly under his supervision.

The two links below provide more information –

Local Gloucester County Times article:

GCT

New Jersey Department of Education website announcement:

NJDOE

Reminder -- Hall of Fame

The Woodbury High School Hall of Fame Committee has announced that its 2007 induction ceremony is scheduled for February 24, at 6:00 p.m. at Nicolosi's Caterers. Sixteen new members will be inducted.

Tickets can be purchased in the Athletic Office at Woodbury High School. For information, contact the athletic director, Grant Shivers, at 856-853-0123, ext. 253.

Inductees will also be honored during half-time of the Woodbury-Gateway boys basketball game this Friday, February 23rd; game time is 7:00 p.m. The game will be held in the Cap Paine Memorial Gym.

The inductees for 2007 are:

Margaret Burnett '27

Andrew Capaldi '38

Heinz Hofers '38

Bill Snyder '38

Lindy Ingram '44

John Holston '58

Chuck Williamson '60

William Brooks '63

Bob Snodgrass '65

Paul Brier '73

John Harbold '73

Stacy (King) Yeiter '85

John Jacobs, Coach

Al Mann, Coach

Jim Boyd, Coach

Howie O'Neil, Coach

Some Weekend NASA Reading

Check out this link -- a few of our teachers have been involved with a NASA project discussed in one of the early blog entries:

NASA

School CLOSED -- Thursday, February 15

The Woodbury Public Schools will be CLOSED on Thursday, February 15, 2007, due to continued concern regarding icing conditions around the schools and throughout the city.

The school properties continue to have significant areas of ice that will prove difficult to navigate safely. The temperature throughout the night and the magnitude of the work that still needs to be done to provide for safe passage will not allow for us to open Thursday.

Additionally, as a walking district, the condition of many sidewalks throughout the city continues to be a concern.

Reminder: The district is closed for Presidents’ Weekend on Friday (2/16) and Monday (2/19). We will reopen on Tuesday, February 20, 2007.

These snow days will be made up at the end of the school year – two school days will be added to the June calendar.

We hope all stay safe!

NEW INFORMATION: School Closed Today

We have changed our school opening status -- the Woodbury Public Schools will be CLOSED today, Wednesday, February 14, 2007, due to the poor road conditions and excessive icing around the schools.

Have a safe day.

(Our front page of the district’s website is being updated . . . the closing of the schools is the official word!)

Student Recognition

Terrific Kids at Evergreen School

January 2007

The "Terrific Kids" Program is run in conjunction with the Woodbury Kiwanis Club. This is a monthly program that runs throughout the school year. The following students were recognized in January at Evergreen:

1st grade:

GiaMarie DiCrosta
Isabella White

2nd grade:

Tyaisia Smith
Sean Aquino

3rd grade:

Kayla Washington
Marcquasia Corbitt

4th grade:

Shalisa Aquino
Brandon Christina

5th grade:

Samantha Aquino
Branden Litle

Additional Recognition:
NaTanya Bryant
Angel Vega

Teachers of the Year: 2006-07

We are excited to announce that the following teachers have been selected as the New Jersey Governor’s Teacher of the Year Award recipients for the Woodbury Public Schools for the 2006-07 school year:

Evergreen Avenue:
Kathy Estep

Walnut Street:
Theresa Richman

West End Memorial:
Noelle Baskinger

Junior High School:
Robyn Sole

Senior High School:
David Snelling

Each demonstrates hard work, dedication, and a professional spirit worthy of our recognition. The selection committee was pleased to be able to choose each as a representative of all the good teaching that takes place across the district.

Woodbury is fortunate to have a truly dedicated faculty, and we are proud to have these teachers represent the excellence that we strive for in each classroom.

Thanks to all who nominated teachers for consideration!

Friday Spotlight on Mr. Howey

Daniel Howey

Guidance Counselor

Woodbury Jr.-Sr. High School





•Name:
Daniel Howey

• College(s) and degrees(s):
BA History/Secondary Education – Rowan University
Master’s Degree – School Counseling – Wilmington College

• Work experience:
Sterling High School (Individual Education)
Coached: JV/Varsity Basketball, Tennis

• Favorite books
o fiction: JAWS

• Favorite television show:
24, Rescue Me

• Last movie I loved:
I really like comedy.

• Music CD that I have almost worn out from repeated playing:
Crimson, The Carter II

• Person (living or not) that I’d like to have lunch with and why:
Pat Tillman. He was a perfect example of what athletes should be. He graduated college in 3 ½ years while playing football at ASU. Though he was considered undersized for the NFL, he was picked in the seventh round. He led Arizona in tackles. Then, he turned down a contract extension to enlist in the Army Rangers!

• Visiting this place makes me peaceful:
Tamarindo, Costa Rico

• One item on my “to do” list that I can’t seem to get to:
Wash my truck

• Favorite animal (domestic or wild):
Old English Bulldog

• Favorite sports team:
E-A-G-L-E-S

• Destination of my fantasy vacation trip:
Tavarua, Fiji

Senior Citizen Special -- Lunch & Show

Do you know Woodbury senior citizens interested in a FREE lucheon and FREE show? Have them mark their calendars for --

Saturday, March 3, 2007

Woodbury High School Library

11:30 a.m.

WHS Drama Club's presentation of Footloose to immediately follow

Please R.S.V.P. to Sharron Knauss at 853-0123, ext. 248.

Only 50 seats are available -- call today!

(Generously sponsored by the Woodbury Education Association.)

Adventures of Lucky Book Showcases Walnut 2nd Grade Authors

Take one extremely cute teddy bear. Add two educators who enjoy teaching writing. Mix well with 26 enthusiastic second graders and you have the recipe for an exciting elementary school publishing project.

One day last Fall, Curriculum and Instruction Supervisor Alysa Cummings placed a stuffed animal in Suzanne Hill’s classroom. She had tied a tag around the teddy bear’s leg that read: “will you please take good care of me?” The students were quite curious about their classroom visitor; they quickly named the teddy bear Lucky. The project kicked off with a group writing activity focused on just describing the bear.

The following week, Ms. Cummings came into the classroom with a digital photo of Lucky sitting at Mr. Gamble’s desk. “When you all went home from school the other day, it looks like Lucky decided to go on an adventure. He went down the hall to the principal’s office. What do you think happened while he was there?” The students began to write:


Lucky saw the Walnut Street School lunch menus on Mr. Gamble’s desk. He changed Monday’s lunch to ice cream and nachos. After that he changed Tuesday’s lunch to candy corn and chocolate milk.

The students’ suggestions translated into next chapters. In short order, Lucky popped up in the Walnut Street School library, the music room, the cafeteria and the playground. Ms. Cummings worked with Ms. Hill to combine individual student pieces into chapters describing each of Lucky’s adventures around Walnut Street School. The teachers found that chapter by chapter, the students needed less help expressing their ideas, until by the end, they could just look at a digital photograph of Lucky and begin telling a story.

A copy of Lucky’s Adventures will be spiral bound and donated to the Walnut Street School library for other children to enjoy. For now, a bulletin board outside of Ms. Hill’s second grade classroom celebrates the students’ imagination and enthusiasm for writing. The writing project is moving to West End School this month and will showcase the adventures of a monkey named Bananas. By March, the project will be underway in Evergreen Avenue School as well.

Teen P.E.P Family Night Workshop

Interested in communicating more effectively with teenagers?

