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Back to School Newsletter – September 2019

LINCOLN PUBLIC SCHOOLS 1624 Lonsdale Avenue, Lincoln, RI 02865

401-721-3300

A Message from the Superintendent Greetings Lincoln Educational Stakeholders:

Welcome back to another fantastic school year in Lincoln! As I begin my second year as superintendent with you, I wanted to take a moment and express my thanks for everyone's support and dedication to our students, staff and faculty. While being a presence in all of our schools, I have witnessed high quality instruction in our classrooms and have seen strong parental engagement in every school. Thank you for allowing me to be part of the educational fabric of Lincoln. I am appreciative of the support and grateful to be where I am as I head into year two in the Lincoln Public Schools.

The vision and focus for this year will be for the Lincoln Public Schools to build on the foundation we have created collectively last year. One main goal will be to increase student achievement through investing strategically in curriculum and instruction, special education programming, and allowing the professionals within our district to help guide, inform, and implement our curricular goals. With accurate planning, and curricular excellence, I have no doubt that our state test scores will increase across our district as we utilize thoughtful and strategic plans around deeper learning, authentic assessments and educational excellence. Last year, I indicated that I wanted us to grow to greatness. I witness this happening every day in our district. Little by little, year by year, we are going to get there.

Another area of focus continues to be our facilities and grounds. Families will note improvements to the interior and exterior of the schools as you enter for open houses and parent teacher conferences. The high school construction and renovation project is moving in the right direction and continues to be on schedule. The staff and students transitioned back nicely even though construction is still going on and naturally causing changes in the physical aspects of the building and grounds of the high school. Overall, Interior and exterior upgrades at all of our schools are evident as you make your way into the schools and prepare for another exciting year. There is more to do, but with accurate planning and budgetary support, we are well on our way!

I am very excited to start this year in Lincoln and ask that all educational stakeholders join me in celebrating our successes, meeting our challenges, and giving our best to the children of Lincoln Public Schools!

Lawrence P. Filippelli, Ed.D. Superintendent of Schools

FILIPPELLIL@LINCOLNPS.ORG

Welcome New Administrators

Kevin McNamara,

Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction

Robert Mezzanotte, Principal

Lincoln High School

Leanne Sararvo, Principal Central Elementary School

Shivali Finkelstein, Asst. Principal

Lincoln High School

John Connell, Assistant Principal Northern Elementary School

A Message from the Assistant Superintendent

I'm happy to begin my new role as Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction! I look forward to supporting all the great work that goes on in our district. This summer, we've been focusing on providing resources and training to teachers and administrators to help them meet the needs of all students. We will be working on closing achievement gaps to improve our results on state assessments, making deeper learning a priority in our classrooms and examining our performance assessment systems. We will be working with the Rhode Island Department of Education High-Quality Curriculum Adoption network to ensure that our English Language Arts curriculum meets the state's requirements going forward. I look forward to meeting many more folks in the district and the community!

Kevin McNamara MCNAMARAK@LINCOLNPS.ORG

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SCHOOL CONTACT INFORMATION

Lincoln High School: 334-7500 Robert Mezzanotte, Principal Marc Cobb, Assistant Principal Shivali Finkelstein, Assistant Principal

Lincoln Middle School: 721-3400 James Williamson, Principal John McNeil, Assistant Principal Lianne Denham, Dean of Students Central Elementary School: 334-2800 Leanne Saravo, Principal Lonsdale Elementary School: 725-4200 Melissa Goho, Principal Northern Elementary School: 769-0261 Alec Ciminello, Principal John Connell, Assistant Principal Saylesville Elementary School: 723-5240 Reza Sarkarati, Principal

School Hours:

High School 7:30 AM – 1:49 PM

Middle School 8:05 AM – 2:30 PM

Elementary Schools 8:45 AM – 3:15 PM

SCHOOL ATTENDANCE

It is important that your child attends school each day and is on time for the start of each school day. Please be sure to call your child’s school to report an absence. We expect that students will remain at school for the entire school day and encourage parents to schedule appointments during vacations or after school hours to avoid missing valuable instructional time. Please refer to the attendance policy that is included in the student handbook.

BUS TRANSPORTATION

In-district bus transportation is provided by First Student.

