[Newark, NJ – September 7, 2021] Today, September 7, 2021, marks the highly anticipated first day of school and return to in-person instruction for all students that makeup the 65 schools in the district and the staff is poised, excited, and ready to receive them.
As he has done in years past, Superintendent León kicked off the new school year with a district-wide Convocation, where he shares the state of the district, reviews multiple measures of data, and celebrates accomplishments.
During the Convocation, he also charged staff with the Give Me 5 Campaign, where each employee is assigned 5 students and makes courtesy calls to their homes, reminding families of the first day of school and motivating them to start the school year strong.
Students return to new and exciting curricula such as music and theater, integrated Language Arts Literacy and Science Units of Study, and phonics for our younger learners. High school students can look forward to courses in Advanced Manufacturing, Cinematography and Film Video Production, Culinary Arts, Engineering, Teacher Education, Law Studies, Entrepreneurial Studies, Cosmetology, and Biomedical Science to name a few.
While Superintendent León acknowledges, “The last eighteen months have been like no other”, he reassures students, parents, teachers and staff alike, that “This will be another banner school year.”
School Board President Haynes said, “We are pleased that our students will be able to see their friends and teachers in-person and learn in an environment that has been cleaned and sanitized in preparation for their safe return.”
All school buildings will continue to be contactless sites and all staff and students will follow the district’s well established ingress procedures and school egress procedures, which includes wearing masks.