Windsor Public Schools -

☕️A huge thank you to everyone who joined us for an insightful and engaging March Coffee Talk with Dr. Hill. As always, the conversation was authentic, transparent, and informative—we appreciate the thoughtful questions and dialogue. Chief of Operations Danielle Batchelder provided clarity on Cabinet’s response to the BOE’s 1% budget reduction request. With limited options, the difficult decision was made to phase out full day Pre-K, a program that was originally funded by a grant that is no longer fully supported. While this was not an easy choice, it allowed the district to honor Dr. Hill’s commitment to protecting jobs and keeping class sizes small—both of which remain top priorities. We recognize that changes like this impact families, and we remain committed to supporting all of our students through this transition. Thank you for being part of the conversation and for your continued engagement. We look forward to our April 23rd Coffee Talk with Dr. Hill! 🫶🏽 #weareWINdsor 👐🏽

✅ March BOE Recap ✅ ✔️ Huge shoutout to Windsor Education Foundation (WEF) and President Daniell Hynes for providing over $14,000 in mini grants to Windsor Public Schools educators! These funds will enrich curriculum and extracurricular activities, ensuring learning remains accessible to all students. ✔️ The AI Taskforce, led by Dr. Abdel-Hady, along with her tech team and district administrators, presented exciting updates and next steps to the Board, pioneering the intentional integration of AI with our WPS Graduate Attributes. ✔️ Superintendent Dr. Hill stood on business last night, taking a clear stance on his unwavering commitment to protecting WPS students and staff. ✔️ The Board’s budget—reflecting a 1% reduction—will go to the Town as is, with no adjustments or shifts. Dr. Hill’s top priority? Keeping jobs. ✔️ Windsor Public Schools is set to be among the first districts to align graduate attributes with AI learning, ensuring our students are prepared for a future where AI literacy is essential. 🎓 #weareWINdsor 👐🏽 #stayinformed

🚀🔥 From coding to building, these WPS students do it all! 🔥🚀 Blazing Spirits are on their way to the National Championship in Houston! Formerly known as Team Paragon, Blazing Spirits represents Windsor’s commitment to building lifelong learners beyond the classroom through STEM and extracurricular activities! These incredible middle and high school students have dedicated themselves to innovation, problem-solving, and teamwork as part of FTC (FIRST Tech Challenge)—a global robotics program that inspires young minds to design, build, and code robots for competition. Now, they’ve earned a spot to compete on the national stage in Houston! Let’s rally behind them as they showcase their skills and represent Windsor with pride. 📢 How You Can Support: 💡 To donate directly, email Mrs. Carroll at Blazing130spirits@gmail.com. Let’s send Blazing Spirits to Houston in style! 🚀🔥 #STEMExcellence #FTC #BlazingSpirits #weareWINdsor 👐🏽

🎉Celebrating Danielle Franklin – Windsor’s District Paraeducator of the Year! 🎉 For 11 years, Miss Franklin has been a guiding light at Windsor Public Schools, dedicating the last 8 years at Poquonock Elementary. Her compassion, patience, and commitment to building strong relationships with students, families, and colleagues make a lasting impact every day. From helping students find their confidence to fostering independence, she embodies what it means to be an exceptional paraeducator. Join us in congratulating Miss Franklin on this well-deserved recognition! 👏🏽💙 🔗 Read more about her impact here: https://www.windsorct.org/article/2091468 #ParaeducatorOfTheYear #weareWINdsor 👐🏽 #StudentSuccess #ThankYouMissFranklin

We are stepping into the third week of #WHM and the holy month of Ramadan. As our Muslim students, teachers, and families observe this sacred time of reflection and renewal, we recognize the strength, discipline, and devotion it represents. We, too, are in a season of renewal—embracing growth, curiosity, and new possibilities. Our educators are working hard to spark wonder and capture the essence of exploration within our classrooms. Let’s continue to inspire, uplift, and empower one another to make this a great week! #weareWINdsor 👐🏽

