Woodbury City Public Schools White & Gold Electronic Community Edition - Summer/Fall 2011

2 5 No r t h Br o ad St r e et W oodb ur y , N J 08 09 6

Superintendents Messages

Welcome to the New Electronic Format

This issue of the White & Gold Community Edition is being disseminated electronically. It is also posted on our website on the front page of the district site: www.woodburysch.com. The district has shifted to this format in a cost savings effort; over the course of the year, there should be a realized savings of approximately $5,000. There will be efforts made to extend our e -mail address lists. If you would like to be included in our e -mail database to receive the White and Gold as its released, please contact my secretary at shoffman@woodburysch.com, to be added. In addition, the building principals are experimenting with Twitter communication. Their connections via Twitter will also help us put out the word when our White & Gold editions are released.

Strategic Plan
Decisions at the Woodbury City Public Schools are driven by the school communities Strategic Plan. The plan was originally drafted four years ago and approved by the Board of Education in June 2008. Just this past school year, the Strategic Plan underwent an involved, periodic update. Ultimately, only minor revisions were suggested by the community members involved in this process, and the newly adjusted plan was approved last spring. You can read about the history of the development process by going to our website: http://www.woodburysch.com/district/stgplan/stgplan.php. On the website, you will be able to view the entire plan in its new form. Also, there is a summary of the action to date on the plan as it was original drafted in 2008.

Council for Academic Excellence

The Minority Task Force (MTF) concluded another school year with its Spring meeting on May 23, 2011. The successes of this past school year were reviewed: AVID growth and academic success; college visitations by students in grades 4 (Rowan University), 8 (Howard University) and 10 (College of New Jersey); positive HSPA and AP test results; a well -received visit by the NAACP to the Jr.-Sr. High School; and the districts continued involvement in minority educator job fairs. A decision was also made to change the name of the MTF to the Council for Academic Excellence to better identify the purpose of the groups initiatives. Please join us for the upcoming Council for Academic Excellence 2011 -12 meetings: Monday, October 17, 2011 @ 6:00 p.m. in the Jr.-Sr. High School Library Monday, March 19, 2012 @ 6:00 p.m. in the Evergreen Avenue Library

Any student, parent, or community member is encouraged to attend. If you would like more information about joining the Council for Academic Excellence, please contact Mr. Joseph Jones at 856/853-0123, ext. 230, or by email: josephjones@woodburysch.com.

Do You Twitter?
This school year, a few of our administrators will be attempting to see if this technology format can be valuable for communicating with the community. You can follow the following individuals... Jason Vivadelli, Evergreen Avenue Principal: @Evergreen_Elem Vince Myers, West End Principal: @WestEnd_Elem Jeff Adams, Walnut Street Principal: @Walnut_Elem Denise Dunham, Jr.-Sr. High School Principal: @Woodbury_JrSr Grant Shivers, Jr.-Sr. High School Athletic Director: @HerdsSports_WHS Ed Murphy, Director of Pupil Personnel Services: @WPS_Counseling And...the Superintendents Blog (http://woodburysch.blogspot.com/) is back up and running again this school year!

2011 Class President, Kyle Gatlin, passes on the Key to the School along with some words of advice to the Class President of 2012.

Valedictorian, Dejana Bogdanovic (left) and Salutatorian Zoe Mowl (right) both delivered powerful speeches to their fellow classmates at the ceremony. Dejana will be pursuing a degree at Rutgers University, while Zoe will be chasing her dreams at Georgetown University. Congratulations to both ladies, and to the entire Class of 2011!

Kyle Gatlin 11 I now present you with this key to Woodbury High School. This key represents tradition and excellence, but it also means so much more. It is Ms. Dunhams smile. It is the 8th graders looking up to you. It is improving over what previous classes have done. It is making your own legacy as well as continuing Woodburys legacy. Most importantly, it is making others hear the THUNDER of the HERD! Best of luck and have fun. Bella Shoenig 12 Thank you Kyle Gatlin and the Class of 2011. I accept this key on behalf of the Class of 2012 and understand the responsibilities and traditions that go along with the key. We hope to honor Woodbury as well as the Class of 2011. Thank you and congratulations.