Attend our Teen P.E.P. Family Night Workshop

Wednesday, February 7, 2007

Woodbury Jr.-Sr. High School Auditorium

6:30 p.m.

All are Welcome!

Contact Mrs. Donna Locovara at 853-0123, ext. 336 with any questions.

Teen P.E.P. stands for Teen Preventative Education Program. For more information check out:
http://www.princetonleadership.org/teenpep.html

Speed Stacking at West End Memorial School

What is Speed Stacking?
Stacking is an exciting individual and team sport where participants stack and un-stack twelve specially designed plastic cups in pre-determined sequences. Individually, stackers race against the clock for fastest or best times. Stackers may also compete on a relay team racing against another team in head-to-head competition.

Why Speed Stacking?
Stacking can be individualized, allowing each student to work towards success at his/her own level. It is also geared to include students of all ability levels, allowing every student to reach success.

What Does Speed Stacking Reinforce?
Stacking reinforces perseverance and practice as a way to improve personal bests; the value of teamwork; and the importance of never giving up. In stacking, we will teach “Fix your fumbles when they happen and NEVER give up!”

General Information

Speed Stacking will be held

• at West End
• every Monday
• beginning February 5th
• from 3:00-4:00

This new club is for fourth and fifth graders; the principal, Mr. Myers, will guide the students through the fundamentals of Speed Stacking, individual time trials and team competitions. Mr. Myers remarked, "Who knows……when we become experts, we can even enter local tournaments!"

Friday Spotlight on Ms. Warden

Liz Warden

ESL Teacher

Woodbury Jr.-Sr. High School






•Name:
Liz Warden

• College(s) and degrees(s):
Douglass College, English Education; Rider University, ESL Certificate

• Work experience:
12 years ESL

• Favorite books
o fiction: Owen Meaney
o nonfiction: 1776

• Favorite television show:
The Sopranos

• Last movie I loved:
The Devil Wears Prada

• Music CD that I have almost worn out from repeated playing:
Neil Young

• Person (living or not) that I’d like to have lunch with and why:
Hillary Clinton. I’d like to know what inspires her energy and drive.

• Visiting this place makes me peaceful:
The ocean

• One item on my “to do” list that I can’t seem to get to:
Filling out insurance forms.

• Favorite animal (domestic or wild):
My dog, Bo

• Favorite sports team:
Not into sports.

• Destination of my fantasy vacation trip:
Viet Nam

• Details about the teacher I will never forget who inspired me to enter the profession:
Caring on a personal level; excited about the subject matter; ability to make students feel the excitement and become involved.

NAEP Testing

Today, eighty-seven Woodbury 8th grade students are scheduled to participate in the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) Testing. NAEP is given by the U.S. Department of Education and provides an assessment of what American students know and can do in key subject areas. It is the only ongoing nationally representative assessment that provides this valuable information.

NAEP has been given in schools nationwide for more than thirty-five years. You may have taken the test yourself when you were in school. The results are published in a report called The Nation's Report Card. These results provide reliable student achievement information for educators, parents, and other citizens.

The test will assess three subjects: reading, writing, and mathematics. Each child at the Woodbury test site will take the assessment for one of these subject areas.

We are excited about this opportunity for Woodbury students to help demonstrate the achievement of American students overall!

Early Dismissal Update

Thanks for everyone’s patience and understanding with regard to our heating system difficulty at the Jr-Sr High School today – Tuesday, January 30.

The new geothermal heat/air conditioning system had an unusual problem with a gasket that caused a leak in the piping. As a result, we needed to close the system down to address the concern. The lack of heat is what resulted in the early dismissal of school.

We do not anticipate that this problem will occur again. Our contractors were surprised to see this gasket issue develop.

The early dismissal was announced on our official outlets for such action – KYW (CBS) and local access Channel 13. We had the dismissal noted on both our district website and phone system. Additionally, we did contact the other major television stations to help in having this closing announced – ABC and NBC.

Students were informed that, if there was any difficulty with access to their home, they should stop at the office for help. Access was made available to telephones for those who needed to make contact with a parent.

The building’s heat has been restarted – we ARE scheduled for school tomorrow, Wednesday, January 31.

The Future of High Schools in New Jersey

The New Jersey Department of Education is conducting meetings hosted by the New Jersey High School Redesign Steering Committee. This committee is meeting across the state to provide information and gain feedback regarding ways to strengthen high school education in New Jersey.

All are welcome to attend.

The meeting in our area is scheduled for –

Thursday, February 8, 2007
7:00-9:00 p.m.
Washington Township High School
519 Hurffville-Cross Keys Road
Sewell, New Jersey 08080


For more information, please visit

NJ High School Redesign Steering Committee

AVID Update

Mrs. Dunham, Principal of the Jr.-Sr. High School recently attended an AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination) Parent Night presentation for the parents of Woodbury students participating in the program. It was held last Thursday evening – January 25. The following is her account of the program and her reaction to the students who were involved in the presentation:


Even though the meeting was only one hour long – it was the most powerful sixty minutes I have ever experienced! AVID students from the ninth and tenth grade classes shared AVID learning techniques that help them perform their best in every class they take. Students shared simple, but effective techniques:

• personal flashcards for the visual and literal learner,
• Cornell notes – a note taking tool; one student showed examples of its use in science and literacy classes, and
• the AVID binder – a binder that organizes their work in every class and that every student present (there were 20 students there) claimed was the most significant benefit to being in the program.

As a final presentation, seven students presented a phenomenal sampling of the Socratic Seminar – an activity in listening and sharing. The discussion topic, “How AVID Has Made A Difference In My Life,” served to prove the power of support and encouragement in a student’s school experience. Out of mouths of young teenagers – we heard students claim a sense of “security”, a conviction that they would not and could not fail, the realization that they could be the kind of student they always desired to be: one making good grades. Students acknowledged pride in their work and their work ethic. More importantly – every student in attendance professed a desire --even eagerness -- for the college experience!

I left the meeting inspired and encouraged -- knowing that the AVID program is one of the most powerful instructional programs to come along in education. In a perfect world, every student would be AVIDIZED! It would be the best support we could provide to our students.

Many thanks to the Woodbury Board of Education for supporting the program and providing our students with an school experience that is positive, meaningful and life changing.


(For more information on AVID, see the posting in this blog dated 9/25/06)

High School Students of the Month

Did you see the pictures of the High School students of the month in yesterday's Gloucester County Times? Mrs. Dunham forwarded these names on for added "blog" publicity . . .

November

Grade 9 Brenton Washington

Grade 10 Erica Dow

Grade 11 Molly Dennen

Grade 12 Lamar Lancaster



December

Grade 9 Jordan Rhodes

Grade 10 Mirabel Sanchez

Grade 11 Lucy Gassner

Grade 12 Jaidy Ramirez

NASA Family Night

REMINDER: Aerospace Technology: How do engineers design, build and test airplanes?

Tonight is the NASA Family Night

Woodbury Jr.-Sr. High School’s old cafeteria

6:30 to 8:30 pm

Board of Education Meeting Update

All items on the board’s agenda were all approved last night with the exception of the resolution opposing the state legislature’s county-wide school district bill. Since the state has indicated it is not pursuing that matter, the board pulled its resolution from the agenda prior to a vote.

Note that the Walnut Street School HVAC bid specifications that are part of the referendum work were approved and will be available for contractors to view and bid.

