ForWard 5.18.25
From the Co-Presidents:
What a whirlwind of fun the last two weeks have been! We had an amazing time at the Mystery Dinner with so many of you last weekend. We raised $8,500 for the PTO, which will be used to provide support and resources to our fantastic teachers, students, and school. We are very grateful to be part of such an amazing and fun community. Thank you to all of our incredible hosts who make this special night possible. And a big thank you to Betsy Blazar and Emily Derr, who have once again organized and planned such a fabulous event and fundraiser. We are so appreciative.
Teacher Appreciation was also last week. Our Teacher Appreciation Committee (Melissa Prokop, Jenn Epstein, and Roberta Toporovski) organized a fabulous lunch for Ward teachers and staff. They feasted on Anna’s Taqueria and were very grateful for the chance to sit and have a leisurely lunch with their colleagues. Staff were also treated to Latte Boston - a mobile espresso and tea bar with two staffed baristas - that was set up in the staff room. Teachers and staff had access to unlimited custom hot and iced beverages. We were in the building for this, taking orders and bringing drinks to teachers throughout the morning. Everyone was absolutely delighted and it sparked a ton of joy. Most of all, thank you to everyone who sent in cards and notes of appreciation for our fabulous teachers and support staff. We are so lucky to have them and you!
Special thanks to fifth-grade teacher Mark Tugwell for his compelling presentation on Online Safety. Many parents in attendance were very impacted by the stories and data that were shared.
We have just five weeks of school to go! Please save the dates below. We look forward to seeing you there!
Evening of the Arts (Art Show + Concert) - Tuesday, June 3 from 6:15-7:30 PM
Ward Color Day - Wednesday, June 4 - More information is available below; please sign up to volunteer here.
Spring Picnic - Monday, June 9th (rain date of Monday, June 16)
Seeking Color Day Volunteers
Color Day is upon us, and we need your help! Mark your calendars for Wednesday, June 4th (rain date : June 11). Color Day is a Ward community event where students come together to celebrate the year with activities throughout the day on the field. To make this day happen, we need your support. We are seeking:
The Color Day Coordinator is responsible for organizing volunteers, drafting a few emails, and coordinating with our fantastic PEHW teacher, Danielle Pargoli, for a day of set-up. Danielle plans and brings everything for the different stations themselves. Please email us at copresidents@wardpto.org if you are interested or have any questions. This is a straightforward event to coordinate with lots of documentation and support from the PTO co-presidents and Ms. Pargoli.
Volunteers will oversee the premade stations. There are two time slots available for you to sign up for one or both. All volunteers are welcome to join in the Opening Ceremony Water Balloon Toss. Please be aware that the weather is unpredictable, so letting us know if you can attend the rain date, if needed, is extremely helpful.
This day brings joy, smiles, and memories to not just the students but also the staff and parents! We hope to see you there!
NPS Budget Update
TLDR: There still remains a $2.4 million gap between the superintendent and the School Committee’s budget. The City Council held a straw vote on May 8 and voted down the mayor’s allocation for NPS, although not unanimously. On May 15, the City Council voted on three resolutions to bring forward to the Mayor about how to resolve the budget discrepancy. The first resolution, brought forward by Ward parent and City Councilor Becky Grossman, had 22 in favor and 1 abstention and calls for the mayor to adjust her allocation to match the School Committee budget. This makes a big statement that our elected officials support the superintendent and her vision for NPS. The City Council will meet again on Monday and possibly on Wednesday.
There have been two City Council meetings on the Newton Public Schools FY2026 budget since our last newsletter two weeks ago. On Thursday, May 8th, Councilor Becky Grossman spoke out in support of the School Committee’s budget. We are so appreciative of her strong stance in support of what is right for our schools, kids, and teachers. Her comments received a massive round of applause from the very crowded room. The City Council voted down (although not unanimously) the mayor’s allocation for NPS. Every city councilor on the Program and Services Committee and the Finance Committee (except for one) supported a resolution in favor of the NPS budget as passed by the School Committee.
On Thursday, May 15, three resolutions were presented and voted on.
