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photo of Littlebrook students working to reduce energy usage

The Spring 2024 Energy Saving Showdown challenged all six Princeton Public Schools to reduce their energy usage. Sponsored by Sustainable Princeton, it was a challenge that sparked excitement at Littelbrook. Congratulations to all the students and staff at Littlebrook for lowering the school's energy use over the past two months. Littlebrook had a 12% drop in energy usage. PHS had a drop of 9%. PMS had a drop of 8%.

Read Post about Congratulations to Littlebrook, Winner of Energy Savings Showdown
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The Princeton Board of Education has approved a motion to submit paperwork to the New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE) seeking approval for a referendum to fund new classrooms and core spaces at Community Park Elementary, Littlebrook Elementary, Princeton Middle School, and Princeton High School. The referendum vote is planned for December 2024 or January 2025, depending upon the timing of NJDOE approvals.

Read Post about Plans Advance for Referendum to Fund New Classrooms and Core Spaces
photo collage of students viewing the ecliipse

Many students from Princeton Public Schools had the opportunity to see the partial eclipse on April 8, and the experience was enriched thanks to community partners, particularly Princeton University’s Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe (IMAP) and their community outreach team.

Read Post about Partial Solar Eclipse Viewing with Help from Princeton University's IMAP
photo of bulletin board, Autism Acceptance

As part of programming scheduled for Autism Acceptance Month, students at Princeton Middle School had an exciting opportunity to interact with Dr. Temple Grandin, a prominent author and speaker on both autism and animal behavior. A school-wide Zoom session included a series of questions from PMS students. 

Read Post about Autism Acceptance Month: Dr. Temple Grandin Meets With PMS Students
photos of PMS staff wearing autism awareness shirts

We recently caught up with Beth Murrin, Supervisor of Special Education (Grade 6 - Grade 8) to discuss special education and life skills at PMS. Here are some highlights from the conversation. Above: Princeton Middle School staff celebrate Autism Awareness Month

Read Post about Spotlight on Special Education: Life Skills and Functioinal Education at Princeton Middle School
graphic about voting for PHS in Samsung Solve for Tomorrow

Our very own Princeton High School team is a finalist in the Samsung Solve for Tomorrow Community Choice Award. The winner will be the school with the most votes and the prize is $10,000. Please vote for our Princeton High School team by clicking on the Samsung Solve for Tomorrow website. After watching the PHS video, the viewer can cast his/her vote. Anyone is allowed one vote per day from March 26 to April 23.

Read Post about Samsung Community Choice: Please Vote for Princeton High School to Win
Photo of Dr. Foster and volunteers at Mobile Food Pantry

Students and members of all three PPS unions—teachers, administrators and support staff—turned out in force this week to work at the Princeton Mobile Food Pantry (PMFP), packing 576 bags of food for underserved members of the community and donating a total of $1,430 for purchases of chicken, milk, eggs, carrots, bananas, and potatoes. 

Read Post about PPS Volunteers Support Princeton Mobile Food Pantry 
photo of students creating tiles at the Arts Council of Princeton

Congratulations to the PHS science students who recently collaborated with the Paul Robeson House and the Arts Council of Princeton to make special tiles using clay from the site of the historic Paul Robeson home.Science students from James Smirk's class worked with the Arts Council of Princeton and Ryan Stark Lilienthal, the Anne Reeves Artist-in-Residence at the Arts Council, to create special tiles molded from clay taken from Paul Robeson’s Princeton residence.

Read Post about Students Work with Paul Robeson House and the Arts Council to Honor Robeson's Legacy
photo of Lunar New Year Parade at PHS

The 15-day celebration of Year of the Dragon got off to a terrific start at Princeton High School with the annual PHS Lunar New Year Parade presented by students of the Mandarin Language and Mandarin teacher Ms. Shwu-Fen Lin. Thank you to all the students who participated and shared this wonderful tradition, which is said to bring good luck and prosperity.

Read Post about Year of the Dragon Festivities Include Annual Lunar New Year Parade
photo of Mayor Mark Freda cutting ribbon at the new courtyard

May 17 was a beautiful day for the official dedication of the revitalized courtyard space at Princeton High School.Thank you to the Princeton Education Foundation, Mr. Bryan Hoffman, Mr. Joe Gargione, Ms. Bridget Schmid, RS Land Design and the many Princeton High School students who conceived, funded, created and developed the elegant and lovely new courtyard space at Princeton High School. Princeton Mayor Mark Freda officiated at the ribbon cutting ceremony.

Read Post about Ribbon Cutting and Courtyard Dedication with the Princeton Education Foundation and Mayor Mark Freda
Robocup graphic

The RoboCupJunior USA competition challenges students up to 19 years old to work collaboratively as a team to design, create, and code robots to solve problems. The competition is divided into three leagues: Soccer, Rescue, and OnStage.

The competition is open to students with any level of experience, and teams can use any tool or technology they want, from modifying preexisting robotics kits to building everything from scratch.

Read Post about May 21: RoboCup USA at Princeton High School
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These highlights are an unofficial  summary of actions taken and topics discussed during the public session of the Board of Education meeting on April 25, 2023. They are intended to provide timely information to the community, but they do not represent an official accounting of the meeting.  Official minutes will be approved by the  Board at its next meeting. 

Read Post about Board of Education Highlights from April 25
photo of Elizabeth van der Schaar

Jenna Peluso, Quest Coordinator & Instructor for the district, joined PPS at the end of March. Within a few weeks of starting her new job, she has had the opportunity to Zoom with elementary school parents as well as more than 100 elementary school teachers. She works in all four elementary schools and will soon be starting preliminary assessments for the new QUEST program for Kindergarten through Grade 5. We caught up with Mrs. Peluso last week to discuss her new role at Princeton Public Schools. Ms. Peluso will be conducting CogAT  testing at elementary schools starting in late April and early May.

