INSIDE THIS ISSUEINSIDE THIS ISSUE

Preschool Fall Fest . . . . . . . 7

Summer Programs . . . . . . .2

Merit Scholars . . . . . . . . . . 3

SHS Teacher’s Field Study inAsia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

SReaching for Excellence

51 WEST CLIFF STREET � SOMERVILLE, NJ 08876 � (908) 218-4101 � FAX (908) 526-9668 � www.somervillenjk12.org

VOL. 20 NO. 1 FALL 2010

SOMERVILLE SCHOOL DISTRICTReview

WELCOME TO THE WEBwww.somervillenjk12.org

he Somerville Public School district is eager to share information

with the community. Visit us on the web for student

and parent programs, school activity calendars, districtevents, board meeting schedules, curriculum documents, and breakingnews. �

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DISTRICT WELCOMES NEW TEACHERS

Pictured above are workshop facilitators Victoria Kessler and Allison Lyon-Parajon along with new teach-ers who participated in the district’s orientation program held on August 23 and 24, 2010: Kerry Kuboski,Julia Wilk, Karen Brokaw, Julie Nami, Eleni Iannella, Thomas George, Michelle Moore, Mark Perry,Courtney Ball, Kiernan Dugan, Catherine Wojtowicz, Kari Kwietniak, and Vanessa Romanko.

SOMERVILLE SCHOOL DISTRICT REVIEW FALL 2010 2SUMMER PROGRAMS SHOWCASED AT BOARD OF EDUCATION MEETINGSSomerville students entertaineda standing room only crowd atthe Board of Educationmeetings onSeptember 28and October 12,2010 as theyshared their expe-riences and talentsin presentationsthat highlighted thedistrict’s summerprograms.Somerville Middle School students, Ibraheem,

Insanally, Samuel Pasqual, and Sean Spolarichdemonstrated the advanced scientific projectsthey engineered during the SMS Summer 2010Gateway Academy at theSeptember 28thmeet-ing.

Thedistrict-wideSummer ReadingProgram, as wellas the SummerEnrichmentProgram andSummer Performing Arts programs, were thehighlights of the October 12th meeting. Students shared projects andinsights related to their summerreading books, demonstratedtheir musical and dramatic tal-ents, and explained the technol-ogy and

arts activities they enjoyed duringthe warm summer days at school.

Bravo and congratula-tions to the fol-lowingstudent pre-senters:

Emcee: JamesLoewenSummer MusicalTheater Workshoppresenters: Isabel

Brooks, BrandonCarlson, Anna Espinoza, and Laurence Espinoza.

SummerPerforming Arts

presenters: EliseMcKean and Tayauna Moore-Baytops.Summer Enrichment Program presenters: LoriBarr, Samantha Beach, David Frankel, MatthewHorton, Isabelle Hughes, Gabriel Javier, andEmily Rannells.

Summer Reading Program presenters:Maxwell Broadbent, Megan Cichetti,Gregory Gilson, Sarah Hand, AlyssaRivera, and Brielle White.�

SUMMER ENRICHMENT

MUSICAL THEATER

INSTRUMENTAL

MUSIC

GATEWAY ACADEMY

SUMMER READING

SOMERVILLE SCHOOL DISTRICT REVIEW FALL 2010 3

omerville High School students took honors as 2010 national merit semifinalists, commended

scholars, and advanced placement scholars.Two Somerville High School

seniors were named NationalMerit Semifinalists and twelvewere named CommendedScholars. Congratulations semi-finalists, Eric Grohn and AdamMorris, for placing in the top16,000 students among 1.5 mil-lion students taking thePSAT/National Merit ScholarQualifying Test. Twelve SHS students qualified as com-mended scholars having placed in the top 5% of those tak-ing the examination. Well done commended scholars,AntonioBarberio,ColleenDelaney, RachelDouglas, RyanDouma,AlexanderFranchuk, SarahKapica, SeanMorris, AnikaParadkar, BrianPasmore, GillianRaposo, Jay Tobia, and Thomas Torng.

Forty-seven students at Somerville High School earnedAP Scholar Awards in recognition of their outstandingachievementon the 2010AdvancedPlacement(AP) exami-nations. TheCollegeBoard’sAdvancedPlacementprogramoffers stu-dents theopportunityto take rigor-ous college-level coursesand the

option to earn college credit while still attending highschool.

