All 11 schools are now certified Future Ready Schools
The Washington Township Board of Education accepted almost $30,000 in mini-grants from the Washington Township Education Foundation at its latest meeting.
Per a press release issued by Washington Township Public Schools, 34 mini-grants were awarded to the following locations for these projects:
District elementary schools: Creating equity in elementary engineering skills.
Bells Elementary School: Budding book buddies, independent reading student lounge, library makerspace, Moving minds, and We all have stories to tell.
Birches Elementary School: Flexible seating, “Landfill-harmonic,” new student welcome book, Omegaman superhero assembly, Sit down for music and The Liberty Bell.
Bunker Hill Middle School: “Green Dot” initiative and peer mentoring.
Chestnut Ridge Middle School: Breakout EDU kits and Nearpod for the classroom.
Grenloch Terrace Early Childhood Center: Strengthening executive function skills in the youngest learners.
Hurffville Elementary School: Alternative classroom seating.
A partnership between Orchard Valley Middle School and Grenloch Terrace Early Childhood Center where students will make stools and give them to the early childhood center.
Thomas Jefferson Elementary School: Bean bag chairs.
Washington Township High School: Fur-ever as Friends pet therapy initiative, Breakout EDU: Thinking inside the box, the coffee express, flexible electronics, mosaic mural, Seven heads are better than one, showcasing student creations in the IMC, WTHS Community Center Creation and follow-up training by Anti-Defamation League.
Wedgwood Elementary School: Mustang math packs
Whitman Elementary School: Whitman has heart, Opening eyes to Tchoukball, Bounce, bounce, bouncing into fitness and flexible seating.
From there, the BOE announced all 11 schools in the district are designated Future Ready Schools in New Jersey. Superintendent of Schools Joseph Bollendorf said the high school was a Future Ready School last year and it has moved from Bronze level to Silver. The other 10 schools, Grenloch Early Childhood Center, Bells, Birches, Hurffville, Thomas Jefferson, Wedgwood, Whitman, Bunker Hill, Chestnut Ridge and Orchard Valley are now at the Bronze level.
The certification is awarded to schools and districts that utilize the Future Ready Program, which assists schools in using technology in the classrooms in an effort to prepare students for success in today’s day and age.
“This process required our building principals to create Future Ready Teams in each single building,” Bollendorf said. “The amount of collaboration and work that takes place between all of our schools was immense. It’s nice to be recognized for it, I’m so appreciative for the work of so many people who took the time to put the information together that really, in the end, garnered the recognition that I think we also, appropriately, deserve.”
In other news:
- Joseph Bollendorf gave the 6 month report for HIB Investigations.
“From January 1 to June 30, 2018 71 investigations were done throughout the district,” Bollendorf said. “ 39 HIBs were found, 38 were not found and 4 were inconclusive.”
He added that the district has done 38 different trainings during that timeframe.
- Washington Township has partnered with the National Federation of State High School Associations to install Pixellot technology at Tom Brown Field to stream events. The Pixellot technology is automated and will automatically stream when an event is scheduled. Athletic Director Kevin Murphy and a representative from the NFHS, Kiki Enderle, gave a presentation about the Pixellot technology program that was installed roughly three weeks ago.
“About two years ago we [NFHS] partnered with a company called Pixellot,” Enderle said. “What’s beautiful about Pixellot is that there’s no people required. Pixellot, basically that camera will turn on when there’s a scheduled event.”
Per a press release from Washington Township Public Schools, subscriptions are available in three packages. An all-access monthly pass will cost $9.99, a seasonal pass will cost $40 and an annual pass will cost $70. Subscriptions can be purchased online at the NFHS website.
- Two Chestnut Ridge Middle School choruses performed at the meeting. An all-male ensemble called “Con Brio” performed followed by an all-female, audition-only ensemble called “Vocalise.” The two groups were instructed by Director of Choral Activities Katie Kershaw.
“Con Brio is an all men’s non-auditioned ensemble. It translates to ‘with force,’” Kershaw said. “We get to experience hearing the sound of an all-male ensemble in a middle school setting. It’s a really special vocal place for them.
“Vocalise is a different ensemble than ‘Con Brio’ in that it’s all-female and audition only,” Kershaw added. “These ladies auditioned for me in September. I pick anywhere from 20 to 30 voices. This way I get to really give them some music that’s going to challenge their vocal ability as well as their musicianship. Vocalise translates to vocal agility.”
The members of Vocalise who performed at the meeting were: Christina Baldosaro, Olivia Brett, Angelina Chila, Lauren Conlin, Zoey Copsetta, Moira DeVera, Peyton McCuen, Isabella Mesi, Casey Morgan, Arianna Nelli, Isabella Nelli, Samantha Pilla, Alicia Porreca, Ava Ryan, Juliana Schiavoni, Cierra Shelburne, Lexi Stefano, Maddison Stein, Jenna Strosser, Amber Watson and Gianna Watson.
Kershaw added that, last year, in its inaugural effort, Vocalise made it to the semi-finals of B101’s Christmas Choirs competition. This year, they expect to make it that far or farther.
