About Us

GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE ELLINGTON PUBLIC SCHOOLS

Although Ellington’s per pupil expenditure for education is quite low in the State of Connecticut (164/166), Ellington students perform well both in and out of the classroom. A brief snapshot provides the following:

Since 2008, the following new Advanced Placement courses have been introduced at Ellington High School: AP Studio Art, AP Music Theory, AP Environmental Science, AP Psychology, AP Spanish Language, AP Economics, AP Statistics and AP English Language and Composition, AP Biology and AP Latin. Ellington High School also added the UCONN Early College Experience American Studies program. In addition to the new Advanced Placement offerings the following programs have also been introduced at Ellington High School over the past several years:

Significant focus continues to be given to the achievement of special education students as well as all students performing below expectation in reading and mathematics. The process of reviewing IEPs to ensure that objectives were aligned with grade appropriate objectives continues. In addition, district staff continues to 1 develop Tier I, II, and III interventions for use with the SRBI model. The Ellington Special Education Department again planned and provided extended year services for students in need. Extended day classes are offered for students in kindergarten through grade four and grade six through grade twelve.

As part of the Board of Education’s efforts to increase learning opportunities for students, Ellington offers a variety of afterschool programs to provide personalized and engaging learning opportunities across a wide spectrum of student interest. Through a partnership with Hartford Stage, students in all three elementary schools have a chance to take Theater Workshops. Lego Engineering and Robotics programs are also popular offerings.

The Ellington Public Schools are strong proponents of the use of technology to support curriculum, instruction and assessment. All schools have wireless infrastructure and students in grades 1-12 are provided with 1:1 Chromebooks to support learning.

Students and staff at all schools in Ellington actively support many worthwhile causes. The students and staff at Ellington Middle School collected and donated 2,465 items to the Crystal Lake Food pantry in its annual Fall Food Drive. The Ellington Middle School Faculty again raised funds for Common Hope which provides for education of students in Guatemala. The donation was $1,256. The Crystal Lake School PTO organized a Coin Drive that resulted in a $630 donation to the Crystal Lake Food Pantry. Crystal Lake fourth graders continued a tradition of community service by visiting the Evergreen Nursing Home in February. While at Evergreen students met with their resident buddies to share activities. Center School staff organized a most 2 successful Thanksgiving Day Basket Drive. The Center School PTO ran a pop-tab fund raiser to support the Ronald McDonald House Charities. Students and staff at Center School participated in a collection of gently used outerwear for Button Up Connecticut. Center School students participated in Trick or Treat for UNICEF which provides water, netting and books for needy students. The students studied a world map in identifying the regions of the world most in need. Center School students participated in the National Hat Parade sponsored by the Heavenly Hats Foundation. For one dollar, students had the privilege of wearing their favorite hat to school for the day. The school collected $582. Center School students created valentines to be distributed to recipients Meal on Wheels. Windermere staff participated in “Wear Red Day” in support of the American Heart Association raising $345. Windermere students and staff again continued their generous contribution to the Crystal Lake Food Pantry and the Cornerstone Foundation. Ellington High School students completed six-hundred and twenty-seven cards for members of our Armed Forces as part of Holiday Mail for Heroes.

Ellington is an Affiliate of the renowned Teachers College Reading and Writing Project, with staff developers on-site to support professional learning. Educators from many districts have visited Ellington to observe our instructional model, including teachers and administrators from Glastonbury, East Granby, Suffield, Cromwell, Vernon, Wethersfield and Regional School District #10.

Center School was recently awarded a Schools of Excellence grant in recognition of their outstanding work in supporting student learning through tiered instruction. In August, they hosted a conference for educators across the state.

Ellington Middle School continues its college visitation program. Called College Power, the program works closely with seventh and eighth grade students providing pre-college planning activities that are then coupled with actual on campus experiences. Forty EMS students attended the “Multiply Your Options” conference at the University of Connecticut. This conference, for grade eight females, is aimed at bringing student together with role models in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

The Ellington Public Schools continues its strong tradition of honoring our veterans in a variety of Veterans Day Ceremonies. All schools invite veterans to attend school ceremonies. Many veterans are given the opportunity to share their experiences with our students and answer well-prepared student questions. Veterans share experiences of having served in various assignments around the world. One veteran stated, “I was fortunate to travel to many countries and learned a lot about other cultures.” Veterans spoke to students about respecting others, working together as a member of a team and the importance of relying on those you serve with.

The Ellington Public Schools continued to partner with the Ellington Youth Services to offer quality programming to students in kindergarten through grade 6. This year’s programs included conflict resolution, self esteem, team building, communication skills, stress management, and recognizing and coping with feeling.

Multi-Year Academic Support Plan 2015-16

NESDEC Facilities Planning Final Report

Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment Update- Spring 2015