Board Update: May 2, 2025

Testing & Accountability 

Smarter Balanced (SBAC) and Next Generation Science (NGSS) district testing windows opened on May 1. Schools in grades 3-8 will use Smarter Balanced (SBAC) to test ELA and Math. In addition, students in grades 5 and 8 will use NGSS to test Science. Proficiency results by grade, school and district will be publicly reported in EdSight by the end of August. Results from these tests are the basis for the performance indicators on the Next Generation Accountability Reports.  

The Panorama Survey window closed on April 11. Results indicate that the perception of all stakeholders (students, staff and families) has positively increased for the topics of school safety and school climate. Across all 6 topics staff had the largest increases in positive responses compared to other stakeholders. Since 2022 responses to staff-leadership relationships have increased from 62% positive to 76%. 

Research & Analytics 

Results from the academic paper written by NPS’ own Alden Burnham, Director of Educational Data Strategy, about dashboard design with school principals in Norwalk was presented at the American Educational Research Association conference. Researchers were excited about the work Norwalk principals have done and consider them an exemplar in strategic data use.  

The team is already planning for the 2025-26 school year. Middle school course articulation continues, with a streamlined process for connecting parent surveys, student testing data, and grades to elementary and middle school leaders to enhance decision-making. In addition, the School Improvement Planning process for next year is underway. Feedback was gathered on this year’s School Improvement Planning process. The proposed timeline for next year has been drafted and schools are being provided with next year's templates.  

Leadership Development Cohort Celebration

The Leadership Development team has successfully facilitated a second cohort of aspiring leaders. This initiative continues to serve as a vital part of the district’s commitment to developing strong, instructional leadership from within our community of schools.  A culminating celebration will be held on May 20th to showcase the participants accomplishments throughout the program.

Coaches’ Curriculum On-Ramp Session #3

Coaches participated in a Curriculum On-Ramp Session with our partners from TNTP. They discussed the curriculum pilot implementation and worked on lesson internalization protocols that will help to support teachers in daily lesson planning. 

Food Services 

Springtime is in full swing, and so is the Smoothie Bike! 

On May 1 the blender bike made a stop at Brien McMahon High School giving students a fun way to enjoy a fresh smoothie while pedaling their way through lunch.  

The excitement continues next week with visits to: 

Brookside Elementary on Tuesday, May 6 

Fox Run Wednesday, May 7 

Ponus Steam Academy and Concord Magnet on Thursday, May 8 

This week our FFVP schools learned and tasted Bok Choy and everyone's favorite Cotton Candy Grapes. Don't miss out on Miss Kelly's insightful video about Bok Choy and Cotton Candy Grapes! 

Learning & Tasting: Bok Choy 

Learning & Tasting: Cotton Candy Grapes 

A big Thank you to our incredible Wellness Team!  Our Triennial Assessment is complete and is on track to be shared with the community after our final review on May 13. 

Looking ahead The NPS Food Service department is in the process of formulating a plan for the upcoming Composting law to ensure every school has a composting plan in place by July 2026. 

Learn more about the Commercial Organics Recycling Law (CGS 22a-226e).   

Facilities 

There are many projects happening across the district this summer! 

A Power Purchase Agreement is in place with Verogy to install roof solar at Cranbury School beginning in early July. 

A contract is in place with B&W Landscaping & Paving to remove the Underground Storage Tank on the Brookside campus beginning in mid-June. The same is taking place at Tracey, in addition to a Boiler Conversion. 

A contract is in place with Olympus Construction to install window air conditioners and split ac systems as well as to upgrade the electrical systems beginning in mid-May at Tracey Elementary School. 

A contract is in processing with the City to hire HazPros to begin acm flooring abatement and replacement with vct in mid-June at Fox Run Elementary School.  

A contract is in place with Hertz to replace all student lockers beginning in mid-June at Roton Middle School. 

School Safety 

At April’s District Safety Committe Meeting, school administrators and Safety Site Coordinators were trained on the MutuaLink Emergency Communication system, which links schools, the NPS Central Office and first responders. 

Founder and CEO Mark Hatten Demos Mutualink's LNK360 Platform 

Transportation 

May is here! We are in full swing of spring and field trip season! District wide Durham has provided services for over 47 trips in the month of April, traveling as far north to Boston and as far south as New York City. Our middle and high school athletic teams have traveled over approximately 49 trips. Over 60 trips are scheduled in May to various locations in and out of state. Our students are going places! 

Durham’s May safety meeting will cover pedestrian safety, look deeper into intersection awareness and bus exterior danger zones. 

