Westbrook Middle School

WMS News

• Westbrook Middle School Named 2023 ESPN Honor Roll School

  Early in 2023, Westbrook Middle School was recognized by Special Olympics North America as a nationally recognized Unified Champion School.  Special Olympics is dedicated to promoting inclusion through participation in athletics experiences. Unified Sports brings people with and without intellectual disabilities together in the spirit of teamwork and social bonding.  Their philosophy is that by practicing and competing together, the path to friendship and understanding will be paved.  

  Under the leadership of Daniel Jennings, Special Education teacher and Unified Sports head coach, and Westbrook Dean of Students Amy Gallagher, Westbrook Middle School (WMS) applied to be a Special Olympics Unified Sports Champion School in 2022.  The application process was rigorous, and WMS had to demonstrate that they met the ten rigorous national standards of excellence stipulated by the Special Olympics.  In April of 2023, WMS received notification from Special Olympics North America that our school's application to the Special Olympics Unified Champion Schools National Recognition Program had been approved.  When asked what being a Unified Sports Champion School meant to WMS Dean of Students Amy Gallagher, she stated, “It feels good for the nation to be made aware of what we’ve known for a long time. Our school community is inclusive, connected, and making a difference in the lives of so many students. We are very proud to be recognized as a Champion school and try to live up to that standard every day.”

  According to the National School Recognition Program, WMS received national banner recognition and noted that WMS has built “... an inclusive school climate and exudes a sense of collaboration, engagement and respect for all members of the student body and staff. A Unified Champion School receiving national banner recognition is one that has demonstrated commitment to inclusion by meeting 10 national standards of excellence. These standards were developed by a national panel of leaders from Special Olympics and the education community.”  Upon recognition, Director of Special Services, Fran Lagace emailed Coach Jennings and said, “Great work! The benefits for the kids goes way beyond the banner. It has really improved the culture and climate for students and staff.”

  In mid-October, WMS was once again recognized as a leader in Unified Sports by ESPN.  Westbrook was named a 2023 ESPN Honor Roll School.  WMS was one of ten schools in the Northeast region and the only school in Connecticut to be awarded this prestigious honor.  In a recent announcement by ESPN, Westbrook’s Unified program along with the other Honor Roll Schools were thanked for building more inclusive schools and a more inclusive world.  Mr. Jennings has been leading the charge with regard to inclusion and belonging at Westbrook Middle School for years.  When he learned that his program had been named a 2023 ESPN Honor Roll School, he said, “This is an incredible honor! I am very proud of our Unified Sports program, and how it continues to positively shape our inclusive school community. Unified Sports plays a major role in contributing to everyone’s sense of belonging in Westbrook Middle School. Way to go Unified Knights!!”

  Westbrook Middle School Principal Matt Talmadge commented, “So many stakeholders have come together to make this a reality.  Coach Jennings and athletic director Gallagher leveraged the support from both the Connecticut Association of Schools and our director of special services as they worked with our students and families to bring the true spirit of inclusion to life through Unified Sports.  They made a difference in our community, and that is what it is all about.”  

  Dr. Kristina Martineau, Superintendent of Westbrook Public Schools added, “Unified Sports fosters social inclusion and youth leadership.  That powerful combination is highly valued for all of our students.   Our growing Unified Sports program continues to make a tremendous impact increasing positivity and belonging in both the Westbrook Public Schools and the Westbrook community at large. We are proud of our teacher leaders for making this happen for our community and so proud of all of our students involved in this important program.” 

  Mr. Robert Hale, the Director of Unified Sports at Special Olympics Connecticut, leads the team that organizes the school-based Unified Sports program for Connecticut. This program is sponsored cooperatively by Special Olympics Connecticut and the Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Association.  Mr. Hale personally came to Westbrook Middle School on October 27, 2023 to present a banner to Westbrook Middle School during their annual fall pep rally.  The banner and presentation by Mr. Hale allowed the entire school community to celebrate being named a Unified Champion School as well as a 2023 ESPN Honor Roll School.

  Westbrook Middle School

• Westbrook Veterans Day Ceremony

  The Westbrook Veterans Day Ceremony will take place on the Westbrook Town Green at 11:00am on November 10th.   Many students from Westbrook Schools will make contributions to the ceremony such as personal reflections, singing, and concert band performances.  Review the attached flyer for a breakdown of the event.

  • VeteransDay2023.pdf

  Westbrook Public Schools

• Welcome Back to the New 2023-2024 School Year!

