Dennis Mullen , Principal

Phone #: 401-734-3250

Fax #: 401-734-3264

e-mail: mullend(at)warwickschools.org

 

 

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Principal's Desk


December 2009 - January 2010

 

Dear Parent/Guardian:

The first quarter certainly saw a great deal of activity. We had a great school opening at Pilgrim!  September saw Rhode Island Attorney General, Patrick Lynch speak to our freshmen about the importance of remaining in school.  Our annual  parent/guardian-filled Open House took place on September 22. September also saw a first place finish (state-wide) in the large high school division for one of our blood drives for the Rhode Blood Center. This one took place on September 25. Our thanks to Mrs. Sharon Rix and her student helpers for organizing this great community effort. Our Commissioner’s Visit took place on September 29 and 30. A number of visitors from the Rhode Island Department of Education and within our own district carefully looked at how teaching and learning takes place at Pilgrim. I am happy to report that this visit was quite successful. My thanks to all stakeholders who contribute daily to our success. We will take all recommendations made by the Committee and prepare ourselves for the Commissioner’s Review, which will take place on February 2, 2010. September also saw us reflecting on our 2008 NEASC report and School Improvement plans. Mrs. Pam Bernardi also joined us in September. She replaces Mrs. Marilyn Massey as Pilgrim’s Graduation by Proficiency Coordinator. We welcome Mrs. Bernardi to the “Home of the Patriots” as she works with all of our students who need to demonstrate proficiency within our graduation demonstration pieces—Senior Project and Digital Portfolio.

 

October was a very busy month at Pilgrim. Over a five-day period, all Warwick public high school students sat for the annual NECAP state testing in English/language arts (Reading and Writing) and mathematics (October 7, 8, 13, 14, and 15). Hopefully, we will maintain our AYP (Adequate Yearly Progress) for the sixth straight year.  October 19-24 was “Spirit Week” at Pilgrim. Each day of the week was devoted to a particular theme (Monday was “Color Day”, Tuesday was “Career Day”, Wednesday was “Sports Day”, Thursday was “Fashion Disaster Day, Friday was “Spirit Day”). The week saw our annual Student/Faculty football game under the lights and our fall Pep Rally. The week culminated in the Homecoming Dance on Saturday, October 24. October 30 saw an in-school celebration for our seniors, which included our annual Senior Halloween Assembly .The costumes were very creative!

 

November was full of activity. On the 7th was the annual Faculty/Staff “Talent Show”. The “acts” saw a tremendous mixture of legitimate talent and hilarious slapstick. Our thanks to Mrs. Phillips and Mrs. Cote for their organizational skills and to Mr. Paul Cannistra from our school committee for his efforts in making this night so spirit-filled. Our students enjoyed the “Battle of the Bands” that took place on the 13th. November 18th saw Pilgrim sponsor a H1N1 vaccination clinic. Approximately 850 students at Pilgrim (70%) were vaccinated on this day. The seasonal flu vaccine was given on December 9. Between November 20-22, the “Pilgrim Players” held their fall production. This year’s fall play was “Thoroughly Modern Millie”. This presentation exhibited, once again, the multiple talents that our students possess. Great job! Our thanks to Mr. Denningham, drama coach and a member of our English department, for his hard work with our students. Our Student Council sponsored a “Teacher Appreciation” breakfast on the 20th.  Our thanks to Mrs. Noble and members of the Council and Executive Committee for their generosity. It was greatly appreciated. As you may know, all of our classes sponsor various events to raise money for their respective class. The 23rd saw the Junior Class sponsor a volleyball tournament. Students had a great time. Our thanks to Mrs. Bizragane and Mrs. Reynolds, junior class advisors, for helping the juniors with this event, which will help to cover some expenses that the juniors will experience this year. The 25th saw motivational speaker, Mark Mainella, address the senior class. His delivery and message, which is always riveting, was greatly received by our seniors. The annual Thanksgiving game saw a Pilgrim victory this year. The 22-0 victory over cross-city rival, Warwick Veterans, ended a season that exhibited perseverance and pride. Many thanks to Coach Paliotte and his staff in “saving” the season. Thanks also to Mrs. Jane Bernier and her cheerleading squad for their efforts throughout the season.

The fall athletic season had our Boys Soccer and Girls Field Hockey teams make the playoffs, and our J.V. Girls Soccer squad winning the states! Congratulations to all students and their coaches for their tremendous efforts.

 

The month of December may be short on school days, but it is still full of activity. The English Department sponsored a “Poetry Slam” at Little Falls in Pawtuxet Village on the 4th. Our Music program sponsored a “Feeder School Assembly” for over 1100 K-8 students on December 9. The 9th also saw the second quarter distribution of interim reports. Mrs. Phillips’ chorale students were also involved in their annual “Community Service” concerts, which visit local nursing homes in our area. The annual Christmas Concert was held on December 17th in the Pilgrim auditorium.

 

Faculty members and students continue to work hard to fulfill all of the graduation requirements for the Warwick School Department. In particular, students need to be reminded that two of the demonstration pieces for graduation—Senior Project and Digital Portfolio—have deadlines that must be met. In particular, faculty members are currently advising both our juniors and seniors about what they have and what they are missing for their digital portfolios. It is now the students’ responsibility to upload the required elements (the artifact, the reflection and the teacher assessment). For a small number of our students, it almost seems that the adults in the Pilgrim community (teachers, administrators and parents) want graduation for them more than the students do themselves! Please remind your child that Department Nights are available Monday-Thursday with their teachers and the “Homework Club” is also available in the Pilgrim Library every Monday-Thursday after school. We also have two incentive programs—“Student of the Week” and “Pilgrim Pride Bucks” which reward students who have exhibited substantial effort, submitted all homework and/or behaved as a model school citizen. There is a new incentive program at Pilgrim--“Word Part of the Week” which will help to increase our NECAP efforts. “SAT Question of the Day” continues to focus on our ELA, math and PSAT/SAT efforts. We also continue “Positive Call from the Principal” program. With this, parents/guardians receive a phone call from me during the course of the week if a teacher feels that a student has exhibited exceptional effort, behavior or has made improvements during a given week. As always, I encourage you to call our Guidance Office to set up an appointment with your child’s teacher(s) if you have found the first quarter report card (distributed on November 20) and/or the first and second quarter interim reports (second quarter interims were distributed on December 9) to be unacceptable or “surprising.” A reminder that our monthly PTSA meetings are held on the second Thursday of the month. The calendar for the rest of the year for PTSA meetings are as follows: December 10, 2009, January 14, 2010, February 11, 2010, March 11, 2010, April 8, 2010 and May 13, 2010.

 

In closing, I would like to take this opportunity to wish all members of our Pilgrim family—our students, parents, faculty and staff—the happiest of holiday seasons and a healthy new year.

 

Sincerely,

Dennis T. Mullen
Principal

 

Last Updated:12/17/09