Resolution 1: Calls for the mayor to adjust her allocation to match the $296.3 million School Committee budget. This was voted on with 22 in favor and 1 abstention.
Resolution 2: Calls for the mayor’s proposed Free Cash allocation of $2.2 million for facilities projects to be postponed and put into the Education Stabilization Fund. This was voted on with 14 in favor and 7 abstentions.
Resolution 3: Calls for 1) FY2026 city general operating budget to be reduced by ~$844,000 and that money added to the NPS allocation, 2) the mayor and superintendent to find another $500,000 in efficiencies, and 3) cut the other departments in proportion to the overall budget.
We need to continue speaking up. We encourage you to:
1. Write or call the City Council to express your support for the Superintendent’s Proposed Budget and ask them not to approve the Mayor’s Free Cash allocation of $2.5 million for building projects. If the City Council does not pass this allocation, these funds could be allocated differently, and a message could be sent that our City Councilors do not support the Mayor’s NPS budget allocation.
2. Write or call the Mayor to ask her to reallocate her $2.5 million Free Cash to save our teachers and avoid cuts.
3. Talk to your neighbors and friends, especially those without students in the Newton Public Schools. Only 30% of Newton voters have children enrolled at NPS, and many who don’t have students may not be aware of this issue.
Your involvement is crucial!
As always, please feel free to email us at copresidents@wardpto.org with your ideas, questions, concerns, or suggestions on how we can help you.
- Elizabeth Loehr + Elizabeth Weinberg, Ward PTO Co-Presidents 2024-26
SEPAC News
Dear NPS Families,
As you may know, each year, parents, guardians, and students are able to nominate NPS and Out of District teachers and staff for a Special Education Parent Advisory Council (SEPAC) Award. A SEPAC Award recognizes exceptional NPS and Out of District teachers, aides, behavior therapists, psychologists, bus drivers, crossing guards, administrators, and other staff for the role they played in a student’s special education journey this past academic year. Interested in nominating an exceptional NPS or Out of District teacher and/or staff member? The deadline for nominations is Monday, May 19th. Here’s how the process works:
Submit a nomination through the nomination form
All celebratory nominations will be recognized
The week of June 16th, your nominee will receive:
An email with the kind words you wrote about them and a short slideshow of anonymized nominations lifting up the good work taking place across the district.
A printed SEPAC Award certificate delivered to their school.
Each principal will receive a list of nominees from their school.
Do you need to nominate everyone from your student’s team? Please only nominate the teachers and staff members who you feel have been exceptional!
Questions? Reach out to: newtonspecialeducationawards@gmail.com
Thank you so much for your participation recognizing the exceptional NPS and Out of District teachers and staff who work so hard to support special education students. Please help us share this message as widely as possible so the SEPAC Awards can reach all corners of our community!
Warmly,
2024-2025 SEPAC Board
Register Now for Kindergarten 2025-26 - Don’t Delay:
Please fill out your kindergarten form as soon as possible! To join the kindergarten class in September 2025, your child must turn five years old on or before August 31, 2025. It is essential that you log on to the REGISTRATION GATEWAY now to register your child for the 2025-26 school year!
Without this information, we cannot include you in all of the related upcoming events and scheduling, and plan for classrooms for the fall!
For more information about the kindergarten registration process, please click HERE. And feel free to contact Ms. Tempesta at 617.559.6450 directly with any questions or concerns.
Upcoming Creative Arts and Sciences (CAS) Programming:
May 21st - 4th Grade: Mitali Perkins
June 6th - 3rd & 5th Grade: Techsploration
Volunteers Needed
Ward Color Day, June 4: Color Day is held during the school day, and kids are assigned to one of three teams: red, green, or blue. They are encouraged to come to school on Color Day proudly representing their team colors (t-shirts, socks, colored hairspray, etc.). Teams then spend the day playing field games such as a water balloon toss and three-legged races. It's great to see everyone building camaraderie with their teammates and cheering each other on.