Summer Programming
We had many more students join us to participate in our summer programming. We were able to run enhanced enrichment and remedial academic programs in the elementary school this past summer. In addition, the high school had a large array of opportunities for students to stay engaged with their academic work. As part of the districts Strategic Plan, keeping this focus on providing for summer academic opportunities is a priority for the district. This past year, we were also able to add a free lunch for any Woodbury school age youth paid for through the USDAs Summer Food Service Program and at no cost to the Woodbury taxpayer. We advertised the availability of lunch through our Global Connect call home feature. Many of our students involved in summer programs took advantage of the lunch program.

Board Docs
The school board has decided to improve the electronic features associated with their work and provide their agenda to the public utilizing a commercial package called Board Docs. This will provide an increase in the availability of information associated with each meeting and a search feature that will provide easier recall of items from past agendas. This new format will start with the September Board of Education meeting.

Grant Monies and County Partnership Funds Mentoring Programs

Dr. Adams, Principal of the Walnut Street School and Director of Special Services, secured two sources of additional revenue for summer programming. A partnership with the Gloucester County Freeholders was developed allocating $15,000 to the Woodbury City Public Schools. These monies allowed for the district to continue mentoring programs through the summer weeks. The programs were held on Wednesdays and involved students from all three elementary schools grades 3 through 5 participating in various activities to foster strong self-confidence and a healthy outlook on the future. In addition, $16,500 grant was awarded by the Governors Juvenile Justice Delinquency Prevention Committee to the district to run a similar program for Junior High students who met two days a week throughout the summer. These students also experienced a variety of activities that should help each be a more engaged and contributing member in his/her classes during the upcoming year.

A summer day at Liberty Lake to kick off the Junior high program.

Good News
Some very positive stories about the school ran in local and regional newspapers. This electronic format of the newsletter allows for us to place links here so that you can go directly to the story: Service Learning A Day of Service MLK, Jr. Day Philadelphia Inquirer: Golden Bytes - Philadelphia Inquirer:
http://articles.philly.com/2011-01-18/news/27034694_1_computer-project-internet-access-broadband-access http://articles.philly.com/2011-05-09/news/29525403_1_young-volunteers-seniors-citizen http://www.nj.com/gloucester-county/index.ssf/2011/06/woodbury_seniors_experience_ac.html http://www.nj.com/gloucester/voices/index.ssf/2010/10/a_woodnury_school_tries_harder.html

A Diverse Group of Students Class of 2011 - Gloucester County Times: A Woodbury School Tries Harder - Gloucester County Times:

BOYS TRACK
The boys team had another strong year. The team won the Woodbury Relays in April and in June, won the SJ and State Group I Championship for the second year in a row. Anthony Averett took first place at the SJ, State and Meet of Champions (first MOC Champion since 2003) in the long jump. Darrell Bush won the SJ and State Titles in the 200 and 400 and Darrell, Ted Johnson, Marcus Upchurch and Terrence Tolbert won the 400 relay.

2010-2011 Athletic Highlights

Football Colonial Conference Patriot Division Champions Karon Gibson Gloucester County Times Defensive Football Player of the Year; Touchdown Club Lineman of the Year Girls Tennis Gloucester County Champions Maddie Graziani Gloucester County Champion; Gloucester County Times Player of the Year Jen Koengetter Gloucester County Times Coach of the Year Boys Basketball Colonial Conference Patriot Division Champions Girls Basketball Buena Holiday Tournament Champions Dominique Sellers 1000 Point Scorer Girls Track West Deptford and Woodbury Relays Champions Colonial Conference Patriot Division Champions, 3 Years in a Row Alexis Gligor State Champion in Pole Vault Boys Track Woodbury Relays Champions South Jersey and State Group I Champions, 2 Years in a Row Anthony Averett Meet of Champions, State and South Jersey Champion in Long Jump; Gloucester County Times Field Athlete of the Year Darrell Bush State Champion in 200 and 400; Gloucester County Times Track Athlete of the Year Ted Johnson, Darrell Bush, Terrence Tolbert and Marcus Upchurch State Champions 400 relay Overall 33 Athletes named 1st Team Colonial Conference 10 Athletes named 2nd Team Colonial Conference