Fighting for Windsor’s Students at the State Level! CABE President and Windsor BOE member Leonard Lockhart is leading the charge for fair teacher pay, sustainable funding, and critical special education resources for Connecticut’s students. At CABE’s annual Day on the Hill, Lockhart was joined by Windsor High School students, Superintendent Dr. Terrell Hill, and Windsor BOE President David Furie as he addressed key legislative issues, including: ✅ Fair Teacher Pay – Supporting competitive salaries while ensuring a sustainable funding plan for districts. ✅ Special Education Funding – Advocating for increased state support as WPS faces $23M+ in special education costs. ✅ Unfunded Mandates – Pushing back against financial burdens placed on school boards without full state funding. “With 756 students on IEPs in Windsor alone, we need state-backed solutions to ensure every child gets the support they deserve,” Lockhart emphasized. In today’s national climate, advocacy matters more than ever—and we’re proud to have a leader fighting for Windsor’s students! Huge Thank you to CABE President Lockhart and our WHS students for showing up!!! We ♥️ to see it! #weareWINdsor 👐🏽 #EducationMatters #AdvocacyInAction

Our OFCP Family Academy: Financial Freedom Edition was one for the books! 📚✨ With one of our highest turnouts ever, families and staff showed up ready to level up their money game! A huge shoutout to Mrs. Petra-Ann Brown, CEO of Brown Financial Solutions(@islandmoney365) for dropping GEM after GEM 💎—from smart money moves to building real wealth and tackling debt. What do YOU want to learn next? Drop your ideas below! ⬇️ #weareWINdsor👐🏽 #familyengagement #financialliteracy

📚✨ Celebrating Read Across America at JFK! ✨📚 What’s better than a great book? A great book and some special guest readers—including a few furry friends! 🐶📖 Today, JFK was buzzing with excitement as community members and Windsor High School students returned to their elementary school roots to share the joy of reading with our young learners. A huge THANK YOU to our Windsor community for always stepping up to create unforgettable moments like these. And to our WHS students—seeing you give back in such a meaningful way makes us #WINdsorProud! 🫡👏🏽 Special shoutout to Beth Abbott, OFCP Family Resource Coordinator, for organizing such a spectacular event! ♥️ #ReadAcrossAmerica #JFKReads #WeAreWINdsor 👐🏽

Happy Friday, #WINdsorNation! 🎉 Can you believe it’s been 4 years since Dr. Mallery and his Social Emotional Learning team hit the ground running at WPS? Now, SEL isn’t just something we do—it’s in everything we are. Today, you could see it in action across the district during #SELDay. When student mental health is a priority, success follows—together, we’re building a stronger, more supportive community. #weareWINdsor 👐🏽 #SELfcare #SELitswhatwedo

Happy #InternationalWomensDay! ✨ Clover Street is making HERstory come alive in the most inspiring way—through the power of storytelling! With the leadership of Family Resource Coordinator Ms. Julie, the unstoppable Empowering Girls Group and K-Kids have been helping Clover dive into books that celebrate the brilliance, strength, and achievements of women who changed the world. But that’s not all—this celebration reached new heights with phenomenal guest readers like Mayor Black-Burke, Board of Education Vice President Ayana Taylor, and other extraordinary women from Central Office and the Windsor community. These role models didn’t just read stories—they inspired the next generation of leaders! By amplifying these voices, our students aren’t just learning history—they’re becoming the future. And we LOVE to see it! Let’s keep empowering, uplifting, and honoring the achievements of women today and every day! #weareWINdsor 👐🏽 #WomensHistoryMonth #EmpoweredWomenEmpower

Sending a big shoutout to Principal Jay Mihalko and our amazing Poquonock School community! Last week, they hosted the CT Association of Schools, and Principal Mihalko had the chance to showcase Poquonock’s greatest treasure—its incredible students and staff! 🤞🏽 Best of luck, Jay, as a finalist for CT Principal of the Year! #weareWINdsor 👐🏽

🔥🍽️ Windsor High School Culinary 3 students turned up the heat at the National ProStart Invitational! Competing at the Hartford Yard Goats stadium, these talented chefs—Genesis Zhipson Harry, Tyrell Kimber, Jayden McKissick, Ian Santiago, and Nehemiah Smith—crafted a Caribbean-inspired menu featuring stew chicken, rice & peas, fried plantains, and no-bake strawberry cheesecake. 🇯🇲🇩🇴🇭🇹 With guidance from Ms. Taranto & Ms. Shaw, they didn’t just cook—they showcased their skills in menu planning, pricing, and cultural research, proving that culinary arts is more than just what’s on the plate. This is CTE in action—real-world learning, career exploration, and a taste of what’s possible beyond the classroom. 👏🏽🔥 Major congratulations to our chefs for making Windsor proud! #weareWINdsor 👐🏽 #ProStart #FutureChefs #WindsorCulinary #CTE #CareerReady @prostartprogram

