Students will meet four new staff members when Botelle School swings open its doors for the new school year Wednesday, August 26.
Megan Schneider is replacing Sarah Ward as the upper intermediate teacher. Schneider, a Norfolk resident, has been co-director of the PTO Drama Club for two productions. She most recently was a substitute teacher at Botelle and prior to that was a special education teacher in Winsted.
The music department will see two new faces. Kathy Dravis, who formerly taught two days a week at the school, will be replaced by Chris Valerio, the new instrumental music teacher. Valerio will teach lessons and conduct band on Tuesdays. Valerio is a retired music teacher who taught in Torrington. Most recently he was the instrumental music teacher at Colebrook Consolidated School.
Jeffrey Howard, the new general music teacher, will be in his classroom on Fridays. Howard instructs high school girls at a private school in the Berkshires and conducts toddler music lessons and summer music programs for all ages (including for the Boston Symphony Orchestra). He is experienced in stringed and percussion instruments and will conduct chorus for interested students in grades 3 to 6.
Instructional assistants Kelly Powell and Susan Wright are departing, to be replaced by Jennifer Rodgers, as an instructional assistant and SRBI interventionist. An SRBI interventionist is a specialized educator who provides research-based academic, behavioral or social-emotional support to struggling students. In the morning, she will work in the early primary classroom and in the afternoon will support students who need extra practice in reading and math.
In additional news, breakfast will be provided free to all students this year. Grab-and-go breakfast bags will be given to those children who sign up the day before.
Applications for Free/Reduced lunches will be sent home on the first day of school.
The bus routes are prepared but to protect students’ privacy are longer posted on the school’s public website. Parents can email [mplasko.norfolk@snet.net ] Administrative Assistant Mary Pat Lasko, or call her at 860-542-5286, ext. 200. to get morning pickup and afternoon drop-off times.
Parents who drive their children to school and/or pick them up should use the main entrance on the upper driveway. Students can enter the building at 8:20 a.m., but there is no supervision until that time.
Students who arrive after 8:30 a.m. must be signed in in the main office by an adult. The school day runs from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. for grades kindergarten through 6, and 8:30 to 11:30 p.m. for pre-kindergarten.