Vineland Public Schools -

Have a wonderful spring break! We will see you on April 28!

Dear Vineland Public Schools Family,  In a continued effort to prioritize student and staff safety, Vineland Public Schools has announced a new partnership with Allied Universal Security to deploy armed security guards across all 16 school sites within the district. Under the agreement, Allied Universal will begin implementing the first phase of staffing by May 1st, placing highly trained, licensed armed guards at each campus. This move marks a significant step forward in the district’s comprehensive safety and security strategy. The decision to introduce armed security personnel follows a series of proactive safety initiatives implemented over the past year. These include upgraded surveillance systems across school buildings, the appointment of a dedicated Director of Security, and the expanded use of Raptor Technology. The armed guards will serve as first responders in crisis situations, coordinating closely with existing district security personnel and local law enforcement agencies to ensure swift and effective emergency responses.  Allied Universal, a nationally recognized security provider, brings extensive experience in school safety and a commitment to community-focused protection. Each guard will undergo thorough background checks, specialized training in school security protocols, and continuous professional development to maintain a high standard of service.

Everyone had a blast at our annual EGG-STRAVAGANZA!! Egg dying, egg hunting, face painting, lots of treats and a special visit from Peter Cottontail!! Happy Spring Break from your Preschool Peeps at DiBiase Preschool!

Tiny Tots Preschool hosted a visit from Tori's Critters just before the start of spring break! Each classroom received FURst hand experience with a variety of scaly, furry and cute friends. We were introduced to Voldetort the Tortoise, Cinnamon Toast Squish the Ball Python and a bunch of other lovable friends. Thank you to Tori's Critters for taking time to visit and hang with us!

Portrait of a Graduate. Durand artists have been working hard for six weeks on their self-portraits. We learned about facial proportion, and how to incorporate elements of art in our artworks. Students studied their parts of their face and hair so they can draw accurately. Then students were challenged to imagine their future career and what that would look like. Using their ideas, students transformed their background, and sometimes themselves, to show their future goals after graduating. Durand students have a bright future ahead!

Cool things happening at DiBiase Preschool! At Small group today, Miss Michelle's class did a super science experiment and learned all about dying eggs. They had so much fun changing their plain white eggs into something EGGSTRAORDINARY!

Rossi Safety Patrol and WISE Ambassadors teamed up to support Dom’s Pasta Party, an annual food drive benefiting the Vineland Soup Kitchen. In total, Rossi collected 122 items including 49 jars of tomato sauce, eight containers of Parmesan cheese, and 65 boxes of pasta ranging from spaghetti to rigatoni and even some ditalini. Students collected pasta goods including tomato sauce, pasta, and cheese all month long. Grade levels competed to bring in the most items for an extra recess period and our fourth graders ended up victorious! Big thank you to Carlos and Dominic Mercado for extending the opportunity to our school, Mrs. Coia for delegating the important task to our safeties and ambassadors, and our families for your generous donations that will feed hundreds of hungry community members.

Just a reminder of our upcoming schedule. Tomorrow, April 17, will be a legal attendance day (half day) at all schools. Please make appropriate arrangements for transportation or, if your child rides a bus, to have someone available to greet them. School hours can be found here: https://5il.co/2rynu All schools will be closed Friday, April 18-25 for spring break. Our regular schedule will resume on Monday, April 28. Have a wonderful break!

Miss Christina and Miss Sam’s class at All Kids First Preschool enjoyed a day of springtime fun during their first annual Easter Egg Hunt and Easter Bunny visit. The little ones searched for colorful eggs, posed for pictures, and celebrated the season with plenty of smiles and excitement.

Mennies School proudly joined in supporting Dominic Mercado’s Pasta Party fundraiser, an annual tradition where Dominic collects pasta and sauce for the Vineland Soup Kitchen in honor of his birthday. This year, our school community jumped on board to help his amazing cause. Thanks to the generosity of the Mennies Family, we were able to donate bags of pasta and sauce to help feed those in need. We’re so proud to support a student-led initiative that truly makes a difference. Way to go, Dominic!

On Wednesday, April 16th, Vineland FFA had a visit from National FFA officer Jack Lingenfelter. Jack, who is from Georgia, serves as the National Southern Region Vice President. Jack worked with Vineland FFA members, talking about their community and the value they add to our own community. As a newly chartered chapter this was a great opportunity to have a visit from a National Officer. Vineland FFA student advisor Jenna Pollock took Jack for a tour around our agriculture classroom and greenhouse. “Jack was so fun and had all our students engaged," said Annaliese Castellini, FFA advisor. He also showed our students the back of his jacket, which just features the FFA emblem, our jackets represent our chapter and members, and his jacket represents the over one million FFA members across the country.

This meeting is open to all families of students who have IEPs. We hope you'll join us!

At Mennies, we celebrated March Madness with an Attendance Contest to encourage students to come to school every day! Six students with perfect attendance for the entire month of March were randomly selected to enjoy Pizza with the Principal in Mrs. O'Donoghue's conference room! Each student received a certificate and a special attendance pin to honor their commitment. We are so proud of our students who make the effort to be here each and every day—your dedication does not go unnoticed! Congratulations to the winners! Aurora Watson Elizabeth Carrasco Franchesca Therlonges Skye Alvarado Armritnoor Singh Christian Hernandez Vargas