AVID Demonstration School

One of the most exciting pieces of news that occurred during the 2010-11 school year was the designation of our Junior -Senior High School as an AVID National Demonstration School. AVID stands for the Advancement Via Individual Determination program that Woodbury adopted six years ago. Visit http://www.avid.org/abo_whatisavid.html for more information on this national educational program. Our AVID effort in grades six through twelve was rigorously examined by an external AVID evaluation team and the following comments were part of the visiting teams findings:

Summary of Findings:
Woodbury exemplifies the college readiness culture to which excellent AVID programs aspire. The collegegoing environment is noticeable throughout the school and high expectations for students were evident. AVID strategies are school-wide and used as a platform to support the schools mission and strategic plan objectives. The school exemplifies a warm and inviting environment that celebrates diversity and embraces collaboration among students and staff. There are many things to be shared with the wider AVID world.

Commendations:
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Students and staff have developed strong relationships which result in a supportive and respectful environment that is felt throughout the school. AVID strategies (WICR Writing, Inquiry, Collaboration, and Reading) are integrated throughout all classes: Socratic seminar, philosophical chairs, Cornell notes, collaborative group work, binders and Costas levels of thinking. District and school administrative support for AVID is evident at a very high level. This is matched by the extraordinary faculty buy-in and belief in the AVID system. Academic language permeates student conversations and discussions. The first AVID graduates who matriculated to college remain enrolled their sophomore year. It is also note-worthy that 100% of the second graduating AVID students matriculated to college.

Final Find:
Based on todays visit, as well as on the certification and application process, we are pleased to welcome Woodbury Junior/Senior High School as a 2011 to 2013 AVID National Demonstration School. (Revalidation in fall, 2013)

Visit our Schools

During the 2011-12 school year we will be opening our doors for tours of our schools. As part of the Junior-Senior High School AVID Demonstration School The AVID program has a graduate, Ted Johnson, status, this 6th 12th grade building will be visited by local educators to better who ran for the Woodbury City School Board and understand what AVID can do for them in their schools. won a seat this past April. Mr. Johnson was the Additionally, our goal is to provide as many of the Woodbury public an high schools elected student representative to opportunity to see our schools in action. Therefore, we will be providing the school board the previous two years. During school day tours to interested individuals throughout the year. A schedule of this upcoming academic school year, he will be attending Rutgers University in Camden and these tour dates is being compiled. plans to remain an active part of the Woodbury For now, if you are interested, please contact the Superintendents secretary, schools through his involvement as an official Stacy Hoffman, to be placed on the list for an upcoming tour. You can reach member of the school board. Mrs. Hoffman at 856-853-0123, ext. 214, or shoffman@woodburysch.com. Congratulations, Mr. Johnson. We want everyone to see our good work and our wonderful students in action.

AVID on the School Board

Ellen Grimes joins the Woodbury City Public Schools as our new high school assistant principal. Ms. Grimes has previous administrative experience as an assistant principal in the Gloucester Township School District. Prior to that, she was a teacher and academic coach in the Camden City School District. Ms. Grimes has been in throughout the summer getting acquainted with the school and the procedures. She was more than ready and excited to greet our students when they arrived last week. Ms. Grimes writes : From the moment I entered the building as a candidate for the Assistant Principal position, I have felt welcomed. Each individual I have encountered has greeted me with a warm hello and a smile. The students and parents I have met have been very approachable and personable.

Woodbu ry Senio r High S Gets a N choo ew Assis t a nt Princip l Welcom al... e, Ms. E

llen Grim es!

