Shout Outs

Earth Day

Students planted 10 Norway spruce trees and 10 flowering trees in honor of Earth Day! Students got to enjoy the beautiful 70-degree weather while also giving back to our planet. Thank you Mrs. Clinkenbeard for all of the wonderful experiences you provide to Scofield students!

Submitted by Jen Laughlin

 

Westover Thanks School Bus Drivers

Westover celebrated School Bus Driver Appreciation Day on Tuesday, April 22. Students were excited to present their wonderful bus drivers with cookies, which were provided by the Westover PTO. Thank you to all of the bus drivers who help ensure our children get to and from school safely each day. We appreciate your dedication to our students and school community!

Submitted by Larissa Weir

Roxbury Math Night Fun for ALL AGES!

On April 8, Roxbury’s Math Support Specialist Mia Quagliani hosted a wildly successful Math Night for Kindergarten through Fifth Grade. Students and parents rotated through twenty math stations and even stopped for a quick healthy snack. Parents played alongside their child(ren) using games with manipulatives such as cubes, dominoes, and pattern blocks as well as a gigantic number line, number grid, and dice. Some crowd favorites were Number Line Race, Multiplication Pong, and a measurement game called “How Tall Am I?” 

 

A special thanks to the Roxbury staff who helped out: Mrs. Lapolla, Ms. Warner, Mrs. Walsh, Mrs. Corsello, Ms. Vakos, Mrs. Berkoff, Mrs. Walker, and our administrators Mrs. Ehlers, Mrs. Sikorski and Dr. Lahiri Hoherchak.

Submitted by Sandra Elhers

 

Toquam ML Students Get a Peek into the Future with ML Career Day

Our special guest speakers who spoke to our ML students and parents were Deputy Fire Marshal Jones, Stamford High School Graduate Police Officer Bolteax, Certified Nurse Aide Riccy Galdamez, Fashion Designer Whitney Fabre, and Assistant Service Manager and Navy Military Electrician Pedro Ganchala. We are very grateful for the inspiration they gave our ML students in deciding their future careers. Mr. Ganchala, Ms.Fabre, and Ms.Galdamez were graduates of Westhill High school and former students of Ms. Asaka Niwa-Rrustemi, the ML teacher who organized this informative event along with Ms. Angie Brown, ML teacher at Toquam Magnet Elementary School.

Submitted by Jenna Cinelli

 

Stark Artwork & Ceramic Exhibition

A heartfelt acknowledgement goes to art teachers Nicole Coviello and Alison Willson for empowering our students to create, design, and organize an exhibition that showcased their artistic talents and interdisciplinary learning!

 

Happy Administrative Professionals Day 

Our Stark community expresses its sincere appreciation to Mary Brassman and Jefferson Romero, the amazing Stark Administrative Professionals. Thank you for your hard work and dedication!

 

Stark Sprint Fundraising 

The Stark community has done an amazing job by surpassing its fundraising goal and raising over $37,600! This impressive amount of money will help with next year’s school activities and trips. To celebrate this accomplishment, students have participated in a week of fun events called Stark Sprint Spirit. These events brought the whole school community together and showed how everyone can work towards a good cause. Parents, teachers, and students all joined in to support the initiative, creating a strong sense of teamwork and pride. The excitement and enthusiasm during the week made everyone feel a part of something important. 

 

Thanks to everyone’s hard work and dedication, Stark Community can look forward to another wonderful year filled with fun activities and adventures that will enrich the students’ experiences. It’s truly a great achievement for everyone involved!

Submitted by Iuliana Roata

 

AITE Student is a Winner in the 40th Annual Stamford Literary Competition

Junior, Minh Ho, is a winner in the 40th Annual Stamford Literary Competition. She placed first in the Poetry Competition for high school students. Minh will receive a Certificate of Achievement from the Friends of the Ferguson Library on Sunday, May 4, and her work will be published in the 2025 Literary Competition Anthology.