Planning for 2007-08

The counselors in the high school will be meeting with students in grade level meetings this week to provide high school course selection booklets for the 2007-08 school year (grades 8-11). Additional information regarding the scheduling process will be reviewed.

Parents should take time to review the material with their children and feel free to contact the counselor with any questions.

Board of Education Meeting Tonight --- 7:00 p.m.

The regular, monthly meeting of the Woodbury Board of Education is scheduled for this evening at 7:00 p.m. The meeting is held in the Board Conference Room on the first floor of the high school building.

Students and teachers from the Evergreen Avenue School will be in attendance to present an update highlighting activity within the building.

The agendas for all board meetings can be found on the school district's website: www.woodburysch.com.

Regular Opening

The Woodbury Public Schools will be opening at the regular times today. Please be careful making your way to school – give yourself some extra time. Have a good week!

Friday Spotlight on Mr. Napoleon

Mark Napoleon

Assistant Principal

Woodbury Jr.-Sr. High School



•Name:
Mark Napoleon

• College(s) and degrees(s):
Bachelor’s Degree – Glassboro State College
Master’s Degree – Student Personnel Services – Rowan University
Master’s Degree – School Leadership – Wilmington College

• Work experience:
Social Studies Teacher – St. James High School
Social Studies Teacher – Sterling High School
Guidance Counselor – Woodbury High School

• Favorite books
o fiction: Of Mice and Men
o nonfiction: A Coach’s Life, by Dean Smith

• Favorite television show:
Anything on the Discovery Channel

• Last movie I loved:
Invincible

• Music CD that I have almost worn out from repeated playing:
All my Tony Bennett CDs

• Person (living or not) that I’d like to have lunch with:
Ben Franklin

• Visiting this place makes me peaceful:
Sea Isle City, NJ

• One item on my “to do” list that I can’t seem to get to:
Clean my car

• Favorite animal (domestic or wild):
Gold fish

• Favorite sports team:
EAGLES

• Destination of my fantasy vacation trip:
Venice, Rome and Tuscany

• Details about the teacher I will never forget who inspired me to enter the profession:
I had a high school social studies teacher and basketball coach who connected with me early in high school. I was amazed how he could make history so interesting and fun. He was able to make learning about the past realistic -- video, pictures or portraits were not needed. He painted his own picture through great lessons.

NASA Family Night -- Next Week

Focus on Aerospace Technology: How do engineers design, build and test airplanes?

For an answer to that fascinating question, plan to join us for the next NASA Family Night scheduled for Wednesday evening, January 24th in the Woodbury Jr/Sr High School’s old cafeteria.

From 6:30 to 8:30 pm, Woodbury School district science and math teachers will help students and their parents explore various aerospace technology concepts. They will learn about the actual measurement tools used by engineers and scientists during the process of developing, designing, building and testing airplanes.

During the evening, participants will also move among three different learning stations where they will view a video on the history of flight. Other stations will engage participants in a hands-on measurement activity and a computer-based simulation from the NASA website.

NASA Family Nights are part of the NASA Explorer School grant program. Woodbury School District is the only school system in the state of New Jersey to have received this unique honor.

For more information, please contact Colleen Fitzgerald or Antoinette Allen at 856-853-0123.

December Athletes of the Month

Our athletic trainer, Melody Arno, and high school Athletic Director Grant Shivers have announced the December ATHLETES OF THE MONTH:

Shawney Kersey (Winter Track)
Caitlyn Pipolo (Girls Basketball)

Our high school coaches are asked for nominations each month and then Ms. Arno and Mr. Shivers finalize the selection -- choosing one female and one male athlete of the month. Each gets a certificate and t-shirt, and names are posted on a bulletin board outside the athletic trainer’s room.

Congratulations.

Meeting @ Washington Township High School -- TONIGHT

NOTICE OF
IMPORTANT MEETING
Keep Local Control of Our Schools!

Please join us for a public discussion and information session on the proposed county school district.
TUESDAY, JANUARY 16, 2007
7:00 P.M.
COMMERCE BANK
ARTS CENTRE
(Washington Township High School
529 Hurffville Cross Keys Road, Sewell, NJ)

See the two posts below for more information -- and check out our website at www.woodburysch.com

County School District Flyer

(The following information is going home to parents today in the form of a flyer. It is signed by the various parent organization presidents for the Woodbury Public Schools, by the Woodbury Education Association President, the Woodbury Board of Education Presdident and by me.)

ALERT

Have you heard?
Bills A-8/S-49, S-7 take away control of your local school district!


These bills, if passed, would establish a pilot program in the Department of Education for the organization of a County Administrative School District. This experiment would be for a period of TEN years! Gloucester County has been identified as one of the counties that would be eligible to participate.

• Under the program, schools would be governed by a state appointee and four freeholder board appointments. You would lose local control!
• The decision to apply for the program rests solely with the Board of Chosen Freeholders and the County Superintendent, upon approval of the Commissioner of Education.
• There is no detailed language in any of these bills that addresses students or the quality of their education.
• The bills do not require the consent of any other community or governmental unit in the county. It does not give local residents any say over the organization or operation of its local schools.

The undersigned Woodbury school officials and residents oppose these bills. PLEASE EXPRESS YOUR INDIVIDUAL FEELINGS BY CONTACTING THE LEGISLATORS AND OFFICIALS ON THE REVERSE SIDE OF THIS FLYER.

For more information go to the district's website: www.woodburysch.com

ACT NOW!
THE SENATE IS SCHEDULED TO TAKE ACTION ON JANUARY 22, 2007.

CONTACT YOUR LEGISLATORS TODAY

YOUR VOICE IS IMPORTANT!

[A link on the front, home page of the school district's website (www.woodburysch.com) will take you to where these e-mail addresses can be activated directly. Also, there are sample letters available for you to use/modify.]

Senator Wayne R. Bryant
501 Cooper Street
Camden, NJ 08102
856-757-0552
Email link at:
www.njleg.state.nj.us/SelectRep.asp.


Assemblyman Joseph J. Roberts
Brooklawn Shopping Plaza
Rt. 130 South & Browning Road
Brooklawn, NJ 08030
856-742-7600
E-mail link at: www.jleg.state.nj.us/SelectRep.asp.


Assemblywoman Nilsa Cruz-Perez
800 Cooper Street, Suite 525
Camden, NJ 08102
856-541-1251
Email link at:
www.njleg.state.nj.us/SelectRep.asp.

Governor Jon Corzine
P.O. Box 001
Trenton, NJ 08625
609-292-600
Fax: 699-777-2922
Email link at: www.state.nj.us/governor


Gloucester County Board of Chosen Freeholders
P.O. Box 337 – Courthouse
Woodbury, NJ 08096

Stephen M. Sweeney, Director
ssweeney@co.glouceseter.nj.us

Robert M. Damminger, Deputy Director
rdamming@co.gloucester.nj.us

Joseph A. Brigandi, Jr.
jbrigandi@co.gloucester.nj.us

Joseph Chila
jchila@co.gloucester.nj.us

Frank J. DiMarco
fdimarco@co.gloucester.nj.us

Helene M. Reed
hreed@co.gloucester.nj.us

Dr. Warren S. Wallace
wwallace@co.gloucester.nj.us


Prior to January 22, contacting your State Senator and Assembly representatives above is most important. Freeholder Director Sweeney is also a state senator.

Sixers -- Got Tickets?

