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Draft plan for reopening schools

During the Board of Education meeting on July 16, 2020, Superintendent Chuck Klaus presented the School District’s draft plan for reopening the public schools in the fall.

The district is now soliciting feedback from parents, teachers, and members of the community on the draft plan.

Titled “On the Road Back,” the draft plan details two options:

  • Model 1 is based on 100% capacity
  • Model 2 is based on 50% capacity.

The basis for the two models is the District’s belief that schools and education are essential:

  • We value the safety and wellbeing of our students and staff
  • Children benefit from being physically present in school — Learning — Achievement — Socially

The district’s goal is to develop a plan for a September return to school that balances and maximizes those factors.

Read the draft plan HERE.

Submit comments HERE. Those interested in commenting should note that time is of the essence.

Based on feedback and continued research, the district’s Leadership Team will prepare a new model and present it during the Board of Education meeting on Tuesday, July 28.

A video of Chuck Klaus’s presentation to the July 16 Board of Education meeting may be viewed HERE.

Video: Racism in Education (a town hall)

On June 29, 2020, the Haddonfield School District hosted an online Town Hall on Racism in Education – how race affects the experience of students (current and alumni), faculty, staff, and community members in Haddonfield schools.

The district’s goal was to hear about the experiences of the community, and ask questions that will guide the district in its future work. 

The meeting was led by Dr. Shelley Zion, Professor of Urban Education at Rowan University. Dr. Zion has been working with district administrators, teachers, and staff for two years.

More than 100 people attended the online meeting, a video of which may be viewed on the School District’s YouTube site, HERE.

Black Lives Matter speeches

A newly formed coalition of high school student leaders from Haddonfield, Collingswood, Woodlynne, Pennsauken, and Haddon Heights held a stand-in, march, and vigil in Haddonfield on Wednesday, June 24.

The activity, sponsored by SJ Students for Black Lives, had three components:

  • A stand-in (4 to 4:30pm) – with posters, signs, and artwork mourning Black lives lost to police brutality, and demanding justice for Black citizens — along sidewalks on Kings Highway East, from the PATCO line to Haddon Avenue.
  • A unity march (4:30pm to 5pm) along Kings Highway East from Haddon Avenue to the High School.
  • A gathering (5 to 6pm) at the High School, with speakers, poetry, song, and an 8:46 period of silence in honor of George Floyd.

Here are links to speeches given by some of the speakers at the High School:

Message from the superintendent

OFFICIAL, from Incoming Superintendent of Schools Chuck Klaus

As I write this, we are closing in on the final hours of the extraordinary 2019-2020 school year. Putting it mildly, this year has stretched many of us to our limits.

Here in Haddonfield, we have made the best of a challenging situation, not just for our schools, but for our entire community. I am proud of the way we all adapted to unexpected, and frankly abrupt, changes from in-person to at-home schooling. THANK YOU to everyone on the staff, to all of our students, and to the families who supported these changes with good humor and great care. Thank you.

Today, two topics weigh heavily on my mind.

First … In the aftermath of the killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery, Board members and administrators have received communication from a group of alumni and community members concerned about how Haddonfield has approached equity, inclusive curriculum, anti-racism education, and diverse hiring practices.

I am not at all surprised and am honestly proud that Haddonfield alumni, parents, and community members have strong feelings on these topics. Board President Adam Sangillo penned this letter to those who reached out. In it, Mr. Sangillo points out what has been done, what is being done now and what is planned for the future; however, we are at a point where looking at what we have done and are doing is not enough. We must take a fresh look at our goals and programs with a lens focused on equity and a promise that the work we are doing is designed not to simply address and reduce racism, but that is proactively anti-racist. We don’t have all the answers on how to achieve this goal, but we are committed to work actively to grow and promote this stance. We are committed to providing our students with the avenues and opportunities to become allies and accomplices in developing a proactively anti-racist environment.

To this end, we are redoubling our efforts by scheduling a “town hall meeting” planned for June 29th at 6:00 p.m. led by Dr. Shelley Zion, Executive Director of Rowan University’s Center for Access, Success and Equity. District administrators, staff, and interested community members will be available to discuss concerns and a vision for the future. Details of the meeting format will be emailed and will be posted on the HSD website in the near future.

