January Wrap-Up

Dear Families,

With January in the books, we've passed the halfway mark of our 2022-2023 school year! Read on for some exciting updates and information about community events, a look back at January, and some upcoming fun that we can't wait to share with you!

Sincerely,

Christina Egan

In case you missed our email on Friday...

"In the spirit of "Feel-Good February" and Valentine's Day, I am writing in the hope that you will please take a moment to share some kind words of appreciation for our wonderful teachers and staff.

It doesn't have to be long or formal, just a brief shout out will make a big difference. Our teachers and staff care deeply about our students and school community, and I know your words will mean a great deal to them.

Thank you very much in advance, I truly appreciate your time!

(PS - If you have any trouble filling out the form, please don't hesitate to email me instead)

Sincerely,

Dr. Egan

How did we arrive at the end of the second marking period so quickly? Time flies when you are growing and learning!

January is an exciting time of year for the staff because it is the month that students get to show what they have learned via the district's mid-year benchmark assessments. The students and staff are extremely proud of the gains made over the last several months and they use this as motivation to keep working towards growth and development for the second half of the year. These mid-year assessments also give us insight as to students that may benefit from additional support through our daytime intervention program and/or our after school Basic Skills support program. Our goal is, and will continue to be, to give all students what they need to be successful.

It is important to note that we take great pride in being able to highlight the wonderful work of the staff and students in the West Long Branch School District. This is done via our district website, weekly communications from building administrators, monthly district newsletters published by Dr. Egan, and social media posts. To assure that you have the opportunity to view these proud moments, please consider...

• bookmarking our website address on your computer: www.wlbschools.com;
• having at least one valid email address in the Realtime Parent Portal system and checking your account settings to allow for notification emails to be sent, as this platform is used for mass notification emails;
• following us on Twitter: @WLBSup (Dr. Egan); @WLBcurrsup (Mrs. Skibinski); @FAS_Principal (Mrs. Winter); @BME_Principal (Mr. Erhardt).

Here are just a few of highlights from a busy January at FAS and BME!

One of the four goals established during our strategic planning process was to increase community outreach and engagement. Many members of our school community counted this among the district's greatest needs, and we heard you.

We hope you have seen our work in this area all year long, including the launch of new weekly newsletters from the principals, an increased social media presence on Twitter, and of course these monthly Smore district newsletters.

Today, we are proud and excited to announce another big step in the right direction - the long-awaited launch of a fresh new district website!

We have been working hard behind the scenes to update and clean up all of our website content. The new website is also ADA compliant, web-reader friendly, and has auto-translation on demand.

We know that most of our families visit and use the website from their cell phones. We also know that it was often difficult and time-consuming to find the information you wanted using the old website layout. The new website layout solves that problem, placing quick-link buttons right near the top of your phone screen. No more digging around to find the virtual backpack!

Change is a process, and we're going to continue working on improving your experience with the district website. If you come across any issues, or have any feedback to share, please don't hesitate to reach out to our webmaster, Mr. Scott Marvel at webmaster@wlbschools.com.

February 6 - Staff Development PD Day (No School for Students)

February 17 - SCHOOL CLOSED (Presidents' Day Weekend)

February 20 - SCHOOL CLOSED (Presidents' Day Weekend)

February 27 - PTA Book Fair Opens

February 28 - Regular Action Meeting of the Board of Education (Goal Update Presentation)

March 8 - Early Dismissal for Students

March 9 - Early Dismissal for Students