Week of June 15

Posted Date: 06/23/2025

Dear Families,

Happy Father's Day to all the dads in our community! It has been an incredible year of learning and growing together at Hurlbutt!  This is our last weekly update for the 24-25 school year so I wanted to take this opportunity to highlight some of our accomplishments related to the goals in our School Improvement Plan.  Highlights from the district plan will be shared at the Board of Education meeting which is Monday night at 7:00 p.m.  

School Climate and Academic Growth

• The spring climate survey is currently being reviewed and we will dig deeper into the information over the summer as we prepare goals for the coming school year.  Overall, the feedback is very positive.  83% of our students in grade one and two report having at least one adult they can go to when something is bothering them, approaching our goal of 85%.  Strong relationships is a cornerstone of positive school climate and we will continue to work towards improving this area. 

• Our school reading goal was to ensure that at least 87% of our K-2 students met or exceeded the benchmark on our Dibels assessment which measures early literacy skills.  Our team exceeded this goal with 97% of our students meeting or exceeding the benchmark.  On the reading NWEA spring assessment, 90% of our second grade students scored at or above the 50%ile. 

• In math, 96% of our students in K-2 scored at or above the 50%ile on the spring NWEA, exceeding our goal. 

• Attendance continues to be a challenge for our students.  We have over 2,200 tardies logged for this school year. as of Friday.  On time arrival to school will continue to be an area of focus in the 25-26 school year. 

PTO

Our PTO has supported us in countless ways this year.  From weekend activities and grade level playdates to funding our makerspace, entry rugs and our South Cafeteria refresh this summer, they do so much for our school and community.  My heartfelt thanks to our PTO president Kellie James and the 24-25 Executive Board:  Joelle Levit, Jessica Cooper, Shirley Atienza, Tainara Cruvinel,  Lindsay Bennett, Amy Klimek, and Josie Staudmyer. 

Library Book Notices

All library books were due Tuesday, May 27. We still have close to 200 outstanding books. Notices reflecting all books checked out have been emailed and bills for book replacement have been sent for outstanding books.  Please help your child return books as soon as possible. This allows time to ensure all books are returned and the library is organized for next year. Missing a book? Encourage your child to go on a treasure hunt at home!  Many missing books turn up under couches, in closets or under beds. The LRC remains open for lessons and for borrowing for in-school use of books. If you have any questions please email Susan Haven, our LRC Assistant, susanhaven@westonps.org

Planning for Next Year

If for any reason, your student is not returning to Hurlbutt or not transitioning to WIS next year, please reach out to our registrar, Nicole DiPierro at nicoledipierro@westonps.org.  This will give us time to prepare withdrawal paperwork before the summer.  We know when families are moving, the receiving districts may need transcripts or information prior to the end of the current school year.

Kindergarten Registration and Planning

Planning for our incoming kindergarten classes is well underway and we are beginning to form classes.  If you have an incoming kindergarten student for the 25-26 school year, please begin the registration process as soon as possible.  Follow this link to our district website to register. Registration

NWEA Spring Student Reports

In our efforts to save resources, Weston Schools is sharing your student's NWEA, Smarter Balanced, NGSS, and Progress Reports/Report Card scores via the PowerSchool Parent Portal.  Instructions on how to navigate to your child's scores can be found by following this link:  Portfolio Plus Parent Instructions.  The reports will allow you to see your child's current performance as well as their performance on previous test administrations of all previous assessments. Hurlbutt students do not take Smarter Balanced assessments or NGSS until they are in the Intermediate School.  Hurlbutt students have progress reports and NWEA reports in Portfolio Plus. Final progress reports will be uploaded into Power School on Monday. 

25-26 School Year

In late August, you will receive an email announcing the opening date for the parent portal in PowerSchool.  Class assignments and bus routes are available when the portal reopens in August which is typically the week before school starts.  You can also anticipate our Meet the Teacher event which is August 25, the day before school starts.  The first day of school is August 26 and is a full day of school.

Summer Learning

We have seen so much growth and development with our students this year.  Please keep them reading and learning this summer.  There are so many ways to encourage your child to stay engaged with learning over the summer.  Please use the following links to explore strategies and activities that will work for your child and your family.  Every fall when we do our baseline assessments we see the impact of summer slide. You may also see this when looking at NWEA scores over time and comparing spring scores to fall scores.   

Hurlbutt

https://sites.google.com/westonps.org/hessummer2025/home

WIS-for rising 3rd graders

https://sites.google.com/westonps.org/wislearningcommons/summer-learning

Weston Public Library

https://www.westonpubliclibrary.org/summer-reading/

It has been a privilege to lead this amazing community of learners.  Have an amazing summer and we look forward to welcoming you to the 25-26 school year in August. Best of luck to our second graders as they take the next step in their educational journey at the Intermediate School next year. 

Sincerely,

Laura Kaddis

Principal

Important Dates:

June 16: Last day of school 10:45 a.m. dismissal

June 16: Board of Education Meeting-in person at 7:00 p.m. WMS library