Dear Members of the Pequannock Community,

The 2015-2016 school year certainly provided opportunities for our talented students and staff to showcase all that they learned throughout this school year. From elementary science fairs, high school athletics, district wide co-curricular activit ies, and musical concerts performed by students across all grade levels Pequannock Township clearly exhibited all that is good in education.

Special thanks go out to the teachers and support staff for their efforts this year. To state the least, the educators in Pequannock Township Schools are second to none. In addition, I wish to recognize our parents for supporting our schools and community. The relationship between the community and schools remains strong and is one of the reasons for the success resulting in Pequannock Township being named as one of the top towns to live in New Jersey. Finally, our hardworking students deserve praise for the efforts they demonstrated in classroom activit ies and lessons on a daily basis.

This summer the District will undertake several capital improvement projects including:

- Replacing windows at SJG- Replacing the roof at North Boulevard- Replacing the majority of the roof at the middle school- Install ing security cameras at the high school- Paving the middle school back lot- High School SNAPP classroom renovation- Install ing new courtyard windows at the high school (September-November installation)

I wish everyone a happy and healthy summer spending time with family and friends. Be sure to rest up and come back to school in September for what promises to be an exciting 2016-2017 school year. Go Panthers!

Sincerely,

Brett CharlestonBrett Charleston.

Superintendent of Schools

June 2016

Inside This Issue:

Page 2 - Pequannock Goes Green

Page 2 - Hoops for Gavin

Page 3 - Summer Reading

Page 5 - PTHS Graduates

Page 6 - Spor ts Recap

Pequannock Panther

Press

A Message from the Super intendent

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On January 25, 2016 the Board of Education adopted a resolution to approve the participation in the Sustainable Jersey for schools certif ication program. The purpose of the program is to support schools that ?want to go green? and ?conserve resources? by ?providing the tools, training, and f inancial incentives to support and reward schools as they pursue sustainability programs?.

As a means of reducing our impact on the environment, the school district installed a water f il l ing station at the high school, middle school, and one of the elementary schools. This convenient hydration station not only f ilters water but it minimizes the amount of plastic waste in the environment. Over the course of one week, the

water f il l ing station at the high school has helped to eliminate waste from 895 disposable plastic bottles. The district goal is to have all of the buildings outf itted with water f il l ing stations by December 2016.

Pequannock Going Green wit h Our Water (Not Lit erally)

The school communities of Hillview and PV united in support of a great family and a great cause for the Hoops for Gavin evening event on March 31st. Three of Hillview?s 5th grade students (John, Dan and Brendan) organized the special event to show our unity as a school community, to increase awareness for leukemia and to raise some funds (and fun) in our basketball event.

Teams of 5th grade students from Hillview (and a few ringers) and a faculty team competed in several games, and also participated in long-distance shooting competit ions. Mr. Hayzler served as the event emcee while members of our community packed the gym and provided the energy. Through the generosity of those who attended and some area businesses, we were able to raise $2,700 and had a great t ime while doing so!  Students from the other elementary schools have also showed tremendous support through cards, bake sales and other community-based events.

Hoops for Gavin PV/HV Event

The students at Stephen J. Gerace School participated in many wonderful activit ies this spring.

During April f irst grade students sang songs about our environment for their program ?Happy Earth Day!? Third grade students received free tree seedlings to plant and help the environment as part of the NJ Dept. of Forestry Third Grade Tree Team. Students and staff wore blue to celebrate Autism Awareness Day. On National D.E.A.R. Day, April 12, the entire school community stopped and read for a Drop Everything and Read Day event. Second grade students dressed up as their favorite book characters and

presented a Wax Museum to families and friends on April 20th. On Poem in Your Pocket Day in April students shared poems with their classmates and teachers. Finally, on April 26, children?s author Donna Jo Napoli, thanks to our SJG HSA, visited SJG.

Our SJG Fif th Grade Band and Choir presented their concert to families on May 18th. Field Day was held on May 19th, and celebrated an exciting day of physical f itness activit ies. SJG student artists displayed their creations during the SJG Art Show evening event for families and friends.

