District News

During the week of November 8–12, 2021, schools throughout the country celebrated National School Psychology Week to highlight the important work school psychologists do to help students thrive. This year's theme is "Let's Get in GEAR." (grow, engage, advocate, rise). The theme's acronym provides a challenge to grow both personally and professionally. It encourages us to engage in best practices and advocate for children's access to mental health and learning supports. To rise implies resilience and renewal despite the challenges of the past. This has a particular resonance this year as we work to help students, families, and school staff emerge from the challenges of the past year and a half. When we get in gear, we move together. When one gear moves, the gears connected to it move as well. When we move together there is a positive synergy that builds and becomes greater than any single effort. Just as we continue to grow and develop as people and with our skills, sometimes with support from others, we can develop resilience beyond stressful circumstances. School psychologists are particularly skilled at assisting students and staff in growing and working together while shifting into different gears to meet the demands of school and life. Please visit the National School Psychology Week page for more information.

You may notice that some of our psychologists have the letters NCSP after their names. This credential means that they are nationally certified by the National School Psychology Certification Board (NSPCB). The National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) sets standards for graduate preparation, credentialing, professional practice, and ethics. The NASP practice model (2010) outlines the comprehensive services that school psychologists are encouraged to provide. For more information about school psychologists, please visit the National Association of School Psychologists website.

School psychologists partner with families, teachers, school administrators, and other professionals to create safe, healthy, and supportive learning environments that strengthen connections between home, school, and the community. Consultation, direct service delivery, individualized learning and interventions, understanding and respecting diversity, and advocacy on behalf of what is best for students all require connecting with individuals and helping others connect positively with each other. Creating caring connections is also about finding how best to connect needs with supports, challenges with solutions, and barriers with the skills to overcome them.

Please join us in celebrating and acknowledging the exceptional contributions of Paramus' School psychologists in creating positive outcomes for students in our school community and their field:

Congratulations to the PHS Spartan Marching Band for their fantastic performance in the annual Music in the Park marching band competition! The Spartan band placed first in Group A and won all caption awards in our division: best music, best marching, best percussion, and best color guard. The Spartan Band placed second overall in the competition.

An additional congratulations to the marching band staff and students for an outstanding performance of their 2021 "Spartan Pepper" Beatles show at the 74th annual North Jersey Band Festival. Seventeen of the best marching bands from across North Jersey were featured before the massing of the bands for "America the Beautiful," a treat for all who attended, conducted by Northern Valley Band Director Amy Wilcox. The North Jersey Band Festival is one of the longest-running festivals of its kind, and the PHS marching bands have performed at the event for over 40 years!

A standing ovation is in order for our marching band staff: Bob Gizzi, Chrysten Angderson, Rich Cush, Angela Girvan, Jennifer Pagliaro, and Eric Borgh, and for the outstanding PHS Music Parent Association (MPA)! With the MPA's help and support, we were able to have a very successful 2021 marching band season.