 

AITE Senior Receives $40,000 Scholarship & Internship Offer to Pursue Undergraduate Degree in Computer Science

Senior Dorian Mitchell is an Amazon Future Engineer Scholarship recipient for 2025. Mitchell will receive up to $40,000 over four years to pursue a degree in Computer Science at Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He is one of only six Connecticut students to receive this prestigious honor out of 400 selected nationwide. The award includes a paid internship offer at Amazon after the first year of college to gain hands-on, practical work experience with mentorship from Amazon leaders.

 

Recipients were chosen based on a variety of criteria, including their academic achievement, demonstrated leadership, participation in school and community activities, work experience, future goals, and financial need. Amazon partnered with Scholarship America to review the applications and select the 400 scholars.

 

“It has been an absolute pleasure to teach Dorian over the past four years across four different classes, where he consistently demonstrated excellence and perseverance. He is incredibly deserving of the Amazon Future Engineer Scholarship, and I have no doubt he will go on to accomplish great things. I’m immensely proud of him,” said Sean Peterson, his AITE mentor teacher.

 

Submitted by Tina Rivera

 

 

What is an SPS Shout Out?

An SPS Shout Out is a special recognition that acknowledges school communities, staff members or students who have inspired us with a unique project, an outstanding job or a special effort that had a positive impact on our students or community.  Each week we will celebrate a few by sharing with all SPS staff and posting on the district website. Please share any or all of these with your friends and families.   

SPS Administrators can submit Shout Outs for consideration through the link available in the Administrator Weekly. Please note the deadline, word limit, and photo limit. We look forward to seeing your submissions!

 

Julia Stark Business Fair

The second graders at Stark have been very busy enjoying their Little Reader book called "The Job Hunt." This story helped them learn about different jobs and what it means to be an entrepreneur. To celebrate what they learned, all the second graders took part in our Annual Business Fair. Each student planned and designed their own business ideas. They created displays and made advertisements to show what their businesses were all about. Parents, teachers, and friends came to support the students and see their hard work. It was a fun event that showed the great potential our second graders have as future entrepreneurs, and everyone had a fantastic time learning and celebrating together! Kudos to the 2nd grade teachers and paraeducators , Stacey Fletcher, Sonia Plummer Brown, Nicole Faubel, Betsy DeSantis, Pranvera Gjuraj, Samara Walker.

 

Junior Achievement in Action

Grade 4 students at Stark had an exciting day when volunteers from M&T Bank came to our school to teach them about being entrepreneurs. The students learned what it means to start their own businesses and how to turn their ideas into reality. The volunteers shared fun stories and examples about famous entrepreneurs, like how simple ideas can grow into big companies. The kids learned important skills, such as how to make a plan for their business, manage money, and provide good customer service. They even got to work in groups, coming up with their own business ideas and thinking about what they would sell.  By the end of the day, the students felt inspired and excited about the possibility of starting their own businesses in the future.

 

Reading Challenge Celebration

Teachers and students came together to celebrate the participants of the March Reading Challenge. The celebration was held in the school gym, where everyone was excited to join in on a Basketball Fun competition. Students who read the most books were recognized for their hard work and dedication. Teachers  joined in on the fun, showing that reading is important, but having fun together is just as essential. This event not only honored the readers but also helped build friendships and school spirit. Kudos to Sarah Santasiero, Jenny Annosier, Tina Batto, Dr. Armstrong, Michael Macchio, Patrina Powell, Deborah Bouchard, Katelyn Rich, Jennifer Adams and Nicole Palomba. 

 

 

 

READ-A-THON Fundraising Event

The Hart Magnet PTO organized the read-a-thon fundraiser for two weeks to encourage our students to embrace the love of reading. It  turned out to be a great success! We raised around $6,100 and the total number of minutes read by our students was 14,987.  

 

Our Read-a-thon winner for reading the most minutes were: 

5th Grade - Charlotte Novoa - Ms. Cain's class

4th Grade - Katie Gilbert - Mrs. Albano's class

3rd Grade - Saanya Shrestha - Mrs. Gil's class

2nd Grade - Haile Blackman - Ms. McLaughlin's class

1st Grade - Peter Aduenko - Ms. Gola's class

Kindergarten - Kayleigh MacKenzie - Mrs. Kuehn's class

 

We are proud of all our students who spent time immersing themselves in books. We know reading enhances our vocabulary, expands our knowledge and critical thinking skills. Reading sparks our imagination and enriches our knowledge of different perspectives.