In June our f if th grade students visited PV School, spent t ime with peer mentors, and participated in the 5th Grade Recognition Program. New Kindergarten students visited SJG on June 9th during Kindergarten Orientation. Our current kindergarten students sang songs for their families during their concert on June 10th. The entire school enjoyed a Summer Reading Presentation from the children?s librarians from the Pequannock Public Library. We look forward to a safe and happy summer full of reading fun!

SJG Spr ing Highlight s: Music, Art , Reading and More

Summer 's Here and t he Time Is Right t o Read, Read, ReadEach year, Pequannock Township School District encourages its students to read over the summer in order to keep them engaged in the learning process. This summer, we?re continuing with the Panther practice of P.R.inT.S. (Pequannock Reads in the Summer) and recommending that students pick up a book and read!Elementary Schools -- The teachers and media specialists at SGJ, Hillview, and North Boulevard have made a list of books they love. That l ist is available on each school?s website. In addition, the Pequannock Township Public Library?s On your Mark, Get Set? .Read! program encourages children to read by providing free

books for children, creating activit ies for children to participate and the children have the opportunity to win prizes while reading. PV School-- Pequannock Valley students requires that students in dif ferent grades read a particular book. 6th graders will be reading Tangerine, by Edward Bloor. This book examines the theme of prejudice and will be discussed throughout the school year.  7th grade students will read Gathering Blue by Lois Lowry. This book?s theme is the Dystopian society, which is functional societies that restrict their cit izens physically, mentally, and/or their cit izens physically, mentally, and/or

emotionally.  8th graders will read The Wednesday Wars, by Gary D Schmidt, which is a coming of age story for teenagers. Please visit the PV website for more information.High School -- The English department at PTHS is offering students the choice of a book to read and enjoy. Students are required to read a book of their choosing.  The teachers have compiled a list of suggestions, which is accessible on the website and you can f ind details about the assignment on the website too.  

If you have any questions about

the summer reading, please check the school?s website or call the

school.

The Strategic Planning process which began in January and was facilitated by New Jersey School Boards Association has been completed. The plan that was created by the Strategic Planning Committee, which was comprised of teachers, administrators, parents, students, and community members, was presented to the Board of Education by Charlene Peterson, NJSBA representative, at the June 6th Board of Education Meeting.

This long range plan is a vision of the issues that the district will face  in the next f ive years.  It touched upon many dif ferent aspects of the school district but focused on four main goal areas: student programs/opportunities, f inances and funding, parent and community communication, and facilit ies.  The Board of Education began to discuss the plan at their June 13th Board Retreat.  At the June 27th Board of Education Meeting, the Board adopted the revised Mission Statement that was the result of the work of the Strategic Planning

Council over the last several months.  

Beginning on June 27th, the district will begin summer off ice hours. These hours apply to off ices and schools, and will be in effect through August 26th.

Monday-Wednesday 7:00-4:30

Thursday 7:00-3:30

Friday Closed

The district will also be closed on Monday, July 4th.

Please contact the main off ice at any of the buildings with any questions or concerns. Enjoy your summer!

Pequannock Plans for t he Future

Pequannock FBLA Advances t o Nat ionalsForty-six members of the Pequannock Township High School chapter of Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) participated in the 2016 FBLA State Leadership Conference in Atlantic City. After two days of intense competit ion, business workshops, and leadership training, Pequannock FBLA brought home a total of 22 awards. Twenty-four FBLA members are advancing to the National Leadership Conference in Atlanta, Georgia to compete against the best business education students from across the country.

Pequannock FBLA has already received several National Awards including ?Outstanding Chapter Award? and the ?Chapter Challenge Award.? Mr.

Elliott Honig, who will accompany the Pequannock contingent, will be recognized on stage as New Jersey?s Outstanding Adviser.  Students will compete in topics including Business Calculations, Business Presentation, Parliamentary Procedure, Sales Presentation, and Help Desk. FBLA members will compete against the best and brightest of FBLA in leadership events, and will also share their successes, and learn new ideas about shaping their career future through workshops and exhibits. This four-day conference is considered the pinnacle of the FBLA-PBL experience, one that has helped to forge partnerships with industry leaders to underwrite competit ive events and scholarships for students achieving national ranking.

