Dear Parents, Guardians, Staff, and Community Members,

It is hard to believe that the school year is at an end.  Last night, we celebrated the moving-up ceremony at Bethel Middle School and today we will graduate the Class of 2022.  The end of the year is a great time to express our gratitude for all the support we have received from both our parents and the broader community as we navigate our way out of the pandemic.  It is wonderful to move back to creating a sense of normalcy for our students and staff. 

District Strategic Plan & District Dashboard Update

At the end of the year, We typically provide our Board of Education an update on our Strategic Plan. The goal of the Strategic Planning Committee, which includes our staff, students, municipal leaders, parents, and community members, is to ensure that we provide our students with the skills that they need to successfully navigate in the global workforce and as contributing citizens. Current research is beginning to show that we will likely see the academic and social-emotional effects of the pandemic for the next 3-5 years, which will make our work more challenging.  As a result, the Strategic Planning Committee met this Spring to update our Strategic Plan to revise strategies and action steps to meet that challenge.  I would encourage you to review the new document, which sets the path for our district work over the next few years.   

On our District Dashboard, we created a new section this year, entitled Family Resources.  The overall goal of the dashboard is to provide the community with information about all aspects of the district.  This year we also created a curriculum website for parents.  This website provides the curriculum maps and lists of resources we use (books) by grade level and content.  We also created a website regarding social-emotional learning (SEL) for parents.  The goal of this website is to provide parents with information about what SEL is and how we address it in our schools.  We hope you find all of this information useful and are always happy to answer any questions you might have.   

District Wellness Policy

Per USDA requirements, we have completed the Triennial Assessment of our District Wellness Policy. Our policy scored very highly in comprehensiveness and strength compared to a USDA model policy. To view the results of this assessment, please go to the District Home Page at www.bethel.k12.ct.us and click on Wellness Policy - Triennial Assessment.

Community Health Needs Assessment 

Nuvance Health is conducting a Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) and seeks your input. Please share your thoughts on the health and wellness of your community by completing this 10-minute survey. 

The survey will ask questions about what you think are the most important health issues in our community and what matters to you most.

Please complete the survey, which will close on June 30, 2022, by using the following link: https://www.gnyhasurveys.org/CHNA2022 . Paper versions of the surveys are available by request. All survey responses are confidential.  

The CHNA survey results will inform the development of a plan, involving many community partners, to improve the health of our community. The survey is also important because its results can impact funding, spending, and other wide-reaching decisions about health care. The survey is open to all community members/county/borough residents. Please encourage your friends, family members, and others to take the survey to share their thoughts on the greatest needs in the community.

Thank you for your time and for helping us gain valuable insights to respond to the needs of the community. If you have questions, please contact Ildiko Rabinowitz, AVP of Health Equity, Diversity & Inclusion at Ildiko.rabinowitz@nuvancehealth.org, ­­­­­­­­Ildiko Rabinowitz MSN, RN, CPN, CRRN, AVP Health Equity, Diversity & Inclusion, Nuvance Health, or please call (475) 279-9829. The survey results will influence the assessment that will be available on our website later in the year.