SHS student, Alessio Mineo, qual-ified for the National AP ScholarAward. Twenty-one SHS studentsqualified for the AP ScholarDistinction Award. Seven studentsqualified for the AP ScholarHonor Award. Nineteen studentsqualified for the AP ScholarAward.AP Scholar Distinction Award

recipients: Josh Cherian, HannahCoffin, Madelyn Coffin, Mateo

Garcia, Cole Hawkinson, Mariel Herzog, BridgetKoddenberg, Kyle Koemm, Jessica Kuszelewicz, KathrynLester, Ryan Lester, Anil Maharjan, Laura Martinez,

Alessio Mineo,Adam Morris,Nicholas Pesta,Stacey Strand,Jeremy Strege, JadeVargas, AaronWeiner, andDennis Yu.AP Scholar

Honor Awardrecipients: Ethan

Aaronson, Antonio Barberio, Alexander Franchuk, AnikaParadkar, Tyler Rubin, Jay Tobia, and Thomas Torng.

AP Scholar Award recipients: Kaitlin Brenn, KellyBryden, Kaitlyn Cash, Timothy Coy, Ryan Douma, Eric

Grohn, ConorKelton, JiberanKhawar, ErinMcNaught,Joseph Mineo,Sean Morris,TimothyNugent, BrianPasmore,Valerie Raziano,EmilyReckenbeil,David Rehe,Rohun Sendhey,Shiv Shah, andTimothySmith.�

SHS STUDENTS RECOGNIZED FOR ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT

Commended Scholars pictured front row L-R Antonio Barberio, Gillian Raposo,Thomas Torng, Sarah Kapica, Rachel Douglas, and Anika Paradkar. Second rowL-R Brian Pasmore, Ryan Douma, Alexander Franchuk, Colleen Delaney, JayTobia, Sean Morris, and principal, Timothy O’Halloran.

Pictured L-R principal, Timothy O’Halloran andNational Merit Semifinalists Adam Morris and EricGrohn.

AP Scholar Awards recipients pictured front row L-R Conor Kelton, Anika Paradkar,Antonio Barberio, Jay Tobia, Alexander Laut, and Thomas Torng. Second row L-RRyan Douma, Eric Grohn, Rohun Sendhey, Brian Pasmore, Alexander Franchuk, Sean Morris, David Rehe, and principal, Timothy O’Halloran.

Not pictured: Ethan Aaronson, Kaitlyn Brenn, Kelly Bryden, Kaitlyn Cash, JoshCherian, Hannah Coffin, Madelyn Coffin, Timothy Coy, Mateo Garcia, ColeHawkinson, Mariel Herzog, Jibran Khawar, Bridget Koddenberg, Kyle Koemm, Jessica Kuszelewicz, Kathryn Lester, Ryan Lester, Anil Maharjan, Laura Martinez, Erin McNaught, Alessio Mineo, Joseph Mineo, Adam Morris, Timothy Nugent,Nicholas Pesta, Valerie Raziano, Emily Reckenbeil, Tyler Rubin, Shiv Shah, TimothySmith, Stacey Strand, Jeremy Strege, Jade Vargas, Aaron Weiner, and Dennis Yu.

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SOMERVILLE SCHOOL DISTRICT REVIEW FALL 2010 4ACCESS TO SCHOOL CLOSING INFORMATION

School closing information may

be obtained by accessing the

following information systems:¤Honeywell Instant Alert® for Schools

¤District website: www.somervillenjk12.org

¤VILLEtv

¤Radio: WOR 710 AM, WPST/WHWH, WCTA/WMGO, WCBS 880 AM,101.5 FM

¤www.nj1015.com

¤www.wor710.com

The Somervi l le Publ ic School d istr ict is implementing theHoneywell Instant Alert® forSchools system that al lows

the school distr ict to del ivera message by te lephone, cel lphone, email , pager , or PDA

in any combinat ion.

Log on to the distr ict websiteto establ ish a family prof i le

and contact informat ion.

This is theSomerville PublicSchools instantalert system. . . . . ..