Summer Of f ice Hours

Nicholas Colicchio, a r ising senior at Pequannock Tow nship High School, r ecently achieved the r ank of Eagle Scout. As par t of the process, i t was necessar y that he complete a ser vice project for his community. Nick contacted Mr. Hayzler and asked i f there was anything that he could do to give back to PV School for al l they did for him in middle school. The front of PV School was in desperate need of attention as the shrubs and plans were overgrow n and some were dying. The tables were di lapidated and in need of r epair. Nick took i t upon himself to give the front of PV School a face l i f t so that cur rent and future students could enjoy the beauti ful bui lding and landscaping for years to come.

Nick helped r ip out the old shrubs and plants and leveled out the area. Through var ious fundraising effor ts and working w ith a local landscaper , Nick was able to gather over 60 plants/bushes that were planted w ith the help of his Boy Scout Troop. Mulch was then added to f inish off the landscaping project. I t was a team effor t as students, parents and Mr. Hayzler assisted in planting and mulching.

Another aspect of the project was painting new picnic tables that had been purchased by the Home and School Association and instal led by the distr ict's maintenance staff . The tables were painted Pequannock Blue by the boy scouts and parent volunteers. The tables are used by the students dur ing their lunch per iods, providing them w ith a place to eat, social ize and just "hang out." You can also f ind students there before and after school studying and relaxing. The enti r e project is a wonder ful addi tion to PV School and the community! Thanks Nick! Congratulations!

EAGLE SCOUT PROVIDES FACE LIFT TO PV SCHOOL

PTHS CLASS OF 2016 HEADING OFF TO COLLEGE!Artistic Academy

Babson College

Bergen Community College

Berkeley College Clif ton

Berkeley College Woodland Park

Boston University

Caldwell University

Central Connecticut State University

Coastal Carolina University

College of Charleston

Cornell University

County College of Morris

Delaware Valley University

Drew University

Drexel University

East Carolina University

East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania

Fairf ield University

Fairleigh Dickinson University - Florham Campus

Fordham University - Lincoln

Center /Rose Hill Campus

Georgian Court University

James Madison University

Johnson & Wales University (Providence)

Kean University

Kutztown University of Pennsylvania

Lock Haven University of Pennsylvania

Marist College

Marymount Manhattan College

Merrimack College

Messiah College

Monmouth University

Montclair State University

Muhlenberg College

Neumann University

New Jersey City University

New Jersey Institute of Technology

Pace University, New York City

Pace University, Westchester Campus

Passaic County Community College

Pennsylvania State University - All Campuses

Pennsylvania State University, Harrisburg

Purchase College State University of New York

Quinnipiac University

Ramapo College of New Jersey

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Rider University

Rowan University

Rutgers University-New Brunswick

Rutgers University-Newark

Salve Regina University

Seton Hall University

State University of New York - Plattsburgh

Stevens Institute of Technology

Stockton University

Stonehill College

SUNY Delhi

The College of New Jersey

The Ohio State University

United States Naval Academy

University of Colorado at Boulder

University of Delaware

University of Massachusetts, Amherst

University of Miami

University of New Hampshire at Durham

University of New Haven

University of North Carolina at Wilmington

University of Rhode Island

University of South Carolina

Villanova University

West Chester University of Pennsylvania

West Virginia University

Wilkes University

Will iam Paterson University of New Jersey

Word of Life Bible Institute

The 2016 spring athletic season proved to be one of the most memorable in recent memory in Pequannock Township. The hard work of our outstanding student-athletes translated into a Northwest Jersey Athletic Conference championship at PTHS, and a Morris County Championship at PV.  