Marie Durand Elementary School was recently recognized by the New Jersey Department of Education as one of just 52 schools across the state demonstrating exceptional growth in student performance during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. As part of this recognition, Durand was selected to participate in the Promising Practices Project—a statewide research initiative aimed at identifying innovative strategies schools used to support students through unprecedented challenges. The school’s success earned them an invitation to the NJ Promising Practices Summit held on April 7, 2025, at Rutgers University. Hosted by the New Jersey State Policy Lab and the Joseph C. Cornwall Center for Metropolitan Studies, the summit brought together educators, researchers, and policymakers to spotlight the schools leading the way in post-pandemic recovery. Representing Durand were Principal Dan Greco and teacher Tina Leo, who not only accepted the recognition but also presented in both the morning and afternoon sessions—an honor granted to only a select few schools. Their two presentations highlighted the thoughtful, data-driven approaches Durand implemented to support student learning: • "Implementing Individualized Student Data Sheets" showcased how Durand transformed traditional report card conversations into dynamic, skills-based discussions anchored in real-time student data. By focusing on achievement levels rather than grades alone, teachers and families gained clearer insight into each student’s growth and academic needs. • "Supporting Struggling Early Learners through Developmental First and Third Grades" detailed how Durand created specialized classrooms for emerging readers and mathematicians—students who had foundational knowledge but needed additional support to catch up to grade-level expectations. These classrooms emphasized small-group instruction, early relationship-building through optional summer programming, and integration with the general curriculum to ensure students felt like part of the broader learning community. The result: consistent academic gains, with most students making more than a year’s progress in reading and catching up to their peers in math. Through a rigorous data analysis of student outcomes in English Language Arts and mathematics, researchers at Rutgers University identified Durand as a positive outlier—a school whose performance stood out even amid the challenges of the pandemic. Reflecting on the experience, Principal Dan Greco shared, “This recognition and experience provided our entire staff with an opportunity to reflect on and celebrate some of the most impactful programs and initiatives that we implemented over the past few years. The Promising Practices Summit truly was an opportunity to showcase the entire Durand Elementary School Community. We are so proud of the environment we maintain for our students.” Superintendent Alfonso Llano, who attended the summit and watched the presentations, added, “It was an absolute privilege to be there in person to support Mr. Greco and Mrs. Leo. Seeing our district’s work recognized on a statewide stage—and watching our staff lead those conversations—was a proud moment for all of us.” The summit marks not only a recognition of past success but also an opportunity for Durand to help shape the future of education in New Jersey. As the Promising Practices Project continues, the strategies shared by Durand will serve as a model for schools across the state looking to implement innovative, research-backed methods for student support and academic recovery.

The Latino Family Literacy Project, hosted at Dallago Preschool, just completed its 4th annual six-week program! Led by the Preschool Bilingual Instructional Coach, Matty Romano, and Preschool Community & Parent Involvement Specialist (CPIS), Brandi Gatier, families with Spanish as their primary language were invited to participate in the project that focused on goals of: Establishing & supporting a family reading routine Improving English language skills Improving Spanish literacy skills Strengthening parent/child interactions Each week, the families were taught a specific literacy skill that they could incorporate at home, either in play or while reading to their children. Each family made their own book to bring home that consisted of family photos, letter & number cards, an alphabet chart, and pages with shapes, colors, and emotions (all in both English and Spanish). Working closely and learning new things together made the families feel comfortable, relaxed, and able to form new friendships and connections with the school! For our final meeting, parents put the finishing touches on their family book, enjoyed refreshments, completed an application for a Vineland Public Library card, and met with Ms. Flor Cruz - Social Worker with the City of Vineland Health Department. Families also had the opportunity to meet with the Vineland Preschool Social Worker, Mrs. LeAnne Varvaro, and the Preschool Supervisor, Mrs. Stephanie Staffieri, who stopped by to see the participant’s amazing final projects. Not only did all of the families take home their personalized books, but they also received 22 new books to add to their home libraries!!! Families were also given new materials to incorporate learning through play at home. A warm thank you to Superintendent, Mr. Alfonso Q. Llano and Mrs. Jacqueline Roman-Alvarez, Supervisor of Multilingual Learning, allocating the grant funding to make this opportunity possible for our families. The project was a huge success and we can’t wait to see how many families will join next year!

It was another great week in our elementary gifted and talented program! Check out the highlights here: https://www.canva.com/design/DAGkR-uJoyc/FvfKdikxgBiERNHGhqxLrA/view?utm_content=DAGkR-uJoyc&utm_campaign=designshare&utm_medium=link2&utm_source=uniquelinks&utlId=h342f23fed7

Save the Date! Our senior student-athletes will be honored on Friday, May 23, at the annual Senior Athletic Ceremony. Student-athletes are free. Guests are required to purchase tickets.

Mrs. McManus's class at Durand Elementary wrapped up a unit on clouds by making a flip book describing the four different types of clouds. All week, students have been learning how clouds are made, what they are made of, why they are white, and the four different types of clouds. They wrote the characteristics of each cloud on the inside flap, then created that type of cloud on the front with cotton balls. Everyone enjoyed creating their own clouds in this hands-on activity!

Happy Assistant Principals Week to all of our awesome Assistant Principals at Vineland High School! The CTE (Career & Technical Education) students were excited to design and deliver a cheerful flower arrangement to our Assistant Principals. Thank you for supporting all of our staff and students at VHS Asselta and VHS Tanner!

The Vineland FFA Chapter will be holding its spring plant sale in May! Vineland FFA is a part of our agriculture science CTE program at Vineland High School. FFA is a national organization that promotes leadership, personal growth, and career success. Our Agriculture program consists of four courses that students can take all four years in high school. Our courses are recognized for credits to Rutgers University and Delaware Valley University. Vineland FFA members have been working hard growing in our greenhouse. All funds raised go towards our FFA chapter to pay for competition fees, leadership fees, and bussing. Thank you for your support!