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Colleen Burns Jermain, Ed.D., Superintendent of Schools
Newport Public Schools, 109 Old Fort Road, Newport, RI 02840-3898
August 29, 2019
Dear Newport Families and Friends,
I would like to welcome you to the 2019-20 school year. It is a very exciting time of year and I would like to share some brief updates for the coming year.
The first day of school for students in grades 1-12 is Thursday, September 5th. Students in K and PK will have their "soft start" on Thursday and Friday and start their first full day on Monday, September 9th.
All students and their families should be receiving communications in the mail from their schools. Mailings were sent out on this past Wednesday.
Hours of our schools are
- RHS: 7:30-2
- TMS: 8-2:30
- Pell: 8:30-3
- Pell Annex at JFK: 8:45-3:15
Bus schedules are posted on our website and will be in the local newspapers in the coming days. Any questions regarding bussing please call 401-846-1947 and speak with Tyson Alves or Pamela Munroe-Flavian.
We would also like to give you an update on some recent developments related to our technology and online communications systems.
As you may know, in early August, our IT department identified the presence of malware on the School’s internal network. Since that time, we’ve been working hand-in-hand with the City to strengthen our security protocols, building an entirely new network and reconfiguring our portfolio of connected devices to ensure that they’re safe, secure, and ready for our students and teachers. I’m happy to report that our new network is ready and we will be transitioning all of our users to it in the next week. Our website is also available and updated with recent postings, and all email and phones are working.
Communication is important to us. We will make every effort from the district and at the school level to keep you informed so that all of us can have a great year. We encourage you to sign up for the One Newport app and our Durham bus tracker for transportation and get involved in our discussions regarding new facilities for our schools. These are exciting times for our district and we encourage everyone to participate and share your voice. We need to hear from you.
Finally, we cannot express enough the importance of being on time for school and attendance. Being school ready starting Day 1 and creating daily habits for our children is critical. School attendance is one of the key factors not only for student success but life long success. So please support our students and help us have every child be successful.
Enjoy these last few days of summer and we will see you soon.
Sincerely,
Colleen Burns Jermain, Ed.D.
Providing Student's Opportunities and Access to the World Through Quality Education
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RIDE Announces $1.5 Million in AmeriCorps Grants
FabNewport: Twelve AmeriCorps members will increase K-12 school attendance and engagement by implementing the Check and Connect mentoring program and by providing afterschool and summer programs in Newport.
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Sign Up For CODE RED
With the potential for our area to be impacted by the effects Hurricane Joaquin the City of Newport would like to take this opportunity to inform or remind residents of their ability to enroll in the City’s Mass Notification System, Code Red. This tool is used for both Emergency and Non-Emergency situations and allows the City to contact residents with important messages.
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Commodore John Barry Day (Observed)
Father of the American Navy - Few Americans are well-acquainted with the gallantry and heroic exploits of Philadelphia's Irish-born naval commander, Commodore John Barry. Obscured by his contemporary, naval commander John Paul Jones, Barry remains to this day an unsung hero of the young American Republic. As most naval historians note, Barry can be classed on a par with Jones for nautical skill and daring, but he exceeds him in the length of service (17 years) to his adopted country and his fidelity to the nurturing of a permanent American Navy. Indeed, Barry deserves the proud epithet, "Father of the American Navy," a title bestowed on him not by current generations of admirers, but by his contemporaries, who were in the best position to judge.
