August 15, 2024
Dear Middle School families,
Welcome to Middle School and our annual summer letter. This letter is full of information regarding our start of the school year and additional suggestions and preparations for our families to make reentry to the academic environment as smooth as possible. If you still have some questions after reading all the information included in this packet, please email me directly at jgreytok@haverford.org. Also, please pay particular attention to Mrs. Giovinazzo’s famous checklist. It will help you complete all the necessary documents we require prior to the first day of school. If for any reason we missed something or you have specific questions, please send us an email, and we will respond as soon as we are able.
We hope that everyone had an enjoyable and relaxing summer. Much of the time we spent during the past three months involved preparation for this school year. These include making students' schedules available before the start of school, creating a new policy regarding phones on campus and continuing our commitment to understanding and educating adolescent boys in an environment that supports how they learn and the guidance they require.
During previous summers, we spent weeks building the daily school schedule for the year only to share it with the boys on the first day of school. While we had some logical reasons for doing this, it was inconsistent with the practice of the other two divisions and we often created greater issues. Therefore, you are now able to access your son’s schedule for this academic year through the MyBackPack portal. If you have any questions regarding your son’s schedule, please contact me via email at jgreytok@haverford.org.
Like the boys, our faculty and staff are assigned summer reading. This year, we were asked to read The Smartest Kids in the World. The book was an interesting read, sharing how countries like South Korea, Poland and Finland teach their students. It also shared different perspectives on education about what makes a school a good school with the clear understanding that what works for one student in one country may not work for another. One takeaway for parents is the value of finding a school where your child is engaged, has friends, builds relationships and is able to focus without distractions. After finishing The Smartest Kids in the World, many of us read The Anxious Generation.
The Anxious Generation is a best seller and was a very popular read among educators this past year. Its two main points are focused on limiting distractions for students and encouraging more independent interactions for our adolescent learners. Of course, you probably can guess that the number one distraction for our students is their smartphone. If you have followed the national and local news, you probably know that many schools are banning phones during the day to limit distractions and encourage more engagement of our students. We are also planning to shift our cell phone policy to support more engagement of our boys.
Last year, we asked the boys to turn off their phones and put away from 7:45 a.m.–3:15 p.m. For the most part this worked, or at least we thought so. Further investigation revealed that too many boys kept their phones turned on and in their coat pocket or pants pocket during the day. They visited the bathrooms often or even would check them in plain sight. Clearly, they continued to be distracted during the school day and not engaged with learning and building relationships. Therefore, we are highly encouraging the boys in our Middle School to leave their phones at home during school hours. If they must bring their phones to school, they will be required to turn the phone off and store them in our new phone storage rack as they enter our Middle School building. The same requirement applies to smart watches.
We understand that there are reasons why you might want your child to have a phone with him at all times; however, we have to remember that adolescents, especially adolescent boys, have underdeveloped frontal lobes of their brains and are destined to take risks and make mistakes. Leaving a phone at home or placing it in a locked closet for the school day removes this temptation and distraction so they can better engage in the classroom and build those relationships that are so important to their growth and development. Do we expect boys to forget to follow these rules or even purposely hide their phones, yes, but we will also hold them accountable when they do not and clearly explain why it is important to remove phones from their possession while in school. Our complete phone policy is covered later in this letter. As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please let us know.
This year, we welcome one new teacher in the middle school, Mr. Miles Katzen. Mr. Katzen is a graduate of Wilmington Friends School so he is very familiar with the area and independent schools. He completed his undergraduate degree in Human Services from the University of Delaware before getting his masters degree in counseling from Villanova University. This past year while obtaining his masters, Mr. Katzen was working at Malvern teaching students about mental health and wellness. We are excited to have him with us this year as we introduce our health and wellness program at Haverford.
Below is a list of our Middle School teachers and their responsibilities.
Sixth Grade: Mrs. Price (Sixth Grade English), Mr. Suter (Sixth Grade History), Mrs. Suter (Sixth Grade Reading), Mrs. Jacob (Sixth Grade Science), Mrs. Kettering-Goens (Spanish), Ms. Hallman (MS Drama), Ms. Faralli (Latin), Ms. Monroy (Chinese) Ms. Kane (Sixth Grade Math), Mr. Newman (MS Librarian), Mr. Pankratz (MS Art), Ms. Doherty (MS Art), Mr. Stroud (MS Music), Mr. Katzen (Mental Health), Mr. Potter (Physical Health) and Dr. Rottura (Dean of Students).
Form I: Mr. Walker (Form I English), Mrs. Odeh (Form I History), Mr. Romero (Math), Ms. Tkac (Math and Math Support), Ms. Monroy (Chinese), Ms. Faralli (Latin), Mrs. Kettering-Goens (Spanish), Mr. Stroud (MS Music), Mr. Pankratz (MS Art), Ms. Doherty (MS Art), Mr. Katzen (Mental Health), Mr. Potter (Physical Health) , Ms. Joloza (Form I Science), Mr. Masso (STEAM Instruction) Ms. Hallman (MS Drama), Ms. DeLamater (English and the Enrichment & Learning Center) and Dr. Rottura (History Lab and Dean of Students)
Form II: Ms. Canty (Form II English), Mrs. Brown (Form II History), Mr. Grossman (Form II Science), Mr. Masso (STEAM Instruction), Mr. Pankratz (MS Art), Ms. Doherty (MS Art), Mr. Meyer (Math), Ms. Tkac (Math), Ms. Hallman (MS Drama), Mr. Stroud (MS Music), Mr. Katzen (Mental Health), Mr. Potter (Physical Health), Ms. Faralli (Latin), Dr. Reich (Spanish), Ms. DeLamater (English and the Enrichment & Learning Center) and Dr. Rottura (History Lab and Dean of Students)
Specialty Teachers:
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Nurse: Mrs. Beth Nierenberg
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Spanish: Mrs. Kettering-Goens
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Health & Wellness: Mr. Potter and Mr. Katzen
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Learning Center: Mrs. Suter,
Ms. DeLamater, Mr. Masso, and
Ms. Tkac
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Middle School Athletic Director: Mr. Potter
Assistant to the Middle School Head: Mrs. Giovinazzo
Middle School Dean of Students: Dr. Rottura
