Millbrook Middle School
Principal's Message
11 April 2008
DearParents/Guardians:
As we enter the final quarter of our school year, it is my pleasure to share with you our Middle School news.
Congratulations goes out to Jose Lopez, Cara Frisina, Marquise Henry, and Chandani Harrindranauth. Each of those students has enjoyed the honor of having his/her artwork published in The Treasure Chest, a school-based art periodical. I am also pleased to let you know that the Middle School’s Olympics of the Visual Arts team competed in Saratoga Springs with 35 other school districts. The Millbrook Middle School placed 8th in the illustration category, 4th in painting, 2nd in furniture design, 10th in fashion design, and 2nd in architecture! The architecture team also was judged as the most creative design! Mrs. Kiewra is the faculty advisor to that team. Special thanks goes out to Mrs. Joyner, Mrs. Pelesz, Mrs. Flanigan, and Mrs. Grainger for having donated their time to work with our talented students. Congratulations to all participants!
In other areas of achievement, we had seven students compete in the very first MS/HS Science/Engineering/Technology Fair. Thank you to Su DeMan for her leadership in putting that event together! As a result of our local fair, I am thrilled to report that Sarah Williams and Rachel Wohlford achieved a 1st place team effort at the Dutchess County Science Fair! We have also had 26 students prepare for the NYSSMA Festival to be adjudicated, and that took place on April 4. Our MS Jazz Band students, under the direction of Mr. Fryer, traveled down south to the adjudication festival in Virginia Beach. They left with an “Excellent” rating and first place in their division. Congratulations goes out to all our hard-working and multi-talented students!
In other news, March 28th proved to be an excellent day! Despite the rainy weather, we had our fourth annual Middle School Retreat at the Taconic Conference Center in Milan, NY. Students had an action-packed day starting with an important character education messages from retired Suffolk County Police Detective, and educational consultant, Mr. Paul Failla.
Our students are currently enjoying National Library Week! Mrs. Janelli, our Library Clerk, has planned an exciting week of activities which includes daily trivia questions with prizes generously donated by local businesses. Middle School students are also acting as pen pals for some of our Elm Drive Elementary students, as they answer the youngsters’ geography questions!
Our Building Leadership Team’s (BLT) initiative, peer tutoring (The Step-Up Club) has been going strong for several weeks, and we have had several after-school sessions with students helping students in math! Many of the students involved in this program are also working with Alden Place teachers to help tutor some elementary students in Math as well! Our Guidance Counselor, Mrs. Hains, has been integral to the success of those programs! We have also had an additional training for our peer leaders as they prepare to deliver anti-bullying lessons to our 5th graders down at Alden!
I am also so pleased to recognize the following individuals: Emily Bida, Julia Farese, Alyson Houston, Alexis Loussedes, Amanda Martorano, Lauren Molella, Isabelle Ouellette, Mallory Peterson, and Mackenzie Whalen. Because of the hard work and dedication of these compassionate and empathetic young ladies, Mrs. Knapp finds herself with countless cans of baby formula to deliver to a Haitian orphanage. I would certainly say that Hearts for Haiti was a tremendous success!
In terms of course offerings for next year, as we look toward offering additional electives, we are considering the possibility of mixing students from different grades in those courses. I would like to solicit your comments about that possibility. Please contact me at x103 to share your thoughts.
Below, please find some key dates over the next five weeks, and please remember to visit our website for the Middle School calendar.
Monday, April 21 & May 12 BLT Meeting-2:30
Tuesday, April 22 Annual PTO Meeting
Thursday, April 24 MS Safety Team Meeting
Tuesday, April 29 Board of Education Meeting-7:30
Thursday, May 1 NYS Science 8 Written Exam
Monday, May 5 Board of Education Meeting - 7:30
Wed.-Fri. May 7-9 8th Grade Trip to Washington Wednesday, May 14 Principal’s List Luncheon
Friday, May 16 End of Interim Progress Reporting Period
Tuesday, May 20 SCHOOL BUDGET VOTE
Tuesday, May 20 7th Grade Trip to Mystic
Best wishes for a healthy spring season.
Sincerely,
Brian S. Fried, Principal
Millbrook Middle School
