RPS Update

This week, Chuckles XI (the Connecticut groundhog) saw his shadow, signaling six more weeks of winter. Grrr… and Brrr!

As we plan for the 2026-27 school year, your feedback is a vital part of the process. We want to ensure our budget reflects the priorities of our families and students. Please join us for two upcoming opportunities to share your insights on the Superintendent’s Proposed Budget:

• Saturday, Feb 7 at East Ridge Middle School at 10:00 a.m.

• Monday, Feb 9 at the Board of Education meeting, 90 East Ridge Road at 7:00 p.m.

We truly want to hear from you. If you’re unable to attend in person but would still like to share your thoughts, you may do so here. If you submit a question, we will be sure to respond as soon as possible.

We truly want to hear from you. If you’re unable to attend in person but would still like to share your thoughts, you may do so here. If you submit a question, we will be sure to respond as soon as possible.

As you may know, the Board of Education was required to fill a vacant seat left by Sean McEvoy. This week, we welcomed a new Board of Education member, Robert Martire. All candidates interviewed this week showed their commitment to our community!

I know many of you are looking forward to Super Bowl weekend—good luck to New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks fans alike! Some of us are here for the game, others for the food, the halftime show, and time with family and friends. And with television on the mind, enjoy the start of the Winter Olympics as well.

As a reminder: there is no school for students this Friday, Feb 13, while teachers engage in important Professional Development.

Warmly,

Susie

Susie Da Silva, Ed.D

RPS Summer Bridge leadership announced this week that there is a delay in registration. Summer Bridge registration will open on Thursday, February 12, 2026! Visit the Summer Bridge website to get a taste of the fun activities our RPS teachers will be offering this summer, along with dates. Sign up on 2/12 to secure your first choice.

NOTE: Two BOE Public Hearings are coming up. Please make your voice heard, tomorrow, February 7, 10 a.m., at East Ridge Middle School, and/or Monday, February 9, 7 p.m., at the BOE Conference room at 90 East Ridge Road.

In this week's episode of Ridgefield Tiger Talk, we welcome back Michael Murphy, Physics and Robotics teacher at Ridgefield High School. Joining him are three RHS students: Connor Graves, Robotics Club Vice President; Brian Murphy, Co-Student Event Manager for this year's Ridgefield VEX Tournament; and Ayan Bhowmik, Robotics Club Co-President. We discuss the annual robotics tournament held at RHS this Saturday, February 7. Click here to see the event flyer. Also, if you can’t make the event, it’ll be streamed on YouTube here. Thanks for listening.

Next week is We LOVE RPS week—an opportunity for our faculty and staff to show their appreciation for each other. Thank you to our local businesses for offering staff discounts to support our We Love RPS initiative. Faculty and staff, look at these amazing opportunities to treat yourselves!

The College Fair includes RHS Counselor-Hosted Workshops

The program starts at 6:00 p.m. with workshop options hosted by our school counselors. Sessions include Applying to Highly Selective Schools, NCAA Information, and The College Visit.

College Admissions Representatives

Close to 90 (and counting!) college representatives, including technical schools and the military, are committed to attending. Students and parents/guardians will have the opportunity to chat with a wide variety of colleges to learn more information about the school and the admissions process. The gymnasium will be open for exploration from 6:00 p.m - 7:30 p.m.

New This Year!

RHS has partnered with Strivescan to help create connections between college representatives and families. Please register for a barcode before the event at www.StriveFair.com. During the fair, representatives will scan your barcode to connect with you further. The day after the fair, you will receive a report with information on the institutions with which you scanned.

Save the Date for the RHS Spring Musical: March 20, 21, 27, 28!

Will the Superintendent get invited to a prom again this year? Stay tuned for any prom-posals!

Here are the dates to look forward to:

Junior Prom - Portuguese Club, Danbury, CT, Saturday, May 16

Senior Prom - Serafresca, Stamford, CT, Friday, May 29

Please help RPS go green by checking your students' e-Backpack weekly for important information. This week, we have new information about a girls' ice hockey program, looking to expand. Organizations that meet the RPS policy may submit their request for inclusion to cmelagrano@ridgefieldps.net. See new flyers from CT Pride in this week's eBackpack.

RPS preschool students have been learning all about community helpers! This week, Lt. Christopher LoRusso from the Stamford Fire Department visited our preschool to teach students about fire safety and show them his gear. The children loved learning about this important job -thank you, Mr. LoRusso, for an amazing visit!

School counselors, let us count the ways you make our students' lives sweeter. East Ridge Counselor Amy Jonsson delivered a "candygram" poem, which summarized all the ways our school counselors are lifesavers, going the extra mile for students. RPS Update wanted to share the Scotts Ridge quarterly Counseling Chronicles newsletter from December, with a wealth of useful parenting advice that doesn't expire in these post-holiday months. Throughout the seasons, RHS counselors are here to help students with course selection, finding the right post-secondary path, achieving success, and "spicing" up our hallways. Happy School Counseling Week!

The day of an RPS elementary student is busy! There is so much to master—from reading to regulation of emotions, math to mechanics of writing, social studies to singing. Don’t forget art, PE, citizenship, and so much more! That’s why Elementary Director Linda Johnson and Spanish teacher Jill Quattrocchi had to get creative while designing this year’s Spanish curriculum last summer to optimize the Integrated Studies unit and keep students engaged.

Currently, Grades 3-5 are studying science and geography in Spanish, learning a lesson on the lifecycle of the butterfly and the geography of North America, while reviewing the Spanish words for the seasons, months, and weather. The photos below show Maddie Marek’s students enjoying a modified game of Hedbandz, and Ms. Quattrocchi’s students practicing the four stages of a butterfly’s metamorphosis. Through song, games, written and oral exercises, and with the support of classroom teachers, these excellent educators provide lasting lessons that both expose students to Spanish and go beyond World Language instruction.