Preston Harcum, a 4th grader at West End Memorial, is off to the Sixers game this month thanks to our "Got Tickets?" campaign.

Preston will see the Sixers play the Milwaukee Bucks. He is also scheduled to receive a Sixers pack of goodies delivered to his seat during the game!

Thanks to Mr. Meyers, West End Principal, for this donation.

Below, I am re-running the Got Tickets? request.

Got Tickets?

Do you have tickets to the opera, ballet, a play, or musical? How about tickets to a sporting event?

The Woodbury Public Schools would like to be a "clearinghouse" for extra tickets. We will get them into the hands of families in our district. You will be able to provide an opportunity to one of our students -- an opportunity that may not be something he or she would typically experience.

In a July 9, 2006, letter to the editor in the Philadelphia Inquirer, Carolynn Schneider of Glassboro wrote how a trip to a "free" concert when she was a high school student introduced her to the "glory of classical music experienced in person. That first free concert led to three generations of Philadelphia Orchestra season-ticket holders . . ."

Maybe you can be the one who sparks a new interest. Even a chance for a child to witness a 76ers game in person is something that can have lasting impact.

Contact my secretary, Mrs. Carr, at 856-853-0123 EXT. 214 if you have tickets to donate, or e-mail her at jcarr@woodburysch.com.

If you can provide us with lead time, it is appreciated, but we will be able to "turn around" the tickets with little notice.

What a wonderful opportunity you will provide a child!

Financial Aid Night

The Woodbury Jr.-Sr. High School will be hosting a Financial Aid Night for parents looking to plan the financing of a child's college education. The program will take place Thursday, January 11, at 7:00 p.m. in the Media Center.

All parents (even parents of elementary students!) should feel free to attend this event -- it is never too early to understand this process and to start planning. Obviously, it is a very important opportunity for the parents of our juniors and seniors.

Admission is free!

Band Concert -- Tonight

The Jr.-Sr. High Band Concert is scheduled for this evening, January 9, at 8:00 p.m. in the high school auditorium.

Bannner Across Broad Street

You may have seen the new banner hanging across South Broad Street: Woodbury High School . . . Ranked #1 in Gloucester County.

The school has similar banners posted in the high school, and one is displayed in front of the high school building. This new banner on Broad Street is the result of the work of the Woodbury Support Our Schools (SOS) organization.

There was a cost to create the banner, and there is an application fee that needs to be paid each time the banner is displayed. Each time SOS submits an application, the banner can stay up for two weeks. The organization intends to have it displayed periodically, as long as funds allow.

The City Council agreed to contribute 1/3 of the total cost for the banner and permit fees (up to a maximum of $800); three realtors made contributions -- Cardinal Real Estate Services ($300), Budd Realty ($150) and Art Duffield Realty ($100); the West End PTA contributed $150; and SOS contributed $300. Additionally, SOS has indicated that several individuals have stated an interest in contributing.

The Board of Education thanks SOS for their coordination of this added publicity for the high school!

Friday Spotlight on Mr. Blumenthal

Derek Blumenthal

Math Teacher

Woodbury Jr.-Sr. High School





•Name:
Derek Blumenthal

• College(s) and degrees(s):
BA – Rowan University - Mathematics

• Work experience:
First year teacher!

• Favorite books
o fiction: The Lord of the Rings Triology
o nonfiction: The Bible

• Favorite television show:
Lost

• Last movie I loved:
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou

• Music CD that I have almost worn out from repeated playing:
Third Eye Blind’s first album (self titled)

• Person (living or not) that I’d like to have lunch with and why:
C. S. Lewis (author of The Chronicles of Narnia, amongst other things) because he has a way of articulating things that blows my mind.

• Visiting this place makes me peaceful:
Ithaca, NY – Cliff jumping!

• One item on my “to do” list that I can’t seem to get to:
Finish building my arcade machine

• Favorite animal (domestic or wild):
Narwhal. -- Definitely.

• Favorite sports team:
Philadelphia 76ers

• Destination of my fantasy vacation trip:
Somewhere in French Polynesia

• Details about the teacher I will never forget who inspired me to enter the profession:
Mr. Barnshaw was my 11th grade US History II teacher. On top of having a passion for his subject matter, he deeply loved his job and his students. He treated everyone like family, regardless of what he received in return, and strived to see us succeed. I hope to bring that attitude into my own career and hopefully leave a lasting impression on my students.

Teacher of the Year Nominations

This week, our students will be given a form that you can return to nominate one of our teachers for Teacher of the Year. Please take a moment to give some thought to this annual recognition opportunity.

In filling out the form, try to give an example or two as to why you think your nominee deserves the recognition. The selection committee is helped whenever the nominations include these types of examples of good teaching.

Thanks for taking the time to complete the forms and get them back to the school.

Back to Learning

Okay. It was tough to get back to the regular routine – for everyone. But, once we were back, everything clicked into place quickly:

A kindergarten class was locating North America and South America on the “flat map” of the world. Then, they took a guess at where Central America would be located – and they were right!

A 3rd grade class was learning about decimal place value, and the students were writing numbers to express these decimals. It was exciting to see these very young learners discuss that 0.68 was “sixty-eight hundredths” and could also be represented by 68/100!

A 2nd grade class brainstormed individual New Year’s resolutions --- neater homework assignments, better listening, etc. These were written and posted on a hallway bulletin board.

Another 2nd grade class discussed attributes of different shapes and used the attributes to classify the shapes in games – “What’s my Rule?” and a Sesame Street game of “One of these things is not like the other . . . “

And another Kindergarten class was creating and decorating New Year’s hats to celebrate 2007 after reading a nonfiction story about celebrations of the New Year around the world.

This was just my quick glimpse of a few classrooms. As you can guess, the learning was happening at all grades and in all buildings in a similar fashion. It is always exciting to see the quality activities that take place each day. It is especially impressive to see how quickly everyone fell back into the learning routines. And – how much fun it is to learn!

Again, Happy New Year.

Welcome Back

Welcome back, everyone. I hope the winter break was enjoyable and that the holidays allowed you extra time with family and friends.

New Year’s resolutions can be a meaningful exercise for students as well as adults. Take time to talk with your children (or students) about making personal assessments and determining what can be done better. All of our children can identify areas to improve – and what can be done to turn an area of weakness into a strength.

Read more books for enjoyment?
Help shop at the supermarket to practice math skills?
Design a new homework routine?
Establish expectations for getting him/herself ready for school each day?

Just one area of improvement will give a valuable focus. Happy New Year!

Enjoy the Winter Break

We have an early dismissal day scheduled for tomorrow. I wish all in our school community an enjoyable break. The time with family and friends is special. Enjoy.

We look forward to an exciting new year – 2007 will be another successful year for the Woodbury Public Schools.

We return to school Tuesday, January 2, 2007.

Tonight's Concert -- 8:00 p.m.

There has been a bit of confusion regarding the start time of this evening's choir concern. The event will be held in the newly re-opened high school auditorium and starts at 8:00 p.m.

The show features selections performed by the --

*Sixth Grade Choir
*Seventh & Eighth Grade Choir
*High School Concert Choir, and
*High School Traveling Choir


Woodbury High School
Ninety-Eighth Annual Holiday Concert
December 20, 2006 at 8:00 p.m.

Board of Education Meeting -- Tonight

The regular, monthly meeting of the Woodbury Board of Education is scheduled for this evening at 7:00 p.m. The meeting is held in the Board Conference Room on the first floor of the high school building.

