Toms River High School East
Week of December 12, 2022
Dear Families,
We had the opportunity to celebrate the Teacher of the Year, Jennifer Fazzini and Educational Service Professional of the Year, Robin Jacobs-Lowery. These prestigious awards are the Academy Awards of Education and it is always fun to celebrate such deserving staff members! Thank you to the band for helping make the announcement extra special!
Attendance: Did you know if your child has missed 6 or more school days this school year they are considered "chronically absent." This year we have seen a sharp decline in 9th grade attendance. In the past 5 years 9th grade students have always shown the highest attendance rate. It was assumed that was because parents are still transporting children to school in the morning and the child is not driving themselves yet. With the decline in 9th grade attendance I am reaching out to you as support in making sure your child is attending school unless they are not feeling well. Please try and schedule all doctors appointments after school hours. I am including an article about chronic absenteeism and tips for parents . I am interested in hearing from you, please feel free to reach out if you have more insight into this trend.
Parent Portal updates: Coming soon!
Starting January 1st, Toms River Middle and High School students will have access to their own Genesis Student Portal to look up schedules, grades, bus assignments, attendance and more. The site address is https://students.trschools.com. Students will use their Google account credentials to login. To ensure students are accessing their new personal Student Portal, parents should change their Parent Portal password.
7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens
This month we will begin focusing on Habit #2": Begin with the End in Mind- Define your mission and goals in life
The Power of Vision
• Revisit the concept of having a “family flight plan” from Habit 1 and explore the significance of having a clear destination and a compass.
• Discuss the importance of vision and clear purpose in the creation of creating a family mission statement. Discuss, as parents: What abilities do we want our Children to develop to be successful when they are grown?
• Identify some of the benefits that flow from having a vision. For example: a deeper sense of purpose and meaning, a sense of hope or of future possibilities, and a focus on opportunities rather than on problems.
Winter Athlete Meeting
Mr. Gillen, district Athletic Coordinator and Mrs. Anders met with all Winter Athletes. Expectations of a Raider Athlete were discussed. Student- Athletes put themselves in a position of leadership by wearing a Raider jersey and with that comes additional responsibilities and obligations. High School athletes are looked at as role models on and off the playing arena and their behavior in and out of the games are constantly being watched by younger community members. We reinforced the potential positive impact they can have on our East community.
Community Service and Wellness Fair
Ms. Bush organized a Community Service and Wellness Fair in the Media Center this week. At East we pride ourselves on being a service oriented school and celebrate students who give back to the community around them. Thank you to all of our community groups who came to expose students to volunteer opportunities! Attendees included All Fur One, Caregiver Volunteers of Central NJ, Community Medical Center, East Hispanic Heritage Club, Field of Dreams, Habitat for Humanity, HSE Ambassadors, Interact, National Honor Society, Ocean County Library, Ocean's Harbor House, PerformCare-Ocean Partnership, Pure Yoga and Save Barnegat Bay.
Teacher of the Year
The Teacher of the Year has been a Raider for the past 17 years. This individual takes extraordinary pride in the work they do, settling for nothing less than perfection. This Teacher of the Year is known for her enthusiasm, dedication and passion for her subject matter and for helping children. This staff member is no stranger to doing whatever it takes for her students, fundraisers, advising clubs, retrieving lost items in the school dumpster, holding google meets during her hospital stay with her child and always making a point to celebrate her students’ successes. I have witnessed her bring in bagels to celebrate a student's achievement in sports, drop balloons off at a students house for scoring well on the AP exam and be accessible to a young man that suddenly lost his father. Her AP Biology score was exceptional last school year at a 3.4 average. Her students love her attention to detail, her enthusiasm for Biology and true interest in them as individuals. She has spearheaded the Activity Periods at East, creating learning opportunities for our students and staff. She is the Yearbook Financial advisor, part of the Student Council Team of advisors, the Lighthouse Team co-chair, the Bake Club advisor, the former National Honor Society advisor, Climate Committee member and volunteer for any and all events she can be part of. She is a member of the East Alumni community and started the Food Trucks and Fire Pits night as a way for East to invite community members back to our school. She is consistently looking for ways to grow her content knowledge in her subject area. She has attended countless professional development opportunities and dove into summer research at Rutgers University. This teacher’s enthusiasm and positive attitude is contagious. I am ecstatic to announce the 2022-2023 Teacher of the Year, Jennifer Fazzini!
Educational Services Professional of the Year
The Educational Services Professional of the Year is given this school year to a staff member who has dedicated her career to High School East, being a member of our staff for the past 21 years. This individual is highly intelligent, motivated and compassionate. This individual has the capacity to handle difficult situations, mentor and guide students in need. This Educational Professional is a go to person not only in our school community but in the district for expertise in mental health. She is a member of our school and district Crisis Committee for her breadth of knowledge and experience. We are so lucky to have her on our staff. I personally value her opinions, advice and look for her guidance in difficult situations. She is an integral part in our Child Study Team playing the role of the School Psychologist. Her colleagues praise her for her ability to work with them to create the most optimal learning environment for their students. She has a heart of gold and spends countless hours on her own time planning and strategizing for her students. She communicates well with families and approaches every situation with compassion. She has continuously held professional development opportunities for our staff to learn strategies and techniques to best support our students. She has developed and staffed the Project Hope academy at East. She is a district trainer in many mental health related fields and a leader not only at East but district wide. Congratulations to the 2022-2023 Educational Services Professional of the Year, Dr. Robin Jacobs-Lowery.
Weekly Updates
1) PSAT score reports are now exclusively online. Scores from the October 2022 PSAT/NMSQT will be released online to students on December 5, 2022. Paper score reports will no longer be mailed to schools. With online reporting, students are seamlessly connected to other College Board opportunities, Official SAT® Practice on Khan Academy®, college readiness resources, and a path to find scholarships. Students who shared their email address on their PSAT/NMSQT answer sheet will receive an email from College Board with an access code explaining where and how to view their scores. PSAT score report
Please see attached flyer on how to create a College Board account and view PSAT/SAT scores.
Accessing PSAT & SAT scores.pdf
2) Volunteer hours need to be submitted at the end of every month. Please drop off your community service card in Guidance.
