Written by Rabbi Gidon Goldberg
Dear parents,
As school began parents returned to a newly refurbished Sargent Avenue wing. In November of last year, the school ran a successful Pledje campaign raising the needed funds for construction to the Sargent Avenue facility. As there was existing plumbing, new sinks were installed in every classroom and following code we installed hot water in every room. The outer Sargent Avenue walls were renovated to become highly efficient with brand-new energy rated windows. While initially we had planned to put opening limiters on every window, we learned that by fire and building code this is not permitted but the screens on every room are very tightly mounted. Each classroom was outfitted with new storage along the outer wall offering teachers the needed storage. Due to the new storage in each room, the library was renovated with a new carpet giving the room a whole new and more spacious look.
The Early Childhood classrooms were totally refreshed with a change in the color scheme and additional cubbies and repairs. The Early childhood playground was refreshed with the removal of the sand area per the request of many parents and teachers and a fresh layer of wood chips and a fence protective barrier was placed so that the chips remain inside the fencing. As communicated last week the playground is still available for use after school and on weekends and we ask parents to please supervise their children and keep the yard clean during these off-school hours. Special thank you to our lead donor Mr. Jerry Salmanson and an anonymous donor for their gifts of $15,000 each and to all of our donors that made this renovation possible and to Mr. David Schaefer, chair of the building committee for all of his oversight of the project and the entire building committee for their support and help. While there is still much left to do, I am tremendously proud of our accomplishments. As we begin to plan for the next phase please feel free to reach out to me with any ideas or suggestions.
The school celebrated another milestone with a registration of over 170 students; our larges population in over 20 years. We welcome several new students from Massachusetts and from Providence. I received a call from one of my donors who told me that he had received a phone call from one of these new families telling him how happy their children were at school and the high degree of organization. Over the course of the summer the administration reviewed past years parental feedback, personal observations and teacher concerns to plan for the current school year. Many changes organizationally as well as splitting certain classes as needed took place in response to our internal review. Some of these had to do with where students are placed for lunch, storage of book bags and so much more. While small these changes are designed to make the school run in an even more efficient and organized manner. Special thanks to Mrs. Weiner and Rabbi Lapin for there hard work and effort in preparing for school and into making PHDS/NEAT the best school that they can be.
As students returned to school and parents gathered together for Back to School night’s I was able to feel the excitement in the air. All are looking forward to an amazing school year. We thank every one of you for your partnership and look forward to your sharing with us your children’s accomplishments and challenges.
Welcome back and best wishes for a Kesiva Vachasima Tova to our extended PHDS/NEAT family.
Good Shabbos,
Rabbi Peretz Scheinerman
Dean