SERVICE LEARNING
Last year, the freshman class (Class of 2014), was the first group of students to be involved in some type of community service activity. As part of a new Freshman Seminar class, students were guided through the rational of this new requirement, and were provided countless opportunities and suggestions of community and neighborhood activities that would count towards their initial 12-hour requirement. Once the Freshman Seminar 12-hour requirement is met, each student is then responsible for an additional 60 hours of service activities. These are to be logged over the course of the students remaining high school career (it can be 20 hours/year or any combination that will total 60 additional hours by graduation). This is a graduation requirement. Our students quickly amassed their freshman hours and, in some cases, far exceeded the entire four-year requirement. Well over 100 students participated in the Jr.-Sr. High Schools annual Day of Service in January honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. During the remainder of our school year, students committed their time, talent and hard work at many of our local churches, the Golden Bytes computer classes, Woodbury Main Street, local sports recreation programs, and other more individually crafted activities. This year, we will have two classes working toward their Service Learning requirements. Woodbury students are learning and understanding the value of contributing time and energy to worthwhile projects in the community. Both the students and the school personnel involved are proud of the initiatives early success. Senior citizen Margaret Garcia gets help from Angel Vega, 16, at the Golden Bytes program.

Construction over the summer months included renovations to the Junior High Science Labs (pictured above) as well as reconfiguration of the Junior High main office and counseling office.

Eighth grade students visited Howard University for the fourth consecutive year as part of an initiative of the Council for Academic Excellence.

To Honor Dr. Martin Luther Kings Birthday, students Dacia Holmes (left) and Mary Byarm, both 15, talk with Mary Moody, 90, at Woodbury Mews.

Mr. Vivadelli has a New Home at Evergreen Avenue Elementary School!

Welcome, Jason Vivadelli. Mr. Vivadelli moved from the Jr. -Sr. High School to his new position over the summer as Principal of Evergreen/Supervisor of Curriculum and Instruction in Grades PreK-5 . Mr. Vivadelli was an Assistant Principal in Woodbury for the past four years and a teacher of Social Studies in the middle school grades prior to his arrival in our district. Mr. Vivadelli received his bachelors degree in History from The College of New Jersey and a masters degree in Educational Administration from Wilmington College. Currently, he is continuing his studies at Wilmington to earn his doctoral degree in Educational Administration. The Vivadellis have two young children; his son is just entering into the formal schooling process. All of Mr. Vivadellis Woodbury knowledge, his formal training, and his relevant home experiences have helped to ready him for the exciting challenge of leading the Evergreen Avenue School community. There was a Meet & Greet held on the front lawn of the school at the end of summer where many in the community parents, students, teachers, and administrative colleagues came out to formally welcome Mr. Vivadelli to the school. All are looking forward to a fun year of learning.

Writers Workshop
The teachers at the Evergreen Avenue School piloted a focused effort on the Lucy Calkins Writers Workshop program out of the Teachers College of Columbia University. Three years ago, a small cadre of teachers began this effort, supported by our Literacy coach, Camille Introcaso. Two years ago, the effort spread to all the teachers in the upper elementary grades at Evergreen. Last year, teachers across the district joined the effort. The anecdotal evidence in the classroom is that the program has energized our students interest in writing. They have more opportunity to choose the topic of focus for their writing and have been instructed on how to nurture ideas for stories from everyday life occurrences -- just like real writers! This past summer, many more teachers across all three elementary schools and in all grades had the chance to be exposed to the Writers Workshop concepts through instruction provided by trainers directly connected to the Teachers College of Columbia University program. We are looking forward to good things from our young Woodbury writers as this new year unfolds.
Several Evergreen Avenue students attended the May Board of Education meeting to read a few of their personal writing samples to the Board , community members, and their families.

S.L.A.G. (Students, Leaders, Athletes, and Gentlemen) Mentor Club Trip During the year the Walnut S.L.A.G. Mentoring program attended a 76ers basketball game. This program has now expanded thanks to grant funding to include summer programming for all three elementary schools as well as Woodbury Junior High School.

Enrichment Inventors Expo Ms. Darmo had students in grades 3rd-5th develop inventions and then provide an infomercial style presentation for their creative idea.

Author in Residency Showcase Through a grant obtained by Ms. Camille Introcaso a local artist shared her experiences and passion for writing with our students throughout the year.

Ecology Club Service Learning/Walnut Garden On Earth Day Mr. Pegues and the high school Ecology club helped the Walnut Street environment with the planting of a garden in concert with the Walnut H.S.A.