At upcoming Board of Education meetings during the balance of this school year, representatives from one of our schools will be in attendance to present an update highlighting activity within the building. This evening, the high school starts off these presentations. The Jr.-Sr. High School presentation will focus on the World Language Department and the AVID – Advancement Via Individual Determination -- program.

Also, the architect will be present to update the Board on the status of the Walnut Street School heating, ventilation, and air conditioning project.

Jr.-Sr. High Choir Concerts

We just received word that the correction to our auditorium seating has been completed, and the room is now available for use.

Therefore, this Wednesday’s choir performance will be held at the school! We are pleased to have our new room back in operation. Doc Maddison will be speaking with our students today regarding the change.

Jr. High performance @ 6:30 p.m.
Sr. High performance @ 8:00 p.m.

Friday Spotlight on Ms. Harrison

Danielle Harrison

Teacher of Grade 2

West End Memorial School






•Name:
Danielle Harrison

• College(s) and degrees(s):
Rutgers University – Bachelor’s Degree – African American Studies; Elementary Education

• Work experience:
Cherry Hill Public Schools (long-term sub – 4th grade)
Camden Charter School (long-term sub – 5th grade)

• Favorite books
o fiction: Polar Express
o nonfiction: The First Day of School, by Harry Wong

• Favorite television show:
America’s Next Top Model

• Last movie I loved:
Akeelah the Bee

• Music CD that I have almost worn out from repeated playing:
Beyoncé (B-Day)

• Person (living or not) that I’d like to have lunch with and why:
Martin Luther King. He was an inspiration to all people for Civil Rights and peace in this country.

• Visiting this place makes me peaceful:
Florida (Orange Lake Resort)

• One item on my “to do” list that I can’t seem to get to:
Filing all my paperwork and bills at home

• Favorite animal (domestic or wild):
Cheetah

• Favorite sports team:
Eagles

• Destination of my fantasy vacation trip:
Africa

• Details about the teacher I will never forget who inspired me to enter the profession:
A teacher I will never forget was my fourth grade teacher at West End, Miss Schaffer. She was very loving, funny, and she cared for her students. She also had great classroom treats to share on Fridays!

Emergency Alert System

Mrs. Pennell, our school Business Administrator, was very impressed with a presentation regarding a county service that we will be looking to employ in the near future. I have attached below some information about the Roam Secure system from the company’s website. Gloucester County has purchased access to the system and is making it available to schools in the county. Woodbury is excited about what the system will allow for our schools as a way to provide information to our community in the case of emergencies.

This information is very preliminary -- kind of advanced, insider’s information for blog users. I anticipate that it will take some time to finalize our connection with the county service. Once we have that completed, we will advertise the chance for families to join.

From the Roam Secure website:

Roam Secure® is the leader in deploying and managing emergency text alerting systems with its flagship product the Roam Secure Alert Network (RSAN™). RSAN is setting the national standard for text alerting each day as more and more people join the tens of thousands of government leaders, first responders, employees, critical infrastructure security personnel, businesses and citizens that rely upon the award winning emergency alerting system. RSAN has continually proven reliable and successful at reaching out to citizens, employees and key personnel over the past several years during all types of routine emergencies and regional crises. RSAN’s patent-pending technology delivers targeted information quickly and efficiently, with the capability to send 18,000 messages per minute, per server and it has delivered millions of messages during all-hazards events.

RSAN leverages text-based technology, such as SMS, to reach text-enabled devices including pagers, cell phones, PDAs, Blackberry, Treo, satellite phones, XM Satellite radio, instant messaging and e-mail. These messages provide essential information to targeted groups about where to go, what to avoid, and other important time-sensitive information to secure public and personal safety during an emergency. RSAN also provides efficient two-way communication, through a combination of cell phones, pagers, Blackberry, PDAs, email and desktop alerts. Cities, Counties and States use RSAN for routine paging and dispatch and to warn millions of citizens and businesses in seconds with specific, targeted information during emergencies. RSAN has also been attributed to saving lives during severe weather, helping find missing children and elderly persons and tracking down crime suspects.

In the United States alone more than 194 million adults carry their cell phones with them at all times, and more than 37.5 billion SMS messages were sent in the first 6 months of last year – making text communication an imperative way to reach individuals anywhere, anytime. In addition, as proven time and again during the London bombings, 9/11 and hurricanes Katrina and Rita – text works when other traditional forms of communication fail.

Teacher of the Year Program

Each year, the district recognizes a teacher from each of our schools as a representative of the high quality work occurring in the classrooms. In early January, we will be sending out nomination forms to all homes by way of our students; I will provide a reminder here on the blog when the handouts are sent.

A committee will meet in early February to make the selection. That committee consists of Board of Education members, teachers, parents, and citizens without children in the system. We have internal mechanisms for selecting the Board of Education members and the teachers on the committee.

If you are interested in serving as a parent/citizen member of the Teacher of the Year Selection Committee, please send me an e-mail. (There is a link off to the right hand side on this blog site.) Please indicate if you have children in the system and what grades/schools they attend. It is best if our parent representatives have children currently attending two different schools in the district (elementary/Jr.-Sr. High school).

There are only a couple spots available on the committee. A decision on the committee membership will be made in January. Parent/citizen participation is important and appreciated.

All Systems Go

With colder temperatures in recent days, we have had a good chance to test the new geothermal systems at the Jr.-Sr. High School, West End, and Evergreen. We are pleased to report that the overall performance has been good. The system can be controlled remotely through an Internet connection so that troubleshooting can occur at all hours and from locations off-site.

Additionally, a significant cost savings results from the capabilities to regulate temperatures during the day and to shift to unoccupied modes during “off” hours. An added advantage of geothermal, the ability to use the ground temperatures to provide cool air during the hotter weather, will have to wait until the later spring months to be fully appreciated!

The heating, ventilation and air conditioning renovations to the Walnut Street School will be reviewed by the architect at this month’s board of education meeting (next Tuesday). It is anticipated that the specifications for the Walnut system will be ready to be approved at the January meeting; they will then be put out to bid. The work at Walnut is slated for the spring and summer months.

Robotics Team Update

I have yet to hear all the details about this past weekend’s trip to Auburn University for the Robotics Team, but I am told the message by cell phone from Alabama was that our team placed 21st out of 49 teams.

That was a very respectable finish since Woodbury’s team consisted of junior high school students and ninth graders while other schools were composed of all high school students. Additionally, some of the other schools competing at this regional site have participated in the past competitions.

All in all, an exciting, impressive, first-year effort for Mr. Ford and the students on the team. Congratulations!

Friday Spotlight on Ms. Chandler

Thilana Chandler

Special Education Teacher

Evergreen Avenue School





•Name:
Thilana Chandler

• College(s) and degrees(s):
Rowan University – Bachelor’s Degree – Special Education

• Work experience:
West Deptford H.S. – Grades 9-12 – Reading Teacher
Durand Academy – Preschool Disabled Teacher
Volunteer – St. John of God – Preschool Multiply Disabled Class

• Favorite books
nonfiction: Your Best Life Now, by Joel Osteen

• Favorite television show:
Dancing With the Stars and American Idol

• Last movie I loved:
End of The Spear

• Music CD that I have almost worn out from repeated playing:
Israel Houghton and a New Breed Another Level Live

• Person (living or not) that I’d like to have lunch with and why:
Harriet Tubman. I would like to just hear her experiences first-hand and listen to the courage in her voice. It would be great to be able to see such a strong woman who helped so many people reach freedom.

