The Buzz
School Community Newsletter
Issue #46
Saturday, May 22, 2021
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The Gilbert School was founded in 1895 as the result of the bequest of William Louis Gilbert, who left funds funds in his will for the “establishment and maintenance of an institution of learning to be known as ‘The Gilbert School.'"
As part of his will, he directed that the school would give instruction “for the improvement of mankind by affording such assistance and means of educating the young as will help them to become good citizens.” On Friday, May 21, students commemorated and celebrated the life of the late industrialist and philanthropist who founded Gilbert. At the end of the day, Dr. Anthony Serio took the wreath and placed it on W.L. Gilbert's monument at the Old Burying Ground. "I thanked him for allowing me the opportunity to serve his school," Dr. Serio said afterwards.
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Students Rock Out at TGS Festival
A small, but mighty audience enjoyed rock performances by students and teachers during the TGS Festival, which was held at the school's auditorium on Friday, May 21.
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Students, and teachers, performed rocking songs for the audience who were all very excited to hear live music again. |
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Remaining Schedule for Semester |
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May 27 Junior/ Senior Prom- Crystal Peak, Winsted
(No outside guests)
May 28 Remote Learning Day * This is a change in the calendar
May 3-26 AP Exams
May 21 Founders Day
May 31 MEMORIAL DAY - NO SCHOOL
June 1 National Honor Society Induction - ODD (Tuesday)
June 2 Remote Wednesday
June 3 EVEN DAY
June 4-10 High School Exams
June 4-6 "Snoopy" the school play
June 9 8th grade Promotion
June 9- Yearbook dedication lunch and ceremony (staff and seniors only)
June 10- High School yearbook pickup in Mrs. Wood’s room (307)
June 10 Senior Night 5 - 8 pm
June 11 Graduation 5 pm
**More detailed information regarding these events will be given soon.
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Quarantine Changes
In the event of quarantine due to COVID, we are changing the quarantine timelines. Effective May 17, we will be providing the option of a 7-day quarantine, provided we receive a negative COVID PCR test that is performed on Day 5.
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Vaccination Information
As of May 12, anyone 12 and older can get vaccinated in Connecticut
Schedule Your COVID-19 Vaccine
The state offers residents and workers several options for scheduling their COVID-19 vaccine appointment.
Option 1: Search for a Vaccine Site
Enter your address or zip code to view all the locations nearest you. You can also search for a specific provider to view associated locations.
Click on this link:
Option 2: Schedule by Phone
Prefer to schedule by phone? Select sites offer appointment scheduling via phone. Due to high volume, hold times may vary.
Please note that some vaccine sites allow phone scheduling through a direct clinic phone number. Search by location to view additional sites and scheduling options.
Vaccine Appointment Assist Line
877-918-2224
Available 8:00am to 8:00pm EST, 7 days a week
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May 7, 2021
Dear Parents/Guardians and Students,
As we begin the final weeks of one of the most unique years The Gilbert School has seen, we do so with gratitude and joy that we can celebrate our seniors and their achievements as we plan for Prom, Senior Night and our 126th Commencement Ceremony. A year ago, the early stages of the pandemic postponed our end of the year activities. Being able to have these events this year has given us a greater appreciation for togetherness and celebrating in-person events. I personally would like to thank our graduates, and their families for your patience and support throughout this year. And to our amazing faculty and staff; thank you for working together to overcome challenges and for your dedication to our students.
Graduation and the end-of-the year celebrations are always a highlight of the school and they mark the culmination of our seniors' entire school career. With the health and safety of our graduates, faculty, staff and families a priority, the following protocols must be adhered to: Prom- This year's Prom will be held on Thursday May 27, 2021 from 6p.m.-10:00pm at Crystal Peak Banquet Center, Winsted.
All guests MUST wear a mask (there will be an opportunity for mask breaks)
Only students who attend The Gilbert School may attend the Prom Students must arrive no later than 6:45. Parents will be called if students are not at the Prom by 6:45pm.
Students will not be allowed to leave the Prom before 9:00 p.m. unless picked up from the Prom by a Parent/Guardian.
Pocketbooks and backpacks will be searched
Students may be breathalyzed before entering the Prom; random checks may be done throughout the evening.
Dancing will be under a tent outdoors. Food and drinks will be provided. Students can remove their masks when eating at their tables.
We will have State Police present throughout the Prom.
Students must follow all Gilbert School rules and violation of school rules could result in further school consequences including but not limited to attending graduation.
*Graduation information will be sent in a separate mailing to seniors and their families.
