Dear Vernon School Community,

This month NJ public schools celebrate Board Appreciation Month. This is a time when we pause and thank our Board of Education members for serving our schools and students. Board of Education members set the policies for our schools and make important decisions affecting curriculum, financing, and staffing. Our Board of Education is made of nine members and one Vernon Township High School Senior. Meet our Board members…

Kelly Mitchell- Board President

Justin Annunziata- Board Vice President

John Kraus

Adina Leuthner

Martin O’Donnell

Jennifer Pellet

Theresa Scura Coughlin

Joseph Sweeney

Ray Zimmerman

Colin Giesen- VTHS Student Representative

 

 

This month we also celebrate the young readers of our district that participated in the Mind Travelers Program. The Mind Travelers program encourages our students in preschool through grade five to read books, books that can take us to places that can give us clues about our world and characters to like or fear or admire and look up to. In each book, there are discoveries about the world and about ourselves. Our district celebrates the students that “got lost in books, as it’s a great place to be found”! The students listed below were recognized at the January 19, 2023, Board of Education meeting. Congratulations to all of our readers!

 

LH, 5thGrade    –  Tristan Talerico

LH, 5th Grade   –  Noah Ponsica

LH, 5th Grade   –  Caleb Ponsica

LH, 4th Grade   – Jon Pandel

LH, 4th Grade   –  Jacob Oeters

RH, 3rd Grade – Joshua Cadou

RH, 3rd Grade   – Lucas Vasilic

RH, 2nd Grade   – Jayson Moore

RH, 2nd Grade   – Brayden Handal

CM, 1st Grade    – CaraMia Morley

CM, 1st Grade    –  Jasper Lukasik

CM, Kindergarten  – Mason Hostler

CM, Kindergarten  –  Efetobo Alakpa

WR, Preschool   –  Patrick Murphy Flood

WR, Preschool   –  Panayiotis Portela

WR, Preschool   – Afroditi Portela

WR, Preschool     –  Carter Montgomery

WR, Preschool     –  Harlow Kuhn

 

Congratulations to our Vernon Township High School students who competed at the NJ Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA) competition on January 21st, at Passaic County Technical School, under the direction of Mr. Matt Bergh. HOSA prepares future health professionals for the health industry. Many of our HOSA students also serve locally in our first aid squads, so while they are learning in school, they are also receiving practical, real-life, hands-on training in our community.

Juniors Avery Crafton and Sophie Van Den Broek received FIRST PLACE in the First Aid and CPR Skills category. Avery and Sophie are both volunteers at Vernon Ambulance squad.

 

Seniors Marissa Ajamian and Daniel Lovett were fifth-place green medal winners for EMT Skills. Marissa is a volunteer at the Vernon Ambulance Squad, and Dan is a volunteer at the Glenwood Pochuck Ambulance Squad. In addition to learning in school, Marissa and Daniel devoted many hours to training on their own to prepare for scenarios they would encounter at this competition.  

 

Senior Aiden Lubeck finished sixth place in Pharmacology and is the HOSA President.

Senior Jessica Lefort finished 8th place in Sports Medicine and is the HOSA treasurer.

Here are some pictures of our students receiving their awards…

 

 

 

Lounsberry Hollow School 5th grade art students, under the direction of art teacher Mr. Erik Villanueva, created maps based on the idea of “self”. In this art project, students practiced many art forms. Each island surrounding their face island represents something about themselves. Students learned to create and center block letters. They learned about Photoshop and using filters. They learned about transfer methods, silhouettes, and symbols. Finally, students learned about mixed media, conceptual art, and deconstruction.

 

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Speaking of art…SAVE THE DATE…VTSD’s annual Artstanding Program will be held on Friday, May 19th, at Lounsberry Hollow School. This program that features our fine, practical, and performing arts is under the direction of Mr. Villanueva and is partially being funded by a very generous Pride grant from the Vernon Township Education Association.

 

 

 

 

A few reminders…

  • We will have upcoming Early Dismissal Days on Wednesdays throughout the winter as follows
    • January 25, 2023
    • February 15, 2023
    • March 29, 2023
  • Marking Period 2 closes on January 30th
  • Vernon Township High School will have Early Dismissal Days the week of January 30th for mid-term exams
  • School will be closed on Monday, February 20th for President’s Day

 

Thank you for partnering with our schools, our teachers, and our administration! 

Sincerely,

Rosemary Gebhardt

Assistant Superintendent