  Dear Westbrook Families,

  What an incredible start to the first day of school! This morning, we welcomed more than 590 students PK-12 to the start of the new school year, including new students and families from Columbia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Germany, and Honduras. The morning has been filled with joyful new beginnings, connecting with friends and teachers, and much excitement for the year ahead.  We hope all of our students and their families enjoyed the summer months, but we are very, very happy to have everyone back for the new school year.

  We have a number of new and exciting changes to share with you this year in each of our three schools.

  At Daisy Ingraham Elementary School, we are piloting a team model approach for grade 4.  Students will have a homeroom teacher just as you would see in an early middle school model and then change classes and teachers for core area subjects like math, science, reading, and social studies.  We also added a science lab to our upper elementary wing so that students in grades 3 and 4 will engage in hands-on STEM activities every day in a science lab space and look forward to redesigning and upgrading it over the next year with input from our students at Daisy and with the help of high school students. The current grade 4 cohort will remain at Daisy for the 2024-2025 school year- the return of grade 5 to Daisy Ingraham Elementary School for the first time since the 2004-2005 school year.  We have also added instrumental music and band opportunities for students in grade 4- introducing an important part of our music program to this younger grade to further increase instrumental music learning opportunities for our younger students.

  At Westbrook Middle School, we have expanded our English language arts classrooms to create an open and engaging reading space- the classrooms are now doubled in size and include dedicated areas to encourage independent reading and to allow for small group discussions.  There is also a new writing class for students in grades 5-8 where they will read, discuss, and write daily to improve those critical foundational skills for all courses.  In grades 7 and 8, our students will now have the opportunity to explore robotics as well as additional STEM classes that include SeaPerch- a fun and engaging underwater robotics curriculum introduced to us and funded by Electric Boat to expand our STEM offerings.  Westbrook Middle School is also working with General Dynamics Electric Boat and Goodwin University to bring Boat for Kids to our students.  Lessons will include buoyancy, welding, pipe fitting, electricity, sheet metal work, and machining.  The lessons provide interactive, fun ways to introduce students to new scientific concepts as well as skilled industrial trades involved in submarine building. Westbrook Middle School is also piloting a Digital Citizenship, Media Literacy, and Internet Safety course for fifth graders.  All WMS students will once again be engaging in the Discovery Project process this year.  Discovery Projects allow students to study a topic of their choice and present new learning to their peers.  This year, WMS Discovery Projects are aligned to the Westbrook Portrait of a Graduate, individualized student success plans, and the Westbrook High School Career Pathways program.

  Westbrook High School is in the second phase of creating a new welding and fabrication lab that will include additional welding stations to accommodate increased enrollment in this important program.  The renovations include a workshop size doubled from its original size, a larger and upgraded HVAC system, and new electrical panel in addition.  During the 2023-2024 school year, two welding courses (Metals and Welding I and Metals and Welding II) will be offered that are aligned to American Welding Society national standards and curriculum.  During the 2024-2025 school year, two additional advanced courses will be offered to continue to advance student skills in welding and fabrication. We are in the process of exploring ways for these courses to earn college credits for our students in addition to high demand trade skills. At the high school, we continue to focus on increasing dual enrollment opportunities to increase student access and participation in courses that earn both credit for high school graduation and college.  We are also in the process of planning to offer three new UConn courses: UConn AH1100 Introduction to Allied Health Careers; UConn AH2001 Medical Terminology; and UConn ARE22210 Essentials of Accounting and Business.  In the high school math department, we also added a new course for the 2023-2024 school year called Financial Algebra. 

  Our work together as a school community continues to be focused on providing engaging, student-centered, personalized learning opportunities for all of our students. As a community, we have prioritized six critical attributes for all students that we have identified and communicated through our Westbrook Portrait of a Graduate:  

  Critical Problem-Solver: A Westbrook graduate who is a critical problem-solver systematically and strategically resolves a variety of complex issues.

  Creative Thinker: A Westbrook graduate who is a creative thinker explores existing ideas, products, or designs to innovate and create in imaginative or novel ways.

  Effective Communicator: A Westbrook graduate who is an effective communicator conveys a clear message while being respectful, receptive, and responsive to the input of others.

  Perseverant: A Westbrook graduate who is perseverant holds oneself responsible to reflect, revise, and grow through critical feedback and setbacks regardless of the challenges encountered.

  Socially Aware: A Westbrook graduate who is socially aware recognizes and understands the feelings of diverse individuals and groups with the ability to show compassion when considering norms for behaviors in a variety of settings.

