Falcon Flyer

Jefferson students, parents, and local leaders sounded the alarm over school funding cuts. Last month's rally inside Jefferson Township High School, residents packed the bleachers to call on state lawmakers for what they say is long-overdue financial relief. They warned that without additional “Highlands Impact Aid,” the district will continue to lose millions more in funding, putting sports, music programs, and other extracurricular activities at risk.

The Jefferson Arts Committee recently recognized Liam Plunkett and Leia Steingall from Stanlick, Devin Perrier and Ember Prol from White Rock, and Alexandra Koretzky from the High School for their artistic talents. (Also pictured: JTHS Art Teacher, Kaia Canales)

Students participated in the Soup-er Bowl of Caring. Classes were divided into blue and gold teams, and throughout February, they gathered cans of soup. The winning team enjoyed a pajama day. As a school, the students collected nearly 1000 cans or packages of soup to donate to Our Lady Star of the Sea Church's food pantry. They learned an important lesson about helping others and giving back to their community in a fun way.

To celebrate Read Across America Week, students took part in a reading train. The Jefferson Consolidated PTA generously gave flashlights to every student to make this a fun reading activity.

Kindergarten students took part in Read Across America centers. They rotated through five different activities, including distinguishing real words from nonsense words, stacking red cups and white pieces of paper to make Dr. Seuss hats, creating Brown Bear animal graphs, making Eric Carle illusion crafts, and designing bookmarks.

The Briggs community celebrated Wellness Week Inspires Healthy Living at Briggs with various themed dress-up activities to promote healthy habits. They also held an assembly where preschool teacher Katlyn Brennan led the students in a workout routine and demonstrated weightlifting.

Preschool students took a trip to William Paterson University to enjoy a sensory-friendly performance of We’re Going on a Bear Hunt. The show featured the college wind ensemble playing music to accompany the story on screen. It was a wonderful experience for all the students and staff who attended.

Kindergarten students finished their writing unit on How-to Books and then read their published books to their classmates.

The first-graders have been learning about different heroes in history. During this unit, they studied events from long ago as well as more recent happenings. They also examined how people in history have made important contributions and brought positive changes to the world. At the end of the unit, the students created their own personal timelines and shared them with their classmates.

Second-grade is feeling extra lucky this month! They have been sharing all the reasons they feel lucky and practicing positive affirmations to keep their hearts and minds happy and strong. In math, students are having a blast rotating through fun stations as they wrap up learning about money and time. In writing, they have turned into travel experts. Students are working hard to persuade readers to visit a special place by creating colorful and creative travel brochures. They continue to explore nonfiction text features such as images, captions, bolded words, headings, and glossaries. These tools are helping them become super readers who can quickly and easily find important information.

Third-grade has had an incredible March filled with numerous lucky learning opportunities. In celebration of St. Patrick's Day, students rotated through classrooms and took part in fun, interactive activities that linked math and ELA skills to the excitement of the holiday. Third-graders have continued strengthening their math fact fluency through friendly competitions and games like Math Olympics. To finish Read Across America Week, third-graders wore pajamas and shared their favorite bedtime stories with the class.

Ms. Masters’s class enjoyed learning about St. Patrick’s Day and celebrating all things lucky-including a very Happy Luck of the Irish Birthday!

Third-grade students from White Rock and Stanlick Schools recently took part in a spelling bee using a third-grade word list. Students enjoyed competing, and the top student from each homeroom will move on to the spelling bee organized by the Consortium for the Gifted and Talented, where they will compete against students from other towns. Congratulations to our winners and to all the students who participated!

Mrs. Caraturo's class proudly shared their published research books with Ms. Ruiz's class, creating an exciting opportunity for students to showcase their hard work. The students were especially enthusiastic about presenting digital versions of their books, eagerly exploring each other's projects, and celebrating their accomplishments together.

Mrs. Connors’ class visited Miss Matienzo’s classroom to read Rainbow Fish and enjoy a fun coloring activity. The students loved listening to the story and coloring together, making it a joyful time of sharing and creativity!

First- and second-graders are taking part in a month-long reading challenge. They began by pairing each student with a reading buddy to read with at home. Students earn prizes each week for reaching the goal, and the top readers at the end of the challenge will be celebrated. Guest readers are invited to share their love of reading with their child’s class. This challenge is supported by a grant from the JTEA.

White Rock held their annual science fair for second- and third-graders. The projects were very impressive, and parents had the opportunity to attend and participate.

Congratulations to the students recognized for their trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring, and citizenship. Keep up the excellent work!

• Grade 4: Colin Lindsay
• Grade 5: Michael Meigh
• Grade 6: Andrew King
• Grade 7: Riley McCarney-Pletcher
• Grade 8: Cameron Walters

Eighth-grade enrichment students, along with the JTIS Student Council, recorded read-alouds for National Reading Month and Read Across NJ. They recorded themselves reading children’s books, which students across the district will listen to and vote on in a bracket-style competition to choose the winning book for March.

