Category: Education - Page 66

Sunday, October 18, 2026

Gallery: Maker Faire Westport

Scenes from today’s Maker Faire Westport. Dave Matlow, Lynn U. Miller, J. C. Martin for WestportNow.com and WestportNow.com photos

Friday, April 21st, 2017

Gallery: Celebrating Week of the Young Child

Scenes from today’s seventh annual Westport preschool self-portrait reception in the Higgins Room in the Westport Library’s Children’s Department. The event marking the Week of the Young Child is part of the early literacy outreach program with Westport preschoolers. The preschool artists were very proud of their self-portraits and happily showed their artistic endeavors to their families and friends. The Week of the Young Child is an annual celebration hosted by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) celebrating early learning, young children, their teachers and families. Phyllis Groner for WestportNow.com

High School Art Winner

Sophia Livecchi, 17, a Staples High School senior, tonight was named winner of the annual Tracy Sugarman Award, named in honor the late Westport artist and illustrator. Jurors Ann Chernow and Leonard Everett Fisher selected her entry, “Woven Terrains,” as best in the third annual High School Student Art Exhibition at the Westport Arts Center. Sophia, who will attend Swarthmore College majoring in art, credited Staples art teacher Camille Eskell for inspiring her work and urging her to enter. The award, sponsored by retired Senior U.S. District Judge Alan H. Nevas and Janet Nevas, was presented at the opening reception for the Center’s “Main Street to Madison Avenue” exhibit. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) WestportNow.com photo

Congrats to Tracy Sugarman Award Winner

Retired Senior U.S. District Judge Alan H. Nevas (l) congratulates High School Art Exhibit winner Sophia Livecchi, 17, a Staples High School senior, tonight upon her being named winner of the annual Tracy Sugarman Award, which honors the late Westport artist and illustrator. Nevas and wife Janet established the award to honor their longtime friend. Jurors Ann Chernow (seated) and Leonard Everett Fisher (2nd r) selected her entry, “Woven Terrains,” as best in the third annual High School Student Art Exhibition at the Westport Arts Center. The ceremony took place at the opening reception for the Center’s “Main Street to Madison Avenue” exhibit. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) WestportNow.com photo

Thursday, April 20th, 2017

Stars Shine at Saugatuck El

Westport’s Saugatuck Elementary School second graders were in for a treat today as renowned actors (and Saugatuck parents and grandparent) (l-r) Greg Naughton, Kelli O’Hara, and James Naughton visited the school (pictured with student Owen Naughton). James Naughton narrated the Weston Woods animated adaption of Peter Brown’s “Creepy Carrots!” and his son and daughter-in-law read several of Brown’s books. Award-winning author and illustrator Brown will visit all Westport elementary schools next week. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Rae Anne Locke for WestportNow.com

Staples Musician Honored

Samantha Atlas, a Staples High School junior trumpet player, recently participated in the National Association of Music Educators All-Eastern Honor Ensembles held in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The event represents the top performing high school musicians from the eastern United States and is held every two years. Samantha performed in the All-Eastern Band. She is pictured with conductor Dennis Fisher. Recently, for the fifth consecutive year, Westport was honored with the designation among the Best Communities for Music Education from the NAMM Foundation, a nonprofit supported in part by the National Association of Music Merchants. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Contributed photo

Wednesday, April 19th, 2017

New Preschool Director at Christ & Holy Trinity

Westport’s Christ & Holy Trinity (CHT) Church has announced the appointment of Marianne Keith as director of its preschool.

Marianne Keith: deep ties to community. Contributed photo

She replaces Moira O’Connor who will retire in June after 19 years in the role, an announcement said.

Located in the historic Seabury Center on Church Lane, the preschool has a long tradition of offering play-based educational excellence and bringing together an active community of families.

Keith is a well-respected early childhood educator and has deep ties to the Westport/Weston community. She currently serves as director of the St. Francis of Assisi Preschool in Weston. Before that, she was a program coordinator and teacher at St. Paul Christian School in Westport.

Tuesday, April 18th, 2017

Advocates for Teachers, Towns Say Voters Oppose Pension Cost Shift

By Keith M. Phaneuf

www.ctmirror.org

West Hartford — Lobbying groups for Connecticut teachers and municipalities today unveiled poll results showing 72 percent of voters oppose using local property tax dollars to fund a portion of the state’s pension program for public school teachers.

The survey, commissioned by the Connecticut Education Association and the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities, also found 64 percent of voters would cast ballots against legislators who back such a plan.

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s administration, which wants to shift one-third of a skyrocketing pension bill onto municipalities, responded that communities and teachers must accept that Connecticut must make tough choices to address long-ignored problems.

And while the advocates for education and municipalities insisted shifting pension costs onto the local property tax base was an unacceptable solution, they didn’t discuss how state officials should cover an expense projected to grow 525 percent over the next 15 years.

Wednesday, April 12th, 2017

Domestic Violence Lecture Focuses on Teen Relationships

Westport’s Domestic Violence Task Force has scheduled a “Healthy Teen Relationships” presentation for Monday, April 24, from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Westport Library, the town’s Human Services Department announced today.

Using a series of short films from the One Love Foundation, panelists will cover nuances of teen dating relationships and provide practical advice that every young person should hear before embarking on a dating relationship, organizers said.

They said that one in three girls and one in four boys will experience relationship violence in their lifetime, making the discussion “all the more critical as intimate partner violence permeates our culture.”

Elaine Daignault, Human Services director, said in 2015, Westport Police responded to 91 domestic violence-related calls. She cited statistics that show 10 percent of high school students have been hurt physically by a boyfriend or girlfriend.

Honored

The Connecticut Association of Schools (CAS) recently honored two Staples High School students at its 22nd annual Arts Recognition Banquet recognizing Connecticut’s outstanding high school visual and performing arts students. Nominated by their teachers for the award were (top, l-r) Jack Norman and Alyssa Domenico. They are pictured with Staples teachers David Roth and Carla Eichler. At the event, 150 member high schools were represented. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Contributed photo