March Madness Faculty-Student Basketball As part of Mr. Richardsons 5th grade Math Lesson he tied in the March Madness basketball tournament that culminated in a student -teacher basketball game for students that completed a rubric of basketball related math activities.

West End fifth grade students recently completely a biography unit. Each fifth grader studied a famous person, created a written report, and produced an informative poster. The culminating event was a Wax Museum where West End students and families were able to view the life like models created by the fifth graders.

West End students and staff were treated to a fun, upbeat assembly when Chris Wells and Kurtis Johnson presented Hip Hop Health. Hip Hop Health offers students physical activity in a fun and engaging way using hip hop music. Students learned about bones, muscles, nutrition, the cardiovascular system, and flexibility while sweating the morning away.

Students at West End raised over $1,500 as part of the annual Jump Rope for Heart on February 9, 2011. Coordinated by Physical Education teacher, Miss Kalbach, students jumped their way through various stations during the program. Job well done to all participants!

West End Memorial Elementary School is now in its fifth year implementing Mileage Club during lunch recess to promote healthy habits while providing an organized activity to reduce playground incidents. Members of the West End PTA volunteer their time twice a week during recess to organize and run this activity.

The Philadelphia Flyers paid a very special visit to West End for the Flyers School Assembly Program. Focusing on students in Grades 2 through 5 , the theme for the assembly was TEAMWORK. Members of the Fan Development staff, along with Flyers Ambassador of Hockey, Bob The Hound Kelly, and Flyer Ian Laperrire visited Woodbury to educate students on using teamwork to achieve goals in school, sports and at home. Kelly also talked with students about being safe when playing sports and the sport of hockey in general. Our fourth and fifth grade students also had the opportunity to participate in a morning hockey clinic during physical education classes.

Family Success Center

Part of the districts Strategic Plan is to make a Family Resource center available for our parents. This goal will be accomplished when the district partners with the Hispanic Family Center of Southern New Jersey. This group won a grant to run a Family Success Center in Woodbury. It will be open to all families in the community. The school will work to provide the new center with an array of school materials and help establish school related links on the computers that will be there and available for use by Woodbury families. In addition, we plan to have school members be part of regular, weekly evening programs that will focus on specific school topics or provide for open -ended, roundtable discussions. Stay tuned for more information on the new Family Success Center once the group establishes its location and begins the formal programming for the activities that will be housed there.

It All Happens in Woodbury

The Main Street Woodbury organization sponsors happenings throughout the city on a regular basis. To highlight just a few of the upcoming events: Fall Festival ParadeOctober 1st Woodbury Mainstreet Golf Outing - October 10th Octoberfest - October 15th Mainstreet Woodbury Ghost Tours - October 21st Brewin on Broad (Trick-or-Treating!) - October 31st

Woodbury Library Fall Childrens Programs

The Woodbury Librarys Fall Childrens Programs begin on Wednesday, September 14th. Meet Mrs. B for stories, songs, crafts, snacks and lots of FUN!! Children Ages 3 to 5 can choose to come on Wednesdays at 1:00 pm or Thursdays at 11:00 am. Children Ages 6 to 12 are invited to our after-school program every Wednesday at 3:30 pm.

For more information please visit their website: www.mainstreetwoodbury.org, or call 856-845-8655.

Roadrunners Club of Woodbury

Fun Run! every Thursday at 6:30pm starting at the base of Wood Street, next to the high school track, for a 5K run. All ability levels are welcome - come have fun and get fit. The Roadrunners and UMH are once again sponsoring 5K Race Down Broad Street on Saturday, October 1, 2011. Please visit their website at http://rrcwoodbury.com/ for more information and links to the event.

The programs are free and no residency is required. Please sign up at the circulation desk or call 845-2611.

Woodbury Board of Education

Frank J. Gwalthney, Jr.President Lynn Jennings DennenVice President Steven R. Abbott Anthony Chiesa Alvin R. Garlic, Jr. Ted Johnson Jerry M. Lonabaugh William J. Toole, III Eliza White David Pipolo Student Representative Joseph Jones, III Superintendent Kara L. Huber Business Administrator