Stacie Newmark

Ms. Stacie Newmark is the director of after school activities at Francis W. Parker for the Lower School. One of the programs she runs is Parker P.M., an after school program for students in Junior Kindergarten through fifth grade. Another program she facilitates is Parker PLUS, which is also an after school program of specialized activities for students. In addition, Ms. Newmark manages a summer program called Parker Summers, a summer camp here at Parker. Some activities at Parker Summer include extreme sports, robotics and many other activities.

Ms. Newmark is from Ohio. She attended college at Ohio State, where she studied to be a lower school teacher. Before she worked at Parker, she had several jobs. One of them was the Children’s Program Coordinator at Lakeshore Sport and Fitness, where she organized the summer camp and other programs for children. Ms. Newmark also taught 3rd grade at Cameron Elementary School in Chicago, and she also subbed at different suburban schools. Ms. Newmark’s first job at Parker was as a substitute chaperone for the Lorado Taft trip for the fifth grade because Mrs. Fries (the teacher who was supposed to be going on the trip) broke her ankle. Ms. Newmark then became a long term sub for Mrs. Fries, teaching lower school science. After that, she started the after school programs at Parker and has been working here as the Director of Parker PM & Parker PLUS for the last 28 years.

Most people know that Ms. Newmark directs Parker P.M., but what they don't know is that she founded it. At Parker P.M., Ms. Newmark works with the students to build new interests, and to help them make new friends. One thing she particularly enjoys at Parker P.M. is encouraging children in different grades to play and bond together; seeing this happen is one of her favorite aspects of her job. Students often engage in imaginary play, and sports, while there are also scheduled activities for kindergarten students when their day ends at 11:30AM. These include going to the courtyard, the computer lab or the library. Sometimes the gyms are open for these students. Occasionally, Parker P.M. will go to the Lincoln Park Zoo or other places for a field trip around the neighborhood. It might be hard to keep track of so many students, but Ms. Newmark keeps everything in order by using walkie-talkies and a sign-in clipboard for the students. These help her communicate with her co-workers so they don't lose track of the kids. Ms. Newmark also works with classroom teachers so everyone knows where a student attending Parker P.M. is going once school is over.

Another program that Ms. Newmark manages is Parker Plus. Parker Plus is different from Parker P.M. in certain aspects. Parker Plus has different specialized classes such as judo, Girls On the Run, soccer, football, Girl Scouts, sports, computer classes and many other activities. These activities are age specific. She says that lately the most popular activities have been the computer classes such as Minecraft and Tech Tuesdays. One job that Ms. Newmark oversees within Parker Plus is distributing snacks to the kids while they wait for their activity to begin.

Ms. Newmark also organizes Parker Days Off, which is a field trip and activity program for the days that students don’t have classes, like parent teacher conference days or workshop days (sometimes). These programs consist of kids going to arcades, movies, bowling alleys and more.

Parker Summers is a day camp at Parker, managed by Ms. Newmark. In Parker Summers, students can engage in activities that they choose. Extreme sports like zip-lining and canoeing for a week are popular activities. Parker Summers also offers field trips to places like water parks and amusement parks. There are also Minecraft classes and wood shop. This variety of activities allows students to be able to have lots of fun and meet new friends in the summer. Also, because of the wide range of activities, this camp attracts a wide variety of people because the camp can fit almost anyone's needs.

Ms. Newmark is a valued member of the Parker Community. After her 28 years at Parker, she has made many contributions, like Parker P.M. and Parker Plus, that many students over the years have gotten to enjoy. When looking at all the programs that she has created and organized, we all agree what she has accomplished is very impressive! She works 40 to 50 hours a week. We should be amazed with the important details Ms. Newmark thinks about, like safe snacks for all the kids, and activities all grades can participate in and enjoy. We are so glad she took the time to interview with us and that we got to spend time with such a lovely and valuable person.