Superintendent Ana C. Riley and Principal Dennis Morrell are thrilled to share that the Kickemuit Middle School Science Olympiad Team was recognized by the Bristol Warren Regional School Committee for being named 2023 Rhode Island Science Olympiad State Champions.

On Monday, May 8, the Bristol Warren Regional School Committee recognized 19 Kickemuit Science Olympiad Team members and advisor Kerri Krawcyzk for their outstanding work at the 2023 Rhode Island Science Olympiad State Championship, which culminated in the team being named the overall State Champion in Division B.

The 19 Kickemuit Middle School Science Olympiad Team members who participated in the State Championship and were recognized by the school committee include: Rowen Mark, Nathan James, Leo Willner, Parker Oliver, Marissa Cabral, Kenny Dunning, Alex Barowy, Avery Walsh, Samantha Campbell, Lex Medeiros, Lily Parisi, Ellie Donovan, Elise Lanoie, Evan Vallante, Hazel Bradley, Emma Quigley, Jack Godbout, Imogen Miller and Desmond Blackbeard.

"On behalf of the district and school committee, I would like to recognize our KMS Science Olympiad Team's amazing accomplishments at this year's Science Olympiad State Championship," Superintendent Riley said. "It's no easy feat to be named State Champions, however, our students rose to the occasion and excelled in their events."

The Science Olympiad State Championship was hosted at Rhode Island College on April 22. At the event, the Kickemuit Science Olympiad Team competed against 11 other schools in 18 different events. Only three schools, including KMS, entered every single event, which resulted in KMS students cross-training in up to three events.

The Kickemuit Science Olympiad Team took home several medals -- five gold, five silver and one bronze -- as well as other awards. Awards included the following:

• Gold Medal:

• Nathan James and Rowen Mark in Fast Facts

• Nathan James and Marissa Cabral in Road Scholar

• Nathan James and Rowen Mark in Meteorology

• Leo Willner and Parker Oliver in Flight

• Kenny Dunning and Alex Barowy in Wheeled Vehicle

• Silver Medal:

• Leo Willner and Alex Barowy in Dynamic Planet

• Lex Medeiros and Lily Parisi in Crime Busters

• Parker Oliver and Rowen Mark in Solar System

• Evan Vallante and Hazel Bradley in Forestry

• Samantha Campbell and Avery Walsh in Anatomy and Physiology

• Bronze Medal:

• Ellie Donovan and Samantha Campbell in Write It Do It

• 4th Place:

• Elise Lanoie, Ellie Donovan and Marissa Cabral in Experimental Design

• Avery Walsh and Evan Vallante in Disease Detectives

• 5th Place:

• Leo Willner and Avery Walsh in Storm the Castle

• Lily Parisi and Hazel Bradley in Green Generation

• Emma Quigley and Elise Lanoie in Bridge

• 6th Place:

• Emma Quigley and Hazel Bradley in Bio-Process Lab

• 8th Place:

• Marissa Cabral and Samantha Campbell in Roller Coaster

Godbout served as an alternate but helped build the Bridge and worked on the Storm the Castle event. Miller joined the team recently and helped with the Roller Coaster, Bridge and Forestry events. Blackbeard also helped with the Storm the Castle event and participated in the Science Bowl at the competition.

As State Champions, the KMS Science Olympiad Team is invited to represent Rhode Island at the National Tournament at Wichita State University in Kansas later this month.

"Our Science Olympiad Team members devote much of their time to practicing and perfecting their craft, and their hard work paid off at the 2023 State Championship," Principal Morrell said. "We greatly look forward to them wow-ing the crowd with their skills and expertise at the National Tournament, and we ask that you all join us in wishing them good luck!"

About the Rhode Island Science Olympiad 2023

The Science Olympiad is a national program that was created to increase interest in science. It has members in all 50 states with more than 12,000 actively participating K-12 schools. The Science Olympiad aims to teach science by involving students in active, hands-on activities that emphasize problem solving and the scientific process. In state and national competitions, winners of individual events win athletic-style medals, with winning teams earning trophies. At the national level, there are substantial scholarships awarded to top winners.

Superintendent Ana C. Riley and Principal Michelle King are pleased to announce that Mt. Hope High School Media Communications students have partnered with the Bristol Police Department to create a video PSA series.

In 2021, Bristol Police Sgt. Ricardo Mourato reached out to Mt. Hope High School Media Communications students to see if they would be willing to create a recruitment video for the Bristol Police Department as a class project. This began the class' ongoing partnership with the police department as students enthusiastically created a recruitment video that is still in use today.

This past February, Media Communications students once again partnered with the department to create several new PSA videos to be shared with the public. In about one month's time, 12 students, under the direction of teacher Brian Latessa and with support from School Resource Officer Greg Silva, produced three engaging and informative PSA videos that will be shared with the entire community.

Throughout the process of creating each video, students had several meetings with Sgt. Mourato. During these meetings, he described what the project entailed and shared the criteria for the videos before students began working in small groups to research and develop the content and plan for filming.

The first video, which was released on April 25 on the Police Department’s Facebook page, the town's page and the Mt. Hope High School Husky News Network, shared information about provisional licenses. To view the video, click here.

On the day of the video release, a viewing party was held during which Bristol Police Chief Kevin Lynch congratulated the students on their efforts and let them know how important their work was as an avenue to communicate directly with students, peer-to-peer, about the importance of driving safely.

Two other videos about texting and driving and white lines are available to be watched now and will be shared on the aforementioned platforms at a later date.

"Student involvement in projects like this creates a sense of community pride and provides an opportunity for students to apply their skills to a real-world, industry problem," said Assistant Superintendent Diane Sanna.

Mt. Hope's Media Communications students have also partnered with the Warren Police Department and Maria Ursini of the Warren Prevention Coalition over the past years to produce videos. To see all of the videos that have been produced by students to date, click here.

“The Bristol Police Department is beyond pleased to once again partner with local high school students at MHHS (Media & Communications Class) to deliver thought-provoking public safety announcements," Chief Lynch said. "It remains our goal to promote traffic safety not just through enforcement but education, messaging, relationships, and collaboration. I remain certain that our teenage and young drivers garner a great message when they see their peer students as leading actors in a traffic safety announcement. The students were truly engaged and took the responsibility of traffic safety champions and I salute each of them, including their teacher Mr. Brian Latessa. Thanks for making a difference."

Pictured Below: Mt. Hope High School Media Communications students, with Bristol Police Chief Kevin Lynch and Sgt. Ricardo Mourato, at the video PSA series viewing party on Tuesday, April 25.

The lottery for those wishing to enroll their children in Bristol Warren's half-day, Integrated Preschool program will remain open through May 31, with a drawing to follow on or about June 1.

The lottery is open to students in the district between the ages of three and five as of Sept. 1, 2023, who are toilet trained. The free, half-day preschool program will be located at Hugh Cole Elementary and families can express a preference for the morning or afternoon session when entering the lottery. The district cannot guarantee that preferences will be accommodated.

Only students who have entered the lottery by the deadline will be considered for enrollment.

To enter, click here and complete the form. Paper applications are also available upon request. Anyone with questions about the lottery or the program should contact Early Childhood Coordinator DeAnna Cotoia by phone at 401-253-4000 (extension 8214) or by email at deanna.cotoia@bwrsd.org.