Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the School Showcase topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Grover Cleveland Middle School students showcase arts, clubs and service at board meeting
Summary
Students and staff presented school improvements, academic gains and extracurricular programs to the Caldwell West Caldwell Board of Education, highlighting a renovated auditorium, an art club with 65 sign-ups, and community service projects that helped feed 84 families.
Grover Cleveland Middle School students and staff presented a holiday-hour showcase to the Caldwell West Caldwell Board of Education on Dec. 16, laying out recent facility upgrades, academic gains and after-school programs.
Principal John Bertolo told the board the school — which opened as a high school in 1926 and became a middle school in 1960 — has completed a remodeled auditorium, resurfaced blacktop and a modernized media center with a makerspace. "Our school will soon be 100 years old and we look forward to celebrating our centennial in 2026," Bertolo said.
Bertolo highlighted assessment gains and targeted supports. He said the school posted a 17% increase in one cited ELA measure and a similar gain in math for eighth grade, and added that "100% of our Algebra 1 students met or exceeded the NJSLA goal." He credited Title I funding for enabling a sixth-grade math interventionist to work with identified students.
Students described extracurricular offerings and recent activities. Art teacher Nicolette Shankal Lepore said more than 65 students signed up for a new yearlong art club and announced an art show in May where every participant may display a piece. "This art club will stretch throughout the entire year," Lepore said. Student council secretary Vivian Iverson summarized student government activities, from spirit weeks to bake sales, while National Junior Honor Society members described membership criteria and service projects.
The school also highlighted community service work: Bertolo said a district-wide Thanksgiving food drive enabled the Caldwell food pantry to feed 84 families and staff collected more than 500 pounds of plastic toward a Trex Schools competition that yields benches as rewards. Students and staff promoted the district's Make a Difference Day set for April 11, 2025.
The presentation closed with music and short performances from the school band and chorus. The board thanked students and staff and said the presentation affirmed district priorities in the arts and student supports.
The board later recessed to executive session; no vote on the centennial plans was taken during the public meeting.