Basebal l : The 2016 baseball team concluded yet another outstanding season with a 14-7 overall record, including 9-1 in the conference, which resulted in a second straight Northwest Jersey Athletic Conference Independence Division championship. In addition, the team advanced all the way to the semi-f inals in the extremely competit ive Morris County Tournament.  The hard work completed during the regular season allowed the team to earn the 5th seed in the North 1 Group 2 State Playoffs, which allowed them to host Pascack Hills.  The season was a f itt ing end to coach Bill Arata?s il lustrious career.  Coach Arata f inished his career with a 292- 113- 2 overall record.

Sof tbal l : The 2016 softball team f inished the season with a 20-9-1 overall record. One of the 20 wins on the season happened to be Coach Maryann Goodwin?s 400th of her career!  This is a feat that only a few in all of the state of New Jersey can say they have accomplished.  The 20 win season allowed the girls to lock up the 5th seed in North 1 Group 2, where they advanced to the sectional semi-f inals.  Individually, seven Lady Panthers were recognized as All-NJAC players.  

Boys Lacrosse: The 2016 boys lacrosse season was a great example of how hard work truly pays off when faced with adversity. Despite opening the season with 6 straight losses, the boys continued to f ight and f inished the season winning nine out of their f inal 14 games, including impressive victories over Roxbury, Madison, Lakeland, and Morristown-Beard.  The strength of the Panthers scheduled payed off in the long run, as the team was stil l fortunate enough to host and win a North 1 Group 1 playoff game over North Warren.  Individually, seniors Dan Duffy, Liam Lilienthal, Austin Geissel, and John Tachon enjoyed breaking individual school records for goals, points, saves, and ground balls respectfully.  

Girls Lacrosse: The 2016 girls lacrosse team had one of their most successful seasons in recent memory despite playing in the highly competit ive Stars and Stripes Division. Impressive victories over Villa Walsh, Morris Catholic, Morris Knolls, Montvil le and

Madison highlighted the season.  Individually, senior Arden Kassaleh broke the school record for points and goals, while also scoring her 200th career point and goal during the season.  In addition, 5 girls were named to the All-Conference team.

Boys Tennis: Although the team f inished with a 2-9 overall record, a relentless work ethic helped the team and individuals gradually improve throughout the season. The team was able to beat rival Boonton twice, and also had individuals advance in the extremely competit ive Morris County Tournament. Senior Tim Gitin was recognized as 1st Team All-NJAC, while seniors Ben Lacher and Devin Ren received 2nd Team honors.

Track and Field: Mr. Mullins? thirty seventh season of dedication to the PTHS Track and Field program has led to yet another successful f inish. The girls f inished second to only County Champion Whippany Park in the NJAC-Independence Division, and performed admirably at the County Championships, NJAC Championships, and Sectional Meet.  Over the course of the season, numerous school records were broken, and Taylor Carmichael and Jenn McGrogan both qualif ied to attend the group championships.  Seven athletes were also awarded All-NJAC honors for their efforts throughout the season.  

PV Basebal l : The Pequannock Valley baseball team, led by Coach Kaye and Coach Lindsay, compiled a 6-6 overall record which was good enough for the 4th seed in the Morris County Tournament. The boys hard work throughout the year allowed for signature victories over Valleyview, Memorial, Lincoln Park, and Central.

PV Sof tbal l : The Pequannock Valley softball team f inished another tremendous season with a 10-4 f inal record. This impressive regular season allowed the Lady Panthers to earn the 3rd overall seed in the Morris County Tournament, where they advanced to the semi-f inals. Impressive victories over Lincoln Park, Parsippany, and West Essex highlighted another successful season in Coach Sica?s career.  

PV Track: The Pequannock Valley Track and Field program continued it?s impressive run in the Morris County Tournament, as the girls took home 1st place overall! This is the second consecutive Morris County Championship for the track program, coached Mr. Scazafave, Mr. Gennarelli, and Ms. Sarnelli.  The girls f inished with an 11-1 overall meet record, while the boys f inished with 5 wins on the season.  

