·      The Middle States Validation Team completed its visit and the high school administration is happy to report that we met all twelve standards.  We would like to thank all of the students, staff, and parents for their support and assistance with the AFG process.  Although final accreditation will not come until the spring of 09, there were some recommendations from the visiting team that we need to act on.  We need to expand the representation on our action teams to include students and parents and also form sub committees to work on specific parts of our plans.  We anticipate that this will take place over the coming months and that the Board of Governors will grant us full accreditation status when they convene in the spring of 09. 

The visiting team commended the school for its efforts in stabilizing and improving the culture over the past few years.  They were impressed with our student body and the quality of instruction they are receiving from our staff.  It was evident to the team that there was support from central administration and BOE members for this process to take place effectively.  Also, Mr. Balicki and Mr. Gattini were commended for their work in the areas of school safety and instructional technology.  Overall, we are excited that we met all twelve standards but we know that much work is yet to be accomplished.  We look forward to continuing on the path of improvement and being able to use the AFG process to help us to that end.

·      Last night, in spite of inclement weather, Holmdel played host to an audience of approximately 125 people who turned out to participate in an Evening of Autism Awareness. The event was a collaborative effort between Holmdel Township and the Holmdel school district. Mayor Serena DiMaso served as the moderator for the event. Guest speakers presented from 7:00 – 10:00 p.m. in the High School auditorium, including many of our staff members. In addition, there were a variety of organization information tables, set up in the commons area, with representation from many of the leading agencies. They provided a wealth of information to parents and professionals in terms of the support services they offer.

·      I am proud to announce that Laurie Ford of the Holmdel Alliance is the “Monmouth County Volunteer of the Year” and she was recognized at the Governor’s Summit on Monday, October 20, 2008. She was presented with a plaque from the Governor’s Council and the Monmouth County Freeholders gave her a proclamation that made October 20, 2008 “Laurie Ford” day throughout Monmouth County. The selection process included written nominations from all the Alliances in the county. The County Prevention Committee made the selection.

·      The PLG recently sponsored an assembly program at Indian Hill where Patrick Dunning shared his Signature Project with the children. He did an amazing job of keeping the audience captivated with his 16 year project of working to collect more than 1,000,000 signatures.

·      The PLG also hosted individual hang-out nights for each grade level at Indian Hill. The fourth graders played bingo and hung out with friends in the gym and on the playground. The fifth and sixth graders had the opportunity to also have a DJ to get them moving.

·      Indian Hill reports a very successful Picture Day for the students with smiles all around!

·      On Saturday, October 18, 2008 Christian Brothers Academy hosted the “Brother Christian Jones Mathematics Contest.” Academic Competition Advisor Marian Amitrani is pleased to report that the team representing the William R. Satz School captured first place in the public schools division. Individual kudos go to four students for placing in the top ten and winning individual trophies as well. Come see the team’s first place trophy in the library. Mrs. Amitrani wishes to extend a special thank you to Mr. Shirong Lu for assisting the team on the day of the competition and to Mr. Tom Liu for sharing his photograph of the team. Congratulations to all the team members on their first place victory!

·      Congratulations to the Satz cross-country, field hockey, and boys’ and girls’ soccer teams – they all had winning records this season!

·      Each year, the College Board recognizes students who have earned AP Scholar Awards based on their performance on AP exams. Among our students who took AP exams in the Spring of 2008, 29 were recognized as “AP Scholars” scoring 3 or better on three or more exams; 14 are “AP Scholars with Honor” scoring an average of 3.25 or higher on all AP exams; 37 are “AP Scholars with Distinction” scoring an average of 3.5 or higher on all AP exams taken; and 6 students are “AP National Scholars” scoring 4 or higher on all exams taken.

·      Mrs. Jill McCracken recently took her International Relations students to Brookdale for a workshop on Genocide and Tolerance where they were able to speak to some Rwandan refugees. Our students were so moved that they are planning to raise funds to sponsor a Rwandan student. I want to share a note with you that Mrs. McCracken received from one of her students after the trip: The student wrote, “I just wanted to thank you for allowing me to be part of the experience of a lifetime! The field trip was one of the most touching I have ever been on. Speaking to actual students in Rwanda was an amazing opportunity that not many get to partake in. I have actually decided to major in international relations, thus having experienced such a connection with students of whom live 9,000 miles away, has further intrigued me in the topic. The trip definitely opened my mind and my heart, to see and hear of the difficulties other countries are enduring and how they cope with those predicaments. Once again, thank you so much!

