Melissa Behrens has been teaching at the Florence E. Smith STEM School since 2001 as a classroom teacher and since 2009 as a science teacher. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Trinity College and her Master of Arts in elementary education from the University of Saint Joseph. Critical in helping to implement Smith’s STEM magnet theme, she has received numerous grants such as Virtual Vistas: Connecting our Classrooms to the World; Mechanical Sculpture through the 4 Re’s (reduce, reuse, recycle and repurpose); Get the Facts! Nonfiction Science and Writing Lessons from an Author-in-Residence; Home Tweet Home; Create and Shake; Try “Acting” Like a Scientist!; Imagineering and Catapults!; Future Galileos; and Weather Watchers.

MissionTo inspire and prepare all students to realize their

potential and enhance our global community

WEST HARTFORDPUBLIC WEST HARTFORDPUBLIC SCHOOLS

West HartfordPublic Schools

A Look Inside:

• LeadershipAppointments

• 2013-2014Budget

•SchoolSafetyandSafetyProtocols

West Hartford Public Schools, 50 South Main St., West Hartford, Connecticut 06107 Phone: (860)561-6651 Fax: (860)561-6910 E-Mails: superintendent@whps.org boardmembers@whps.org Website: www.whps.org

Connections With the West Hartford Public Schools

12-13

Fourth Issue

Connections is a districtwide publication

presented to you by the

Office of the Superintendent, West Hartford Public Schools

WestHartford,Connecticut

West Hartford Public SchoolsOffice of the Superintendent50 South Main StreetWest Hartford, CT 06107

PRSRT STDU.S. POSTAGE

PAIDHARTFORD, CT

PERMIT #751

Distribution Of Connections- An on-line version of Connections With the West Hartford Public Schools is now available at http://www.whps.org/connections.pdf. If you do not wish to have a copy of Connections mailed to your home, please email connectionsoptout@whps.org with your name, address, child’s name and school. Thank you.

Connections is a districtwide publication presented to you by the Office of the Superintendent, West Hartford Public Schools, 50 South Main St., West Hartford, Connecticut 06107

Phone (860)561-6651

Connections with the West Hartford Public Schools

UpcomingEventsInter-Elementary School Festival of MusicMay 22, 2013, 7:30 PMThe Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts, Mortensen HallTickets: $12.00, General AdmissionFor more information or tickets, call 860-561-6638

Bristow Middle School, Select Ensembles ConcertMay 30, 2013For more information, call 860-231-2100

King Philip Middle School, SummerfestJune 3, 2013For more information, call 860-233-8230

Sedgwick Middle School, Pops ConcertJune 3, 2013For more information, call 860-570-6500

School Concerts and School Art ShowsThroughout the spring there are concerts at all schools in town. Call individual schools for specific information.

Teacher Of The Year Finalists

The Teacher of the Year process is rigorous and begins with nominations from other teachers. Nominees submit a resume, essay and recommendations for consideration by the committee. Finalists are videotaped in the classroom and then formally interviewed by

the Teacher of the Year committee. The three finalists for the 2013 Teacher of the Year are Melissa Behrens, Jeffrey Billing, and John Mastroianni.

Jeffrey Billing has been teaching mathematics at Hall High School since 2008. Jeff received both his Bachelor and Master of Science degrees in electrical engineering and computer science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is head coach of varsity baseball, assistant coach of varsity basketball and head coach of junior varsity basketball at Hall. In 2012-2013, he was selected as a participating teacher of an American Institutes for Research “High School Math Teaching Study.”

John Mastroianni has been director of bands and jazz bands at Hall High School since 1998. An accomplished musician,

John earned a B.S. in music education and a B.M. in jazz studies from the University of Bridgeport and an M.A. in jazz studies from New York University. He has studied saxophone with Phil Woods and Dick Oatts and composition with Bill Finnegan and Jim McNeely. John has performed, toured and recorded with artists such as Mel Lewis, the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, Smokey Robinson, and Louie Bellson. In 2002, John was named by School Band and Orchestra Magazine as one of the “50 Directors Who Make a Difference” in the entire United States. John produces Hall’s nationally recognized Pops ‘N Jazz show which recently completed its 55th annual production.