While we still have far to travel, we have started on this journey. In January and February of 2019, we launched the district’s Long-Range Strategic Plan (LRSP). One of the three major goals is Cultural Competence. We have worked hard to improve our curriculum, our professional development and our overarching awareness of many issues related to equity and racism. Please feel free to examine what we have posted online on this subject. I welcome your input, and I encourage you to participate in the process. I look forward to hearing from you on June 29th.

Second … what’s next? The uncertainty of what school will look like in September looms large. We have already started discussing how to prepare for what may lie ahead. The short, immediate and truthful answer is that we simply don’t know. All New Jersey districts are looking to the Governor and to the state Department of Education for guidance so that we can prepare, but as of this date, we have little information. I can tell you that we are trying to make plans, and we are hoping that state guidance will come sooner rather than later.

This week, I began to form committees to attempt to make reasonable plans for the options for fall 2020 that we can currently imagine. These committees include teachers, administrators, parents, and community members. The committees are:

  • Instruction – how do we best deliver instruction in the event we must continue distant or blended learning?
  • Social and Emotional Learning – we must put supports in place for students and staff who have suffered anxiety, trauma or loss during this time.
  • Facilities – how buildings and classrooms might be used effectively and safely; what does hygiene look like in September?
  • Communication – keeping staff, students, families, county and state offices and the community well-informed.
  • Health – what precautions and accommodations will be required in the fall if we return to the classrooms?

The chair of each committee has started the process of developing his/her Action Teams to address each area of focus.

As we work through different scenarios and make appropriate plans, we will keep all school families informed. Thank you for your confidence and your patience!

Rowan, Delaware are grads’ top choices

Members of the Haddonfield Memorial High School Class of 2020 plan to attend more than 100 different universities and colleges in the fall.

The top choices?

  • 9 students each — Rowan University, University of Delaware
  • 7 students — Rutgers University – Camden
  • 6 students — Temple University
  • 5 students — Gettysburg College, Saint Joseph’s University, Stockton University
  • 4 students — Catholic University of America, College of Charleston, Drexel University, James Madison University, University of Pennsylvania, Villanova University

Valedictorian: Live for today

By Stephen Kasko, Haddonfield Memorial High School Valedictorian 2020

A wise man once said, “What is today, but yesterday’s tomorrow?”

That man was none other than Mr. Eugene Krabs, proprietor of the Krusty Krab, who taught our generation the value of hard work and financial responsibility. What may seem like an insignificant, off-handed comment from a kids’ cartoon show actually has an important meaning: it is easy to repeatedly put off fulfilling your hopes and dreams until tomorrow without realizing that tomorrow may never arrive.

Throughout high school, we have been taught that our current lives are nothing more than preparation for something bigger, whether it be college or a career. We become so focused on the destination that we lose our appreciation for the journey that gets us there. So today I hope to reflect on the journey that got us to this moment and why we need to appreciate it more.

I think we can all agree that our journey through high school would not be possible without the love and support of many people. First, I’d like to thank our administrators who have truly put their all into helping us through this unique senior year. I’d also like to thank all of the senior parents for the love and support they’ve given us over the years. Especially you mom and dad, I never could have done it without you. Without all of them, none of us would be the people we are today.

Next, I want to say thank you to my friends and classmates for all the great memories. And finally I want to thank all the teachers and coaches at HMHS for their time and dedication they’ve given over these four years. Thank you Coach Baker for teaching me that Don’t Walk signs are optional. Thank Mrs. Pracher for teaching us the art of cooking bacon during class. And thank you Señora Rodriguez for teaching us the value of teamwork when completing homework assignments.

As we all know, no journey is complete without its share of both ups and downs. I’m sure we’re all proud of our accomplishments these last four years, however, every achievement follows a certain amount of setbacks. For example, before making the varsity cross country team I had to learn the consequences of falling backwards during a run on a rainy day in bright blue shorts. Before getting into Madrigals I had to fumble through a series of scales I could only sing if castrated in front of TMills. And before earning a red pencil in Dr. Sohn’s chemistry class I had to learn that no one ever seems to forget the time you spilled concentrated phosphoric acid on your lab partner.

As a class, we’ve shared many amazing moments, like winning hallways our sophomore year, getting a brand-new senior lounge, and countless sectional and state championship titles. Likewise, we’ve also experienced our not-so-amazing moments, like suffering through rain at every class dance, reacting just a bit too harshly to the StopIt assembly, and a controversial end to our final rec hall.