• Visiting this place makes me peaceful:
Red Bank National park at sunset

• One item on my “to do” list that I can’t seem to get to:
Cleaning out my basement

• Favorite animal (domestic or wild):
Dog

• Favorite sports team:
Eagles

• Destination of my fantasy vacation trip:
My very own remote island where I can be pampered all day long

• Details about the teacher I will never forget who inspired me to enter the profession:
Mr. Haige. He empowered me to conquer my fears of math and helped me succeed. His class was entertaining, energetic, fun, and a place where it was okay to make a mistake. Mr. Haige helped me grasp Algebra, and I passed the class. I also came away knowing that teachers can make a difference -- if they believe they can make a difference. Teachers are the key to students succeeding!

Jr.-Sr. High School Parent Conferences

Today marks the second and final day for parent conferences at the Jr.-Sr. High School. Teachers are available this afternoon (1:30 – 3:00 p.m.) and again this evening (6:00 – 8:00 p.m.).

The conferences are being held in the cafeterias and library --
Old Cafeteria: Junior High School
New Cafeteria: Senior High School
Library: Special Area Teachers

This is a good opportunity to touch base with some of your child’s teachers to review first marking period student performance.

The afternoon conference time is likely to be less crowded; if you can make that time, it is highly encouraged!

Music Tonight -- Elementary Winter Concert

This evening, our annual elementary Winter Concert will take place at the Evergreen Avenue School. Elementary students from all schools in the district -- grades four and five -- who are involved in the choir and band will perform.

The event will begin at 7:00 p.m. Please arrive early – parking is a challenge. Come and enjoy the music!

White & Gold -- West End Edition

As I mentioned earlier in this school year, we are trying to unify various school publications under the common heading of "White & Gold." West End has had a tradition of providing a detailed newsletter to the families who have children attending this school. The title of that publication has been updated to White & Gold -- West End Edition.

Mr. Myers, the new principal at West End, is excited to announce that this publication is now available on-line. It can be accessed through the district website. Go to the district site -- find West End in the "Schools" drop-down selection -- and select "School Newsletter" from the choices on the left side.

This way, if you lose the hardcopy of the newsletter or are somewhere away from home, you will always have access. Additionally, older issues are archived. You will find the first three months' issues for the 2006-07 school year available on-line.

Woodbury Public Schools

Stadium Update

The contractor who has been working on the stadium anticipates accelerating the amount of work on the site in the upcoming weeks. Some of the early prep work has begun, but the more significant demolition work should be started either this week or next. The timeline for this project has all work being completed prior to the end of this school year.

It will be exciting to see the stadium and field restored to a status that will allow for competition!

Technical Difficulty -- Stay Tuned

The Friday Spotlight should be posted either later today or over the weekend. There are some technical difficulties with posting the picture. (Not bad -- this has been a very reliable sight -- and free!; actually, the difficulties are not with the blogger site but rather with our local technology.)

Anyway, enjoy your weekend. The weather takes a bit of a turn -- seems like today's high temperature will be 69 degrees while starting tomorrow and continuing through next week the high temperatures will be in the 40's! It was only a matter of time.

By the way, as a benefit to the faithful White & Gold blog edition readers, I will try to post any school closing information here once a decision is made. That may make this a more popular destination during the upcoming winter weeks!

Nighttime Activity

The school buildings do not sleep. Board meetings, musicals, school sports teams practices, community recreation programs, adult English as a Second Language classes, Family Nights, PTA meetings . . .

It seems that these winter months bring even more activity to our schools during the night hours. We welcome everyone and look to make our schools vital centers to community activity.

There is a process that is required to secure the use of the building. Groups who already do business with the schools know the procedure. For those of you with questions, you can contact our Facilities Department by e-mailing at mhamilton@woodburysch.com.

Those using the building are asked to respect the fact that we are open for business in an effort to serve both extended school activities and the larger city community needs. Additionally, we ask all our adult visitors to help in monitoring the good use of the schools. Please feel free to ask a neighborly question to anyone you believe may be extending beyond our good will.

We hope that you enjoy these upcoming months when we all buckle down against the cold and spend more time indoors. The Woodbury Public Schools look forward to providing you a place for some quality evening activity during the winter.

Board Meeting -- Reconfiguration Update

At last night’s Board of Education meeting, it was decided to end the conversation on reconfiguring the elementary schools and to retain our current neighborhood school structure. Each board member spoke about how the comments heard during the public testimony sessions helped solidify an understanding of how passionate the parents felt about the value of the current structure.

I thank all for their patience and involvement in the conversation. I am pleased that we were able to employ a process that allowed for each to contribute his/her thoughts.

The development of the 2007-08 budget will now continue without the inclusion of the ideas associated with the reconfiguration concept.

November Board of Education Meeting

The regular, monthly Board of Education meeting is scheduled for this evening at 7:00 p.m. In anticipation of a larger than normal crowd, we have moved the location of the meeting to the high school’s newer cafeteria.

The board members will discuss the elementary reconfiguration during the early part of the meeting. As with all board meetings, there will be opportunity for the public to make comment on both agenda and non-agenda items.

The agendas for the board meetings are posted on the district website:

Woodbury Public Schools – Board Meeting Agendas

Conference Time

This 2006-07 school year is well underway. We have recently completed the first marking period and our winter sports teams have started to practice! It is hard to believe.

Conferences are scheduled this week at the elementary schools. Soon, with the first marking period report cards, the Jr.-Sr. High School conference information will be provided to our parents; these conferences are scheduled for December 6th and 7th.

Please use the conference time to help assess your child’s work to date and to formulate a plan for success for the remainder of this school year.

Remember, our teachers are ready to meet with you at any time during the year. E-mail contact is often the best way to initiate or maintain contact; a phone call or note will work, too! Finally, please feel comfortable reaching out to the appropriate principal if you have any difficulty that cannot be addressed by the teacher.

A Bit More Detail on Robotics

Woodbury Public Schools
Woodbury High School
Press Release
November 21, 2006
Contact: Ari Ford
aford@woodburysch.com. 853-0123, ext. 349


Over the course of the past few years the Woodbury Public Schools System has had a focused initiative on increasing technology, science and mathematics across all content areas through the NASA Explorer Schools grant program. One aspect of this grant, allowed for the development of a robotics course to be taught at the Junior High School level. Over the past year and a half, this course, taught by Mr. Ari Ford, has grown and developed beyond the traditional classroom. An after school robotics club has been created.

Most recently the club entered the 2006 Philadelphia BEST (Boosting Engineering, Science and Technology) robotics competition. The BEST program involved 20 school districts in the greater Philadelphia area including districts such as Moorestown, Dobbins Vo-tech, University City HS, and the Science and Technology HS of Philadelphia. The BEST competition is designed to inspire and interest students in engineering, science, and technology through participation in an exciting sports-like technology contest. Specific goals of this project include:

• Help students understand technical concepts and principles.
• Provide students with a real-world engineering challenge that includes limited time and resource constraints.
• Offer students an academic experience that encourages abstract thought, self-directed learning, and decision making.
• Provide mentoring through accomplished professionals from business, industry, and academia.
• Provide team-building experience for students.
• Promote good sportsmanship and ethical conduct within a competitive environment.

