RPS News

In some ways, the 2025-26 School Year has already started. New teachers arrived for the first time on Monday. Kindergarteners rode the bus this week during orientation. Students received their classroom assignments and schedules. Lunch menus, bus routes, and curriculum were finalized. Schools scrubbed and hallways decorated.

Yesterday, the entire faculty came together for Convocation. RPS Convocation is special—it is celebratory, home-grown, and substantive, meant to extol the vocation of teaching, and remind teachers that while there will always be challenges, they are never alone. Songs, speeches, and mascots build spirit capital, unity, and goodwill for the year ahead. This year's theme, "Better Together," reflects the belief that we are stronger when we collaborate—teachers, families, BOE, PTA, administration, and the broader RPS community—for the benefit of RPS students.

We are ready for all our students! We can't wait to welcome them next week.

Photo Caption: School mascots with Superintendent Dr. Susie Da Silva at Convocation.

MORE PHOTOS FROM CONVOCATION AND THE WEEK BELOW!

Please check your school's calendar for Open House, Picture Day, Back-to-School Nights, and other important events. The full district calendar can be found here.

Each school year provides the opportunity to inform new parents and staff and remind RPS returners that the Board of Education is a nine-member committee committed to working with the administration and town on behalf of Ridgefield students.

Please note the Monday, August 25, in-person BOE retreat begins at 5:30 p.m. in the BOE Conference Room.

Photo Caption: Board Chair Tina Malhotra, BOE member Christine More, and RHS Orchestra Director Michael McNamara at Convocation

School hours for grades K-12 can be found here. We are hopeful that we won’t need this for a while, but just in case– please print and keep a note of these weather procedures. Please check your emergency contacts on PowerSchool and update them if necessary. Also, review plans with your children in case of an unexpected early dismissal.

Photo: Branchville Principal Keith Margolus and Veterans Park teacher Kristen Funk with special mascots. RPS is family!

The full district calendar can be found here.

Please Save the Date and help us spread the word about a Celebration of Life concert to honor Joyce Flanagan. Date: Sun. Oct. 5th at 1:00 pm at Ridgefield High School. All are invited to attend. Additionally, RHS Choir alumni are invited to sing in an Alumni Choir that will rehearse Sat. Oct. 4th. Deadline to sign-up to sing in the Alumni Choir is Tues. Sept. 2nd. Use the QR code above to sign up.

Joyce was the Choir Director at East Ridge MS and then at RHS for 35 years. She came out of retirement in 2023 to direct RHS’s production of Into the Woods. Though she passed away last August, her impact will be felt and remembered for many years to come.

The safety and well-being of our school community remain our top priority. Please learn more about our efforts and how the RPS Community can be part of keeping our schools safe on our website. RHS students will learn more about the Say Something; Anonymous Reporting System service in advisory.

RPS aims for transparency, collaboration, and excellence. We are a learning, student-first organization. As the year goes on, please count on regular communication, opportunities for feedback, and support. On the District's Website, you can find our mission statement and vision of the graduate, which informs what we do and how we do it. One of the important parts of our vision for students is communication. This includes self-advocacy for students. Whenever possible, please encourage students to communicate with their teachers directly, bringing in their families and building leaders when necessary. Please refrain from discussing district issues on social media, as well as commenting on individual teachers, coaches, Board of Education members, or administrators. Ask us questions directly! We are always here for our students, families, and staff.

We love to recognize accomplishments, big and small. Please send us your news, story ideas, photos, and corrections to the RPS Update staff at apratt@ridgefieldps.net. Follow us on Instagram and Facebook!

Learn more about how our Central Office team spent their summers in the Midsummer Newsletter.

This RHS Parent Letter, sent to families earlier in the month, also offers a wealth of helpful information.

The RHS Counseling Department sent out its Back-to-School newsletter this week. Please read the latest edition of RHS Counseling Connections here to learn about important upcoming dates, Counseling services, and programs.

RPS prides itself on thoughtful consideration of technology use and digital citizenship instruction. Much of our technology considerations this year concern AI and the impact of programs like ChatGPT on instruction and academics, as well as giving more media creation opportunities to our students. Our Library and Media specialists are the go-to people for student tech concerns. Email questions or problems with services, logins, and/or devices to helpdesk@ridgefieldps.net

There are inevitably more questions at the beginning of the year, so we ask for patience as we go through tickets and requests as quickly as possible.

Please note that elementary and middle school students are not permitted to use personal devices at school or on the bus. This includes watches, phones, and unauthorized reading devices. Ideally, these devices would be left at home to avoid distraction and monitoring by teachers and administrators. If families do allow students to bring devices to school, please know that they will be turned off and stowed in backpacks. Read more about technology at RHS in this Parent Letter sent in August.

