Dear Parents/Guardians and Students,

With the close of 2021 only a few short weeks away, it's difficult to reflect on the last year without recognizing the challenges of raising and educating children during a pandemic. Younger children look forward to the time when they become teenagers and earn the privilege of participating in the normal rights of passage that middle school and high school both bring. Simple things, such as going to football games, basketball games, pep rallies, dances, concerts, prom, or just hanging out with friends in the cafeteria during lunch. However, for nearly the last two years, these events looked a bit different than what they grew up seeing in the movies and on television and it's hard not to imagine that there's probably a little bit of disappointment because of it. For the past three months, we've been slowly transitioning back to "normal" and it's been wonderful to see students participate in the many activities that make TGS such a special place and allow our students to make fond memories of their Gilbert experience.

Like you, our faculty and staff are committed to creating the most idyllic experience we can for your children. On behalf of The Gilbert School Faculty and Staff, I would like to wish you and your family a very happy holidays season. I, like you, share your thoughts and wishes for a very safe and healthy 2022!

Sincerely,

Greg P. Shugrue

Head of School

Dear Families and Staff,

With the winter season officially here, I want to provide you with information regarding our inclement weather procedures. The State Department of Education will not permit us to use remote instruction and therefore, any days missed for weather will need to be made up at the end of the school year.

I, along with other area superintendents, will participate in an early morning conference call with our weather consultant to discuss the weather situation and its impact on schools. Based on this information and the information that Superintendent Brady-Shanley gets from our local Public Works Department, the Town of Winchester Police Department, WPS Maintenance Department, and Litchfield County Dispatch a decision regarding school will be made. It is ultimately Superintendent Brady-Shanley’s charge to make the decision.

Once a decision has been made by Superintendent Brady-Shanley, I will immediately relay the information to all The Gilbert School’s faculty, staff, and students’ families by 6:00 AM via School Messenger, local news stations, local radio stations, and an alert will be posted on our website.

In addition to School Cancelations, The Gilbert School uses the following inclement weather scheduling options:

1. Early Dismissal - 12:16 PM

2. Late Opening

1. 2 - Hour Delay - 9:45 AM start

2. 3 - Hour Delay - 10:45 AM start

Lastly, to ensure clear and uninterrupted communication, it is vitally important to ensure that you have your phone numbers updated with Gilbert’s Main Office. If you have recently made any changes in your contact information, please call our Main Office at 860-379-8521 to update those changes.

For your information and convenience, the following is a list of both radio and television stations used to report any changes to our schedule due to inclement weather.

RADIO:

WZBG FM 97.3, WTIC 1080 AM

TELEVISION:

WFSB 3, NBC 30, FOX 61, WTNH 8

Should you have any questions about our procedures, please feel free to call me at 860-379-8521.

Sincerely,

Greg P. Shugrue

Head of School

We are excited to announce that on 10/14 The Gilbert School Administration introduced the Wingman program to our student body through presentations by Ian Hockley, Executive Director of Dylan’s Wings of Change. The program, which utilizes students as leaders, helps students realize the connections that exist between peers, but also develops social and emotional skills through team bonding and trust-building activities. In the weeks following the introduction assemblies, students were given the opportunity to sign up for consideration to become Wingman Student Leader. In addition to the students filling out applications, the staff at TGS also selected students that they felt could help lead this movement. Students participated in 2 days of training in November. Now that the students are trained we will be working with the students to plan our launch that will happen in January. Starting in January and continuing monthly, TGS will be rolling out various Wingman student-led activities throughout the year to achieve the primary goal of improving school climate and culture, as well as to inspire our students to be more empathetic, courageous and inclusive, in an effort to create a school community that is a welcoming place for everyone.

In an effort to reduce congestion and traffic jams in the parking lot during both drop-off and pick-up starting, Monday, December 13th we will be instituting new drop-off and pick-up procedures.