The Woodbury robotics team, consisting of 7th, 8th, and 9th graders, began their involvement in the BEST competition on September 28, 2006, in a kickoff ceremony that outlined the goals and structure for the competition. Students were provided with a box of parts that included: 4 motors, 4 micro switches, 2 speed controllers, wood, PVC pipe, and a remote control. They were then given instructions to design a robot that could hang wet laundry and take down dry laundry. Teams were given six weeks to build the robot, culminating in the actual competition that occurred on Saturday November 19, 2006, at Villanova University. In addition to being judged on the robot’s ability to complete the assigned tasks, students were also evaluated in the following categories: oral presentation, table display and interview, engineering journal and school spirit/ sportsmanship.

Over the course of the six-week period, students worked both before and after school for a combined total of over 40 hours. This work involved creativity, team work, independent research and design, trial and error methodology and out of the box thinking. This past Saturday at Villanova University all of that hard work paid off. Woodbury began the day finishing second in the open rounds; this earned them a birth in the semi-finals. The semi-finals proved to have some stiff competition with Woodbury winning a tie breaker to advance to the championship round. The team then dominated the championship with a 5 to 0 sweep to earn a first place finish in the Philadelphia BEST competition. The students will now travel to Auburn University in Alabama on December 8th and 9th to compete in the South’s BEST Regional Championship.

Woodbury History

The following update was written by Nora Taylor. Mrs. Taylor is our teacher for the enrichment program at the elementary schools:

As part of their Community Study of Woodbury, fourth graders in the Opportunities Enrichment Program have been engaged in conducting oral history interviews with current and former residents of Woodbury. Students have learned that history is not a thing of the past, and that our history is easily accessible through our community members.

Fourth graders interviewed Mrs. Joann Sparks at West End School and Mrs. Evelyn Warren at Evergreen Avenue School. Students at Walnut Street School were surprised to learn that their interviewee, Mr. Jack Sheppard, long time Wenonah mayor and well known citizen of Gloucester County, attended kindergarten at Walnut Street School. He went on to relate that he had recently celebrated his 80th birthday by biking 80 miles!

The taped interviews will be transcribed and published in a booklet as part of the study by the children. Students are learning that the stories of our community are important and need to be preserved.

Moving On

Robotics teacher Ari Ford and a group of our Jr.-Sr. High School students participated in the 2006 Philadelphia BEST (Boosting Engineering, Science and Technology) Robotics Competition. "Game Day"” was last Saturday, November 18th, and was hosted by Villanova University in Villanova, PA.

Each school that competed was provided identical parts and created their robots to perform a set task according to the guidelines for Game Day.

Woodbury's robot performed the best of all the schools represented and the team has now qualified to continue on to the regional competition scheduled for December 8th and 9th. The next round, the South's Regional Finals, will be held at Auburn University in Auburn, Alabama.

Congratulations to Mr. Ford and the students involved!

Philadelphia BEST

Reminder – Public Testimony

The Board of Education will hold its final special meeting to take public testimony on the elementary grade reconfiguration concept that has been presented for conversation. The meeting is this evening at 7:00 p.m. and will be held at the West End Memorial School.

Friday Spotlight on Mr. Roskoski

Mr. Roskoski

School Psychologist

Woodbury Jr.-Sr. High School





•Name:
Gary A. Roskoski

• College(s) and degrees(s):
Manhattan College (1999-2001); Monmouth University, BA – psychology; Rowan University, MA - school psychology; Rowan University, Ed.S - school psychology (expected, 2007)

• Work experience:
Manager --Eden Family of Services (group home for adults with autism)

• Favorite books
o fiction: The Catcher in the Rye
o nonfiction: CASH, by Johnny Cash

• Favorite television show:
The Wonder Years & The Simpsons

• Last movie I loved:
Wedding Crashers

• Music CD that I have almost worn out from repeated playing:
The Wall by Pink Floyd

• Person (living or not) that I’d like to have lunch with and why:
My Grandmother: Anita Franchi. It would be so nice to see her again. I would enjoy just sitting with her and showing her that her influence and love has stayed with me all these years.

• Visiting this place makes me peaceful:
Tibbets Brook Park - Yonkers, N.Y.

• One item on my “to do” list that I can’t seem to get to:
Clean out my closet

• Favorite animal (domestic or wild):
"BEAR" - my miniature longhair Dachshund

• Favorite sports team:
New York Yankees

• Destination of my fantasy vacation trip:
Italy

• Details about the teacher I will never forget who inspired me to enter the profession:
He inspired me and made me understand it was more important to achieve success using my own standards rather than someone else’s standards – thank you, Mr. Day.

$10,000 Grant Awarded to Woodbury Public Schools

Woodbury Public Schools is pleased to announce a grant partnership with the Verizon Corporation’s Southern New Jersey Office of External Affairs. This partnership was highlighted at an awards ceremony held on Tuesday, November 14, 2006 at the Bally’s hotel in Atlantic City. Woodbury has teamed up with Verizon in an effort to increase the utilization of technology in the direct instruction of literacy for our students.

Verizon is providing Woodbury Public Schools with $10,000 to focus on this initiative. As a result, a cutting edge computer based reading program, My Reading Coach – Gold, will now be used at the elementary level. The software was piloted during the last school year at the Junior High School. The plan is to offer this program to our students as a before/after school activity over the course of the 2006-2007 school year.

This current grant award provided by Verizon is one example of a new initiative the Woodbury Public Schools is undertaking. The district is aggressively seeking other grant opportunities with local and national businesses, corporations and agencies.

It is the district’s goal that these competitive grants assist in providing enhanced services and resources to students, staff and community members without increasing a burden on the taxpayers of Woodbury. In addition to the grant awarded by Verizon, Woodbury is currently in the process of applying for funding through the State of New Jersey for enhanced autism programming as well as applying for sports equipment for our athletic programs through a grant program offered by the Cal Ripken, Sr. Foundation.

The district’s grantwriter, Dr. Jeffery Adams, welcomes any information our school community has with regard to additional funding opportunities. You can contact Dr. Adams at jadams@woodburysch.com or 856-853-0123, ext. 440.

October Athletes of the Month

I had a request from our athletic trainer, Ms. Melody Arno, to help publicize the “athlete of the month” program that she has been running with Athletic Director Grant Shivers for the last couple of years.

Our high school coaches are asked for nominations each month and then Ms. Arno and Mr. Shivers finalize the selection -- choosing one female and one male athlete of the month. Each gets a certificate and t-shirt, and names are posted on a bulletin board outside the athletic trainer’s room.

Ms. Arno writes, “So far, this program is only known to the athletes, coaches, Mr. Shivers and me. I would like to get the word out there more -- so that it is announced to a wider group of people. This year, the names of our September students have been able to be announced to the high school students at a pep rally. I thought that maybe you could post the “athletes of the month” on your blog that you post daily. I feel it would reach more parents that way.”

So, maybe this will be the start of the use of the blog as a way of adding some recognition to specific student accomplishments and awards.

The October ATHLETES OF THE MONTH are:

Victor Smith (boys soccer)
Andrea DiCarlo (girls soccer)

Congratulations, Mr. Santarone

Our own Rick Santarone, Evergreen and Walnut physical education teacher, is scheduled to be inducted in the South Jersey Baseball Hall of Fame.