💪🏽 Windsor High School students stepped up to the challenge at Mission Day—an interactive experience sponsored by the Army National Guard! From saving lives with virtual CPR to rescuing victims in night vision confined spaces, our students got hands-on with disaster response, firefighting, and military training simulations. 🔥🚒💉 A big thank you to Heather Gebhardt, the JROTC programs at SPMS & WHS, and the CT Army National Guard @ctarmyguard for making this incredible opportunity possible! #weareWINdsor👐🏽

We stepped into the first week of March with energy and purpose! March brings us Women’s History Month, a time to celebrate the incredible contributions of women past and present, as well as the beginning of Ramadan, a sacred month of reflection, prayer, and community. There’s so much to be grateful for as we welcome the change of seasons—spring is on the horizon! To keep the positive vibes going, check out these highlights from last week’s Earth, Wind & Fire Tribute Concert, an electrifying performance by our award-winning WHS choral department! Their talent, dedication, and passion lit up the stage! Here’s to a phenomenal week ahead—let’s make it count! #weareWINdsor 👐🏽

Wishing our students, staff, and families observing a peaceful and blessed Ramadan! 🌙✨ May this month be filled with reflection, kindness, and community. Let’s continue to celebrate the cultures, traditions, and beliefs that make our district so vibrant. Ramadan Mubarak! #RamadanMubarak #weareWINdsor 👐🏽

🗼✨ 8th graders in Sra. Ayala-Pujols’ class are diving into the world of castells—the incredible human towers of Tarragona, Spain—completely en español! Today, they put their engineering skills to the test, building towers with cups, mini Jenga, and cards. The challenge? Stability, strategy, and teamwork—just like the real competition! 💡 This hands-on learning moment is a perfect example of our Instructional Core Wheel in action, fostering critical thinking, problem-solving, and collaboration. #NorthStar #weareWINdsor 👐🏽

🤫 WINDSOR TRACK & FIELD DOMINATES AGAIN! 🏃🏽‍♀️👀💨 For the 9th straight year, our Windsor Girls Indoor Track & Field team are STATE CHAMPIONS! Our boys put up an incredible fight, finishing as state runners-up! 🔥 Highlights from an unforgettable meet: 🏆 GIRLS 1st OVERALL 🥇 4x200m & SMR Relay Champions 🥇 Maya Donzella – 1600m Champion (4th All-State Title as a Sophomore!) 🥈 Paige Wilson – 55m 🥉 Evelyn Schwartz – 600m (PR: 1:39) 💪 BOYS 2nd OVERALL 🥇 4x400m Relay Champions 🥇 Javonni Reynolds – 300m Champion 🥈 Marvin Escalera – 55m Hurdles & 300m 🥉 Ryan Mays – Shot Put 🚨 SCHOOL RECORD ALERT! 🚨 Lucas Pearce made history this season, breaking the Indoor 1600m & 1 Mile records, adding to his XC 5000m and Outdoor 1600m records! What a legacy! Congratulations to all our athletes and coaches! Up next: STATE OPEN this Saturday! #weareWINdsor 👐🏽

HISTORY MADE! 🏀👏🏽 A huge congratulations to Coach Ken Smith on reaching an incredible milestone—700 career wins! With Windsor’s opening-round CCC tournament victory at East Hartford, Coach Smith joins elite company in Connecticut basketball history alongside Vito Montelli (St. Joseph) and Nick Augelli (Crosby). Coach Smith, your dedication, leadership, and impact on Windsor basketball are unmatched! This achievement is a testament to your hard work and the countless athletes you’ve inspired over the years. Congratulations, Coach! 🏆

The #community we’re building at Windsor Public Schools is something special! 💫 Each and every one of you helps make WPS a stronger, more vibrant place to learn and grow. If you haven’t been to a WPS event yet, consider this your official invite! 🎟️ There’s a seat for you at our ever-growing table—come connect, get involved, and be part of the movement. Together, we thrive. #weareWINdsor 👐🏽

JFK’s Black History Month Extravaganza was a whole vibe: a true celebration of culture, knowledge, and creativity! 🎤✨ Led by Humanities Coach Sonia Turner, students brought their classroom learning to life with spoken word, trivia, live book readings, music, and dance! 🎶📖💃🏽 Shoutout to the WHS band for making a special cameo! Learning in action, culture in motion. Stay tuned for more highlights as we continue to honor, uplift, and celebrate! #weareWINdsor 👐🏽