12/21/2024

Dear Rippowam families,

As we approach this special time of year, I want to extend my warmest holiday wishes to each of you. Whatever traditions you celebrate, I hope this season brings you joy, happiness, and cherished moments with family and friends.

Thank you for being part of our school community. We look forward to seeing you refreshed and ready for an exciting new year ahead!

We had so many wonderful events this past week.  Click HERE to see some photos and follow our Rippowam PTO on Instagram (@rippowampto) and Facebook (Rippowam Middle School PTO)  to see so many more pictures and updates.  Our PTO president posted videos of the acts from yesterday’s talent show, so please watch all of the amazing artistic and athletic talent of our students!  Please see some information about the events below:

Rippowam has talent
Our talent show hosted 17 student acts and 2 staff performances that included musicians, magicians and dancers.  It was a wonderful event that had audience members clapping, dancing and celebrating their peers in a positive and supportive way.  After the show, students voted on the top 3 acts.  Congratulations to the following performances:

• First place: 6th grader Arsenii Lazoryshchak dancing to Smooth Criminal

• Second place:  7th grader Jordan Hinton singing Let Me Love You

• Third place: 7th graders Jada Taheri and Shanyla Bates dancing to Brand New

Rippowam Holiday Hoops game
We cheered on our boys and girls basketball players as they played in mixed teams as part of our annual Holiday Hoops game.  During the quarters, students competed in foul shots and 3-point shots and an incredible half-time performance by our Rippowam Cheer Team.  One of the quarters featured players from our Unified Sports team.  It was beautiful to see our entire student body cheering on students in our self-contained programs playing with their peers.  It was a true celebration of inclusion and honoring our community.

Sprit week success
There were so many great outfits this week!  Please check out our Rippowam PTO instagram or facebook page to see great photos of our staff and students and their creative styles.

Rippowam/Dolan Family Game Night
Thanks to our wonderful community schools grant manager, Shawn Davis, for co-hosting a family engagement event with Dolan.  Participants learned about parent leadership opportunities and made gingerbread houses with their families.

New Arrivals Holiday Celebration
Students in our New Arrivals program enjoyed a holiday pajama party with gifts generously donated by individuals who wanted to make our students' holidays even brighter. 

Chorus and Strings Concert for Apples
A huge thank you to Mr. Rizzi and Ms. Gibson for organizing a holiday performance for our young friends at Apples.  7th and 8th grade strings classes and all chorus classes performed holiday classics for students in the pre-K program. 

Toys for Tots success
Thank you to Christopher Grant for organizing our Toys for Tots drive in collaboration with the Stamford Police Department.  His initiative collected 170 new toys for children this holiday season.  Thank you to all who donated.

We have a lot of exciting events happening in the coming weeks!  Make sure you check out our Rippowam Events Calendar for upcoming and planned events.

Best,

Kristina Colmenares
Principal, Rippowam Middle School

If you didn’t see the Superintendent’s weekly message, please click HERE.