The Hot Stovers Baseball Club of South Jersey will induct six new members into the 2006 South Jersey Baseball Hall of Fame at its 47th annual Awards Dinner scheduled for Saturday, November 25, 2006.

Mr. Santarone, a 1977 graduate of Cherry Hill East High School, had the distinction of being drafted three times by three different major league teams: Seattle Mariners (1977), Detroit Tigers (1978) and NY Yankees (1979). He was an All-State catcher in 1977, All South Jersey player in 1976 & 1977, All Group 4 in 1976, and All-Conference from 1975-1977.

Reminder – Public Testimony

The Board of Education will hold special meetings to take public testimony on the elementary grade reconfiguration concept that has been presented for conversation. The meetings start tonight:

Monday, November 13 at the Walnut Street School
Tuesday, November 14 at the Evergreen Avenue School
Monday, November 20 at the West End Memorial School

Each meeting is open to the public and will begin at 7:00 p.m.

Congratulations

Congratulations to the Woodbury varsity football team for an opening round victory in last Saturday’s NJSIAA South Jersey Group I playoff game. The win over Maple Shade moves the Thundering Herd into the semifinals. Next up, Woodbury returns to Paulsboro this weekend for a rematch. Good luck to all!

Enjoy the Long Weekend

Enjoy the extra time and less hurried pace. I hope that these days without the rush of school allow you and your family some time to do some things together – rent a movie and pop some popcorn, play a board game, visit relatives, read a book with the younger children, etc.

If you are looking for something to do on Saturday, you need to go no further than Gateway High School. Gateway has graciously allowed us to use their football field for the site of our first round NJSIAA South Jersey Group I football playoff game against Maple Shade. The game will start at 1:00 p.m. Go Herd!

South Jersey Group I Semi-Finals

Good luck to the Thundering Herd Boys Soccer team as they travel to Burlington City today to play in the semi-final round of the NJSIAA South Jersey Group I competition. The boys had an exciting victory over second seed Pitman last Friday in the opening round. Today's game starts at 2 p.m.

No School Today

Election Day -- Remember to vote!

Grade Reconfiguration Conversation Continued

The goal of this reconfiguration conversation is to address fiscal concerns while continuing to provide a program that allows for educational excellence. This is a difficult issue and the board is looking for input to help make the decision. It is why the effort has been made to reach out to as many constituent groups as possible. It is the reason for the opportunity for the public to have input at the special board meetings this month. All are important steps in better understanding a complex issue so that the best decision can be made.

I want to thank those who were in attendance at the various elementary parent organization meetings last week. There were a number of ideas suggested that we have already begun to study in more detail.

If you were unable to attend a meeting last week and have a specific question that you want to ask in advance of the special board meetings, feel free to call me. It may be the best way to understand one another – through direct conversation. You can reach me at 853-0123 ext. 230. Obviously, you can also e-mail me with ideas or questions – josephjones@woodburysch.com.

Friday Spotlight on Mr. Gallatig

Mr. Gallatig

Social Studies Teacher

Woodbury Jr.-Sr. High School






•Name:
Steven Gallatig

• College(s) and degrees(s):
University of Northern Colorado, BA

• Work experience:
I have been teaching history for ten years in Colorado -- three years at Otis High School and seven years at Fort Morgan High School

• Favorite books
• fiction: The Razor's Edge by W. Somerset Maugham
• nonfiction: From Under the Rubble by Alexander Solzhenitsyn

• Favorite television show:
VH1 Rockumentary

• Last movie I loved:
The Last Samurai

•Music CD that I have almost worn out from repeated playing:
Hoochie Coochie Man, by Muddy Waters

•Person (living or not) that I’d like to have lunch with and why:
Alexander Solzhenitsyn, Nobel Prize winner in Literature

• Visiting this place makes me peaceful:
My music room

• One item on my “to do” list that I can’t seem to get to:
Clean my desk

• Favorite animal (domestic or wild):
Shark

• Favorite sports team:
Philadelphia Eagles and Denver Broncos

• Destination of my fantasy vacation trip:
Southern France

• Details about the teacher I will never forget who inspired me to enter the profession:
Mr. Hess taught history with passion. He always made me feel like I belonged and that I could make an important contribution to the world.

Elementary Grade Reconfiguration Conversation

The school district met with key school community members throughout the day yesterday, in a coordinated fashion, so that all of these individuals had a chance to hear about a plan that the Board of Education is considering in association with the budgeting process. The goal was to have as many school community groups hear directly from the school.

Esther Pennell, School Business Administrator, and I held yesterday’s meetings with the following groups:

• Woodbury Education Association leadership
• Woodbury School Administration
• Woodbury City Council representatives and the Mayor
• Officers from the various Woodbury school parent organizations

The board has NOT made any decision regarding the matters discussed (specifically – the potential of closing Walnut School and reconfiguring the grades for elementary education into PK-1 at Evergreen and 2-5 at West End). The only decision was to inform the public that the board is considering options and to provide the opportunity for the broader school community to contribute to the conversation.

There are two fact sheets that will be available today at all school offices – one is a list of the advantages and disadvantages of the reconfiguration concept and the other is a detail of the financial impact. These sheets will help you understand the reasoning behind why the consideration of this reconfiguration is happening at this time. Later today, this information will also be posted on the district website.

In addition to the significant cost savings (up to $650,000 in annual operating expenses), the plan also has another important advantage – the inclusion of two classrooms dedicated to full-day preschool. Obviously, the most significant disadvantage is the fact that Woodbury is a walking district and the change would increase the travel distances to school.

Again, the intention has been to assure that as many groups as possible hear the information regarding the potential change directly from the school. A press release was issued late yesterday and an article is in the Gloucester County Times today. The article did not include the fact that there will be three special Board of Education meetings in November specifically designed take testimony on this topic from the public (November 13 at Walnut, November 14 at Evergreen, and November 20 at West End). These meetings will be held in the All Purpose Rooms and will begin at 7:00 p.m. (An article also appears in today's Courier-Post, and it includes all this information.)

Additionally, Mrs. Pennell and I attended last night’s Evergreen PTO meeting. We will be at the Walnut and West End parent organization meetings today.

I appreciate your patience. The most important aspect of this effort is to insure that all have an opportunity to add to the list of advantages and disadvantages prior to the board making any final decision. The Board of Education plans to discuss this matter at both of their upcoming, regularly scheduled meetings but a final decision will not be happen until the December meeting.

Too Much Candy

That’s a lot of candy. My three youngest participated in the Halloween festivities last night and then decided to figure out the weight of their loot. It was a good math problem that required using the bathroom scale, your own weight, and some subtraction. The end result was a pillowcase weighing in at eight pounds. So, 3 X 8 = 24 pounds of candy!

Our kids do not know about the time when every home gave out the "“old", full size candy. Those pillowcases full of candy were heavy. Living in city row houses, we would have to come home to dump our bags during the course of the Halloween night before heading out again to continue with our "“trick or treating!" How many pounds did they weigh?!!

Now, what do you do with all this candy? As a kid, when we moved from Philly to South Jersey, my mother told us that there was not going to be a corner store nearby and we might want to consider saving our Halloween candy. I remember freezing those big chocolate bars and still having a decent supply when we made the move in January.

Today's challenge is to ration all this candy so that the kids are not bouncing off the walls due to all the sugar. Your child's teacher will appreciate that too! Good luck. Maybe stashing a supply of that chocolate into the freezer is the way to go.