Superintendent's Corner

In Memorian: Stuart "Stu" Strothman - Beloved Educator

Dear WNESU Community,

It is with deep sadness that we inform you of the passing of Stuart "Stu" Strothman on April 12, 2025. Stu was a dedicated educator within Windham Northeast Supervisory Union. While with WNESU, Stu worked at both Bellows Falls Middle School and Bellows Falls Union High School. He also served as Diversity Equity Committee Co-Chair for WNESU and the BFUHS student newspaper advisor.

During his time at our schools, Stu advocated passionately for students on the margins and inspired a love of language and grammar in many young people. Former students have shared that his guidance and support were instrumental in helping them reach graduation and transforming their lives.

After moving to Vermont, Stu dedicated himself to numerous passions beyond the classroom. He was an environmental advocate, historical preservationist, published author, and committed community member who fought for journalistic integrity and social justice.

Our thoughts are with Stu's family and all who were touched by his generous spirit and commitment to education.

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Important Notice: Protecting Our Teens from Online Threats

Dear Parents,

We want to bring your attention to a concerning trend affecting teenage boys nationwide - the rise in sextortion scams that target vulnerable youth through social media and gaming platforms. These scams can have devastating impacts on mental health, sometimes with tragic consequences. The emotional distress these situations cause can be overwhelming for teenagers who may feel trapped and ashamed. For a comprehensive understanding of this issue, we encourage you to read a recent USA Today article published on February 25, 2025: "Teen Boys' Mental Health Crisis: Understanding the Link Between Suicide and Sextortion Scams". If your child is experiencing online harassment, feels threatened, or shows signs of distress, please don't hesitate to contact your child's school counselor or administrator.

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Central Elementary Principal

The Rockingham School Board has approved Superintendent Andy Haas's recommendation to appoint Kate Kane as the next principal of Central Elementary School, effective July 1, 2025.

Ms. Kane, a lifelong resident of Rockingham and current Instructional Coach for the Windham Northeast Supervisory Union (WNESU), was selected from a strong pool of candidates for her exceptional leadership abilities and deep connection to the school community.

"Kate Kane emerged as the clear choice from a solid group of candidates," said Superintendent Andy Haas. "Her extensive experience within our district, her commitment to academic excellence, and her vision for creating an inclusive learning environment make her the ideal instructional leader for Central Elementary School. We are confident that under her guidance, CES will continue to thrive and provide outstanding educational opportunities for our students."

Kane brings over 15 years of educational experience to the position, having served as Central Elementary School's librarian from 2010 to 2016 before becoming a classroom teacher. For the past two years, she has worked as an Instructional Coach across WNESU schools, supporting teachers in grades K-6. Her educational background includes a Bachelor of Arts degree from Tufts University and a Master of Education from Lesley University. Recently, Kane completed the Principal Internship Program at the Upper Valley Educators Institute and gained valuable administrative experience as a principal intern at Westminster Center School.

"I am thrilled to be joining Central Elementary in this role," Kane shared. "CES holds a very special place in my heart, and I hope to build on the foundation in place there to elevate student learning, engagement, and joy. I feel like I am going home to one of my favorite places on earth!"

Kane's connection to Central Elementary School dates back to 2001 when her older son began kindergarten there. Her passion for education centers on building school communities that foster a sense of belonging for every child while maintaining high academic standards and cultivating a love of learning.

The Rockingham School Board and district administration extend their thanks to Ms. Kerry Kennedy, current principal, for her years of service.

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Updates on Title VI

Earlier this month, a letter from Superintendent Haas was sent out to our School Community regrading the demand by the USDE to reaffirm our compliance with Title VI. Since then, the Vermont Agency of Education has sent the following letter to the USED. The state's response firmly supports the continuation of diversity, equity, and inclusion work in our schools, emphasizing that Vermont schools do not single out any racial group for unequal treatment. Our district remains steadfastly committed to ensuring all students receive the support they need in a safe, welcoming learning environment where everyone can thrive. We will continue our important work to create inclusive spaces that honor and respect each student's unique identity and needs as we partner with families to provide excellent educational opportunities for all.

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Windham Northeast Supervisory Union Welcomes New School Nutrition Director

We are pleased to announce the appointment of Melissa Bacon as the new School Nutrition Director for Windham Northeast Supervisory Union (WNESU).

Melissa brings a wealth of experience to this role, having served most recently as the Child Site Nutrition Manager at Bellows Falls High School for the past two years. Her journey with our district began nine years ago as a kitchen assistant at Westminster School, after which she gained valuable experience working across various district kitchens.

Born and raised in Vermont, Melissa's connection to farming and scratch-cooking runs deep, instilling in her the philosophy that the most important ingredient in any dish is love. She currently resides in Westminster with her family.

"I'm thrilled to accept the School Nutrition Director position here at WNESU. I am looking forward to leading the Farm to School Cafe and continuing to grow its impact. I deeply believe in the power of pairing good nutrition with education to support students' growth and learning in our community," says Melissa.