Melissa Behrens

Jeffrey Billing

John Mastroianni

JANUARY M T W TH F 23 24 27 28 29 30 31 FEBRUARY M T W TH F 3 4 5 6 7 10 11 12 13 14 17 18 19 20 21 24 25 26 27 28

MARCH M T W TH F 3 4 5 6 7 10 11 12 13 14 17 18 19 20 21 24 25 26 27 28 31 APRIL M T W TH F 1 2 3 4 7 8 9 10 11 14 15 16 17 18 21 22 23 24 25 28 29 30 MAY M T W TH F 1 2 5 6 7 8 9 12 13 14 15 16 19 20 21 22 2326 27 28 29 30

JUNE M T W TH F 2 3 4 5 6 9 10 11 12 13 16 17 18 19 20 23 24 25 26 2730

OCTOBER M T W TH F 1 2 3 4 7 8 9 10 11 14 15 16 17 18 21 22 23 24 25 28 29 30 31 NOVEMBER M T W TH F 1 4 5 6 7 8 11 12 13 14 15 18 19 20 21 22 25 26 27 28 29

DECEMBERM T W TH F 2 3 4 5 6 9 10 11 12 13 16 17 18 19 20 23 24 25 26 27 30 31

JANUARY M T W TH F 1 2 3 6 7 8 9 10 13 14 15 16 17 20 21 22

(15)

(22)

(18)

(19)

(17)

(15)

(21)

(14)

(21)

(10)

*

*

Second Semester 91 Days

*

West Hartford, Connecticut

Note: Yom Kippur falls on Sat., Sept. 14.

Important Dates

Teacher In-service Days Aug. 26-27 (no school for students)

First Day of School Aug. 28

Labor Day Sept. 2

Rosh Hashanah Sept. 5

Columbus Day Oct. 14

Election Day Nov. 5 (teacher in-service, no school for students)

Veterans Day Nov. 11 (school will be in session)

Thanksgiving Recess Nov. 28-29

Holiday Recess Dec. 23-Jan. 1 (includes Christmas & New Year's Day)

Martin Luther King Day Jan. 20

Winter Recess Feb. 17-21 (includes Presidents' Day on Feb. 17)

CMT & CAPT Testing March

Spring Recess April 14-18 (includes Good Friday on April 18)

Memorial Day May 26

Last Day of School June 13

School calendars are posted on the West Hartford Public Schools website at www.whps.org

AUGUST M T W TH F19 20 21 22 23 26 27 28 29 30{ }

SEPTEMBER M T W TH F 2 3 4 5 6 9 10 11 12 13 16 17 18 19 20 23 24 25 26 27 30

TOTAL DAYS: 182First semester - 91Second semester - 91

First Semester 91 Days

Adopted by Board of Education on March 20, 2012

(3)

School Calendar - 2013-2014WEST HARTFORDPUBLIC SCHOOLSWEST HARTFORDPUBLIC SCHOOLS

West HartfordPublic Schools

*

(7)

The last day of school is scheduled for June 13. All snow or emergency days will be made up after this date in order to provide 182 instructional days.

Dr. Karen L. ListSuperintendent

{ }

* End of Quarter

Holiday/Vacation

Teacher In-service Days (no school for students)

First Day of School

Snow Make-up Days if needed

MissionTo inspire and prepare all students to realize their potential and

enhance our global communityWEST HARTFORDPUBLIC WEST HARTFORDPUBLIC SCHOOLS

West HartfordPublic Schools

WestHartford,Connecticut Connections

Left to right: Hall High School students work on tweaking a robot in Mr. Wilkosz’s class. Mr. Michael Wilkosz was recognized as the Robotics Teacher of the Year. This year’s ArtBeat was a huge success, held at the Salt Box and Clubhouse Galleries in West Hartford. Lloyd H. Bugbee Elementary School hosted an International Night with 30 different countries represented, headed by Principal Noam Sturm (in picture).

West Hartford Public Schools, 50 South Main St., West Hartford, Connecticut 06107 Phone: (860)561-6651 Fax: (860)561-6910 E-Mails: superintendent@whps.org boardmembers@whps.org Website: www.whps.org

With the West Hartford Public SchoolsBudget for 2013-14On Tuesday, April 9, 2013, the Board of Education adopted the Superintendent’s budget in the amount of $140,055,899 with no changes. This budget represents a 0.93% increase over the 2012-13 budget and is the lowest increase in over 30 years. West Hartford’s per pupil expenditure continues to fall. Based on the most recent data from the state, West Hartford currently ranks 115th out of 169 towns (2011-12) in per pupil spending, down from 84th 5 years ago, 89th 10 years ago, 43rd 20 years ago and 2nd 30 years ago. Had West Hartford’s 2011-2012 budget been at the state average, it would have been $11.1 million higher.

Enrollment growth in West Hartford has stopped and the slight enrollment declines we are experiencing will lower the budget increases that the Board needs in order to maintain the current excellent mix of services in town. The primary driver for this year’s very low budget increase was a substantial decline in health claims below the 2012-13 budgeted levels. This was a one-time event – resetting the budget claims to this new level. In future years, we will see a return to a more normal growth rate in health claims and higher increases in the budget.

