Friday, April 15, 2016

April 15, 2016

Superintendent's Blog
#ewgrsd
First, I would like to thank those who took the time to vote for the 2016-2017 School Department Budget. On Monday evening, we learned that the budget passed by an overwhelming majority as a result of the continued support of our member communities.
Stars of the Week:
Now this is an amazing accomplishment..... Sixth grade Metcalf student Madeline Green was selected as the winner of the local chapter of the Daughter's of the American Revolution annual essay contest for her essay titled A Colonial Family’s Reaction to the Stamp Act. Her essay was then named the state winner, and then the Northeast Division winner for the region covering the New England states and New York. Her essay was then entered into the national competition, and she found out this week that she has been named the sixth grade NATIONAL WINNER!!!! Madeline and her family will head to Washington D.C. in June for the award ceremony. I have read the essay and it is incredible. Congratulations to this gifted writer and her family.
The Exeter-West Greenwich High School Model Legislature Team recently participated in the annual Model Legislature session at the State House.  The students write bills and then present them to the other students from around the state who make up the Model House of Representatives and Model Senate and try to get them passed.  Here are a few pictures from the event and some information about the participants.  



Students in the group photo are from left to right: Paul DiPadua, Mitchell Ambrosino, Marcus Simonini, Noah Jussila, Jonny Glendinning, Nathan Santerre, and Sam Van Gyzen.  All the boys are seniors at EWG.  

Some of them had leadership positions for the state.  Marcus Simonini was the Liberal co-Whip, Noah Jussila was Speaker of the House of Representatives, and Nathan Santerre was Chair of the Labor Committee.  

Noah Jussila was awarded the J. Joseph Garrahy Book Award at the event.  He was also the author of one of the 8 bills which passed both the House and the Senate this session.  ("An Act to Establish Comprehensive Sexual Education") 
Congratulations to our team and thank you to the team's advisor, Mrs. Mary Hartley. Mrs. Hartley joined our Senior High School Social Studies/History department this year, and she has done an amazing job. We are thrilled to have her assume leadership of this important team after the retirement of long-time advisor Mrs. Oliviera.



For the second year, Governor Raimondo has sponsored a "Governor for the Day" essay contest, which allows students to describe what they would want to accomplish if they were in fact Governor for the day. This year, Metcalf student Rebecca Kilday was notified that among the 400+ entries, she was one of the few selected as a state finalist. Rebecca endured a lengthy interview with one of the Governor's staff members before the final selection was made. Congratulations to Rebecca and her family on this amazing recognition!


Finally, I would like to acknowledge our Assistant Principals as we close out on National Assistant Principal Appreciation Week. Mrs. Fish, Mr. Anthony and Mr. Alves do a lot behind the scenes to ensure that our students are learning in a safe and engaging environment. Take a moment to say thank you!!

Enjoy your vacation week! It is hard to believe that when we return on April 25th, we will be entering the homestretch of another successful school year.