THE PANTHERS WRAP UP AN EXCITING SPRING SEASON

PEQUANNOCK PRINCIPALS CARRY THE TORCH

On June 10th the Pequannock Township Police Department participated in the Annual Torch Run through the Pequannock community. The purpose of the Torch Run is to raise awareness and funds in support of the Special Olympics. The police off icers begin their run at the Wayne Electric Store on Route 23 and then run through town. They run by each elementary school, the middle school and Holy Spirit School. The students and staff from each school come out to cheer the off icers on as they run.

Detective Cichetti, the School Resource Off icer for the district, collaborated with the principals of each building to ensure that run went smoothly. In fact ,

for the f irst t ime, some of the principals who were able to do so participated in the run. Mr. Hayzler, Mr. Loeff ler and Mr. Portas were joined by students from the PV Track Team and carried the torch by each one of their respective schools.

"It was exciting to see the students and staff recognizing the off icers for their support of us and the community all year long. Watching people stop their cars, come out of their houses and clap for everyone as we ran was a humbling experience," said Mr. Hayzler. "It is events like this one that make the Pequannock community very special."

PV HOUSE INITIATIVE ENCOURAGES TEAM SPIRITIn an effort to build on the success of the f irst House Init iative at Pequannock Valley School, this year the students and staff at PV selected colleges and universit ies as the theme for the init iative.

All students and staff members were put into groups or ?houses?. Each house had 6th, 7th, and 8th grade students as well as members of the administration, faculty, and staff . At the f irst house meeting in September, groups voted on the college or university that would represent them during the year.  Specially assigned house days allowed for the groups to meet and work together on a multitude of projects.  

Early in the year, the focus was on designing a house cheer, banner and t-shirt in order to build camaraderie among each house. As the year progressed, the houses competed against one another with each project aimed at helping a specif ic cause important to the Pequannock Valley community. There was a loll ipop sale and hot chocolate sale with prof its going toward assisting local families, a food drive to benefit the local food bank, soap collection to assist a women?s shelter, and Grains of Hope whose prof its allowed for meals to be purchased to help feed families in third world countries.

The tradition of f ield day as the culminating house event continued this year as well. This event

provided each house with an opportunity to display the teamwork and collaboration that were built throughout the year.  Students competed in a number of events including an obstacle course, four court volleyball, and Jeopardy in the cafeteria.  

Although all houses worked extremely hard and displayed positive teamwork, after all points were totaled from all events throughout the year, the winner of this year?s House Init iative was Ohio State. After this f inal announcement at f ield day, Mr. Hayzler commended the entire school for its dedication to making Pequannock Valley and the surrounding community a better place. The students of PV are already looking forward to selecting next year?s house theme!        

NORTH BOULEVARD CELEBRATES INAUGURAL FUN RUNTo culminate the end of a great year of student participation and fundraising, North Boulevard Elementary School held its f irst ever ?Boosterthon Fun Run?. Thanks to the ingenuity of some key parents and teachers, their research, networking, and collaborative efforts led to the development of a historical event.

Mrs. Zuccala, Mrs. Liccardo and Mrs. Horgan spent many hours working with the North Boulevard parents, staff and administration to inquire about the possibil ity of this new kind of fundraiser. Despite some init ial fears of being able to have something this big f it and run successfully at the school year, their confidence and determination brought us an event that transformed our fundraising.

Partnering with the Boosterthon team, we kicked off our efforts with a powerful pep rally. Students left energized and motivated to begin the journey. We held daily team huddles to inspire our students to learn from other students from dif ferent countries and cultures. Each day was an exciting learning experience about character, f itness and overcoming challenges. As each day went by, the energy of our students grew with daily classroom incentives, fundraising goals, principal?s challenges, daily character awards, huddle prizes, schoolwide decorations, and much more.

All our efforts came together with an amazing culminating Fun Run. It was a beautiful day and students ran as many laps as they could to support the pledges they received as teachers marked them off. Every student from Pre-k to grade 5 participated and we raised over $16,000 which will now allow us to upgrade our playground equipment for the children.

