August 28, 2017

Dear District Staff

I’m delighted to welcome back all of our returning staff members and to extend special greetings to those who are new members of the New Brunswick Public Schools community. I’m very excited to begin the 2017-18 school year, my third in the district, and I trust you are equally eager to move forward with educating our more than 10,000 students. I am confident we will enjoy an extremely successful year with everyone, students and their families, faculty, staff, administrators, and community leaders, working in unison to create a nurturing learning environment. We built outstanding momentum during 2016-17, both in terms of academic improvement, professional development, and connecting to the community at-large. I expect we’ll continue apace from the very first day of this new year; there’s no time to waste.

The district vision statement we introduced last year, “To Prepare, Empower, and Inspire lifelong learners and leaders,” is a strong reminder that all of us are charged with the crucial task of advocating to educate young people. We must prepare them for the future, empower them to be trailblazers, and provide inspiration so they can change our world for the better. We must begin to provide opportunities for our students to find their “voice” and claim “agency” in the classroom, so they may take control of their learning and make viable educational choices. Some of my summer learning evolved around the concept of student “Voice” and “Agency,” and I am sharing some video clips for you to peruse:

Just as our vision statement is entering its second year, so is our five-year Strategic Plan, which focuses on six priority areas representing a broad educational approach that seeks to ensure our students are actively engaged in their own learning, their immediate environment, and the entire world around them. It pushes the educational community at large to ensure our students develop critical-thinking and problem-solving skills, and then apply these to addressing complex challenges.

These are exciting times! All staff members should report to the New Brunswick High School auditorium (1000 Somerset Street) by 9 a.m. on Tuesday, September 5. The day will begin with a presentation by the New Brunswick Education Association. Additional parking will be available at Paul Robeson Community School for the Arts (40 Van Dyke Avenue), with a shuttle bus service beginning at 8:15 a.m.

On Wednesday, September 6, all certified staff members and security officers should report for professional development. Click here for the complete September 6th District Wide Professional Development Schedule.

With everyone doing their part, we will meet all challenges as we focus on an exceptional school year, which begins for our students on Thursday, September 7. I am looking forward to seeing all of you in a few weeks. Until then, enjoy the rest of the summer season.

Sincerely,

Dr. Aubrey Johnson

Superintendent of Schools

#ALLIN4NB