New Principal at Johnson Park

Angela Siso Stentz will become acting principal at Johnson Park Elementary School (JP) on July 1, the Princeton Public Schools (PPS) announced last week. She will be taking over from longtime JP Principal Robert Ginsberg, who has moved into the central administration as PPS acting assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction.

Stentz, who has served as PHS assistant principal for the past three years, started in the PPS district as a special education teacher in math and Spanish in the 1999-2000 school year, became supervisor of student activities in 2005, then supervisor of guidance from 2008 to 2017. 

Innovative Tuition Plan

Princeton Academy of the Sacred Heart (PASH) has proposed “a bold reinvention of its tuition model” for the upcoming school year.  According to a June press release, PASH, in response to the economic stress impacting many families during the coronavirus pandemic, has updated a new maximum tuition schedule that could provide “a welcome relief in these uncertain times.”

The new schedule, the press release states, “reflects a reset of tuition fees in the range of $3,600 to $8,800 in savings for families.”  In a June 7 letter to the PASH community Headmaster Rik Dugan wrote, “We are mindful of the profound impact that this pandemic has had on many of our families and the broader Princeton community. We want to lessen the burden for our families, whose loyalty we are deeply grateful for. At the same time, we believe that now, more than ever, our exceptional learning experience should be made accessible to as many boys as possible.”

More information on PASH’s individualized affordable tuition program is available at princetonacademy.org.

In other news from Princeton Academy, Paris McClean, current PASH lower school head, has been appointed assistant head of school, a new position replacing the current division head position.

“Paris is a visionary leader with an open heart who places the boys’ well-being at the center of every decision,” said Dugan in announcing the appointment in a letter to the school community.

Dugan’s letter described McClean’s contributions to strategic planning and to programs advancing academic excellence, character development, wellness, social-emotional learning, and diversity, equity, and inclusion during his past five years at PASH

Fifth-Graders Leave Their Mark

Hopewell Elementary School fifth-graders and their families commemorated their graduation into middle school last month by planting a pollinator meadow, under the auspices of the Sourland Conservancy.

Each family chose a 30-minute time slot, in order to maintain social distancing, while planting in the Foraging Forest in Hopewell Borough Park, which is next to their school. 

Participants in this project will leave a lasting legacy of berries, nuts, fruit, leaves, and roots. Pollinators, attracted by the flowers planted, will help the native trees, shrubs, and herbaceous plants to produce fruit.