The budget maintains all of the key programs that are the hallmark of West Hartford’s high performing school system. We have added a small amount of spending for additional security in the elementary schools and for the implementation of the new state mandated teacher evaluation system.

Leadership AppointmentsDr. Karen List has announced the appointment of three new principals to the district. Dr. Karen Fitzsimmons has been named principal at Duffy School; Ms. Karen Kukish will become the permanent principal at Whiting Lane School, where she has been serving as interim principal since November, 2012; and, Mr. Daniel Zittoun will become principal at Hall High School.

Dr. Fitzsimmons comes to us from East Hampton, CT where since 2002 she has served as principal of Memorial Elementary School, a PK – grade 3 school with 630 students and 103 staff members. Prior to working at Memorial, she was principal of Dunbar Hill Accelerated School in Hamden, CT. She also served as a math specialist for the Danbury Schools and began her career teaching grades 3 and 4 and 6th grade math in East Hampton. She received her B.S. and M.S. from Eastern CT State University, 6th year in educational leadership from Southern CT State University and Doctorate from Nova Southeastern University, FL. With a focus first and foremost on children, she is described as fair, warm, and genuine. She has a strong work ethic, excellent communication skills and is a leader among

leaders. Her approachable and very visible style helps to make a big school feel small and welcoming to parents and children alike.

Karen Kukish began her career in West Hartford as a sixth grade teacher, and then became a team leader. In 2007 she was named assistant principal at King Philip Middle School. She attended the University of Connecticut completing her B.S. in elementary education, M.A.

in education and 6th year in educational leadership. Her caring, positive rapport coupled with her passion for curriculum, instruction, and professional

Program Budget 2013-2014 Imagine the Possibilities

WEST HART-PUBLIC WEST HARTFORDPUBLIC SCHOOLS

West HartfordPublic Schools

West HartfordPublic Schools

MissionTo inspire and prepare all students to realize their potential and enhance our global community

development have endeared her to the faculty. Families have appreciated her openness, listening and communication skills, visibility, and advocacy for every child. Ms. Kukish’s enthusiasm, collaborative style, high expectations for academic rigor, and absolute delight in the children she serves make her an outstanding administrator for the caring community of Whiting Lane School.

Daniel Zittoun has served as assistant principal of Daniel Hand High School in Madison, CT since 2005. He has coached varsity girls’ track and is assistant field hockey coach

there as well. Hand is a high performing high school with 1300 students and 121 teachers. Mr. Zittoun has worked in Madison his entire career and has also served as an instructional technology specialist and fifth grade teacher. He received his B.S. and M.A. from the University of Connecticut and 6th year in educational leadership from Southern CT State University. An advocate for students, he is described as approachable, responsive and flexible. Mr. Zittoun’s experience, sense of humor and unwillingness to give up on any student make him an excellent match for Hall High School. He will be a wonderful addition to our team with his drive for continuous improvement and technology expertise. He begins his new position as principal at Hall High School on July 8, 2013.

School Safety and Safety ProtocolsThe following information about safety practices and protocols in West Hartford high school athletics was presented to the West Hartford Board of Education at the February 27, 2013 meeting by Elizabeth Remigino-Knapp, athletic director for Hall and Conard High Schools, Dr. Patrick Carroll, director of the Hartford Medical Group, and Mr. Thomas Moore, assistant superintendent for administration.

Connecticut law requires all high school coaches to complete a training course in concussion education as well as learn about head and neck injuries. Each year coaches are required to attend professional development sessions for training in health and safety topics. Some of the topics covered during the past few years have included care and prevention of concussions; injury prevention and assessment of lower extremities; concussion assessment and nutritional needs of the high school athlete; the importance of hydration in sport; and, preventing sudden death in athletics. Sessions have been presented by health professionals from Hartford Hospital as well as the Korey Stringer Institute at the University of Connecticut, which focuses on the prevention of death in sports.

Teacher ThursdayMarch 7, 2013

Save

the D

ate!

Save

the D

ate!

WEST HARTFORD

WEST HARTFORDPUBLIC SCHOOLS

Career FairOn Thursday, March 7, West Hartford Public Schools welcomed about 350 aspiring teachers to the Teacher Career Fair at Conard High School. This event has been a great resource for our spring and summer hiring. Candidates had the opportunity to spend

15-20 minutes interviewing with West Hartford principals, assistant principals, department supervisors and teachers. The Career Fair gives us a great opportunity to not only learn about teachers but to showcase West Hartford Public Schools as well. We understand that the way newly hired teachers feel they are treated during the hiring process and while they are working here influences whether they will stay in the district. From our first interaction with them at the Career Fair to our new staff orientation process, mentoring program, convocation and into the classroom, we want new teachers to feel they are working in a special place. Together as a district we work hard to accomplish this.