 

STRAWBERRY HILL ODYSSEY OF THE MIND TEAM HEADED TO WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP 

The Strawberry Hill Odyssey of the Mind team placed first in their division at the statewide CT competition. This amazing team will travel to Michigan State University in May to compete against teams from all over the world. They are beyond thrilled to participate in this experience. We are so proud of the Strawberry Hill Team. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity. Members of the team include Emma, Ella, Remco, Declan, Ava, Ishika, and Srayvya Special thanks to coaches Cecilia and Shweta.

 

AITE’s Kinetic Rams Win Second Place Overall at Yale Physics Olympics

Congratulations to John Morse, Siddharth Rawat, Alexander Amann, and Edwin Sandoval, AITE’s Kinetic Rams team, who competed victoriously against students from more than 20 schools from Connecticut and other states on physics experiments and mathematical computations at Yale University. They won first place by a huge margin in the Battery Making Challenge, and they won second place for Young's Modulus Measurement. They also placed second overall for 4 other challenges. Shout out to AITE students Paul Sawyer and Nate Elsner, who also contributed in planning and training for this victory.

 

 

Newfield's Got Heart

Newfield physical education teachers, Robyn Spinner and Erin Iacono, kicked off the school’s annual Kids Heart Challenge last week. All students participated in the event, and learned the importance of cardiovascular endurance through heart healthy stations. Newfield School raised over $4,200 in donations that went to the American Heart Association to further advance heart research and health.

 

 

Toys for Tots visits Mrs. Elumba’s 1st Grade

On Friday, April 4th, Toys for Tots youth ambassador Brooke Healy visited Mrs. Elumba’s first grade classroom. Brooke is a freshman at Stamford High School and has been actively involved with Toys for Tots since 2020.  She started her own business to raise money to purchase books for children in need. Since then, she was named Connecticut's first youth ambassador for Toys for Tots. They have partnered with Scholastic Book clubs and Brooke started a new initiative to read and distribute books to classrooms. Brooke read the book Red Shoes to the class and asked comprehension questions. She facilitated thoughtful reading responses from our first graders. Each student received their own copies of the book to take home and share with their families. A big thank you to Brooke Healy and the Toys for Tots organization! 

 

Newfield's Got Talent

On Thursday, April 3rd, Newfield hosted a “B-Wing” Talent Show. This event showcased the talents of 20 Fourth and Fifth Grade students. Talents included singing, playing musical instruments, various dance routines, a skit written by our very own 5th grade students and a reading of personal work. Students did two performances for their peers at Newfield and one performance at night for families. We are so proud of the talents our students shared with our school community. A big thank you to Ms. Basone, Mrs. Bekech, Mrs. Stoogenke, Mrs. Rabita, Mr. Kruk, Mrs. Romano, Mrs. Reynolds, Mrs. Meza and Ms. Stewart for all their hard work and time to put this show together.

 

National Public Health Week

For national Health Week, Stark community wants to give a shout out to our public health heroes. A big thank you to amazing nurse Ingrid Louis and dental hygienist Deanna Tedesco. Their hard work and care for our community means so much. 

 

Toquam's Thespians Take Us To Agrabah With Aladdin, Jr.!

Toquam's Thespians put on a fantastic and amazing production of Aladdin, Jr. this past weekend! Our cast and crew worked extremely hard to put on a great show for the whole Toquam school community, and they had a great time doing it! These students crammed 6 months of rehearsal into 3 months, and wowed the audience with a Broadway-caliber production. Many thanks to Mrs. Cinelli, Mrs. Vila, and Ms. D'Agostino for all their hard work on this show!

 

PLTW Seniors Present Their Capstone Projects

Thirty-three seniors in AITE’s inaugural Project Lead the Way (PLTW) Capstone course presented their final products to classmates, mentors, parents, and faculty members on Wednesday. Students in all three PLTW pathways - biomedical science, computer science, and engineering - have spent the year selecting, researching, and developing a solution to an impactful problem guided by their teachers: Ms. Paige Ridley and Ms. Danielle Weber. 