To learn more about the Elementary World Language’s interdisciplinary approach and plans for next year, please watch their presentation at the BOE meeting on October 14 (2-hour mark, approximately) or visit the Elementary Curriculum Page.

In last week's episode of the Ridgefield Tiger Talk podcast, host Dr. Wes DeSantis sat down with RHS English teacher Dr. Jaclyn Aaron and English Department Chair Patricia Boutilier to discuss their new RHS course, Mysteries, Mayhem, and True Crime. This week, RPS Update shares two of the mysteries students wrote for their final projects in the class. Read Paradise for a Price by Aila Engel or I, Elizabeth by Grace Pepin, if you dare:)

Over three nights in the last ten days, RPS fifth and eighth graders came to RHS to sing and perform music with and for high schoolers. Each Festival—Choral, Orchestra, and Band—showcased students' progression from novice to highly skilled. The growth over these years is miraculous, reflecting hard work and investment. The finale each night was a packed stage, with students who had picked up a violin bow or trombone six months ago playing with eighteen-year-olds who are already committed to becoming professional musicians, and many somewhere in between.

The RPS music teachers' devotion to providing students the best possible experience was also on stage. After a full day of teaching, the entire team brought energy, encouragement, team building, direction, and musical accompaniment to this multi-night event. It was inspiring. "You can do music and sports, and academics, and clubs," said Band Director George Beratis, who had assembled three RHS students to talk to fifth and eighth graders before the concert. Fittingly, the last number of the three-night festival season was "Planet Destroyer," composed by retired Scotland Elementary music teacher Jim Tornatore, who dedicated his composition to the Ridgefield Public Schools Music Department.

Thank you to parents, especially the Ridgefield Music Parents, led by Jennifer Tejada, for your support. Please see photos of the Orchestra and Band Festivals below. View photos from the Choral Festival in last week's RPS Update.

Of all the dramatic leaps of growth demonstrated by recent concerts, the most dramatic might be the leap in string proficiency from fourth grade to high school Symphonic Orchestra. The RHS Symphonic Orchestra's Barber of Seville Overture by Gioachino Rossini was a show-stopper! The middle school eighth graders performed beautifully together, tackling Boyce Symphony No 4, MVT 1 - Boyce arr. Del Borgo, Tango D'Amour - Susan H. Day, and Adirondack Sleigh Ride - Richard Stephen. Elementary students, you rocked Power Rock and Exhilaration. Bravo to teachers Josh Sette, Michael McNamara, Shane Peters, Juliana Chetcuti, Brian Ho, and RPS students!

Over 200 students performed at the Band Festival on Tuesday night!!! Please see the program here. Thank you to RHS students Laila Arias, Lillian Barlow, and Ravi Natarajan for sharing their RHS experience with elementary and middle school musicians. Scotts Ridge eighth-grader Claire Aharon was recognized for her animal rescue foundation, Rock Bottom Rescue (more news on this nonprofit to come next week). Hats off to George Beratis, Ryan Dunne, and all the music teachers: Colleen McGuirk, Betsy Anderson, Tyler Langworthy, Ryan Loucks, Dennis Arcano, Hilary Brown, and Andrew Clavi.

Monday after school, Anthony DePoto came to RHS for an acting workshop in the RHS Black Box Theater. Mr. DePoto is a professional actor, educator, director, producer, and playwright. He serves as Head of Acting at The Norwalk Conservatory, a Professor of Theatre Arts at Western Connecticut State University, and the owner of two professional theatre companies.

RPS has contracted with Mr. DePoto to consider its theater department and classes, beyond the hundreds of students involved in the fall play and spring musical. Students dove into this one-hour workshop that gave them the opportunity to actively engage in a range of theatre improvisation exercises, acting techniques, and scene work designed to challenge and inspire performers. The class was open and free to students of all experience levels and focused on developing confidence, creativity, and practical skills applicable to both musical and non-musical stage performance, in a supportive and professional environment. The students, Mr. DePoto, RHS teacher Jane Tulley, and musical director Jacquie Militano brought main character energy to this high-energy experience.

"I loved my theater class," said ninth-grader Katherine Buther, who took an introductory acting class last semester. "I'm taking public speaking now. The theater department is genuinely inclusive. It's a place to call my home."

View this week's RHS Athletics Newsletter to learn more about this year's Gary Tiger Wrestling Challenge, nutrition notes on keeping inflammation in check, and upcoming games. The Spring Sports Kickoff Meeting is on March 12; please ensure your athlete's physicals and medical forms are up to date. The photo above shows Unified Sports practicing for upcoming basketball tournaments at Newtown and Ludlowe. The photos below show Girls and Boys Varsity hoops facing off against Danbury in games supporting the Bob DiNardo Fund. Bob DiNardo was a beloved assistant basketball coach and police officer who died in 2009. Beat cancer!

On Friday, the RHS Girls and the Wilton High School girls ice hockey teams welcomed the Ridgefield girls youth ice hockey players as their "anthem buddies". The younger girls got a rinkside view of warm-ups and hit the ice for the anthem in this fun night of unheated harmony, before the RHS Tigers faced off against Wilton rivals.

A team of Scotts Ridge teachers—Jennifer Bray, Sean Geary, Frank Oakes, and Charlsie Vanderrest—took SRMS seventh and eighth graders to Pico Mountain in Vermont last weekend. This intrepid group skied for two days and rock climbed at night. Play hard; play hard!

Groundhog Day never gets old, even if the cold weather, shoveling, and ice dams might be causing us to question our devotion to the seasons. Thank you, Barlow Mountain kindergarteners for reminding us that every day is good day!

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.