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860-350-6647Mr. Raymond Manka, Principal

Mr. Kevin Best, Assistant Principal

Dr. Megan Dwyer, Assistant Principal

Mr. Anthony Blake, Assistant Principal

The Board of Education recognized our Grade 12 Peer-to-Peer Mentors on November 19, 2024. These mentors meet with 9th grade students or students new to NMHS and review academic expectations, joining clubs and activities, how to communicate with peers and adults, and available resources at school. This group of seniors was the first to participate as peer mentors, and we thank them for their service to the school! They are: Emilia A. Ry A., Mason A., Carter B., Isabella B., Barbara C., Anna C., Alyssa C- R. Gabriella E., Victoria F., Lauren G., Sebastian G., Alyssa G., Meadow H., Julia H., Kailey H., Kelsey H., Addison H., Kirra H., Ellie J., Taylor L., Jaden M., Madeline M., Hannah M., Harley P., Haley P., Caden R., Isla R., Lily R., Ava S., Calley T., Riley T., Allyx-Kathryn W. and Regan W.

The Superintendent’s Student Advisory Council held its second meeting on November 25th. These students are insightful and willing to share their ideas. At our first meeting, students listed and discussed school topics that are interesting to them, and today we talked about the best ways to engage students in their learning. Their ideas are so important and valuable to our ongoing progress as a district !

New Milford High School music students traveled to Walt Disney World and participated in educational workshops and unique performances through Disney’s Imagination Campus.

The Chorus participated in an instructional workshop with a Disney performing artist.

The New Milford High School Marching Band performed in a parade marching down Main Street USA in the Magic Kingdom! Catch these superstars at one of their upcoming performances; see schedule below.

NMHS Band and Color Guard at the Open Class National Championships at MetLife Stadium!

🚨 NOTE! Due to the weather on Dec. 5th, the NMHS Winter Orchestra and Band concert was postponed to December 11th at 7pm. 🚨

The NMHS Theatre production of The Crucible was truly superb! The lawlessness in the delivery and presentation was unbelievable. Congratulations to the cast, crew, and community volunteers for an awesome performance!

NMHS SADD hosted the Holiday Blood Drive on November 26th. It was a huge success collecting 50 units of blood, which can potentially save 150 lives. Way to go, GreenWave !

Ms. Trocchio and Mr. Backer’s classes hosted a Friendsgiving Celebration which was enjoyed by all who attended. A wonderful celebration of gratitude and appreciation.

Our Elves helped jumpstart the holiday season by decorating the Main Office, singing Christmas Carols and enjoying a hot chocolate.

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Ms. Linda Scoralick, Principal
Mr. Michael Boucher, Assistant Principal

Ms. Shannon Surreira, Assistant Principal SMS/NES

Mrs. Jennifer Powers, Assistant Principal

Schaghticoke Middle School honored local veterans through a Veterans Day Assembly on Friday, November 8th. Under the leadership of Diana Beddows, students detailed the history of Veterans Day and read responses to the question, “How can we, as students, honor veterans through our everyday actions?” Students in the SMS choruses performed the Star Spangled Banner, and other songs honoring veterans and in support of our troops.

 

Several local veterans were able to participate in our assembly and share with students where and when they served. We even had two Schaghticoke Middle School alumni! Mrs. Diana Beddows, the SMS Student Council, and Student Leaders for a Change organized a thoughtful and inspiring program to honor all veterans!

On Thursday, November 14, SMS welcomed, US Air Force Veteran, Captain in the Air National Guard, and representative of The Wounded Warrior Project, Dr. Tyshawn Jenkins. Dr. Jenkins shared his story with our students and spoke about how the Wounded Warrior Project saved his life. Dr. Jenkins interacted with SMS students and reminded them of the importance of being present, taking care of yourself, and being vulnerable and open to accepting help.

Dr. Jenkins captivated the student audience from the start with inspiring stories, a great sense of humor, a great singing voice, and his overall ability to connect with SMS students. He invited students to color pictures ripped out from a coloring book. When students were called to show their pictures, the audience found out that the pages were colored with broken crayons. Broken crayons still color; just like wounded veterans can serve their country in other ways; a powerful message of never giving up! This is an assembly that will have a lasting impact on our school community and one that students and staff will remember for years to come.