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PTHS AND PV LEARN ABOUT THE HOLOCAUST

The students at Pequannock Township HIgh School and Pequannock Valley School experienced a life changing event as they had the opportunity to meet survivors of the Holocaust during the last several weeks of school. The Holocaust and Genocide students at PTHS had the opportunity of spending time with Marcia Dimetrosky, a faculty member at PTHS, and her mom and dad. Mrs. Dimetrosky's parents are both survivors of the Holocaust and were will ing to share experiences and information from their past with the classes. Mrs. Dimetrosky also explained information about her experiences growing up with her parents. The students commented on how much they enjoyed the opportunity and that they were grateful they got to meet Mrs. Dimetrosky's parents.

The 7th Grade students at PV School recently completed a World War II cross curricular project in their Language Arts and Social Studies classes. As part of the project one of the students had reached out to a Holocaust survivor. PV was proud to welcome Mr. Gil Lashow to speak with the students. He was a survivor of two concentration camps in France. Mr. Lashow talked about how when he was seven years old his family was taken to a concentration camp where he was separated from his father. He then detailed how his father was able to rescue his family and secure an opportunity to "escape" to America when Gil was just nine years old. Mr. Lashow and his family were able to get on the last boat that was leaving France prior to being transferred to Auschwitz, a concentration camp in Germany.

Mr. Lashow also shared his experiences being a part of "The March of the Living" in which survivors of the Holocaust accompanied young adults as they visited landmarks that were once concentration camps in Germany and France. He shared pictures and stories of what occurred.

Mr. Lashow's inspiring message to the students was to not be silent. He encouraged them to not be afraid to stand up for people who may not be as strong as them. PV greatly appreciated Mr. Lashow's visit!

A model made by one of the 7th grade students at

PV School as part of their World War II project.

Mr. Gil Lashow meeting with the 7th grade students

at PV.

This year?s twelve retirees leaving Pequannock Township Public Schools have a collective 246 years of service. We wish the retirees well as they begin the next chapter of their l ives.  Happy retirement!

Retirees (years of service in Pequannock)

PTHS -- Mr. Will iam Arata (39)

PTHS -- Dr. Fred Dorando (10)

PTHS -- Ms. Joanne Egan (20)

PTHS -- Ms. Afaf Maarouf (19)

PTHS -- Ms. Barbara McCormack (14)

PTHS -- Mr. Leonard Smith (36)

PTHS -- Mr. Carl Strong (19)

PTHS -- Ms. Susan Witten?Sugarman (22)

SJG -- Ms. Susan Soroko (20)

HV -- Mrs. Rosemary Impelluso (12)

PV -- Ms. Ellen Altis ? (19)

PV -- Mr. Robert Cerutti (18)

District -- Mr. Peter Hoitsma ? (16)

CalendarSeptem ber 14th

Septem ber 15th

Septem ber 20th

October 10thSchools Closed (Columbus Day)

Back to School Night at SJG, NB and HV - 7:00

Back to School Night at PTHS - 7:00

Back to School Night at PV - 7:00 PEQUANNOCK HONORS RETIREES

The Pequannock Tow nship School Distr ict would l ike to welcome the new teachers for the 2016-17 school year. The teachers new to the distr ict w i l l meet for a three-day induction program August 22nd - 24th at Stephen J. Gerace School. The goal of the Induction Program is to faci l i tate suppor t for new teachers through activi ties designed to bui ld r elationships, introduce staff to distr ict r esources, pol icies and procedures and model effective instr uction to improve student per formance. The program w i l l be f i l led w ith many outstanding activi ties to provide best practice str ategies to implement the distr ict?s cur r iculum.

Welcome New Staf f !

Pequannock Township Board of Educat ion

Kim Quigley, President

Dr. Richard Thumann, Vice-President

Sam Ciresi

James Farrel l

Ann Humphrey Maier

Dr. Doug Muzzio

Thomas Salerno

Robert Singer

Vincent Siracusa

Bret t Charleston

Superintendent

Rosal ie Winning, Ed.D

Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruct ion

Kathy Bechtel

Business Administ rator/Board Secretary

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