In April we began shuttling students to SONO Icehouse. Middle and Elementary students are participating in the ‘Junior Rangers Try Hockey for Free’ program.  Thanks to Heidi Pierovich, NPS Education Administrator for SQR and the New York Rangers for making this opportunity possible for our students! 

Health Services 

Norwalk Community Health Center received its DPH license to operate its school-based health center at Kendall College and Career Academy. A ribbon-cutting will be scheduled and operations expected to be in place prior to the beginning of the next school year. Physical and behavioral health services will be provided.  

School Health Services continues to closely collaborate with NCHC’s director of clinical operations and healthcare innovation regarding processes, workflow, and operations at their school-based health center sites located at Ponus/CMS, BMHS, Family Center, and KCCA opening for SY25-26. 

In the news! Please see the News12 segment that aired on 4/30 regarding the NCHC SBHC anti-bullying campaign at BMHS: Anti-Bullying Campaign 

SHS at the Family Center are working diligently to ensure all incoming NPS students are medically cleared, often referring families for medical services required for registration. 

Since April 21 NPS school nurses have assessed 1,225 student injuries, and 2,553 student health-related issues. 

National School Nurse Day is on Wednesday, May 7! We thank school nurses for all that they do! 

Humanities

The Humanities Team has been busy conducting Literacy Walkthroughs in elementary schools.  We are looking at the use of instructional materials and teacher practices in order to plan for the upcoming school year.  We are also beginning to plan for the Elementary Curriculum Committee which will begin meeting on May 9th. In social studies, we have introduced the Trade Book inquiry at one school as a pilot and the work with the teachers went very well.  We look forward to continuing to build out the BBI and Trade book inquiries in the fall for our K-8 schools.  

We completed two full weeks of our middle and high school curriculum pilot and there’s already so much to celebrate! This week, the team visited 28 of the 30 classrooms participating in the pilot. Alongside our partners from TNTP, district leaders, building leaders, and literacy coaches, we had the opportunity to see firsthand how each program is supporting the priorities set by the District Curriculum Council.

Mathematics/STEM

The STEM department supported math coaches with training in a coach specific training in April. Focus included leveraging AI practices, best practices of instructional systems, and supporting teachers to embed the 7 Effective Mathematics Teaching Practices.  

This time each year is always spent gathering feedback from staff members on key areas for the end of the year and planning for next year.  This includes high school finals, pacing for next year, and reflection on curricula implementation for the school year and how that will be leveraged for next year.   

Multilingual Learners

The Multilingual Learner department engaged teachers at Kendall Elementary School in a first grade lesson utilizing the English Language Arts Wonders curriculum. The team modeled a Quality Teaching for English Learners (QTEL) lesson in 3 moments where students had the opportunity to prepare for learning, engage in text, and extend their understanding.  Teachers had the opportunity to watch the students engage in the lesson and meet with the coaches for planning an upcoming lesson.

The Family Center has provided almost 100 students with prom attire through our Say Yes to a Prom Dress and Suit event this year!  We have had a blast helping our students select a special outfit with accessories for their prom night. We will have a few Thursday evenings for students to shop.  Students may use the QR code below to schedule their appointment.

Additionally, the Family Center has partnered with Building One Community from Stamford to host an information session for families and students to learn more about a pathway to legal status known as Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS). The informational session will be hosted at the Family Center and will also be available online. Please see the flyer for the additional information and Zoom link below.

School Counseling/Workforce Development

The Superintendents’ Student Council Cohorts continue to work on their projects, and they are excited to share them with the board and subcommittees in May! Professional Development for our School Counselors K–12 is ongoing throughout the year, both in person and virtually. This calendar is being built based on the feedback of staff needs and in support of our programming and scholars. On April 23rd, the statewide PBIS meeting hosted at UConn Storrs by the state was attended to discuss best practices in PBIS. In the evening, Norwalk High School hosted the district wide college fair, which was attended by faculty/staff, families, and scholars. The district attendance team is working to support schools in their support of scholars in the Class of 2025 who are nearing graduation. Our districtwide First Book event planning is underway and promises to be an exciting event this year!

We are continuing our conversations with the state of CT through meetings and site visits relative to the Early Childhood landscape as a means to create opportunities for our youth and adults to enter the Early Childhood profession. The Workforce Development Summit was hosted in Plainville, CT, on April 22^nd, and it was a conference in which school districts were connected with future employees and higher education. Freshmen and Sophomores attended a Workforce Development Workshop in the areas of Internship Experiences, Spring Enrichment, and Volunteering Opportunities on April 25^th at NHS and P-TN and on April 29^th at BMHS and CGS and taught how to use the Workforce Development website. Our Twilight Academy Scholars and Faculty/Staff participated in a Workforce Development Virtual Workshop, which focused on post-secondary planning support in Apprenticeships, Trades and Training, Internships, and Job Opportunities. They were also taught how to use the NPS Workforce Development website for all current and future possibilities. For all NPS Workforce Development Opportunities and more, visit www.norwalkps.org/careertraining. Please be sure to bookmark the site and check back regularly for new and exciting opportunities! 

