Scotch Plains-Fanwood Public Schools
William J. McGinn School
1100 Roosevelt Avenue
Scotch Plains, New Jersey 07076
Sasha Slocum, Ph.D. 908-233-7950
Principal 908-233-6766 (fax)
August 26, 2016
Dear McGinn Students and Families:
Welcome BACK TO SCHOOL for the 2016-2017 School Year, McGinn’s 50th year!!! School begins September 6th for students and will be a full day for ALL McGinn students. McGinn Faculty and Staff are preparing enthusiastically for your child’s arrival. Many construction projects continue as we prepare for full-day kindergarten and safe access around the entire building. Our teachers and staff are eager to delve into science explorations and language arts projects, solve equations, connect with communities locally and globally, and expand our health and creativity through art, music, Spanish, physical education and the McGinn Garden in classrooms and beyond. Our community prepared for the 50th school year this summer by voting on our mission statement/motto. It is a perfect way to start the year. McGinn 50 Years: The Foundation to Grow. The Compassion to Give. The Imagination to Dream.
We welcome many new staff members to McGinn’s community this year. Moving from four half-day to five full-day sections of kindergarten increased our staff by three teachers! We welcome Ms. Kelly Bhatia who moved from fourth grade at McGinn to her new kindergarten home. Ms. Suzanne Toriello joins us in kindergarten after teaching in Westfield. Ms. Kristen Cecchini, a recent graduate of University of Delaware, taught at School One in the Spring and rounds out our kindergarten team.
In first grade, we welcome Ms. Kerri Horvath, a leave replacement teacher for Mrs. Petrone (formerly Ms. Patino) and Ms. Arti Rathore, a leave replacement teacher for Mrs. Testa. Ms. Horvath taught previously at Brunner and has a rich Science background from Rider University. Ms. Rathore has a Masters degree in Education and Psychology from Panjab University, Chandigarh.
Ms. Amanda Thompson will cover a medical leave for Mrs. Falzone at the beginning of the year. Ms. Thompson has been a second grade teacher and K-4 Science specialist in two New Jersey districts.
We have several new additions to our special education teaching staff. McGinn welcomes Ms. Perri Fuerst, a Rowan graduate who has worked at the Center for Lifelong Learning. Mr. Jack Marcus will serve as a leave replacement for Ms. Nicole Short. Mr. Marcus has worked in Westfield and knows some of our students through his camp work with the JCC. In two new part-time positions, we welcome Ms. Elizabeth Sinnott and Ms. Jessica Chalupa. Ms. Sinnott has a Masters from Kean University and has worked at the Morris-Union Jointure Commission. Ms. Chalupa has a BA from Rutgers and MA from TCNJ and comes to us from Raritan Valley Community College Planetarium where she has managed the programs there.
Other new staff members are welcome as well! Ms. Katherine Dreyer joins us as a full-time aide leave replacement for Ms. Patricia Esbrandt after serving as a dedicated lunch/general aide for McGinn. Ms. Amanda Di Donato also joins us as a full-time aide. She is a dual certified special education and K-6 elementary teacher with experience teaching in Bernardsville. Ms. Diane Moriarty and Ms. Chereka Echols will also join us as full-time aides. Ms. Moriarty has been an aide in Westfield and Ms. Echols has worked for Piscataway Public Schools.
We welcome several new lunch/general aides who will be recognized in the next McGinn Memo. Our entire community welcomes our new members and will work together to usher in our 2016-17 class of students and families!
FIRST DAY INFORMATION
This year, we are continuing our paperless process! For answers to our most frequently asked questions, please view the McGinn website for back-to-school updates and information. Please also check Teacher Pages on the McGinn website in the coming weeks for teachers’ welcome letters.
Teachers will meet their students for the first two days of school (September 6th and 7th) at 8:25 at one of three outdoor locations noted on the Welcome Packet page. After the first two days of school, students will line up at their designated spot and meet their teachers in the classrooms. On the first day of school, a full day, all students will be dismissed at 3:10 PM. Please see McGinn’s website for information regarding regular, single session days and holidays.
If you are a new family to the district please make sure you sign up for the district’s Honeywell Instant Alert System located on the district website: www.spfk12.org. This system notifies you of all district-wide alerts by sending an email and/or text to the email addresses and cell phone numbers you provide.
For important upcoming dates, school and PTA information, please visit review our website, www.spfk12.org/mcginn, the McGinn Memo (located in three spots on the website) and the PTA information packet, which will come home with your child on the first day of school. Upcoming dates include the New Student Welcome and Scavenger Hunt, which will take place at 1:00 (NOTE THE NEW TIME) on September 2nd. The start of school is Tuesday, September 6th. To kick off our 50th year celebration, we invite families to have a picnic lunch with their children on Friday, September 9th from 11:20 – 12:20 for kindergarten and 11:50 – 12:50 for grades 1 – 4 on McGinn’s grounds. Join us also at the annual PTA “Party on the Blacktop” on Friday, September 16th. We have an extraordinary PTA, which provides activities where you can learn about our school, our PTA committees and community events. More information will follow on September 22nd, our Back-to-School Night.
Our PTA officers for 2016-17 include Regina Gannon (President), Damaris Gutierrez (Vice-President of Fundraising), Maria Moloney (Vice-President of Fundraising), Robyn Feldblum (Vice President of Programming), Benita Sefranka (Vice President of Programming), Kate Dening (Corresponding Secretary), Neelambari Save (Recording Secretary), and Mary Yick (Treasurer). Many other dedicated people chair and participate in the committees that make up McGinn’s PTA. I encourage you to join them. I would like to thank President Nancy Wall and the PTA Executive Board for their service this past year and Regina Gannon and the new Executive Board’s assistance in preparing for the new school year. The dedication and the commitment of so many of you make the McGinn community an extraordinary place to work and learn. Many thanks to the PTA for providing $100 to every teacher and additional PTA grants to many teachers to enhance their programs. In addition, the PTA has again donated assignment books to our third and fourth graders, multiple periodicals for different grade levels and McGinn folders to every student. They have also contributed 10 Chromebooks and two tubs to store them!!! McGinn community continues to demonstrate a commitment to expansion of technology resources. Thank you from every staff member, McGinn families!
Our community continues to support “green” communications. Ms. Nancy Wall did an extraordinary job of sending weekly eblasts to families chock full of information last year. Please be sure to sign up for this voluntary service, which Ms. Regina Gannon will continue this year. They sign up page is: http://visitor.r20.constantcontact.com/manage/optin?v=001GEb4-cqp7jy8JNQsc6R8SGUvAswZ3gdrcsvuv9j7cqbFCNFgM-W5cOW5Qmz46_0IcDE1xjStOdWw8JJRarRj5lpEwxR8zQPAAhsBGRIET7M%3D. Please also look for information on our website: http://www.spfk12.org/mcginn. If you are unsure if your current email address is on file in our database, please email me (), Mrs. Gleason, our executive secretary ( ), or Mrs. Drubulis ( ).
McGinn’s staff continues to prepare classrooms and hallways, websites and materials, lesson plans and activities for the Opening. Special thanks Mr. Ekrem, Mr. Keith, Mr. Giovanni, who have done herculean work this summer with the many projects and programs, and Mrs. Gleason, Mrs. Drubulis, Regina Gannon, and our teachers for their time and effort to prepare for an innovative, passion-filled and productive new school year. I am eager to make more McGinn history with you and your children this 2016-17 school year!
Educationally Yours,
Sasha Slocum
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