** Covid protocols will be followed throughout the evening. It is extremely important that students and families understand that if an exposure to a positive COVID-19 case occurs all students will be quarantined for 7 days and can return to school with a documented negative PCR test result after day 5. For any length quarantine, if any symptoms develop, immediately self-isolate and contact the school and your healthcare provider.
Please talk with your child about being mindful about COVID precautions outside of school.
Wearing masks reduces the risk of COVID transmission. We want everyone to be healthy so they can attend these events.
We look forward to a wonderful safe evening celebration for our students!
Sincerely,
Principal Susan O. Sojka
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Alumnus of the Week
Will Panagakos
Class of 2006
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Will and his family: Three year-old Maggie, Will, two year-old Zoey, recent addition Edith, and Will's wife, Catie Panagakos. |
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What did you do after you graduated?:
"After I graduated I went to Northeastern University in Boston.
I transferred to the Franciscan University of Steubenville where I earned my Bachelor of Science in Mental Health and Human Services.
After I graduated I spent a year volunteering with the Culture Project, a nonprofit organization in Philadelphia. The organization aims to provide mentorship to high school and middle school kids. The mentorship helps to guide students so they can become their best selves.
Now I live in Cincinnati and I am a recruiter at Oxhenham Group. I specialize in placing people in Information Technology positions and nonprofit leadership positions.”
Why did you decide to get into the career in recruiting?:
"Initially, when I went into nonprofit work I was driven by lifestyle choices that dramatically changed the quality of my life for the positive. When I was in college, I saw the writing on the wall about the options that I had about the life I wanted to live. I just felt like the choices I made as a teenager had a huge impact on my life and my relationships. I wanted to help and share that.
Moving forward, one other important thing in my life story is that I found there is important work everybody has to do in order to discover which career they would be happy in. I think a lot of people are unhappy and feel unfulfilled in their careers. I knew that my career trajectory wasn't set in stone. I needed to do some heavy lifting on my end in order to figure out which direction I wanted to go in. I did that, read some really good books, and claimed some awesome people as mentors.
I found that taking on recruiting in the capacity that I have, with the kind of company that I work with, has been an awesome change in direction for me. I am excited about the way my life is going now.”
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What do you remember from your time at Gilbert?:
"I remember Mr. Minnerly who invested in me. He was one of the first people to sit me down and talk to me in a caring way about the way I conducted myself. The way he spoke to me was not disrespectful to me.
We had band every morning during the first period and I came to band late every morning. One day about a month into the semester, Mr. Minnerly sat me down in his office and said, 'Well, you are late every day.' I said 'Yeah. I know. I'm sorry.' And he said, 'No no no...when you do that, it's disrespectful. I think this is the moment where you can change that.' And I did.
To me, this conversation was the beginning of realizing that people care and notice when you are not doing well. Good people always want you to do your best and they will look for you."
Do you have any family members who attended Gilbert?:
"My sister Isabella (class of 2013), my brother Nick, and my sister Leah (class of 2000)."
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What lessons from Gilbert did you carry into the real world?:
"As a teenager, by nature of development, I think you want to get out of your shell. You want to get out of your home, break free, and establish your independence. A large part of the experience of high school is that so many people just do not want to be there. My initial thought is that I remember a lot of people saying, 'I want to get out of here!' instead of 'what can we get out of our time here?'
When I think about it now, I think Gilbert taught me that no matter where you are, there are always opportunities to have a lot of fun, to learn a lot, and at the same time to situate yourself to grow. In my high school experience, which I find to be similar to that of so many other people, I saw people doing better than me, and I saw people who missed marks, and then I wondered where I fell on the spectrum. I think it's easy to compare, but as long as you find ways to make the most out of the opportunities that you have, you can count that as a win.
Also, when it comes to the people that I was friends with at Gilbert, I feel completely comfortable with any one of them and if they were to call me tomorrow I would be happy to hear from them. When I think of everyone that I went to school with, I have nothing but love for everyone."
What advice would you give to current students at Gilbert?:
"Pay attention to what you are good at. If there is something that you like to do and you are good at it, if you dig into it now, you will be great at it."
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Staff Member of the Week
Debra LaRoche Walls - Dean of Admissions
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How long have you been at Gilbert?
"I started at the W. L. Gilbert Trust on August 3, 2015 as Dean of Admissions for the International Program. This summer I will have been with The Trust for six amazing years."
What is your educational background?
"I am a 1974 graduate of Cheshire High School. I graduated from Briarwood College in Southington in 1976. I received an Associate’s Degree in Applied Science for Broadcasting. I am also a graduate of the Connecticut School of Broadcasting."
Where were you before you started work at Gilbert?