Fourth-grade GATEways students attended the Learning Carnival hosted by the Consortium for the Gifted and Talented. They participated in a variety of engaging workshops, including engineering challenges, embroidery, dance, music, as well as science, math, and critical thinking activities.

Nominated by Ms. Dockery, Brenna Cole demonstrated preparedness and focus each day as a student. According to Ms. Dockery, "She is active in the Falcon community, arrives to class prepared and ready to learn, always is a strong participant, works well with her classmates, is a hard worker who completes all her assignments in a detailed and timely manner, and always has positive energy every time class meets. She is a joy to have in class!"

Nominated by Mrs. Farris, Caiden Consiglio demonstrates good citizenship to his peers in class. According to Mrs. Farris, "I nominate Caiden for this award because of his genuine kindness to everyone in our class. Caiden goes out of his way to make sure all students feel included. He is a good friend to all and is respectful and caring."

Nominated by Mrs. Neral, Lilybelle Griffiths eagerly engages with learning each day in the classroom. According to Mrs. Neral, "Lilybelle always comes to Geometry class with a smile on her face, eager to learn. She is constantly engaged in class notes and frequently answers questions. She has a quiet confidence about her, and she is an absolute delight to have in class."

Nominated by Ms. Halczli, Alanna Valdes goes out of her way to make others feel included. According to Ms. Halczli, "Alanna consistently goes out of her way to make others feel welcomed and included. She is intentional about checking in on people, offering support, and making sure no one feels left out. Alanna cares deeply about others' feelings and about doing the right thing, even when it isn’t the easiest choice. She leads with kindness and compassion in her everyday actions. The way she treats others reflects the very best of our school community."

JTHS Senior, Allan Czerwinski recently received recognition at a ceremony as one of Morris County School Board's Unsung Heroes. Principal Mr. Lonie shared that over the past four years, Allan has grown from a quiet, reserved student into a confident leader. On the volleyball court, he consistently serves as a role model, demonstrating the quiet leadership valued by our coaches and faculty. In the classroom, Allan remains dedicated to academic excellence, continually working to improve himself through his studies. Most importantly, the faculty recognizes Allan as a person of the highest character. His kindness is evident through his work with the Falcon Ambassadors, a group focused on making our school a more inclusive environment for all students. Allan approaches each day with integrity and respect, showing that reliability and hard work are key to true success. He has developed into a focused individual with a bright future ahead. Congratulations, Allan!

Victor Koziol, Hannah Mowrer, Lauana De Jesus, Maria Santos De La Cruz, and Andy Koziol recently competed in the county-level Consumer Bowl Competition at The County College of Morris on behalf of the Business Department and under the direction of advisor Mrs. Kaitlyn Iliff. The team tied for first place in the first and second rounds and lost by one question in the third round. It was a close competition throughout all three rounds.

Congratulations to Senior, Riley Strauch, who was been chosen as this year's recipient of the Pass-It-Along scholarship. The award, which celebrates strong character, athletic dedication, academic achievement, and community service, is well deserved. The High School community is very proud of Riley's contributions across all areas during the past four years. Riley will be attending the University of Rhode Island this fall and playing lacrosse. Thank you, TPS Financial, for sponsoring this award.

Congratulations to Junior, Benjamin Janitz, who recently published one of his scientific research articles in the Curieux Academic Review. Benjamin began working on the article, which focuses on shark fin morphology, over the summer, and finished his research and writing this year in his Independent Study with Mr. Gaydos. Ben is currently waiting to hear back about the publication of a second research article. Congratulations, Ben, and keep up the great work!

Congratulations to all the DECA students who recently participated in the New Jersey State Tournament. All competitors were very confident after their presentations, and one group, Claudia Kaminski and Mikayla Koval, finished 4th in the 20-page paper category of the Independent Business Plan, where they designed a fitness tracker for pets (mainly dogs). Thanks to the entire team's achievement, four students—Claudia Kiminski, Mikayla Koval, Silvana Melone, and Judah Golub—will be competing at DECA Nationals in Atlanta in April.

Congratulations to the Kinnelon/Jefferson/Sparta (KJS) United High School Hockey Team on their championship victory at the Prudential Center with an outstanding 5-1 win!

The March 2026 College, Career, and Military Fair was a great success, with 110 students attending. This event exceeded a typical college fair by giving students the opportunity to explore a variety of post-secondary options all in one place. In addition to colleges and universities, students interacted with representatives from trade and technical schools, local police departments—including Jefferson Township Police and the New Jersey State Police—multiple branches of the U.S. military, and various career-focused companies and organizations. This broader setup enabled students to ask meaningful questions about educational programs, hands-on training opportunities, career entry paths, enlistment options, and workforce experiences. Students were engaged, curious, and grateful for the chance to explore different futures—whether that includes college, the military, skilled trades, or direct-to-career options.