There’s also the small individual mistakes, like forgetting your keycard and getting locked out in the breezeway, getting kicked out of the library for playing games, getting kicked out of the library for talking, getting kicked out of the library for eating on the wrong side, or, my personal favorite, getting kicked out of the library for moving a chair.

So although the road can be rocky, some of our best moments are actually during the journey, not at the destination. I never actually read Walden in English, but Sparknotes tells me that Henry David Thoreau once said “Live in the present, launch yourself on every wave, find eternity in each moment.” So go out and live for today before it becomes tomorrow.

I’ll miss you guys.

New director of special ed. appointed

During their meeting on June 11, the Board of Education approved the appointment of Dr. Carmen Henderson as the director of special education for the Haddonfield School District, from July 1, 2020.

The District released the following statement about the appointment today (July 15).

Dr. Henderson is a familiar face in Haddonfield, having worked as an LDT-C (Learning Disabilities Teacher-Consultant) and as a Child Study Team case manager for the district for the past year. She steps into a position formerly filled by Dr. Gino Priolo who was approved as Assistant Superintendent in May and whose official start date is also July 1.

“We are very fortunate to have gotten to know Dr. Henderson during this past year,” said Priolo. “She has been a valuable and caring member of the special education team and brings many years of training and experience to the Director’s post. It is rare to find someone who is not only a skilled clinician, but who also combines keen vision and leadership skills with an empathic lens. I am confident our students, staff and families will benefit from her leadership.”

Henderson began her educational journey at Fairleigh Dickinson University where she earned a bachelor’s degree in Psychology and a master of arts in Teaching. She received a certificate of graduate studies in Learning Disabilities from Rowan University and later earned her Ed.D. in Special Education Leadership from Gwynedd Mercy University. Her thesis topic was “Factors Contributing to the Over-representation of Black Elementary Students in Special Education in Suburban Public School Settings, June 2018.”

Henderson is board certified as an educational diagnostician, a child development specialist, a teacher of supplemental instruction in reading and math grades K-8, an elementary teacher grades K-5, a preschool-grade 3 teacher, a student assistance coordinator and a school administrator. She has served as an LDT-C in Pennsauken, Burlington, and Lawnside Public Schools. In Pennsauken, she was also the chair of the Child Study Team, and in Lawnside she was the 504 coordinator. An adjunct professor at Rowan University, Henderson has also coordinated Rowan’s LDT-C program.

In addition to her experiences working for various school systems, Henderson has owned and operated her own consulting business since 2007, Carmen Henderson Educational Consulting in Cherry Hill.

“Dr. Henderson is a committed professional whose knowledge and expertise are only outpaced by her passion for children,” said incoming Superintendent Chuck Klaus. “She is the ideal person to continue our mission to be a leader in educational inclusivity for our children with special needs.”

Currently a resident of Cherry Hill, Henderson and her husband have an eighteen-year-old son who will be attending Fisk University (Nashville, Tennessee) where he has signed a letter of intent to play on the men’s soccer team. Henderson takes particular pride in the accomplishments of her son, because of the journey their family has taken, raising a child with special needs.

“My roles – both as a parent of a child with special needs and as a clinician – have provided me a view through a unique lense as well as deep passion for special education,” Henderson said. “It is my intention to continue to enhance the current inclusive practices and student interventions in the Haddonfield Public Schools. I am very pleased to be a part of the Haddonfield community because the consistency and quality of the services provided to our students are aligned with what I expect as a parent and a practitioner.”

HMHS Drama Club livestream

In partnership with the Haddonfield Educational Trust, the High School Drama Club will present an evening of showtunes on Thursday, June 11 at 7pm. (This event was originally scheduled for June 4.)

Titled “Places! At Home,” the event will be livestreamed on the Drama Club’s YouTube channel, HERE.

Admission is free, but viewers are asked to donate to the HMHS Auditorium Improvement Fund, on the Trust’s website, HERE.

The Trust also is planning a golf tournament for August 17, 2020, at Tavistock Country Club. (Stay tuned.)

This Haddonfield Today news story sponsored by Lisa Wolschina & Associates (Keller Williams Realty).