·      Four members of the high school staff (Elliot Cohen, Diane Gothelf, Bill Loughran, and Tracy Tagliaferri) traveled to Kean University last Friday to hear a presentation from State Commissioner of Education Lucille Davy and noted speaker Grant Wiggins on the proposed re-design of New Jersey’s secondary schools in the 21^st Century. The session was informative and thought-provoking. One proposal included the concept of Personal Learning Plans for students. More information will be forthcoming.

·      The Math and Science Department will be receiving a $500 grant from Exxon Corporation. The funds will be used for field trips to explore careers in the areas of math and science.

·      During the 2010-2011 school year, Holmdel will be the site offering two graduate-level courses for free from Kean University’s Holocaust Education Center and the Diversity Council at Kean. All teachers will be eligible to register (based on course size limits to be determined).

·      The Fall regular sports season has come to a close this past week, but a lot of our teams have qualified for the NJSIAA tournament.  Our Girls’ Tennis Team finished the season with a 20 – 4 record and lost in the Shore Conference Tournament Finals and the Group III Central Jersey tournament sectional finals, both times to Wall High School. They finished ranked #2 in the Shore Conference and in the top 10 in the entire State. Our Boys’ and Girls’ Cross Country teams have been ranked in the top 10 in the Shore Conference and top 20 in the State all year. They both finished in the top three in the recent Monmouth County championships. Both teams are still involved in the State Championships which begin next week. Our Girls’ Field Hockey Team has been ranked #1 or #2 in the Shore Conference all year and top 20 in the State. They just lost their 1^st game of the year in a heartbreaking Shore Conference Tournament quarter final game 2-1 in overtime. Their record stands at 11-1-2. They just received the #1 seed in the upcoming State tournament and will open at home on Monday, November 3^rd. The Girls’ Soccer Team won their last two regular season games to qualify for the State tournament. Their record stands at 8-8. The Boys’ Soccer Team also finished strong to qualify for the State tournament. Their record stands at 8-8. Both the girls’ and boys’ soccer teams will open the State tournament the first week of November. Our Girls’ Gymnastics Team also has some girls that have qualified for the Shore Conference and State Tournament Meets. On Saturday, October 25, the Girls’ Gymnastics Team competed at the Shore Gymnastics Invitational at Southern Regional High School. The meet is a large invitational with over 100 competitors. One student placed 1^st in the Vault and 5th in the Floor Exercise and two students tied for 10^th place in the balance beam. They finished the regular season with a 4-10 record. Our Girls’ Volleyball Team completed their first varsity season in the school’s history. The young squad finished the season with a record of 3-18. The young Hornet Football Team is battling a rash of injuries and is still looking for their first win. The football team has four games remaining and will end their season on Thanksgiving Day with a first time game at Raritan High School. The Hornets have played Keyport High School the past 35 years on Thanksgiving Day. A new rivalry begins.

Activities towards meeting district goals:

Differentiated Instruction:

·      Liz Giacobbe and Susan Alston attended a workshop on Curriculum Development and Unit Design. They will share with both administrators and staff.

·      Indian Hill is receiving various literacy materials for their Reading Room that will be modeled in classrooms for staff and students. The room and materials can then be signed out for classes to use. These materials are set up in a way to help teachers differentiate instruction for their students, as they cover different skills in the curriculum.

·      Four administrators recently attended a workshop on Implementing the Response to Intervention Model.

Character Education

·      All of the fourth grade classes and several of the fifth grade classes have continued to move forward with the “Morning Meeting” to promote character education in the building. 

Technology

·      Indian Hill is conducting various technology workshops to support the technology goal. Training has been set up for Learnia assessment and the Skills Tutor program. Both of these are excellent additions to enhancing our current understanding of student learning.