Author Archives: LEPTO Admin

Room Connectors Still Needed

We really appreciate everyone who has volunteered to be a room connector so far!  There are still a LOT of empty slots and teachers who have no one signed up yet — our goal was one parent per cohort, but we really need at least one parent per class, to make sure every teacher is supported.

Please reach out to our Room Connector Coordinator, Emily Núñez, at nunezemily77@gmail.com if you might be interested — we promise it’s a small time commitment, but can make a big difference in making your teacher feel appreciated and keeping your classroom families connected!

More information here

SEPAC Family Q&A: Wed., Oct. 14th

The NPS Student Services Leadership Team and SEPAC are offering a Family Q&A on Wednesday October 14, 2020 from 6-7:30 pm via Zoom.  Access information for the session will be sent via email and published online at https://newtonpac.org

The NPS Student Services Leadership Team is:

Elizabeth Fitzmaurice, Assistant Superintendent of Student Services

Paula Black, Assistant Director of Student Services

Maura Tynes, Director of Elementary Special Education (PK-5)

Lisa Langone, Director of Secondary Special Education (6-12)

FORJ Book Club

We launched our FORJ (Families Organizing for Racial Justice) Book Club for its trial run this summer and it has been so much fun so far — a million thank yous to the awesome kids who have been participating!

Our July book was New Kid, by Jerry Craft.  (If anyone is interested, the author will be doing a virtual visit through the Newton Library on Wednesday, October 28th!  For details and registration, click here!)

Our August book was When Stars Are Scattered, by Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohamed.

And our next book will be Front Desk, by Kelly Yang!

If you would like to join us for the next meeting or to be added to the book club email list, please reach out to our FORJ liaison, Lanni Isenberg, at lanni_harris@yahoo.com.  (Note that the books we’re reading are for 3rd-5th graders — but if you’d like to spearhead a similar book group for younger grades, please let us know!)

Thanks very much, everyone!

Principal / PTO Update 10.4.20

Dear families,

As we enter our third week with students in the building, we want to say thank you again to all of our teachers, to our fantastic scholars, and to you for your patience and support.

Remember we have our first PTO meeting this Tuesday, October 6th, at 6:30pm via Zoom — the link will be sent out to everyone soon via email.  We hope to see you there!

And looking ahead, a reminder that there is no school on Monday, October 12th.

Playground Use During the School Day:

As the mayor noted in her update this week, for the safety of everyone, we must reserve use of the school grounds and playground during school hours for only those students present for in-person learning that day.  That means 8:30am-3pm every day, as we do have some students in the building (and having recess) from 12:30-3pm as well.

Mayor Fuller’s Note:

It’s great to have some of our youngsters back in school buildings.  While our elementary schools have the most students on-site currently, our middle and high schools also have some students attending daily as well.  Students are going outside for recess and some athletes in some sports are also having practices and games.

As part of our COVID-19 protocols, our schools are paying a lot of attention to students’ interactions being within cohorts, physical distancing and the use of face coverings.

To support these health efforts, school playgrounds and school grounds during school hours are for students attending the affiliated public school during their in-person learning time.  Fields and tracks at both high schools after school are for our students’ use during team practices, games and meets.

Please do not enter these areas during these hours and instead wait to use them after our students are gone.

Flu Vaccine Clinics

Newton’s Health and Human Services Department has scheduled two drive-through/walk-up, appointment-based, weekend flu clinics open to Newton residents and Newton Public Schools students and their families.

Registration is not yet open for these clinics.  Online appointment registration will open tomorrow (October 5th) at www.newtonma.gov/flu.

Adults and children older than 6 months may be vaccinated at these clinics.  Some high-dose flu vaccine will be available for adults who are at least 65 years old.  These clinics are free and health insurance information is requested, but not required.  If you do not have a vehicle, you may walk-up to receive a vaccine.

Saturday, October 10, 9 a.m. to 12:00 noon, Newton North High School  (457 Walnut Street)

Sunday, October 18, 9 a.m. to 12:00 noon, Newton South High School  (140 Brandeis Road)

Additional dates may be added depending upon demand.

Appointments are required and may fill quickly.  Alternatively, consider getting a flu shot at an another time and place; they are available in many locations, including primary healthcare provider offices, local pharmacies and urgent care clinics.  A list of some additional options for flu shots can be found at newtonma.gov/flu.

Please note that the Massachusetts Department of Public Health is requiring the flu vaccine for all students by December 31, 2020.  Once your student has received their flu immunization, please send the documentation to our school nurse, Kristen Thibodeau (thibodeauk@newton.k12.ma.us).

Thank you all again, and have a great week!

Principal Morrissey & the PTO

PTO Meeting: Tuesday Oct. 6th at 6:30pm

Please join us over Zoom for our first PTO meeting of the year this Tuesday, October 6th, at 6:30pm.  A Zoom link will be sent out on Monday or Tuesday, so please look for it in your inboxes (or email secretary@lepto.org if you don’t receive it!).