Read Post about Jenna Peluso Leads New QUEST Program for Elementary Students
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These highlights are an unofficial  summary of actions taken and topics discussed during the public session of the Board of Education meeting on March 28, 2023.They are intended to provide timely information to our community, but they do not represent an official accounting of the meeting.  Official minutes will be approved by the  Board at its next meeting. 

Read Post about Board of Education Highlights from March 28
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Last summer, roof work was started at two elementary schools: Littlebrook and Community Park, with the plan to continue this effort at other school buildings in the upcoming summers. As part of the roof upgrades, insulation was increased. At Community Park and Littlebrook, the upgrades resulted in average R-values between 45 and 52 for the new roofs. These upgrades are important for a conducive learning and working environment, but an early peak at the data shows signs of another benefit: energy savings.

Read Post about Sustainability Spotlight: Roof Upgrades at Two Schools Suggest Energy Savings
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On Tuesday, Princeton University announced that it will provide more than $14 million in support to Princeton Public Schools over the next five years. Princeton University will provide the district with an unrestricted payment of $2,250,000 in the first year, an amount that will increase by 4% in each subsequent year. 

Read Post about Princeton University Announces $14 Million in Support for PPS Over Five Years
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These highlights are an unofficial summary of actions taken and topics discussed during the public session of the PPS Board of Education on February 21, 2023. They are intended to provide timely information to our community, but they do not represent an official accounting of the meeting.  Official minutes will be approved by the Board at its next meetingTo see the video of the February 21 meeting, please click here.

To subscribe to Board Highlights please email communications@princetonk12.org.

Read Post about Board Hightlights from February 21
Photo of the PPS Restart and Reopen Plan

These highlights are an unofficial summary of actions taken and topics discussed during the public session of the PPS Board of Education on January 24, 2023. They are intended to provide timely information to our community, but they do not represent an official accounting of the meeting.  Official minutes will be approved by the Board at its next meeting. 

Read Post about January 24: Board of Education Highlights
flyer for DLI information Sessions

Si su hijo está comenzando kindergarten o primer grado en las Escuelas Públicas de Princeton, lo invitamos a asistir a una sesión informativa de inmersión bilingüe el miércoles 18 de enero a las 6:30 p. m. o el jueves 19 de enero a las 9 a. m. Las sesiones de información se llevarán a cabo en persona en Community Park School, 372 Witherspoon Street. Todos los estudiantes que ingresen a kindergarten y primer grado serán elegibles para solicitar el Programa de Inmersión Dual de Lenguas (DLI) de PPS, donde a los estudiantes se les enseña tanto en inglés como en español. Para los grados 2do a 8to, los estudiantes que demuestren un dominio adecuado del español pueden inscribirse en el programa DLI. La asistencia a una de varias sesiones informativas que se ofrecerán es un requisito previo para la inscripción en el programa DLI. Llame al 609.806.4230 si tiene preguntas.

Read Post about Sesiones de información para padres sobre la Inmersión Dual de Lenguas (DLI) el 18 y 19 de enero
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The CP Dual Language Immersion program is open to all PPS incoming Kindergarten and 1st grade students.  Families who are registering a child for Kindergarten or 1st grade for the Spring 2023 or Fall 2023 and are interested in the DLI program should indicate their interest on the online registration “Form H, Home Language Survey” page. 

Community Park will be holding two Parent Information Sessions in January 2023. Attendance at a parent information session is required for entry to the program - DLI applications will be provided to families who attend these information sessions. 

Please call the Community Park Main Office (609-806-4230) if you have questions.

Read Post about Dual Language Immersion Welcomes Kindergarten and First Grade Applicants for 2023
Basin  photo with black plastic to kill weeds

Princeton High School's EcoLab is being restored to allow for regeneration and to encourage native species to flourish. At the same time, PPS has created a new stormwater basin near the football field where grass will be replaced with a native meadow.

Read Post about SPOTLIGHT ON SUSTAINABILITY: Changes at the Princeton High School EcoLab, New Native Meadow
flyer for Lunch & Learn PowerSchool vs. Canvas

The Lunch & Learn presentation about how to use Canvas (Learning Management System) and PowerSchool (Student Information System) was a big success. Parents in middle school and high school found it very helpful. Thank you to the PTOC and to Ms. Krista Galyon, PPS Supervisor of Technology & Innovation. If you missed the Lunch & Learn session, please check the PTOC website to see the recording.

Read Post about Lunch & Learn: PowerSchool vs. Canvas, What's the Difference - Zoom Recording
JP Sustainability photo

Two schools in the Princeton Public School District, Johnson Park and Littlebrook Elementary, have met the requirements to achieve Sustainable Jersey for Schools certification, bringing the total number of certified schools across New Jersey to 352.

 

Read Post about Spotlight on Sustainability: Johnson Park and Littlebrook Elementary Schools Earn Sustainability Certification
photo of the Hispanic Heritage Assembly

There have been fantastic events district-wide during Hispanic Heritage Month, Sept. 15 - Oct. 15. But it's not over yet! At Princeton High School, the second annual Hispanic Heritage Assembly was a huge hit with students. Music, dancing and songs were just part of the fun on assembly day. After the assembly the students participated in a series of activities organized by fellow students. Activities included learning how to dance, karaoke, temporary tattoos, a photo booth, Latin-American trivia, soccer and more.

Read Post about Hispanic Heritage Month Continues with a PHS Assembly and a Numina Gallery Exhibition