SMS raised over $700 to donate to Wounded Warrior Project and students were able to present Dr. Jenkins with a check at the conclusion of the assembly! SMS will continue accepting donations towards Wounded Warrior Project through December 20th.

On Team 7 Red students completed body biographies in ELA class. Through this assignment students took a holistic approach to character analysis for a text that they were reading. This assignment required students to look at things such as physical appearance, personality traits, challenges, goals, relationships, and significant events in the character’s life. Students on 7 Red dug deep and analyzed characters from “The Giver,” “”A Wrinkle in Time,” and “Tuck Everlasting.” As a culmination of their work, students made visuals of their work.

Students on Team 7 Red have also been spending time collaborating with Ms. D’Amico, one of our School Counselors at SMS. In addition to being available for student needs on an individual basis, Ms. D’Amico has been visiting classes to build connections and community, ensure students know how to access support, reacclimate students to the Naviance program with an introductory assessment, and deliver lessons on bullying prevention.

Finally, students on Team 7 Red have been honing their collaboration and problem solving skills in mathematics. Through the use of vertical white boards, students have been working in groups to fine tune their skills around adding and subtracting linear expressions.

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Mrs. Anne Bilko, Principal
Mrs. Jennifer Chmielewski, Assistant Principal

Mrs. Jennifer Meyers, Assistant Principal

Veterans Day Celebrations have always been one of our favorite days, we had a wonderful day celebrating Veterans! In addition to our three assemblies, many of our visiting veterans joined classes to talk with students and answer their questions. Additionally they had breakfast and lunch with fellow veterans and staff. We love celebrating our Veterans but importantly it’s a great opportunity for students to learn about the service and sacrifice of our veterans as we celebrate them !

SNIS had our First Annual Kindness Poster contest this past month. The theme was, kindness begins with me. Many students in all three grades participated and three students in each grade were recognized as outstanding!

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Mrs. Gwen Gallagher, Principal

Ms. Shannon Surreira, Assistant Principal SMS/NES

We are careening toward the end of 2024 at lightning speed!

We had a Veterans Day assembly on November 8th. Veteran parents, family members and caregivers were invited to attend as honored guests. The students learned about the importance of and reverence for military service and the sacrifices these men and women have made to protect our country from foreign adversaries.

The Book Character Parade was a grand success! Here are some fun photos of the day. Teachers, staff and students enjoyed dressing up as characters from their favorite books.

The first 50 Days of Kindergarten were great! Even the ESS Substitute Teachers got into the spirit of celebrating 50 days in school. Here’s Mrs. Stuart and a student wearing poodle skirts for that 1950’s decade look.

Welcome Michele DeMattia Pesantez, our new School Social Worker. We wish Mrs. Anatolio lots of luck in her new position outside of the district and we thank her for all of her dedicated work here in New Milford.

Kindergarten had fun in Art class making scarecrows using materials with different patterns and textures.

The Fitness Food Drive was a success. Once again, Mrs. Merrill has combined her love of fitness with a food collection drive to contribute to the holiday boxes given to families in New Milford. We also collected donations for Marines stationed overseas.

Students had fun participating in a Spelling Bee here at NES! First and second graders enjoyed the Spelling Bee practice as well as the competition.

Our plastics recycling efforts are going great. We are hoping to recycle enough plastic bags to have a recycled materials bench made for the school. Thank you LHTC for their help and direction with this effort!

The Scholastic Book Fair was successful and fun. Thanks, PTO!

We are continuing to make our GOOD NEWS phone calls and we are proud of our students who demonstrate the C.A.R.E.S. expectations inside and outside NES.

C is for Cooperation

A is for Acting Responsibly

R is for Respect

E is for Encouragement

S is for Safety

The APEX Remix Fitness-a-thon was a big fundraiser sponsored by the PTO. Thank you to all who contributed to this fundraising drive as it helps offset or completely take care of the cost for students to attend off-campus field trips as well as enjoy the many educational assemblies offered throughout the school year.

On Thursday, November 21st, the students enjoyed a visit from AFLCT, “Playful Engineers” as part of science enrichment. This was a STEAM-Powered hands on workshop in which students participated in building chain reactions. They practiced the engineering process, and they studied cause & effect, scale & force, as well as the laws of motion.