Parent volunteers are the glue that makes this event a success. Volunteers help lead and/or oversee pre-organized games in which our kids compete by team color. Volunteers may also be asked to help at the water tent or provide general assistance to Ms. Pargoli.
Please help make this day a success by volunteering! We encourage you to consider helping for the entire morning; otherwise, select the time slot that suits your schedule. Keep the day open if you can, and we will have a signup list available soon!
Please be sure your CORI form is up to date!
Attention 5th Grade Parents: Would you like to see some more great events for your Bigelow students in the next school year? Volunteering with the PTO can enhance your student’s middle school experience while meeting other parents and building a stronger school connection.
It is time to start to planning for the 2025-26 school year! We are actively recruiting for several positions that will be open next year as 8th grade families move on from Bigelow. Now is the ideal time to volunteer as overlap with current volunteers will make for an easy transition. In particular, we would like to identify volunteers for the following:
President/Co-President Lead and support the team, preside over PTO meetings, serve as primary contact and representative of the PTO.Communications/Website Send weekly PTO newsletters and other communications. Maintain PTO website. **Training available from current volunteer!**
In addition to the positions highlighted above, there are many other ways to get involved in the PTO. Please email bigelowbulldog@gmail.com if you are interested in volunteering or learning more about any of the opportunities to become involved with the Bigelow PTO. Co-volunteers welcome!
Upcoming Event Highlights
Together, with the Harvard & National Hall of Fame Coach Dave Fish, along with former ATP Tour & USTA National Coach Dickie Herbst, you are invited to a FREE Introduction to Family Racquet Sports though NXT Athletics on Sunday, June 1st — a fun-filled time of movement, play, and connection for kids (ages 6–14) and their parents!
Details:
Location: Newton North High School (SOA) (457 Walnut St, Newton, MA)
Session Times: 10:00–11:15 • 11:30–12:45 • 1:30–2:45 • 3:00–4:15We skip the drills and go straight to the fun. With our Play2Learn model, families dive right in, playing to learn racquet sports together — no stress, instructions, or scores to keep, just teamwork, laughter, and rallying from the start. No experience needed. Equipment is provided. All are welcome!
Reserve your spot here:
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/familyracquet#/Newton’s S.P.A.C.E. (Summer Program for Academic and Creative Endeavors)
Newton’s S.P.A.C.E. is a four-week summer enrichment program run by the Newton Public Schools from July 7th through July 31st. Students entering kindergarten through 9th grade in the Fall of 2025 are eligible to attend. We offer two programs - an upper camp (entering 5th-9th grade) and a lower camp (entering kindergarten- 4th grade).
LOWER CAMP - Campers are assigned to age-appropriate classes taught by two licensed teachers. Teachers create project-based activities that focus on the theme of the lower camp. Last summer, the theme was “Summer Olympics”. Campers learned about the history, countries, cultures, and sports of the Olympics. Lower Campers will also attend various specials throughout the week led by certified staff, which include Physical Education, Yoga/Minfulness, Art and Science classes.
UPPER CAMP - Campers will create their own schedules by choosing from a variety of electives to design their own camp program. Elective choices include studio and digital arts, performing arts, athletics, STEM, music, and language arts classes.
Check out the S.P.A.C.E.website for more information or REGISTER NOW!
Questions?SPACE@newton.k12.ma.us
LigerBoxes: A STEAM Extravaganza with the LigerBots!
Ever wondered how to make magnetic slime, tie-dye milk or a robotic arm? In this fun and engaging class developed and led by members of the LigerBots, Newton's award-winning high school robotics team, get ready to explore chemistry and physics properties, conduct labs with friends, and gain a better understanding of the world we live in all through STEAM activities! Register here!
Students are welcome to join us for one, or both weeks- no prior experience or knowledge is necessary!
Grades 3-6
Angier Elementary School
August 11-15, 2025 from 9:00-12:00 pm
August 18-22, 2025 from 9:00-12:00 pm
Please reach out to Sarah Housman, Summer Program Coordinator at NCE with any questions: housmans@newton.k12.ma.us.
Please reach out to us by emailing copresidents@wardpto.org