All parents and guardians in the Lincoln-Eliot community are a part of the PTO, and we would love to see you there!  This meeting will focus on introducing our current leadership team and brainstorming ideas for community-building that includes all our hybrid and DLA students.

If you cannot attend the meeting but have a question or a suggestion for us, please submit it to us using this form or email it to president@lepto.org.  We will post the minutes from the meeting in our next newsletter.

Thanks very much!

Distance Learning Academy: Information Sessions

The teachers and administrators of the Distance Learning Academy are offering four online events for DLA families this week, focusing on “How to support your student with organization and engagement in online learning.”

Tues. October 6th, 8:30 – 9:15am, Families of K-3 Students
Tues. October 6th, 7:30 – 8:15pm, Families of K-3 Students
Thurs. October 8th, 8:30 – 9:15am, Families of 4-5 Students
Thurs. October 8th, 7:30 – 8:15pm, Families of 4-5 Students

Although they will be geared towards particular grades, you are welcome to attend any of the sessions, and one will also be recorded for those who are unable to attend.  For the Zoom link to the meetings, please see the email sent out by Jennifer Shore on Sept. 29th.

If you have any questions about this topic, please enter them in this Google form.  Or if you have other questions, the DLA has put together this FAQ document that may be able to help.

We are still trying to create a contact list for all our DLA families — if your student is in the DLA, please reach out to our DLA Liaison, Elizabeth DePasquale, at elizabeth@stepcare.net to add your information to the list!

FORJ Events / Updates

FORJ (Families Organizing for Racial Justice) is a coalition of school-aged families in Newton coming together to teach our children — and ourselves — how to stand up for racial equality.  Our Lincoln-Eliot FORJ contact is parent Lanni Isenberg: lanni_harris@yahoo.com — please reach out anytime if you’d like to get involved!

Upcoming Events:

Indigenous Peoples Day Celebration!
Monday, October 12
Join fellow Newtonians for the first ever Indigenous Peoples Day Newton Celebration!
We live on the homelands of the Massachusett Tribe.  Today, Massachusett people live throughout the state, country and world.  Indigenous Peoples Day is a great chance to learn more about the Massachusett and their history in the place we call Newton!
A family-friendly, socially-distant scavenger hunt encourages kids and adults to learn some of the Indigenous place names in Newton and to dig into the history of our region.
The Indigenous Peoples Day Newton celebration was created in collaboration with the Massachusett Tribe at Ponakapog and Historic Newton.
Go to our Facebook page: Indigenous Peoples Day Newton or click on this Google Doc to learn how to participate!

Raising Antiracist Kids
Thursday October 27th 7-8pm
Hosted by the Newton Public Library
Cosponsored by FORJ, The Harmony Foundation, & the Newton Human Rights Commission
Join us for the first in a multi-part educational series on being an anti-racist. This program is part of Overdue: Confronting Race and Racism in Newton, a city-wide read and series of events and conversations on race and racism.

FYI (FORJ Your Information):
One Horace Mann Elementary School teacher, Mike Feldstein, leads a group of his faculty colleagues in “Constructive Conversations on Race.”  Primarily designed for and by white people, Constructive Conversations on Race aims to provide a space for authenticity and vulnerability in discussing race.  While faculty of all backgrounds are welcome, it recognizes the emotional toll that educating white people on racism can put on BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Color), and instead encourages white people to take an active role in their own personal growth.
For more information on “Constructive Conversations on Race” or if you would like to learn how to start your own group, email FORJnewton@gmail.com.

SEPAC Meeting Oct. 6th at 7:30pm

Newton SEPAC (the Newton Special Education Parent Advisory Council) has presentations and meetings throughout the school year.  All Newton SEPAC meetings are open to all interested in special education.

All meetings are virtual until further notice!  Our next meeting is October 6, 2020 ⋅ 7:30 – 9:00pm via Google Meet meet.google.com/mqa-zqvg-qti

Please visit newtonpac.org for more information about Newton SEPAC.

Principal / PTO Update 9.27.20

Dear families,

A reminder that there is no school tomorrow — Monday, September 28 — for Yom Kippur.

On Tuesday our 3rd-5th graders in hybrid Cohort A will join us in school for in-person learning.  We look forward to seeing them then and hybrid Cohort B later in the week!

Please mark your calendars for the first PTO meeting, Tuesday, October 6th at 6:30pm over Zoom.  Look for the meeting link in your email early next week.

If you have any community-building ideas you’d like for us to discuss, or any questions or feedback for the PTO, please send them to us using this form:

Ideas/Feedback Submission Form

Thank you all, and have a great week!

Principal Morrissey & the PTO