Dear Nanuet School Community,

We hope that you will enjoy our Golden Spotlight video this month where we highlight our Nanuet students attending Rockland BOCES Career and Technical Education programs. The enthusiasm of our CTEC students jumps from the screen as they share their passion and excitement.

Our Nanuet students are fortunate that with the support of their families and school district, they have the chance to pursue alternative pathways for successful careers and futures. CTEC students spend part of their day at Nanuet Senior High School where they continue their classes in core content areas and part of their day at Rockland BOCES where they explore their chosen career paths.

We hope that this “spotlight” on alternative pathways provides a glimpse of the variety of options available for students in our high school. We are proud of our Rockland BOCES students and the contributions they are already making in our community

Sincerely,

Lisa Brady, Ed.D.

Superintendent

Welcome to the Golden Spotlight! Every month we focus on something special happening at the Nanuet Union Free School District. For March, we head over to West Nyack where dozens of our Golden Knights are excelling in the Rockland BOCES Career and Technical Education Center.

The artists of Nanuet are full of potential, and it was on full display at the Palisades Center this month. The District’s 10th Annual Art and Culture Exhibit, “Potential,” came to a close on March 22 during an evening gala attended by Nanuet students, families, friends, faculty, administration and staff, as well as board of education members and Town of Clarkstown Supervisor George Hoehmann. Read our Facebook post to see the art and who our winners were.

March is Music In Our Schools Month, the perfect time for our A. MacArthur Barr musicians to make the trip up Church Street and get the students at Highview thinking about the musical direction they would like to take. Members of the Barr concert choir joined the Nanuet and North Rockland High School choruses for a joint workshop with conducter Eric Williamson. To cap off the month, the high school hosted a "Music and Movies" pops concert.

March is also recognized as "Youth Art Month," an annual event to "emphasize the value of art education for all children." Across the District, our art classrooms are filled with Golden Knights bursting with creativity. At George W. Miller they are finding inspiration in birds and fish, while dragons are popping up at A. MacArthur Barr Middle School. Clay and ceramics are carefully being molded and sculpted at Highview Elementary and Nanuet Senior High School.

"Seussical," took the stage in March. Led by Director Shannon Cokeley, Nanuet Drama took audience members into the world of Dr. Seuss, traveling from the Jungle of Nool to the planet of Who. Seuss' characters came to life to celebrate the powers of friendship, loyalty, family and community. "I could not be more proud of the cast, crew and pit orchestra," said Cokeley before the curtain rose. Check out pictures from the show in our Facebook post.

Nanuet Senior High School Model United Nations members took part in the Suffern and Pearl River MUN conferences. Led by their advisors Mrs. Ryan and Mr. Andrasko, students tackled global issues and crafted resolutions, showing incredible dedication and diplomacy. Congratulations to Ava Ramirez and Ava Miller for clinching the Best Delegate title in their committees!

“I am going to speak as long as I can, but you are the ones who will keep these stories alive.” Holocaust survivor Trudy Album visited A. MacArthur Barr Middle School this month to share her personal story with the eighth grade class and encourage them to learn from history and live free from hate. Read our Facebook post to learn more about Album and her inspirational message to students.

Congratulations to the A. MacArthur Barr Middle School Science Olympiad Team! Our budding scientists took home third place in the Mid Hudson Regional Competition held earlier this month at Monroe Woodbury Middle School. The hours of preparation and studying ahead of their builds paid off as many numbers of the team earned individual medals. Check out our Facebook post to see a list of participants.

Clarkstown Police Department Officers Frank Negri (Nanuet Senior High School SRO) and Anthony Culianos (A. MacArthur Barr Middle School SRO), visited Highview Elementary earlier this month for a student safety assembly. The Nanuet School Resource Officers took the opportunity to stress to our third and fourth graders the importance of recognizing when things don’t seem right, acting immediately and saying something when they sense danger.

Hey, that’s the artist behind “Hey, Wall!” Award winning illustrator John Parra came to George W. Miller Elementary earlier this month to help close out the 2024 “U-Knighted by Reading” campaign and give a lesson in self-portraits. Now in its second year at Miller, "U-Knighted by Reading" aims to instill an early love for reading while creating an opportunity for families and the entire Nanuet community to come together through the power of one book.

Reminder of an important change to next month's calendar: the early dismissal emergency drill scheduled on our District calendar for Thursday, March 14 has been moved to Monday, April 8. All Nanuet schools will dismiss 15 minutes early on Monday, April 8.

As you may be aware, we are poised to witness a remarkable astronomical event - a total solar eclipse - on April 8th, 2024 between 2:10 and 4:30 pm. This rare occurrence offers an incredible learning opportunity for our students, allowing them to observe one of nature’s most awe-inspiring spectacles. To ensure the safety of our students during dismissal, we have procured solar viewing glasses that adhere to the rigorous safety standards recommended by NASA. These will be distributed to all students on the day of the eclipse, enabling them to safely observe the eclipse's phases without risk to their eyesight.

Attention Juniors: Registration for the SAT exams is now open! Be sure to register via PAYPams. If you have any questions, please contact the Nanuet Senior High School guidance department.