9/18/2026 Edition
Mr. Matthew Reiner, Principal

SCHOOL NEWS!
Upcoming Events
- September 29th- Blue and Gold Assembly 2pm in APR
- October 5th- National Wear Blue Day to Stomp Out Bullying
- October 5th-9th- Week of Respect
- October 12th- No School for Students
- October 16th- SJG Pink Out for Breast Cancer Awareness (Donations welcome)
- October 20th- 12:40 Dismissal for students
- October 20th- HSA Meeting
- October 23rd- SJG Dance Out Against Drugs
- October 26th-30th- Red Ribbon Week
- October 30th- Halloween Parade 2:15PM
- October 30th- SJG HSA Halloween Party 6-7:30pm
Free and Reduced Lunch Forms 2026-2027
Information regarding free and reduced lunch can be found by following this link.
Pomptonian Lunch Information
Pomptonian is our lunch service provider. You can view menus and obtain allergy information by following this link. All elementary students must pre-order lunch. Lunches are made at the high school and transported to the elementary schools.
Pequannock Profile of a Graduate
The Pequannock Profile of a Graduate outlines the skills and qualities that our community expects students to develop in order to succeed in their future endeavors, whether in higher education, the workforce, military service, or other career paths. In this section of the newsletter, I will weekly highlight how these competencies and dispositions are being integrated and promoted at the elementary school level.
Critical Thinking
Graduates analyze, evaluate, and solve problems.
Use Evidence - Present and cite factual information to support a claim.
Reason Logically - Use established rules to arrive at justifiable conclusions.
Make Informed Decisions In Complex And Unfamiliar Situations - Gather relevant information, weigh potential outcomes, and deliberately take a course of action.
What does this look like at SJG?
Students support their answers, opinions, and conclusions with information from texts, lessons, data, observations, or their own work. Students explain their thinking and use rules, patterns, strategies, or previously learned information to reach a conclusion. Students encounter problems with more than one possible solution, gather information, consider consequences, and make a choice.
Pledge Leader for the Week!
Delia did an amazing job this week reciting The Pledge of Allegiance, as well as our kindness quote for the day. Thank you for being so awesome Delia!
Attendance- Super Important!
We continue to ask for your partnership in bringing students to school each day when they are well, and scheduling vacations around school days. Please note that the state still counts all absences, even those with doctor's notes or a parent phone call (even ones that we mark as "excused"). To help keep you aware of your child's totals, at the beginning of each month, we notify parents of students who have been tardy or absent 5, 10, or more days thus far. At 10 or more days absent, we will often request a conference or a phone call where we can help develop personalized strategies to improve your child's attendance. Please reach out if you notice any signs of school avoidance, or if you have questions about whether to keep your child home. As always, thank you for your support!
Elementary School Handbook 2026-2027
Click on the link below for our 2026-2027 Handbook.
SJG Calendar of Events
If you are looking for future events, we update the SJG Calendar of Events as we solidify dates. You can find the calendar on our website but below is the link that we will keep in our newsletter going forward.
NURSE'S CORNER
Health Office Reminders
When your child is ill, please call the school by 8:15am to report an absence. The attendance line is available 24/7. It is also helpful if you can let the school know why your child is absent and be as specific as possible if your child is ill. If you take your child to the doctor it is helpful to bring documentation from the doctor so as to provide better care here at school. Extended absences or PE excuses require a doctor’s note.
Please do your best to bring your children to school on time. School hours are 8:30am to 3:00pm. When a child misses the initial start of the day, they miss a great deal. Students can miss important information about the day and changes that may be made to the day.
If your child is ill, PLEASE keep them home for 24hrs symptoms free. This includes temperature 100.4 or above, vomiting, diarrhea, consistent coughing, runny nose etc. This is part of our school doctor’s standing orders.
Students in many of our classes have serious food allergies. A child with a serious allergy can suffer a reaction merely by touching their particular allergen. Please review for yourselves and with your children the safety guidelines we are using throughout our district elementary schools.
All students will have many of the following health screenings over the course of the year: vision, hearing, height, weight, and blood pressure. Scoliosis screenings will be done in the spring for 5th grade only. Appropriate referrals will be sent to parents.
NJ Family Care and NJ Kid Care Insurance - This insurance is for families or college students not covered by any insurance. For further information go to http://www.njfamilycare.org or call my office.
Ms. Jacki Griffith RN CSN-NJ
SJG HOME AND SCHOOL ASSOCIATION
Welcome Back!
The HSA Board is excited to welcome all of our families to the 2026-2027 school year. We have a lot of fun activities planned. Follow our Instagram and Facebook for upcoming news and events!
Sincerely,
Kelley Acker, President
Dana Arrigo, Vice President
Alexa Lynch, Treasurer
Steph Naser, Corresponding Secretary
Cara Colombo, Recording Secretary
HSA Calendar
Follow our calendar to stay updated on upcoming events!
HSA Membership
Our 2026-2027 HSA Membership is officially open! Brand new this year, if you want to be a class parents, you have to be a member of the HSA. Use this link to complete our membership form: Join the HSA here!
Welcome Back Event- SJG Family Picnic
Join us on Friday, September 18th from 5:30-7:00p.m. on the SJG Back Field. Bring a blanket, chairs, lawn games, and dinner or snacks for a fun evening with other SJG families. If you'd like to order a pizza for the picnic, click here: Family Picnic Pizza Order Form
HSA Fall Mums and Plant Sale:
Sale is open until Friday 9/18
Plants will be available for pick up Friday 9/25 between 2-4pm at SJG
Click Here: Mum and Fall Plants Order Form
HSA Bogg Bag-style Tote Bag Sale:
Sale is open until Tuesday 10/6
Bags will be available for pick up late November/early December
Click Here: Pequannock Panthers Tote Bags
DISTRICT NEWS
October 5, 2026- National Stomp Out Bullying Day
The Pequannock Public Schools will participate in National Stomp Out Bullying Day on October 5, 2026. We are asking that all students wear blue that day. If a parent would like, we are also going to sell T-Shirts to mark the occasion. The shirt will look like the picture below.
If you would like to order, please click HERE.
NB Inclusive Playground Update
Our committee for the inclusive playground worked hard over the summer to secure donations and organize with vendors and contractors on an optimistic timeline that would ideally have an operational playground in place before the end of the year. While the playground will be at NB, it really is intended as a community play space that will be open to all families not only in our town, but also surrounding towns as well. Our website has more information about the project and how to donate to this great effort.
Pequannock Township School District Promotional Video
We have a new Pequannock Township School District Promotional Video that was created by PTHS students as part of a passion project. This is amazing! Give it a view!
COMMUNITY EVENTS
Stephen J. Gerace Elementary School
Email: Matthew.Reiner@pequannock.org
Website: sjg.pequannock.org
Location: 59 Boulevard, Pequannock Township, NJ, USA
Phone: (973) 3055615
Twitter: @SJGPride
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sjgpride/