For parents and guardians dropping off and picking up students in grades 7-9 continue using the faculty lot. See picture. That being said, I would like to make a few reminders. First, in an effort to keep the lines moving please be sure to pull up as far as you can. Second, students should be ready to disembark. Please have your items ready and exit the vehicle quickly. Third, If all traffic has pulled up as far as it can, it is encouraged that students exit the vehicle and walk on the sidewalk to the front door. The student does not need to wait to be directly in front of the front door. Lastly, please be mindful that school starts at 7:45. Students arriving at school after 7:45 are tardy.

8th Grade First Quarter Awards

• Academic Achievement Award - Jacob Ludwig
• Band Award - Alec Marvin
• Business Award - Racheal Raydenbow
• Chorus Award - Elizabeth Salmon
• Computer Information Systems Award - McKenzie Valentine
• English Award - Avianna Wrzesinski
• General Music Award - Ethan Cavajani
• Language Arts Award - Hailey Pedersen
• Latin I Award - Keegan Connolly
• Math Award - Emily Perry
• Science Award - Ethan Sholtis
• Social Studies Award - Shiloh Correa
• Spanish I Award - Stella Boucino
• Technology Education Award - Kylee Quach
• Wellness Award - Christina Harrington

As you all know, The Gilbert School has a lot of wonderful traditions that make this school such an amazing place to call home. Each year it has been a tradition at Gilbert to take care of the families who could benefit from some assistance during the holidays. During Thanksgiving there has been a long history of providing a full Thanksgiving Meal that consists of a 16lb turkey, bag of potatoes, box of stuffing, can of gravy, 4 cans of vegetables, 1 can of cranberry sauce, and a pie. This year, Gilbert was able to provide approximately 58 families with this meal! This is all made possible from monetary contributions from the Gilbert School faculty and staff. In addition, we have developed a wonderful community partner with BigY who helps to offset the cost of the meals. A special thanks goes to Jim Martin (Torrington BigY store manager) for ordering, assembling, and helping offset the cost to make it all possible.

In addition to taking a monetary donation, it has also been a tradition for Gilbert employees to deliver the Thanksgiving meals to the families.

Don Crossman

Department Chair

The Gilbert School is proud and excited to announce that our very own Mrs. Katherine (Katie) Wood has been chosen as one of this year's recipients of the Fenway Bowl Honor Roll. The Fenway Bowl Honor Roll recognizes hard-working educators who go above and beyond and make positive contributions to their school. Mrs. Wood was chosen by a committee of representatives from the Fenway Bowl who reviewed nominations of impactful educators from all over New England.

The Fenway Bowl is a postseason college football bowl game played at historic Fenway Park on December 29, 2021, with teams representing the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) and the American Athletic Conference (AAC). In addition to the game, the Fenway Bowl recognizes and celebrates educators from New England that are making impactful contributions to their schools.

Congratulations to Mrs. Wood!

SCIENCE: In science, students have figured out what is in a bath bomb that makes it behave the way it does. Throughout this unit, students completed many different experiments to identify the key ingredients and determine which substances are needed to create the chemical reaction that is seen when the bath bomb interacts with water. As we finish our chemical reactions unit, we will begin to look at cells and how they interact with each other.

By Buckley Morgan, Gilbert Director of Athletics

After a very exciting Thanksgiving Football game against Granby (21-0) here at the Gilbert Campus - and a filling Thanksgiving dinner surrounded by friends and family - we look back on our Fall sports season, and forward to the coming December holidays and Winter Athletics. While GNH football has made it into the postseason, the rest of Gilbert athletics did not. Making it into the postseason is not what defines an athlete. I believe we have some of the best student-athletes and coaches in the league. We have great sportsmanship, dedication, never-quit attitude, love of the game, and an understanding and willingness to play the long game. On two occasions this fall, I received phone calls from Principals and Athletic Directors letting me know how exceptionally well our athletes conducted themselves while at their school. This is a rare phone call. Usually a principal calls to discuss issues or concerns. It speaks volumes for a principal to take the time and call to discuss how outstanding your athletes are in sportsmanship and behavior while competing at their school. This definitely is a result of quality coaching and a sound perspective on how sports fit into our lives.