 

STEPS @ The Boys and Girls Club

This year-long cultural exchange connected students from Stamford Public Schools with children at The Foundation Fact Orphanage located inYaounde, the capital city of Cameroon, Africa.

 

Through this project, students shared what being a third grader in their respective communities is like. The STEPS Program in consultation with Fairfield University and the non profit African Skies worked closely with Newfield’s third graders to document daily routines, classroom norms, and student interviews, capturing a meaningful snapshot of life in a Stamford third-grade classroom.

ServSafe and Culinary Cultivations at STEPS

The students at STEPS at the Boys and Girls Club have been working hard at obtaining their ServSafe certification. Each week the students prepare meals from all around the world, wrapped into their culinary program is the skills and training to obtain their certifications. The ServSafe certification is a nationally recognized food safety training and certification program administered by the National Restaurant Association. It is designed 1  for food service managers and employees to ensure they have the knowledge and skills necessary to handle food safely and prevent foodborne illnesses.

 

Northeast Celebrates Spring

Northeast's Instrumental Music Teachers Mr. Stec and Mr. Barbour's grade 4 and 5 students rang in Spring with 2 wonderful performances.  Band and String students performed melodies while the grade 4 and 5 chorus students sang their hearts out.  What a wonderful way to celebrate Spring!

 

Grade 4 and 5 Performance

Northeast's Instrumental Music Teachers Mr. Stec and Mr. Barbour's grade 4 and 5 students rang in Spring with 2 wonderful performances.  Band and String students performed melodies while the grade 4 and 5 chorus students sang their hearts out.  What a wonderful way to celebrate Spring!

Underground Spirit Week

Northeast staff participated in a secret spirit week.  Each day, staff participated in a new theme: wearing all black, hat day, teacher t-shirt day, vacation themed clothing day and drinking water from anything but a water bottle.  Students had to guessed the theme of each day and fun was had by all!

 

TOR Students Make Their Voices Heard

We encourage and celebrate student voice at TOR.  On Tuesday evening during the public budget hearing, three eighth grade TOR students (Miguel Gomez Beltran, Mishel Jimenez Perez, and Noah Osorio) spoke before the Stamford Boards of Finance and Representatives in favor of continued funding for the Domus Family Advocate position.  Our Advocate, Carmen Williams, goes above and beyond to support so many TOR students.  We are proud of our students and grateful for Ms. Williams!

 

 

What is an SPS Shout Out?

An SPS Shout Out is a special recognition that acknowledges school communities, staff members or students who have inspired us with a unique project, an outstanding job or a special effort that had a positive impact on our students or community.  Each week we will celebrate a few by sharing with all SPS staff and posting on the district website. Please share any or all of these with your friends and families.   

SPS Administrators can submit Shout Outs for consideration through the link available in the Administrator Weekly. Please note the deadline, word limit, and photo limit. We look forward to seeing your submissions!

 

Roxbury Parent Facilitator Honored

Congratulations to Noemi Berkoff, Roxbury’s Parent Facilitator, for being named one of Stamford’s Outstanding Latinas by the organizations Crisol Acuarela and Grupo Quetzal. Noemi was honored at a ceremony at the Ferguson Library on March 16 as part of International Women’s Day. Roxbury celebrates Noemi every day for the knowledge, care, and support she gives our families. We are thrilled that the entire Stamford community recognizes her long-time contributions to our City as well!

 

Roxbury Students Visit Westhill Agriculture Program

As part of Roxbury’s commitment to the Higher Order Thinking Schools, each teacher is in charge of a monthly “Echo” Program. Roxbury teachers Morgan Walton and July Carvajal partnered with Salvatore Magnano at the WestHill Agriculture Program to give the students in their “Spice of Life Echos” Program a tour of the Agricultural Center at WestHill. WestHill students Juliana Lott and Isabella Curran gave students a tour of the greenhouse, science kitchen, and several different animal labs. 

Submitted by Sandra Ehlers

 

Toquam Third Graders Learn About Forces & Motion with Eli Whitney Museum

Toquam third grade students enjoyed a visit from Eli Whitney Museum, where they learned all about forces and motion by making cars powered by rubber bands. This project gave the students insights into the mechanics, measurement, and math of motion! All our students had a great time making the cars and putting science into action! 

