Skip to main content

Ruth Chaffee Elementary School

Every Student. Every Day. Whatever It Takes.

Superintendent Weekly Update #5

Posted Date: 09/28/25 (11:35 AM)
View Original Post


NPS Logo

Superintendent's Update

Weekly Update #5 September 28, 2025

Diverse students

Leveling Up Culturally Responsive and Engaging Pedagogy "With a Little Help from our Friends"

District Intended Outcome: That we maintain the high performance of students meeting and exceeding district standards/expectations, increase performance of students performing below district standards/expectations, and reduce the predictable performance gap between groups of students performing at or above standards/expectations and groups of students performing below standards/expectations.

Our Educators and Students are Doing Amazing Things!

Moments That Matter
Please click THIS LINK to check out all the Moments that Matter "sticky notes" that Newington High School staff created at their last PL showcasing the positive impact teachers have on our students. Thanks NHS!
Stars

NPS Mascots Make Appearance at the Waterfall Festival

Our mascots attended the Waterfall Festival on Saturday. Thanks to Elsa Batista and our STUCO members, the mascots were a huge hit at this annual community event. Thanks to Erin and Dean for providing a bus to transport them. A video is linked here.
Mascots
Timmy Removes Snake
Shoutout to Timmy Sunderland, Snake Wrangler!
Dan Dias gave a huge shout out to Timmy, JWMS head custodian, for removing a fairly large snake from the teacher parking lot on Friday morning. He was able to remove the snake and send it on its way back out into the woods. Watch the video here!
Antwanette

Good Luck Antwanette-TOY Finalist

Tomorrow, the State TOY Committee will be at E Green to observe Antwanette and interview students, colleagues, parents, and Board Members. Please send positive thoughts her way.
helping hands

Everyday Hero 2025-26

Linked here is the Everyday Hero nomination form for this school year.

Thank you for considering nominating someone who has made a positive impact on NPS.
Coming Attractions
Coming Attractions

Equity
Equity
Happy Hispanic Heritage Month! Gisela Pérez, Library Media Specialist at MKMS, shares a few ways to celebrate Hispanic heritage together:
  • Eat: Support a local Hispanic restaurant, or try making a dish yourself.
  • Listen: Create a playlist of your favorite Spanish music or discover a new artist.
  • Learn: Watch a video to learn a few dance moves, like salsa or bachata.
  • Read: Try a book by a Hispanic author. A few great ones are The House of Spirits by Isabel Allende or Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel.
  • Watch: Check out a Spanish-language series on Netflix with subtitles, like Cable Girls or Money Heist.
  • Ways to celebrate with your students
Celebrations and Condolences
Celebrations:
Deb Pare, BOE Business Office secretary, welcomed a granddaughter. She is 7 lbs 5 oz and 18 inches.

Condolences:
One of our former students, Arianna Baez (Class of 2022), passed after a long battle with cancer on Monday. Her sister, Jazmin, also attended NHS (Class of 2024). She has younger siblings at MKMS. The obituary and service information can be accessed here.
Be Well
Maureen