SOMERVILLE SCHOOL DISTRICT REVIEW FALL 2010 5

SMS WELCOMES THE NEWEST BULLDOGS

STANDING ROOM ONLYn appreciative crowd of fans applauded theoutstanding efforts of the students who partici-pated in the Somerville Middle School

Summer Performing Arts Program on July 22, 2010.Relatives and friends of the 100 participants wereentertained by popular Broadway tunes from TheLion King, Beauty and the Beast, The LittleMermaid, and Mary Poppins as they sang anddanced in an original musical under the direction of

teacher, MichaelCallahan. Led by teach-ers, Stephen Loreti andChristine Cerone, instrumentalmusical students had the audience tapping their feetand snapping their fingers as they enjoyed suchtunes as “The Girl from Ipanema” and “Witchcraft”.The evening was a perfect culminating event for theSummer Performing Arts Program.�

ncoming grade 6 students joined thestaff of SMS on September 1 and 2, at

Camp SMS this year. Camp SMS, recognized bythe New Jersey Department of Education BlueRibbon program, transitions from the elemen-tary to the middle school level by welcomingstudents and their parents into the school com-munity. Entering middle schoolers exploredtheir surroundings, met their teachers, and wereintroduced to the academic and extracurricularexperiences that awaited them. New friendsjoined together in their grade 6 cheer as theybecame the official “bulldogs.”�

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VAN DERVEER’S ENORMOUS TURNIPThe Enormous Turnip, a childhood reading favorite

based on the story by Alexei Tolstoy, was re-enacted byVan Derveerstudents andstaff. Lastspring, thekindergart-ners planted aturnip seedin one of theschool’sseven gardensas part of acollaborativescience andlanguage artsproject. Throughout

the summerthe seed grew and grew into an enormous turnip! It grewto be so large that the kindergarten students, their teach-ers, and Super Bee (the kindergarten character education

mascot) went to the garden to pull it out with the help of

tips included in the story, The Enormous Turnip.

Kindergartners discovered that learning

science is fun.�

The Enormous Turnip by Katie Daynes,Aleksey Konstantinovich Tolstoy, andGeorgien Overwater. Publisher: Usborne Books (June 2006)

SOMERVILLE SCHOOL DISTRICT REVIEW FALL 2010 6TEACHER HITS THE WALL IN CHINA

ark your calendars for the Health Fair coming to Somerville Middle School.

The Health Fair will be held dur-ing parent/teacher conference week,November 15 -17, 2010, and will featurea wealth of valuable information and tipsfrom experts in the health field to pro-mote healthy living for students, parents,and community members. Thank you Mary Kroeper, SMS School

Nurse, for planning and coordinatingHealth Fair events, which include repre-sentatives from health organizations in the

surrounding community,including community

visiting nurses, theSomerset County HealthDepartment, Somerset Medical Center,Sleep for Life, Horizon Blue Cross BlueShield, Health First, Women’s Health andCounseling Center, Richard HallCommunity Mental Health Center, andthe Somerville Police Department. Visitthe Somerville Middle School Health Fairin November for practical tips on

healthy living.�

HEALTHY LIVING FAIR COMES TO SMS

M

ou Calvo, a social studies teacher at Somerville High School, was selected by

the National Consortium for Teaching About Asia Freeman Foundation to participate ina field study in China andJapan this past summer. The foundationrecognizes the growingeconomies and politicalinfluence of Asian nations.In order to be consideredfor the award, Mr. Calvoattended a year-longPrinceton University com-prehensive seminar series,which featured distin-guished professors andguests who have expertisein Asian studies.Mr. Calvo, who teaches

the SHS World Studiescourse, said, “It is an invalu-able experience for thoseteaching about Asia to beon the ground to experi-ence Asian culture andhistory and not just readabout it.” Mr. Calvo spokeof fulfilling his dreams by seeing some of Asia’smost majestic sights, including the Great Wall,the Terracotta Army at Xian, the Forbidden City,Shinto shrines, Buddhist temples, and Zen gardens.When asked to share the most unexpected

experiences he had during his field study,

Mr. Calvo stated that China was so differentfrom what he expected and it was a privilege tosee the sights that he had studied all his life.“What stunned me most was the number of

university students whoapproached us and werecraving our time topractice their English.The development inBeijing was remarkable,having modern high-ways, traffic jams, highrise buildings, modernsubways, and light railsystems.”

Speaking aboutJapan, Mr. Calvo said, “Ididn’t expect such natural beauty in Japan.”He described withappreciation and admiration the serenityhe experienced in abamboo forest and thebalance and blending ofwater, rock, and plants.

In recounting hisvisit to China and Japan,

Mr. Calvo spoke eloquently about the routinesand experiences of people wherever they maylive. “Life’s daily routines, the importance offamily, the importance of food in bringing people together, and similarities of life’s passages and celebrations cross borders, bound-aries, and cultures.”�

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Mr. Calvo pictured above at the Great Wall ofChina.