"My career started at WDRC, Hartford in 1977. I was hired as the first female Account Execute the Top 40 station ever had. I was in sales with the radio station for two years. From there I worked for The Academy of Business Careers in Hamden giving motivational presentations throughout all of the high schools in Connecticut. My position was enrolling students and working with them and their families through the entire admissions process. It was a great opportunity to help change lives for high school students getting a lifelong skill in their chosen area. I always wanted to represent Briarwood College that I loved as a student and in 1987, I was offered the position of Director of Admissions and worked there for twenty-eight years. Tim Cronin was hired there when Lincoln Education purchased the college and we worked together for two years.
I have also been singing professionally for forty two years. In 1976, I represented our state as Miss Connecticut in the Miss America Pageant from Cheshire. I was offered to join a band when I returned from the pageant that was held in Atlantic City and I have been in four different bands since then. For the past twenty seven years, I have been performing weekly all over Connecticut with my band guitar partner, Tom Fulton. Our band name is Sapphire and we have had the honor of performing at several of the Gilbert reunions."
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What made you decide to go into a career in education?
"I have always loved the world of educational admissions. I have helped guide high school students all throughout our state when I was at Briarwood College. Sometimes it was the first generation of the family who attended and the joy it gave me was heartfelt. When Tim Cronin left Briarwood to join The W. L. Gilbert Trust, International Program in 2013, he reached out to me during the summer of 2015 about the international program position. It was an honor and life changing step for me. I was bringing all of my tool box qualities to work on an international scale.
One month into the position, I was on my way with Tim recruting to four countries; England, France, Italy and Germany. I have been to China three times traveling to Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu, and Shenzhen. I have walked on the Great Wall twice and saw the panda bears in Chengdu in between visits with students and Agencies. I Skype and Zoom with students all around the world and now that the travel ban is reopening, I am getting back to talking with students from Brazil and Mexico who are looking at Gilbert as their first choice. I am blessed at the age of 64 to still be making a difference in young people’s lives with what our program has to offer them. I am very grateful and thankful for my position in representing The Gilbert School."
What do you think of Gilbert?
"The Gilbert School is like an overgrown family. The comradery between faculty and staff members and students is very heartwarming. Our school community cares for each person as if they were a family member. When I tour prospective students who visit Gilbert, they all say that they can feel the warmth that the school shares to visitors. I am very proud of our music and chorus departments and all they have accomplished. Gilbert has a lot to offer international students that they would not normally have in their countries. I am proud to share about our offerings when I Skype with Agents around the globe. Each time a student accepts an offer to join our international program, it brings such joy to me. I am very proud of representing our school."
How would you describe Gilbert to a stranger?
"The Gilbert School is a warm, diverse, inclusive community. It has nineteen sports teams, it sits on 120 beautiful acres, class sizes are small and conducive to project and hands on learning, it offers amazing electives to find your strengths and you can join in any one of the over twenty-five clubs and activities to make new friendships in after school programs. It is an amazing school community with a history of proud generations of families since its inception in 1895."
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Salutatorian Profile
Miranda Brennan
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Age: 18
Parents: Joseph Brennan and Tamara Connors
Favorite classes and why?:
"My yearbook class and English class. English has always been my favorite because I really like to write. I want to major in Journalism and it has always been something I have been interested in. Yearbook was fun this year because I enjoyed capturing senior memories."
Favorite extracurricular activities and why?:
"I have done cheer all four years during my time in high school and it has always been my favorite. I have been taking part in gymnastics since I was a kid, and cheer has always been the closest thing to that I can find in high school. I love all of my coaches and my fellow students in cheer."
What will you remember from your time at Gilbert?:
"I will remember all of the teachers and that Gilbert is really a small school. I formed a lot of close relationships with other students, and I will always remember that."
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How does it feel to be named the Salutatorian for your class?:
"It is definitely something I am proud of. It is not something I completely expected, but I am excited about it."
What are your plans for the future after you graduate?:
"I will be attending the University of Miami and will be studying Political Science and Journalism."
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Athlete of the Week
Yoedy Tavarez
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Parents: Francisco and Yoasta Tavarez
Age: 17 as of Saturday! (Happy birthday Yoedy!)
Sports: Basketball, baseball, and football.
Why did you chose to play those sports?:
"I grew up playing baseball my whole life, ever since I was a kid. Football is a new experience for me because I didn't start playing it until my 8th grade year. It's something that I want to get better at. I never liked basketball, but eventually I ended up liking it quite a lot."