TGS Fall Athletics Awards Ceremony & Fall Season Wrap-Up

TGS held our Fall Athletics Awards Ceremony on November 18. Three teams were recognized as recipients of the Ted Alex award for the Fall season. Congratulations go out to the Boys Soccer team, Boys Cross Country team and the girls Volleyball team. The winner of the Ted Alex award is determined through a voting process taking input from all Fall Berkshire League players and coaches of the same sport. The parameters of the award are sportsmanship of coaches, players and fans. Emily Arel and Alina Gutic, both on the girls soccer team, and Cross Country team member Thomas Reeves were recognized All Berkshire League Honors. Emily also made a Gilbert Girls Soccer record breaking seventeen goals this season. Congratulations to these three fine athletes, and all the Gilbert student-athletes on a successful Fall season.

I would like to take a moment to congratulate our Fall athletics season Scholar Athlete winners who were also honored at the event. To qualify as a Scholar Athlete the student must be a Varsity athlete who received the Honors or High Honors distinction for academics during the season. We had 51 Varsity athletes and 77% of them earned the Scholar Athlete award. These numbers do not include football or cheer, as their season is still going. This is an amazing accomplishment by so many student-athletes. Please take a moment and congratulate them when you see them.

The GNH Football program has had a good season, although not without Covid having its impact. In spite of two games being declared no contest due to Covid cancelations, and after a dramatic Thanksgiving win over Granby (21-0), GNH football made it into the playoffs with a season of 7-2 (6-2 for points). The last time the football program made it into the playoffs was 2013. Great job by all, student-athletes, coaches and all those others who worked behind the scenes to make each game a success. GNH will play in the quarterfinals against Killingly on November 30th.

Now available: PSAT results from testing that took place in school on October 13 for all grade 8, freshmen, sophomore, and junior students. Click on the button below to learn how to access your scores!

PRESS RELEASE: Virtual & In-Person FAFSA Days for the Class of 2022

In partnership with the Connecticut State Department of Education, the College Board, New Haven Promise, the Connecticut Association of Financial Aid Administrators (CAPFAA), the Connecticut Conference of Independent Colleges, the Connecticut State Colleges & Universities, and UConn are joining forces to host a series of FAFSA workshops for the Class of 2022.

Financial aid professionals will be online to help students and families navigate the process of need-based federal aid. Those who sign up will receive a checklist of items that they will need and support to successfully complete the process. Click on the button for more info and to register for their event on 12/6.

In spring 2022, all junior students will be participating in the Connecticut SAT School Day here at The Gilbert School (date to be announced). However, any student (not just juniors!) can register online to take the SAT and/or to take the ACT throughout the year - as many times as you choose. Additional testing dates are listed below. Like anything else, the more you practice, the better you'll get!

*Please note that The Gilbert School is no longer a testing site and will not be hosting SAT testing on alternate dates.

Makeup pictures will be held Thursday, December 9. Anyone who missed picture day already has an appointment; anyone who would like a retake should contact Mrs. Wood for an appointment.

Building Substitute:

Immediate opening for Building Substitute in grades 7-12 at The Gilbert School. The schedule follows the school calendar, 7:30 am – 2:30 pm. Interested parties should complete an application online at https://www.applitrack.com/gilbertschool/onlineapp/ and submit a letter of intent, resume, and two (2) letters of reference. Please contact 860-379-8521 with questions.

No School

12/24-12/31 - Holiday Recess

Activity Day

12/16

Early Dismissal

12/1-3 - Parent Conferences, all students dismiss at 12:16 pm

12/23 - Holiday Recess early release, all students dismiss at 12:16 pm