Melissa will be taking over from Harley Sterling, who is departing to establish the School Nutrition program at Windham Southeast Supervisory Union. We extend our heartfelt gratitude to Harley for his many years of dedicated service and visionary leadership in developing our program. His contributions have created a strong foundation upon which Melissa can continue to build and innovate.

Please join us in welcoming Melissa Bacon to her new role and wishing Harley Sterling the best in his new endeavor.

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Happenings in our Schools

That's a lot of Reading!

Saxtons River Elementary School 2nd Grader, Mavis, has completed the SRES Reading Challenge for reading 40,000 pages. Congratulations Mavis! She might reach 100,000 by the end of 4th grade!

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Preschool Enrollment for 2025/2026

Please help us spread the word that pre-registration for UPK (Universal Pre-K) is now open for the 25/26 school year. WNESU is switching all registrations to online-only, which means that all preschool families (new and returning) will complete 25/26 registration using 'PowerSchool'.

If you are a preschool family that registered with the WNESU in 2024, you will receive an "invitation" to create a PowerSchool account for your family; it should be pre-populated with information you provided to us last year, you only need to confirm everything is correct/update any information that has changed. Please make sure that the email address you provided to us is current/one that you have access to (if not, please provide us with an updated email address). Families with older children attending WNESU already have a PowerSchool account, so they should complete pre-registration so that their incoming preschooler can be added to their account. Be sure to check your email for updates from PowerSchool.

For NEW preschool families (families who did not register in 2024), they will need to complete pre-registration on our early education website UPK Information and Pre-Registration and follow instructions in emails from PowerSchool. The deadline to apply for a spot in our WNESU EEC classrooms is Friday, April 18th (for new families).

We know that this change may be confusing, please feel free to email us with any questions you may have at upk@wnesu.com.

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2025/2026 Kindergarten Information

If your child will turn 5 by September 1st, 2025, they are eligible to attend kindergarten this fall. Each elementary school will be hosting kindergarten informational "Pizza Nights" for families in May. This will give families a chance to view their child's class, meet their teachers, and ask any questions they may have.

 

Pizza Nights for "rising" kindergarten families

For Rockingham families:

SRES: Thursday, May 15th 5:30-6:30pm

CES: Thursday, May 29th 5:30-6:30pm

Rockingham families will receive information about which school (SRES or CES) their child will be attending prior to the May pizza nights. Please pre-register by April 4th at:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdyUzRJpf5mNEd_VziArg3zOWws-pKrTJeo3dglEKuJIt0klg/viewform?usp=preview

 

For Westminster families:

WCS: Thursday, May 8th and Thursday & May 29th from 5:30-6:30pm

Please pre-register by April 4th at: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScljDwaq3tTbFSD-Mnv1zw5cxUDwx_BBg7EbqRSG-4SfLKVZg/viewform?usp=preview

 

For Athens/Grafton families:

GES: Thursday, May 15th 5:00-5:45pm

Please pre-register by April 4th at:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScVNT2Yh6csFRVvlBiG7GfyeFJFLnKPQEYKkhUyBv6NHqKNow/viewform?usp=preview

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BFUHS students speak with WCS students

WCS fourth, fifth, and sixth graders had the wonderful opportunity to hear from some gifted and inspiring BFUHS students on Friday, April 4th. Members of the student panel shared about their skills, activities, school track, and post secondary goals. Thanks to the following students who volunteered their time: Cam Perry, Coby Levesque, Jake Tostrup, Meadow Meyer, Dylan Stewart, Will Hallock, Maya Rentas, Izzy Stoodley, and Laura Kamel. Our future Terriers are grateful!

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Grafton Elementary School students participate in VEEP workshop

Students in 5/6 participated in a workshop led by VEEP, the Vermont Energy Education Program. They explored how rising levels of CO2 in the atmosphere—primarily driven by human activities like burning fossil fuels—are contributing to climate change. This additional trapped energy is causing significant global impacts, such as more frequent and intense droughts, storms, heat waves, and wildfires, as well as rising sea levels, melting glaciers and ice caps, and warming oceans. These changes affect both human and wildlife populations. During the workshop, students worked in pairs to conduct an experiment demonstrating how increasing CO2 levels lead to rising temperatures. They tracked and recorded temperature changes over time as part of the activity.

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National Honor Society Induction

On Wednesday, April 2nd, the Jesse A. Judd/Marilee B. Huntoon chapter of the National Honor Society proudly welcomed 12 new BFUHS students. Rooted in four key pillars- Scholarship, Leadership, Service, and Character- the National Honor Society recognizes students who exemplify these qualities. To qualify for NHS membership, students must have a cumulative weighted GPA of 5.50, have aa minimum of 20 hours of community service completed, and demonstrate leadership and character traits, supported by held positions, documented experiences, and/or teacher recommendations. Eligibility opens after the first semester of junior year. Congratulations to our new members!

Current members (Seniors):

New members (Juniors):