What have you gotten out of playing those sports?:
"For baseball, since I have been playing it for my whole life I am totally used to it. I'm pretty good at it since I know what I am doing. For football, I just need to concentrate and focus more on me being a better player. It's a sport I'm good at but I really want to get better at it. Basketball is the hardest sport for me out of all three because I'm only a sophomore, and there are kids who are juniors and seniors who are pretty good compared to me."
What is your strategy for those sports?:
"Just go out there and work hard."
What is your advice for people who might want to get into these sports?:
"Try your best, try your hardest, and pay attention. Work very hard because you never know what you can accomplish."
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Racing to the Finish Line
By Debra LaRoche Walls, Dean of Admissions
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On Saturday, May 8th, Residential Coordinator, Shayne Deschamps, chaperoned international students Alan Wan, China and Ben Nguyen, Vietnam to Brass City Raceway for an afternoon field trip. The raceway, located at 130 Scott Road in Waterbury offers go-karting, indoor batting cages and axe throwing. |
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The boys enjoyed two races with Shayne who being more of an experienced driver won first place in both races. The cost is reasonable for the fun that it provides. One race is $20 or two races for $35 per person. The raceway is open Tuesday through Sunday for group events, parties or combination deals. Their philosophy is: NO SPEED LIMIT! As you enjoy the speed of their Italian go-karts around the high-performance track. |
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After their excursion at the raceway, Ben picked out a special luncheon location nearby in Cheshire. The restaurant, Pho & Spice, located at 7 South Main Street, Cheshire, a friend of the Nguyen family, specializes in authentic Vietnamese and Thai cuisine. The specialty meal was enjoyed by all. Their motto is that they serve only the freshest and finest ingredients. It was agreed by Alan, Ben and Shayne that it is true. Another afternoon outing was enjoyed by all. |
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Coach's Corner
By Buckley Morgan, Athletic Director
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The Yellowjackets softball team playing against Wolcott Tech on Friday, May 14. |
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Wow, the school year is really coming down to the wire! My focus over the last couple weeks has been on scheduling all of our fall sports. All our student-athletes have been very happy to be able to play sports this school year. But, I think we all look forward to next year being full athletic schedules and without COVID policies to navigate.
Baseball had a great game this past Monday. With our student of the week hitting a double, a triple and drove in the winning run. With a young team and minimal student-athletes they have struggled this season.
Girls Tennis finished up their season on Wednesday with the completion of the BL tournament at Nonnewaug. They played the season with only 4 players of a normal 10 player team.
Softball has been holding their own but still have a few more games to go before their season ends. Golf has been holding their own under the direction of a new coach this year. Coach Penn may be new to golf but he has been a coach here at Gilbert for more than 5 years.
Boys and Girls track has had a good year overall. They will have their Berkshire League Track Championships this Saturday at Nystrom Park in Thomaston. Below are the qualifiers listed by gender.
Berkshire League Qualifiers
Girls
Angela Bardino - 4x100
Rebecca Dowling - 4x100, 4x400, 100m
Felicity Flores - Discus, Javelin
Ajla Gutic - Discus, Javelin, shot put
Emily Lapointe - 4x100
Samantha Lukowski - 4x100, 4x400, Javelin
Kate Riesselmann - Javelin
Bailey Roy - Discus, Shot Put
Gabby Sustache - 4x400, 400m
Boys
Gilbert Flores - 4x100, 4x400, 100m, 200m
Joshua Flores - Shot Put
Jebediah Leach - 4x100, 4x400, 4x800 300mH,
David Lukowski - 4x800, 800m, 1200m, 3200m
Connor Marchand - 4x800, 1200m, 3200m
Brett Marvin - 4x800,4x400, 400m
Ewan Oakes-Rogers - 4x800
Aidan Roy - 4x100, long jump, triple jump, high jump
Chase Roy - 4x100
Ryan Van Dyke - 4x100, 4x400, 110H, 300mH
State Qualifiers
Ajla Gutic
Gilbert Flores
Jebediah Leach
David Lukowski
Connor Marchand
Brett Marvin
Aidan Roy
Ryan Van Dyke
The Gilbert school mask and social distance policy remains the same at this time. Everyone is asked to wear a mask when they can not socially distance themselves from non-family members. Please maintain social distance while visiting games. We are still allowing two parents for each athlete away and home to visit our games. No students are allowed at our after school events. We thank you for your support of your student-athlete and Gilbert athletics.
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Food Service Schedule May |
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Congratulations to Nadene Stein who guessed correctly! |
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Google Classroom Cheat Sheet |
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Attention Gilbert Alumni
We Want to Stay in Contact With You!
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The Gilbert School
200 WIlliams Avenue
Winsted, CT 06098
860-379-8521
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