Yay, lunch! You can find menus with prices and prepay options on the Food Services page. School lunch will be available from the first day of school.

Photo: Food services staff with Finance Director Jill Browne at Convocation

RPS PTAs provide a vital link between families and schools, offering enrichment, teacher appreciation, support, and joy. This year's PTA Executive Council Co-Presidents aim for increased enrollment among both parents and teachers with easy, fun, low-cost ways to get involved. Please find a link to the PTA Council with links to each school's PTA here.

Kindergarten Bus Orientations this week reminded us of how small our youngest RPS students can be. Please remind your friends and family (especially teen drivers) of the traffic laws around school buses, leave plenty of time, and have patience. Rules for safe riding and more can be found on the Transportation Page. Families can find their bus assignments on the Parent PowerSchool Portal. Despite our transportation office's meticulous work throughout the summer, there are invariably bumps in the road and last-minute changes in enrollment. If you do have a transportation concern, please fill out the Transportation Inquiries form.

Finally, please remind your students to treat bus drivers and classmates with respect and aim to be at the bus stop at least five minutes before the scheduled pick-up. Thank you for your partnership and patience in keeping our students and drivers safe!

A lot of smiles, and maybe a few tears (incoming kindergarteners, yes, but also adults wanting to do it all over) at this week's Kindergarten Bus Orientation. Thank you to Transportation Supervisor Billy Gramajo, our partners at First Student, bus drivers, and older siblings for making everything run smoothly.

Photo Captions: Barlow Mountain and Scotland kindergarten bus orientations.

RPS welcomed 43 new staff members this week. Some new RPS teachers have over twenty years of teaching experience in other districts; for others, this is their first full-time teaching position. Credit must go to Personnel Director Karen Dewing and her team for hiring another excellent group. Superintendent Dr. Da Silva welcomed them by reminding them of the community at their back. She urged them to work hard, not to give up, contribute, and be joyful. New RPS faculty are listed below. Welcome to RPS!

Grades K-12 art teachers used some of their professional development time yesterday to install the beautiful all-district art show. In the photo below, the elementary and middle school teachers pose in front of high school selections. The exhibit, which will open for a couple of nights in October, showcases student art and creative pathways at RPS.

Convocation began with breakfast and the opportunity for teachers to connect with friends and co-workers. Hats off to Cory Gillette and her team for all they did to make this event so special!

One of the most highly anticipated traditions of RPS Convocation is the speech by the RPS Teacher of the Year (TOY). This year's TOY, Veterans Park School Psychologist Jeffrey Lovelace, did not disappoint. Showing nerves of steel, humility, a collaborative spirit, and a t-shirt with the message, "You Are Enough", Mr. Lovelace somehow wove KPop Demon Hunters references with ideas of "Better Together" and wisdom gained during a career of helping students and colleagues manage difficult emotions. His legions of VPES fans held up cutouts of his head, which he confessed was not on his bingo card, but were a great addition to the spirit of celebration. Thank you to last year's TOY, Barlow Mountain kindergartener Lisa Whelan, for introducing Mr. Lovelace and for her years of exemplary service.

RPS Convocation leans on our homegrown talent. Thank you to the RHS Cheer team for welcoming teachers. RHS senior, Student Body President Camille Wyatt, was a fantastic emcee. An RPS Faculty Band rocked. Rising ninth-grader Bradan Janso sang "The Star Spangled Banner." The Branchville Elementary Singers, led by Betsy Anderson, sang "Walk Through Life." Members of the RHS student chorus closed the ceremony, inspiring the faculty to join them in the final chorus of "Stand By Me." Our administration team spoke from the heart about what it means to be "Better Together."

Scotts Ridge teacher and perennial musical co-director Jennifer Bray made custom t-shirts for the performance of "Better Together" from the Descendants. All the t-shirts feature "Better Together" on the front, with individual schools or the central office on the back. Those in the RPS "know" will notice that each t-shirt is the school's color—e.g., Branchville and Farmingville are green, RHS and ERMS are orange, and Bray made SRMS shine. It's all in the details. Thank you, Ms. Bray and Dr. Merryl Polak (master choreographer and co-director), for all you do to showcase and support our talented students!

Good swag alert! RHS Social Studies teacher and all-around star Jenn DeJulio spent her summer quilting these instant classic shirts for the admin dream team: Liz Hannaway, Cory Gillette, and Susie Da Silva. Extra credit for Ms. DeJulio. Icons!

Dr. Hannaway closed her convocation remarks with the rhetorical question, "How lucky are we?!" Lucky that we get to work together, fortunate that we are here for each other, lucky, lucky, lucky! We love RPS!

We would love to hear from you! Families and staff can submit stories, comments, or corrections to RPS Communications. Please follow us on Social Media with links below.