Bus stop information is available on the district website.

http://www.district.lincolnps.org/departments/buildings-grounds-transportation/transportation/

SCHOOL MEALS PROGRAM

Meal Applications:

Meal applications are now available online at www.MySchoolApps.com

Apply for meal benefits online from the privacy of your home, or anywhere with an internet connection. We encourage each family to complete the application. Families need to only complete one form and list all children in the family on that form.

Meal Prices:

Elementary School Grades K-5

Breakfast: $1.25/Reduced price $0.30

Lunch: $2.55/ Reduced price $0.40

Middle & High School Grades 6-12

Breakfast: $1.25/Reduced price: $0.30

Lunch: $2.80/Reduced price $0.40

Premium Lunch: $3.80/Reduced price $0.40

For menus and nutrition information please visit:

https://lincolnps.nutrislice.com/menu

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BACK TO SCHOOL HIGHLIGHTS

SAYLESVILLE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, like other schools in the district, uses the Positive Behavior Intervention System (PBIS) to shape behavior and to promote a safe and healthy school culture. In the past, Saylesville was known as the “Home of the Stars” but now district wide we are “Lincoln Lions.” This change illustrates the key role we all play in supporting our

students from Kindergarten through High School graduation. As Lions, we have adopted the guiding values found in other Lincoln schools: Respectful, Responsible and

Ready to Learn.

The Saylesville PTO donated money over the summer to help us purchase a sensory path. The “Woodland Path” allows students a fun way to develop core strength, practice mindfulness and productively get some energy out. The path was laid down by Mike Alves, our custodian; Karen Kuncz, PT; Cheryl Zecchin, OT and Paula Bowen, SLP. You’ll have a chance to visit the Woodland Path during our Open House on Thursday, September 19. Thank you so much to the PTO for supporting this project and our school!

Mrs. Boudreault and Mrs. Crowell are implementing the K2 curriculum in their Kindergarten classrooms. K2, which is commonly referred to as the Boston Curriculum, promotes

creativity, collaboration, communication and critical thinking. The teachers attended training last Spring and will continue to receive support from EDC, the Education Development Company, the Rhode Island Department of Education and teachers at Northern Elementary School.

The opening of LONSDALE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL was a tremendous success. Teachers worked very hard over the summer to prepare their classrooms to be a place of joyful learning for our students. The secretarial, custodial, and maintenance staff had the building well organized and ready. The school year started off with the annual

Back to School Social on Thursday, August 29th. The Social was the first event of the school year, hosted by the LPT, that brought the Lonsdale community together. Food trucks, a bouncy house, and a photo spot were enjoyed by many families. The board

presented at the kindergarten welcome that evening and encouraged new families to join the LPT. The Lonsdale Parent Teacher (LPT) Members worked over the summer to plan many family activities, fundraisers, school events, etc. for the upcoming school year 2019/2020. The LPT facilitates several student & family events that not only support the educational curriculum at Lonsdale but also provide opportunities for Lonsdale families to have fun together as a community. Please consider volunteering to help make these events successful! We are kicking off the school year with a Walk-a-Thon fundraiser! On Friday, September 27th, students will participate in a school-wide walk-a-thon to raise money to support the Lonsdale community. This includes enrichment programs, field trips (including buses), family events, and so much more! Our goal with this fundraiser is to raise $14,000! That’s a BIG number but with your support, our Lions can achieve anything! In fact, if each student is able to meet the challenge of raising at least $50 in donations, we will have achieved our fundraising goal for the year and won’t need to ask for families to raise any more money for the 2019/2020 school year! The LPT is active on its Facebook page announcing events & informing the members of school activities.

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Welcome back LINCOLN MIDDLE SCHOOL! A new school year has begun and the Lincoln Middle School Community hit the ground running! A great first week has students, faculty, and staff excited for the 2019-2020 school year. Students got to know their new teams and their teachers this week as they reviewed classroom expectations and school routines. Students were welcomed back by administration as well, encouraging students to get involved and have a great year.

LMS Student Council began the new year with its first fundraiser/raffle of the year to help students

beat those “Back to School Blues.” One winner from grades 6, 7, and 8 will win a prize pack to Cinema World including snacks and movie tickets. Also the first spirit day of the year was held Friday, September 5 with students and teachers sporting their team colors. This was a great opportunity for our incoming sixth graders to exhibit their team pride!

