Board of Education (BOE) members celebrated Newtown High School (NHS) being renewed as a nationally recognized Unified Champion School and listened to presentations discussing district strategic goals at its Wednesday, November 5 meeting.

NHS Athletic Director Matt Memoli was joined by NHS Unified Head Coach Kimya Knecht, Unified athletes, and Barbara Horn, a Unified Champion Schools Coordinator with Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference, in celebrating the special occasion.

Memoli thanked Knecht, along with Unified Assistant Coach Becky Miles, for their continued work and support of the program.

Unified team captain Pablo Necco took the floor next to speak about the program, but not before thanking Memoli, Horn, and NHS Principal Kimberly Longobucco for their continued support and patronage of Unified.

“It all means a lot to us, but it also means the world to all the athletes who are a part of this program,” Necco said.

He continued by going over Unified’s eventful soccer season, from starting in Brookfield to finishing off with a tournament at Pomperaug High School in Southbury. Necco passed off the microphone to Unified athletes in the audience, with each one excited to share their memories and experiences with the program.

Among these students was Mallory Angelovic, who talked about how much she enjoyed spending time with her friends in Unified, especially the ones she does not get to see during the regular school day.

“I have made lasting memories from each tournament,” Angelovic said. “The soccer season was a great opener to the Unified season, and I am super excited for what the rest of this season has to bring.”

Necco said they started off on such a high note with soccer and are excited to carry that energy into their next season, which focuses on basketball. He explained that basketball season is when Unified gets its most participants, both on the athletes and partners side.

On top of calling it one of the most exciting seasons they offer at Unified, Necco said they are offering new activities for basketball season that they have never had before, such as a student council. Necco said they are also starting a team that will participate in a competitive league with other schools, with its end goal being to travel to Mohegan Sun.

“If we’re the best team, we make it there. We are hoping, and do believe we can make it there,” Necco said.

Unified athletes Andrew Beylouni, Jaden Newnham, and Thomas Selner also spoke about their experiences with the program and how much it means to them.

Afterwards, Horn addressed the audience and said she was incredibly honored to celebrate NHS’s renewal as a nationally-recognized Unified Champion School.

From the team hosting competitions with other Unified programs to proudly showcasing its talents at the State basketball championships in front of thousands at Mohegan Sun, Horn said this alone would be enough to salute the high school’s Unified program.

“But they do so much more,” Horn said. She talked about Unified Leadership Council providing unique opportunities for students to lead, and how the team’s campaigns such as the Penguin Plunge and Torch Run encourage school engagement and positively impact the community.

“All of [these] activities more than surpass the criteria of Unified Sports, inclusive youth leadership, and whole school engagement, for Unified Champion School’s banner renewal,” Horn said. “Congratulations to Newtown High School on this well-deserved honor.”

Middle School Strategic Goals

Superintendent of Schools Anne Uberti welcomed Longobucco and Newtown Middle School (NMS) Principal Jim Ross to present their respective school’s strategic goals to the BOE.

Director of Teaching & Learning Kara DiBartolo presented her 2025-26 strategic goals immediately afterwards. Board members were encouraged to ask questions following each presentation.

“As they do, it is my hope that you will begin to see the throughline of their work stemming from the districts’ goals ... and the connection between the work that is being done in the other schools,” Uberti said. “The same goals may be realized in different places and different ways, but all lean towards a similar result.”

Ross, who presented first, called the development of NMS’s strategic goals a team effort. He said these goals build on the great work that is happening at the elementary schools and Reed Intermediate School, and complement the high school’s strategic goals.

Ross went over strategic actions and action steps on how to address different district goals throughout the 2025-26 school year.

When it came to making NMS a dynamic learning environment that improves instruction, nurtures creativity, and increases academic achievement, Ross said they are rolling out and implementing the Newtown Education and Administrator Evaluation and Support Plan.

The plan, he said, really encourages NMS staff to reflect and improve their practices, with several check-ins throughout the year for observation feedback.

Ross added that the school is looking at implementing consistent, research-based practices to make grading more accurate for students, teachers, and families. To that end, he said the school rolled out a Grading Beliefs Document this year, which implements department grading plans that align with school beliefs.

Ross noted many other strategic actions, including: creating a school-wide data team prepared to provide interventions for students, implementing a Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) to reinforce student achievement goals as measured by state assessments, continuing to encourage students to adhere to the “RISE UP” school-wide identity, implementing the new Connecticut School Climate Policy, and more.

High School Strategic Goals

Longobucco spoke next, adding that she was grateful to talk about the exciting things happening at NHS.

“Many of these you have heard from my colleague, all the way down to the K-4 folks,” Longobucco explained. “So you’ll see some connections of what we are really doing as a throughline with the understanding that [NHS] is the end of their Newtown Public Schools educational career.”

She said these goals help lead students into their next steps after high school, whether that is the work place, active military, or postsecondary facilities.

To ensure engaging curriculum and instruction, Longobucco said they are going to continue implementing the district’s Portrait of a Graduate. The plan, which has been discussed at previous BOE meetings, highlights seven key characteristics that offer guidance and ensure every child in Newtown Public Schools can reach their full potential.

While the plan is starting at NHS, it will eventually be rolled down to the other schools in the district.

At their current state, Longobucco said 100% of the high school’s staff has been trained in the plan, and that they about halfway through implementing their first characteristic.

“All teachers are providing at least one opportunity for students to not only think critically, but actually reflect on the process of thinking critically in their classes,” Longobucco explained.

In addition to that, Longobucco said all NHS students created e-portfolios in October, which is where they will put these reflections for their classes.

Longobucco addressed other strategies at the high school, including: establishing annual goals for increases in student achievement as measured by state assessments; implementing strategies to reduce the number of students considered chronically absent; providing staff a comprehensive professional learning plan focused on increasing student engagement; and promoting inclusive, respective language and positive communication, among many others.

Director Of Teaching & Learning Goals

DiBartolo was the final person to present her strategic goals to the BOE. She noted that, over the past year, her leadership role has shifted to deepen her support across the district.

“So [these goals will highlight] the expansion of my work, which includes curriculum instruction, special education, pre-K, kindergarten, as well as the MTSS process,” DiBartolo explained.

She said her goals primarily focus on creating a dynamic learning environment, specifically standardizing the identification for students who are going to be recommended for the district’s Program for Adaptive Learning (PAL) program.

This program, as per its description on the Newtown Public Schools District website, aims to meet the individual needs of students who display significant delays in academic, social, cognitive, adaptive and communication functioning.

DiBartolo also said they are focusing on developing a pre-K to kindergarten transition document so that system structures are in place for teachers and staff, and also have the important supports in place when students go to kindergarten.

To that end, DiBartolo said they are standardizing the identification for the pre-K PAL program to ensure equitable access and consistent criteria across the schools.

DiBartolo also touched on other strategic actions she has been working on, such as supporting the implementation of MTSS, leading the middle school social studies curriculum revision with regional educational service center EdAdvance, and reinvigorating the District Wellness Committee to strengthen the district’s focus on the well-being of students and staff.

The BOE will listen to the last presentation of 2025-26 school year, given by Director of Pupil Services Deborah Mailloux-Petersen, at its November 18 meeting.

Reporter Jenna Visca can be reached at jenna@thebee.com.