Please take a minute and read the letter that was shared with our school community on 10.29.18.

Each month Mr. Sweeney meets with a group of nominated students for what he refers to as an Eagle's Nest meeting. The primary focus of these meetings is to provide students the opportunity to have their voice heard specific to a school-related topic. Something new I'm trying this year is to extend the discussion beyond the Eagle's Nest and give all students at Barton the chance to be heard. Any Barton student can record a short video clip of themselves answering our monthly Eagle's Nest question.

Help us celebrate Barton's 50th by purchasing a commemorative Family Tree leaf. Details pertaining to this fundraiser can be found here.

Know a song that puts a smile on people's faces, has a positive message, or simply makes them want to dance? Complete the Song of the Day nomination form here!

The selection process for the prestigious Governor's School of New Jersey has begun, and school districts are invited to identify high-achieving high school juniors who may be interested in these rigorous and demanding STEM summer residential academic programs.

Two programs are available to students in 2019. The Governor's School of Engineering and Technology will be hosted at Rutgers University from June 30-July 26, 2019, and the Governor's School in the Sciences will be hosted at Drew University from July 14-Aug. 3, 2019.

The Governor's School is open to outstanding juniors selected by their high schools, and the program is free of tuition and fees.

Applications and information for the Governor's School in the Sciences and Governor's School of Engineering and Technology are available online

• The Governor's School in the Sciences (GSS) Application
• The Governor's School of Engineering and Technology (GSET) Application

Applications are due by Jan. 10, 2019.

High schools with up to 325 juniors may submit one application for each of the Governor's School programs. High schools with between 326 and 650 juniors may nominate two applicants for each of the two programs, and high schools with 651 or more juniors may nominate three applicants for each program.

For more information, please contact the program administrators. For the Governor's School in the Sciences: Adam Cassano at govschool@drew.edu. For the Governor's School of Engineering & Technology: Jean Patrick Antoine at gsetrutgers@gmail.com.

The preliminary results of the December 11, 2018 Bond Referendum Special Election show a "no" vote for all three questions presented to voters. Absentee ballots that are postmarked today, December 11, 2018 will still be accepted by the election office and counted as long as they are received by December 13th.

The Administration and Board will engage in discussion at the Board of Education Meeting on Tuesday, December 18, 2018 regarding the next election date.

The Cherry Hill Public Schools is one of 373 school districts in the U.S. and Canada being honored by the College Board with placement on the 9th Annual AP® District Honor Roll. To be included on the 9th Annual Honor Roll, CHPS had to, since 2016, increase the number of students participating in AP while also increasing or maintaining the percentage of students earning AP Exam scores of 3 or higher. Reaching these goals shows that this district is successfully identifying motivated, academically prepared students who are ready for AP.

National data from 2018 show that among American Indian/Alaska Native, Black/African American, Hispanic/Latino, and Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander students with a high degree of readiness for AP, only about half are participating. The first step to getting more of these students to participate is to give them access. Courses must be made available, gatekeeping must stop, and doors must be equitably opened. The Cherry Hill Public School District is committed to expanding the availability of AP courses among prepared and motivated students of all backgrounds.

"Success in Advanced Placement is a combination of students' own motivation and the opportunities educators provide for them," said Trevor Packer, senior vice president of AP and Instruction at the College Board. "I'm inspired by the teachers and administrators in this district who have worked to clear a path for more students of all backgrounds to earn college credit during high school."

Helping more students learn at a higher level and earn higher AP scores is an objective of all members of the AP community, from AP teachers to district and school administrators to college professors.

Inclusion in the 9th Annual AP District Honor Roll is based on a review of three years of AP data, from 2016 to 2018, looking across 38 AP Exams, including world language and culture. The following criteria were used.

Districts must:

The College Board also has recognized the Cherry Hill Public Schools for achieving its outcomes among an AP student population in which 30% or more are underrepresented minority students (American Indian/Alaska Native, Black/African American, Hispanic/Latino and Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander) and/or 30% or more are low-income students (students who qualify for free or reduced-price lunch).

• Brick Road will be CLOSED TO ALL TRAFFIC at Marlowe Rd/Brick Rd bend going into Evesham headed toward Rt 73 / Lippincott Drive, between 7 am and 5 pm daily starting on Monday 11/26 and lasting for about two weeks through Friday 12/7. Evesham Twp Public Works will be performing road repairs to Brick Road in their township, however there will be a detour set up in Cherry Hill at the intersection of Marlowe Road and Brick Road. All traffic headed east on Marlowe will be detoured onto Brick Rd to Evesham Rd, and all traffic headed north on Brick will be detoured onto Marlowe Rd to Cropwell Rd.

• East Tampa Ave, Daytona Ave, Princess Rd, and Deland Ave will have upcoming intermittent one- or two-block closures as Kingston drainage improvements are made by CHT Public Works, beginning during the week of 11/26 and going through mid-January. Local detours will be posted as the work moves around this area and residents will be notified prior to closing roads that affect them.

The PARCC Results 2018 Presentation is now available. The PARCC Results 2018 Presentation, presented at the October 16, 2018 Board of Education Action Meeting, details comparisons of Cherry Hill's Spring 2016, 2017, and 2018 PARCC results, along with individual school performance level results, and more.