 

Toquam Staff Kicks Off Parent Surveys with Community Outreach at DOMUS

Toquam staff kicked off parent surveys with a community outreach at one of our families’ busiest bus stops near DOMUS. Our families were greeted by our staff to help with parent surveys and answer any questions and concerns. Our families truly appreciated seeing friendly Toquam faces in their own neighborhood! 

Submitted by Jenna Cinelli & Paola Belliu

 

AITE Students are Finalists in School Swag Design Challenge

EduNetwork Partners and Hit Promotional Products are pleased to announce two AITE students, Darwin Anariba and Jairo Rojas, were finalists in the School Gear Swag Design Challenge. Their innovative designs, “The Table Bag” and “Retroback,” respectively, impressed the judges and demonstrated exceptional creativity within their entrepreneurship classes, led by Ms. Florina Merturi. As finalists, they will participate in a “Think Tank” experience and receive a recognition certificate and kit. We are delighted to let you know that two students entering the HIT design challenge were finalists. Edunetwork Partners will also be honoring Ms. Merturi for her work in inspiring future designers with a prize.

 

AITE’s Future Business Leaders of America Students Rack-Up Awards

Congratulations to AITE’s FBLA students for their outstanding performance at the 2025 FBLA State Competition, which took place at Southern CT State University on March 19. 

 

Kavin Gnanvel: 1st place Economics; Vivaan Kotian: 1st place Securities & Investment; Siddharth Rawat: 2nd place Cyber Security; Kayla Mozingo: 3rd place Health Care Administration; Sophia Noel: 5th place Introduction to Marketing Concepts 

Team Placements: Vanessa Amsellem, Cameron Carvalho and Isabelle Noel: 1st place Social Media Strategies & Hamza Fayyad, Jermin Montenegro and Ayaan Sadiq: 3rd place Banking & Financial Systems.

 

Their success in multiple categories demonstrates their dedication and expertise in various individual placements and in the quality of education and preparation provided by their teachers at AITE. Mr. Ray Milo and Ms. Florina Merturi are the proud co-advisors to AITE’s FBLA program.

Submitted by Tina Rivera

 

Nature Explorations

Second graders had a wonderful time at the Stamford Museum and Nature Center. They explored the farm, enjoyed the amazing playground and learned the maple sugaring process. This event perfectly aligned with their CKLA Knowledge and Science units on Life Cycles and Plants.

 

World Down Syndrome Awareness

Michele Katz, a paraeducator at Stark and the parent of Emma and Molly, deserves our heartfelt thanks for her important lessons. She taught the Stark community that each person is special and has unique qualities. By celebrating our individuality we can all aim to make a positive impact in the world. Michele’s dedication to nurturing this understanding inspires others to appreciate the beauty in diversity and raise awareness of Down Syndrome.

Submitted by Iuliana Roata

 

CORE-NER Store at Hart Magnet Elementary School

Students in the CORE classrooms at Hart opened a snack store during Parent Teacher Conferences to raise money for the Down Syndrome Association of Connecticut. Students exhibited their skills by setting up the store, keeping it organized, communicating with their customers, and counting money. They excelled at this project and had a great time! Thank you to all our teachers and staff for putting together such a wonderful event. 

Submitted by Maria Guzda

 

Scofield Explorers New Logo!

It is with great excitement that we share our new Scofield Explorer logo. A design contest was launched this past fall and over fifty students submitted entries. A group of these students worked with our technology teacher Ms. Lonegan to refine the submissions and narrow the entries to two main themes: space and land explorers. Students voted on the theme they felt best matched the definition of an Explorer: one who investigates, analyzes, asks questions, experiments, and travels for adventure or discovery. Above is the new logo. We celebrate all who participated in the process and all who strive to be Explorers.

 

Scofield Student Dreams Big and Wins!

Aarav and Anay Pandey are sixth grade students who showcased their incredible talent in the prestigious statewide competition, CHET Dream Big! Students from across Connecticut submitted essays, videos, and artwork reflecting on their dreams, personal growth, and contributions to their communities. We are especially proud to share that Aarav won first place for his outstanding writing at state level, grades 5-8. Aarav was presented an award by Treasurer Erick Russell on Saturday, March 8. 