  Responsible Decision-Maker: A Westbrook graduate who is a responsible decision maker demonstrates awareness of self and others as one considers responsible choices and consequences while making decisions to benefit self and community. 

  Last year, our teachers and leaders worked to develop lessons and activities aligned to our Westbrook Portrait of a Graduate, including the creation of a new logo to capture this important school community vision.  Special thanks to Westbrook High School graduate Andrew Scotella (Class of 2023) for his creative thinking and original artwork found in both the design of the circular logo and the Westbrook beach imagery to capture both our Westbrook shoreline and the pathway to graduation. I would also like to acknowledge and thank another Westbrook Knight, Nicole Stark (Class of 2005), who completed the final rendering and stylizing of the Westbrook Portrait of a Graduate logo.

  In each of our three schools, we continue to learn more about what each of these critical attributes mean in the context of learning at each grade level and across all content areas. We look forward to sharing more this year about the different ways our students in grades PK-12 are learning about and gaining skills aligned to the Westbrook Portrait of a Graduate.

  We are looking forward to an amazing new school year for our students in Westbrook! Welcome Back!

  Your partner in education in service to the students and families of Westbrook,

   

  

  Kristina J. Martineau, Ed.D.

  Westbrook Superintendent of Schools

  Westbrook Public Schools

• Update on School Meals for 2023-2024

  Westbrook Public Schools has applied to participate in the Connecticut STABLE funds program (State Transition Assistance for Breakfast and Lunch Expenses) for the 2023-2024 school year.  Our participation in this program allows us to provide free breakfast for all students for the 2023-2024 school year and free lunches to students who qualify for reduced meal prices.  

  Last year, we participated in a meals assistance program known as SMART (School Meals Assistance Revenue for Transition) that allowed us to provide both breakfast and lunch to all students at no cost during the 2022-2023 school year.  SMART funds are no longer available to districts and this assistance program has ended.

  We understand that our families need time to prepare for the transition back to paid meals at school and we are delaying the start of meal charging for the first month of school.

  Meal charging for the 2023-2024 school year will begin Monday, October 2, 2023.

  Both breakfast and lunch will be provided to all students free of charge from August 31st (the first day of school) through Friday, September 29th. 

  Students who qualify for free or reduced meals will receive free meals for the entire 2023-2024 school year. All students will have access to free breakfast for the school year. 

  To apply for assistance, please complete the application form and return it to the main office of your child’s school at the start of the new school year.  

  Free and Reduced Application- English

  Free and Reduced Application- Spanish

  If you have any questions, please reach out to your child’s school principal or our Director of Food Services, Ms. Annie Trotta at ATrotta@westbrookctschools.org

  Westbrook Public Schools

• American Welding Society Foundation Awards Westbrook High School $25,000 Grant for New Welding Program

  Westbrook Public Schools is pleased to announce that the American Welding Society (AWS) Foundation has awarded Westbrook High School a $25,000 grant to support the development of an upgraded and expanded welding program for students in grades 9-12. 

  “The AWS Foundation is proud to support the welding program at Westbrook High School,” said Monica Pfarr, Executive Director.  “As the industry continues to face a shortage of welding professionals, institutions such as Westbrook High School are rising to meet the challenge. We look forward to seeing the program grow to serve the needs of local fabricators and manufacturers.”

  Westbrook High School is in the advanced stages of creating a new welding and fabrication lab that will include 8 welding stations to accommodate increased enrollment in this important program.  During the 2023-2024 school year, two welding courses (Metals and Welding I and Metals and Welding II) will be offered that are aligned to AWS national standards and curriculum.  During the 2024-2025 school year, two additional advanced courses will be offered to continue to advance student skills in welding and fabrication.  Westbrook High School was selected to receive this grant “based on its ability to better train more welding professionals to serve the needs of local industry.”

  Superintendent Dr. Kristina Martineau shared her appreciation for the support of the American Welding Society Foundation, “We are in the midst of a once in a generational opportunity here in southern Connecticut as advanced manufacturing opportunities increase to provide a critical pathway for our students interested in pursuing trades, particularly high demand pathways such as welding.  There is great interest and high need for welding training and we are incredibly proud to be a part of meeting this need for our students, community, and region.  The AWS Foundation grant directly supports the development of a new welding program at Westbrook High School.  The funds will be used to purchase two complete welding stations, including welding tables, welding machines, cylinder packs and gouging welding torches. We are thankful for the support of the AWS Foundation to bring this program to our students and community here in Westbrook.”

  Westbrook Public Schools