Apple relay races, gooey treasurehunts, a creepy obstacle course,and pumpkin picking and paint-ing entertained the preschool stu-dents during their first Fall Festheld on October 13, 2010. Thethree- andfour-year-oldsdelightedin theactivity centerscreated bytheir teachers.The studentsmaneuveredthrough anobstacle courseof hay bales, tun-nels, and bounc-ing balls. Teammates joined to scoopapples from water-filled buckets andbalanced them on spoons as they racedto the end of the course. A Jell-o

treasure hunt was enjoyed by all.Class parents provided hugebowls of orange Jell-o containingspider rings and bouncing balls.Unafraid, the preschoolers

dipped into theJell-o tochoose theirprizes, whichthey treas-ured for therest of theday. One hun-dred pump-kins in the

preschool’spumpkin patch allowed stu-dents to choose and paint theirown pumpkins. Back in theclassrooms, the preschoolersenjoyed pumpkin muffins thatwere baked especially to cele-brate the Fall Fest. All agreedthat the day’s festivities were a

great way to have pre-Halloween fun.�

SOMERVILLE SCHOOL DISTRICT REVIEW FALL 2010 7

omerville High School is proud to be the recipient of a

$15,000 science grant from TheDow Chemical Foundation and adonation of science lab furniturefrom Ortho Pharmaceutical.Through the generosity of both

companies, a gener-al education class-room at SHS wasconverted into awell-equipped sci-ence laboratory for2010. The DowChemicalFoundation fundswere used to pur-chase state-of-the-artscience equipment,such as a mobile labtable with cameramount, a digitalvideo microscope,

student microscopes, and a set of wirelessnetbooks with a mobile cart. Thank youDow and Ortho for supporting the expan-sion of our science program.�

DOW AND ORTHO SUPPORT SCIENCE AT SHS

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Pictured are the sciencestorage cabinets andcounters provided byOrtho Pharmaceutical.

FALL FEST CELEBRATED AT THE PRESCHOOL

*Branchburg Board of Education Representative

SOMERVILLE SCHOOL DISTRICT REVIEW FALL 2010

Van Derveer Elementary School....................................................218-4105Grades K–5 — Susan Haynes, Principal

Somerville Middle School...................................................................218-4107Grades 6–8 — Georgette Boulegeris, Principal

Somerville High School .......................................................................218-4108Grades 9–12 — Timothy O'Halloran, Principal

Dr. Thomas F. Butler, Interim Superintendent of Schools...................218-4101

Mr. Peter Lawton, President

Mr. Al Kerestes, Vice President

Mr. James Adamec

Mr. Kenneth Cornell

Mrs. Michelle Edgar

Mr. Dennis Garot

Mrs. Janet Lawton

Ms. Linda Olsen

Mrs. Dorice Weeks

*Mrs. Melissa Looby

2010-2011 Board Of Education Members

Questions? Suggestions?Call the Somerville Schools HOTLINE at 908 243-1598.

Guaranteed Response Within 24 Hours.

SReaching for Excellence

51 WEST CLIFF STREET � SOMERVILLE, NJ 08876 � (908) 218-4101 � FAX (908) 526-9668 � www.somervillenjk12.org

VOL. 20 NO. 1 FALL 2010

SOMERVILLE SCHOOL DISTRICTReview

Parents/guardians can now access selected

district policies on the district website at

www.somervillenjk12.org.

Amendments to the district’s

policies are subject to periodic changes

required by the State of New Jersey

and will be posted on the district’s website.

BACK-TO-SCHOOL TIPS FOR PARENTS

PRAISE AND ENCOURAGEMENT: Let your childknow that you are proud of his/her progress and mis-takes can be corrected with time and practice.�

STAY IN TOUCH: Stay in touch with

your child’s teacher to resolv

e any issues

or concerns.�

District Policies Available On Website

HOMEWORK SUPPORT: Help your chi

ld create

“To Do” lists a

nd check progr

ess on home-

work and projec

ts.�

PULL THE PLUG: Insist that yourchild complete homework before allowing

television or computer time.�

SET A DATE: Show your child how much you care by

attending parent/teacher conferences

and special school events.�

PROVIDE ACCURATE CONTACT INFORMATION:

Help the teacher be in touch with you by keeping your

contact information current.�

JOIN THE TEAM: Become a m

ember of the

PTO and pa

rticipate in

monthly meeting

s.� COMMUNICATE WITH YOUR CHILD:

Ask “what if” and “how” so that your child

won’t just answer “yes” or “no.”�

READ TO AND WITH YOUR CHILD:

Read togeth

er every day

and watch y

our child’s

development gr

ow.�

DRESS FOR SUCCESS: Ensure that schoolclothes fit and are fitting for school.�

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