Student Harvest of Awards and Trophies

By Ann DeCerbo

Sixth grader Kendra Link was awarded the 2014 Botelle Superintendent’s Award at the November Board of Education meeting.  The award, presented by Superintendent Mary Beth Iacobelli, is based on “community service and service to others, academic success and leadership service to the school community.” Botelle traditions of service and excellence were again celebrated when Botelle alum, current eighth-grade student Caroline Crone, received a Northwestern Regional #7 Superintendent Award this month. Kendra and Caroline, with their parents, will join other award recipients for a dinner in their honor at the Cornucopia Banquet Hall in late November.

This year, the Botelle athletic fields hosted the area’s Youth Soccer Tournament’s championship games. League teams from the towns of Colebrook, Barkhamsted, Winsted, New Hartford, Hartland and Norfolk competed. Botelle’s PTO offered the crowd a full assortment of breakfast and lunch options. The third- and fourth-grade division title was captured by a team from Norfolk. After a suspenseful game that remained in a tie after double-overtime, Cody Lang scored the championship goal in the final round of a sudden-death shoot-out.

Third-, fourth-, and fifth-grade teachers from throughout the Regional #7 school district met at Botelle this month to collaborate on curriculums for writing and math. In October, kindergarten, first- and second-grade teachers held similar meetings with regional colleagues at the Barkhamsted elementary school. These regional meetings provide enriching professional development opportunities, offering an expanded experience pool and helping to align teaching practices with current state mandates and initiatives.

In recent weeks, Botelle successfully completed two important safety drills—a lockdown drill and an offsite evacuation. Principal Matthew O’Connell reports, “The drills would not have worked so well without the support of the Connecticut State Police, The Norfolk Volunteer Fire Department, staff at NELC, members of our Safety and Security Committee and the leadership of our teacher and support staffs.”