Specialized Learning

The Department of Specialized Learning held their second Parent Advisory Group meeting on April 23, 2025 at City Hall.  We met and discussed specialized programs throughout the district.    

The Department of Specialized Learning held their monthly New Teacher Academy on Tuesday April 29, 2025. Dr. Jeanette Moore and Kathleen O’Brien, literacy specialists for the district presented an introduction of Orton Gillingham based reading strategies to new specialized learning staff.  

The Department is also busy planning for Extended School year (ESY). We are working in collaboration with HR on staffing as well as sending out a registration form to the families of those students who were recommended for ESY.  

Enterprise Software/Data

The final review of the new Technology and Innovation public website is underway. We are excited to launch this sub-site, which will highlight the expertise of our department and provide valuable resources and support for the NPS community. Stay tuned!

Our team is equally excited about the development of a centralized online platform that will house Software Analytics data, providing access to usage and cost reports for the Central Office administrative team and School Administrators. We anticipate a soft launch, introducing and sharing access to this platform within the next month.

Infrastructure/Operations

Norwalk Public Schools (NPS) has secured full funding for all E-Rate projects for the current funding cycle, with a total allocation of $750,633. The E-Rate program, formally known as the Schools and Libraries Program of the Universal Service Fund, is administered by the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC) under the oversight of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). It provides discounts to eligible schools and libraries for telecommunications, internet access, and internal network infrastructure, ensuring affordable access to essential digital resources. This year’s funding will support critical expenses, including internet connectivity, Wide Area Network (WAN) services, and various network infrastructure upgrades across the district to enhance educational technology capabilities. Since the inception of the E-Rate program, Norwalk Public Schools has been awarded a cumulative total of $11,850,412, reflecting the district’s commitment to leveraging federal resources to advance its technological infrastructure and support student learning.

Digital Learning

Coaches are preparing for the May admin meeting where they will provide professional development to our school leaders on a variety of platforms: Gemini, ChatGPT, MagicSchool, Brick, and Schoolai. Our Digital Learning site and blog will be populated with resources within the next two weeks.

Budget

The Budget team continues to make progress on several important fiscal initiatives. Updates to the 2025-2026 budget are ongoing, including position control number (PCN) and employee status administration. Salary projection reports are being generated to support the Chief Financial Officer’s planning efforts. The team is also working with the City to support retroactive pay procedures. In addition, calculations are underway for summer payments owed to 22 employees who are exiting the district.

Work also continues on the 2025-2026 school-based budget process, with meetings held to support school teams. Department and school General Ledger summaries for the 2024-2025 fiscal year are being updated, accompanied by discussions regarding end-of-year spending. The team is also processing special education invoices, districtwide journal entries, and local funding budget transfers. A review of open 2024-2025 purchase orders with the special education department is also underway to ensure proper financial closure.

Grants

The Grants team has been focused on aligning all state and federal grants with budget matches in Munis. All required documents were finalized and submitted by the May 1 deadline. System entries have been updated to reflect these revisions. The Magnet Schools Assistance Program (MSAP) quarterly report was also completed and submitted, incorporating summarized General Ledger data for federal review.

Further collaboration took place with the Assistant Superintendent of Digital Learning and Innovation and team members to finalize projected Carver expenses for the 2025-2026 school year. The School Readiness Grant was submitted and revised as needed, with Munis entries aligned in partnership with the Early Childhood team.

Purchasing & Accounts Payable

The Purchasing and Accounts Payable team is actively working on the fourth quarter open purchase order report. Follow-ups are being conducted with both schools and vendors to confirm order statuses and collect outstanding invoices, with a focus on closing open POs. From April 22 to May 1, eight new vendors were processed and entered into the system. Purchase orders are being issued to ensure fulfillment of outstanding needs. The team is also assisting schools in resolving issues related to ordering and fulfillment.

Capital

On the Capital side, the Naramake audit report was finalized and submitted to the State. The team reconciled all outstanding invoices related to HVAC projects and worked to close out the Cranbury project by submitting and organizing the final set of invoices required by the State. This effort ensures full reimbursement and compliance with project documentation standards.