We hope our district friends and colleagues enjoyed the Thanksgiving Holiday break!

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Mrs. Catherine Calabrese, Principal

Mrs. Kerri Adakonis, Assistant Principal

Hill and Plain ended October by hosting a family reading and math event: The 1st Annual Spooky Reading Night was led by 29 staff members. Mrs. Calabrese and Mrs. Adakonis greeted all the families. The halls were filled with happy students and families enjoying math games and listening to stories.

Underground Spirit Week for Staff only! Staff had fun with All Staff Twin Day, Staff Pajama Day, Holiday Dress-up…

The Annual Book Character Parade was a hit displaying dressed up characters from books and getting everyone excited to READ!

Hill and Plain thanks Litchfield Hills Transition Center for their partnership, continued support, and ongoing work of collecting donated plastic weekly to help earn the school a Trex bench! To date, HPS has 154.43 pounds of plastic.

First-grade teacher, Mrs. Orletski planned the Annual Veterans Day Assembly honoring 20 Veterans. Mrs. Haynes, the music teacher, led kindergarten, 1st, and 2nd graders in patriotic songs. The artwork was displayed by the art teacher, Miss Zibelin. The PTO generously provided breakfast for Veterans and decorations.

Lead Teachers work with their grade level teams discussing state legislation and NMPS’s next steps with intentional play.

Kindergarten celebrated the 50th day of school by counting and writing, ending the day with a sock hop!

Barkley’s Backyard Garden was the winner and is now the name of the new space !

Students age-appropriately learned about voting and having the exciting opportunity to name the school garden! Staff took part in the primaries deciding on two names. Students took part in the local election, learning what it feels like to have a voice, and practicing casting their vote, whether it was a class tally, an individual ballot, or a digital vote.

Finally, New Milford Public Schools Food Service teamed up with HPS’s PTO to reward the 2 top-earning classes for the Color Run. Mrs. Gray’s first graders and Ms. Koval’s kindergarteners enjoyed breakfast and celebrated together!

Congratulations to the 6 Green Wave student-athletes who signed their commitment letters on November 18th at New Milford’s Fall Signing Day! Nea Plisko Softball – Bryant University, Kayla Delaney Girls Lacrosse – WCSU, Ava Kopp Field Hockey – Springfield College, Sebastian Ramery Football – University of Maine, Ryan Strait, Boys Lacrosse – University of Hartford, Nolan Bell, Assumption University.

The NMHS Golf Team and Girls Cross Country Team were both Runner Up State Champions this Fall! Congratulations to all of you !

 

The goal is to raise awareness of a chronic disease that affects about 38 million Americans. There are 2 types of diabetes and both affects how the body regulates blood sugar. Type 1 is an autoimmune disease that destroys the cells that make insulin in the body. Insulin is needed to move blood sugar to the cells for energy. People with type 1 diabetes are usually diagnosed in their youth and need insulin to treat the disease. Type 2 diabetes is the type that effects the population the most and also effects how insulin works in the body or how much the body produces. The goal of diabetes treatment is to manage the blood sugar levels at a healthy range to avoid complications down the road.

There are many types of diabetes medications and the type one needs depends on the type and

progression of the disease. A healthy diet and physical activity is a part of the treatment plan and can be very effective in managing a healthy blood sugar range. The school lunch program offerings mimic the healthy diet for anyone with diabetes. The American Diabetes and the National Institute of Health recommends a diet high in fruits/vegetables, whole grains, low fat dairy, and mainly lean protein sources. Our cafeteria offers all those options on a daily basis and in fact we only serve whole grains, low fat dairy options, lean protein sources and at least 10 choices of different fruits/vegetables.

Congratulations to the incredible 5th graders who wowed us with their biomimicry-inspired creations and won the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Shark Tank challenge!

Their innovative solutions, inspired by nature’s brilliance, tackled big challenges like clean water, renewable energy, and climate action—and left the judges amazed with their creativity, collaboration, and critical thinking!

As a special nod to their achievement, we’re celebrating with inspiration from none other than Kendra Scott, the legendary entrepreneur and Shark Tank guest judge! Kendra turned a $500 dream into a billion-dollar brand while staying true to her love for nature and design—a perfect role model for these young innovators. To our budding designers and problem-solvers: keep dreaming big and finding inspiration in the world around you.