 

The CHET Dream Big! Competition offers students a wonderful platform to express their aspirations while competing for nearly $350,000 in prizes through CHET 529 College Savings Plan contributions. Congratulations Aarav!

Submitted by Sandra Carlton

 

Who Knew Math Could Be Delicious?

Springdale’s kindergarten students had a blast using their math skills to make delicious Irish Soda Bread! From measuring the ingredients to mixing the dough, these young bakers put their counting and measuring skills to the test in a fun and hands-on way. A huge thank you to the amazing parent volunteers who joined in to help out in each classroom—your support made this experience even more special! The sweet smell of fresh bread filled the halls, and the JOY of learning was truly baked into every bite!

Submitted by Becky Chuhta

 

A Very Fun Family Fun Night

On March 6, many TOR families gathered in our cafeteria for an evening of literacy, math, and strategy games. Students enjoyed pizza, treats, and the thrill of competition. We thank teachers Nicole Carpenter and Danielle Waring for organizing this annual tradition. Thanks also to our student and parent volunteers, and staff attendees.

 

An Astounding Pi Day

On March 14, we held our annual Pi Day Championship. Earlier in the week, students competed in class to name as many digits of pi as possible. On Pi Day, the class champions competed in the auditorium, and we were so impressed with the results. Congratulations to our top champions:

Harry McMullan: 478 digits

Salimata Diallo: 252 digits

John Thagoras: 227 digits

Sameer Balasubramaniam: 160 digits

Thanks to TOR Teacher Nicole Carpenter for organizing the competition, and congrats to all of our student participants.

Submitted by Mark Bonasera

 

Compassion in Action: Choose Love

Students showed their Compassion in Action, which is the fourth pillar in the Choose Love program. Students brought in new toiletries that were donated to Silver Source, a local resource for seniors in need. Thank you to Mrs. Klein for delivering the donations and Mrs. DiCapua for creating the “Giving Tree.”

 

Westover Read-A-Thon Raises $30,471

Westover’s Read Across America and Read-A-Thon week took place from March 3-7. This year’s theme was Westover Chooses Love! The school kicked off the week-long event with Westover’s PTO sharing all about the school-wide reading goals and the many, varied, and unusual prizes students could earn. Daily prizes for participation included: Westover swag, extra recess, Gopher ice cream certificates, and choice from a prize box. Raffle ticket grand prizes for reading minutes included opportunities to pass out i-Ready Certificates, do the morning announcements, attend an extra gym class, serve as a special guest in a drumming class, and lunch with administration. The homeroom from each grade level that raised the most money also earned a movie. 

 

The week featured daily read-alouds related to courage, gratitude, forgiveness, and compassion in action and ended with different grade levels pairing up to be reading buddies. Westover raised $30,471 during this fundraiser which helps support field trips, the Arts, and many other Westover programs! Thank you to all of Westover’s staff, students, families, and PTO members that helped make the week such a success!

Submitted by Lisa Saba-Price & Larissa Weir

 

Paras Learn Crisis Response Techniques

Cindy Newman and Nicole Morse have been on the road throughout the district training paraprofessionals on crisis response techniques. This training encompasses looking at classroom situations through a trauma informed lens, learning de-escalation strategies, and responding to crisis situations. These sessions offer paras an opportunity to ask questions specific to the students that they work with and learn appropriate strategies for dealing with students in crisis. This session always receives great feedback from paras. They want everyone to receive this training and feel it should be required training for all staff members. 

Submitted by Mary Enright

 

What is an SPS Shout Out?

An SPS Shout Out is a special recognition that acknowledges school communities, staff members or students who have inspired us with a unique project, an outstanding job or a special effort that had a positive impact on our students or community.  Each week we will celebrate a few by sharing with all SPS staff and posting on the district website. Please share any or all of these with your friends and families.   

SPS Administrators can submit Shout Outs for consideration through the link available in the Administrator Weekly. Please note the deadline, word limit, and photo limit. We look forward to seeing your submissions!