Sixth grade orientation was held Thursday, August 27th, welcoming new students and families to Lincoln Middle School. Grade six teachers opened their classrooms for a scavenger hunt to help students learn about what their first days would be like at the Middle School. A special thanks to the many student volunteers, seen

here with their appreciation certificates, who assisted newcomers and helped to provide a warm welcome to the newest

class at LMS.

The students at Central Elementary School have returned happy, rested and ready to learn! There is NO doubt engaged students will not only make tremendous

educational progress but also create relationships and memories that will shape their future.

Academic benchmarking is well underway. The students have had

many opportunities to interact at fun lunches and recess. We have started to begin recognizing outstanding behavior with Positive Behavior Referrals and we are gearing up for our Open House on September 19th. We are looking forward to a fun, safe and productive year with our amazing students and staff!

NORTHERN LINCOLN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL had a very busy summer! We have several new staff members that we wish to welcome to the Great Northern! Assistant Principal John Connell joined our staff in July and we are very fortunate to have him. Special Education Teacher Jaclyn Mellen has joined our BEST Highly Specialized Program. She is very excited to be working at Northern! Maria Albanese, Chris Tomlinson, Jennifer Miranda and Lindsay Gama are teacher assistants in our BEST Highly Specialized program. Katie Davenport has joined Northern working as a teacher assistant in grade two with special educator, Brooke Ensign.

Other staff changes at Northern include Sue Pimentel, who has moved into our grade four special education inclusion program, and Dianne Mohler, who has

returned to Northern as our newest grade four teacher.

Thanks to the Northern PTA, the Back to School Ice Cream Social was a huge success. Parents & students enthusiastically met their

new teachers & reconnected with old friends. No First Day of School Jitters at Northern! Students came back to school ready and eager to learn. Staff greeted them with open arms on September 3rd.

It is evident that students are already hard at work as students in Ms. Pringle’s grade 5 class are eagerly hitting the books, and the students Mrs. Mohler’s grade four class were working on “Getting to Know You” towers on

the first day of school.

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The 2019-2020 school year at LINCOLN HIGH SCHOOL has begun! LHS administration and staff welcomed our newest Lions, the class of 2023, to our annual Freshman Roar on August 27th. Our incoming students and families were welcomed to LHS with building tours, free t-shirts, and opportunities to sign up for clubs and activities. Students also received their schedules, and they were able to earn a free homework pass by completing a scavenger hunt. The Roar was planned by the LHS PACT, and a great deal of credit goes to our custodial staff for setting up the event, our secretarial staff for producing the information folders, as well as our club advisors and student council leaders who volunteered their time to set up information tables and lead students on building tours. The event was very well-attended, and parents and students provided positive feedback about their experience.

On August 29th, Lincoln’s district leaders welcomed teachers back to school with a spirited and engaging orientation day. Dr. Filippelli delivered heartfelt remarks, and graciously presented all LPS staff members with a certificate and a Lincoln pin. He also recognized all newly tenured

teachers with a personal cake to celebrate their achievement. From there, teachers proceeded to their building-level meetings. At the high school, teachers participated in group activities aimed at advancing their understanding of “deeper learning”.

On September 3rd, Lincoln High School welcomed the class of 2023 back to school. The grade 9 students were able to attend school for the entire day with no other grades. This opening allowed our newest students to get acquainted with our school with no other students on their first day. The following day, September 4th, all students were welcomed back to school. Students were very excited to see their friends, meet their teachers, and prepare themselves for a successful year. The opening week was highlighted by our school’s first “Positive Sign Thursday” of the 2019-2020 school year. The high school will be continuing this tradition, started last year by Principal Kevin McNamara. Students expressed great enthusiasm for continuing this practice of positivity and school spirit.

Lincoln High School administrators, faculty, and staff are thrilled to start the 2019-2020 school year! This year will bring some new changes, with two new building administrators and a massive school construction

project. There is a great deal of confidence, however, that our school will continue to thrive as a result of the efforts of our dedicated teachers and staff, our supportive families and community partners, and our talented team of educational leaders!