Newtown Public Schools | |
---|---|
Location | |
United States | |
District information | |
Type | Public |
Grades | Pre-kindergarten to 12 [1] |
Superintendent | Dr. Lorrie Rodrigue [2] |
Schools | 9 [1] |
Budget | $92,130,000 (2012-2013 school year) [1] |
NCES District ID | 0902910 [1] |
Students and staff | |
Students | 5,298 [1] |
Teachers | 380.33 (on an FTE basis) [1] |
Student–teacher ratio | 14.63 [1] |
Other information | |
Website | www |
Newtown Public Schools is a school district in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. As of 2013 [update] it contained seven schools, with a total enrollment of 5298, [3] an increase of 1663 since 1994. [4] It comprises 2.64% of Fairfield County (0.53% of the state). [4] Teachers in the school district are paid more than average for the area, which has in the past led to complaints from neighboring districts of staff being poached from them. [5]
In 2012, the district's Sandy Hook Elementary School became the scene of the second deadliest school shooting in U.S history when Adam Lanza shot and killed 26 people, 20 of which were children six and seven years old.
The building that now houses Hawley School was built from donations to Newtown by Mary Elizabeth Hawley in 1921, and was named after her parents. It was a modern building for the time, having central heating, an auditorium, a chemistry laboratory, and fireproofing; however, it lacks modern facilities with respect to other schools in the district, such as central air conditioning. By 1950, the school had become so overcrowded that an extension was built at the rear of the building and some of the old one-room schoolhouses were re-opened. The Newtown High School was located in this building from 1921 to 1953, when it was moved to a new building on Queen Street. The Hawley building was re-used as an elementary school, serving kindergarten to grade 8. The high school moved from Queen Street in 1970, and the Queen Street building became what is today Newtown Middle School, with the Hawley elementary school reduced to serving kindergarten to grade 4. [6] [7] [8]
The playground facilities used by Hawley School were once the Newtown Fairgrounds. They became Taylor Field, owned by Cornelius Byron Taylor, who donated the field to the town at the same time as Hawley donated the building. [7]
On May 10, 2013, a task force voted unanimously to demolish the existing Sandy Hook Elementary School and construct a new school on the existing site. [9]
On December 14, 2012, Adam Lanza shot his mother at home, then killed 26 people (20 children and 6 staff) and himself at Sandy Hook Elementary School. [10] It was the fourth-deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history. [a] It was also the second-deadliest school shooting in U.S. history, after the Virginia Tech shooting, and the deadliest at any U.S. elementary school. [11] [12] [13]
Sandy Hook Elementary did not reopen after the shooting; the school's student body moved to the then-closed Chalk Hill Middle School in nearby Monroe on January 3, 2013. [14] Donna Page, the school's former principal, became the interim principal, telling parents it was her "calling" to return after the tragedy. She was the principal for 14 years before retiring in 2010. [15]
Many residents of Newtown expressed support for turning the site of the shooting at the former Sandy Hook Elementary School building into a memorial. [16]
The town decided the most appropriate course of action would be to tear down the old school and build a new school on the same site. Demolition took place in October and November 2013. [17] The demolition of the school was highly guarded and workers were required to sign confidentiality agreements to protect the victims and their families. The town accepted a state grant of $49.3 million to cover the costs of the demolition and construction. [18] [19] The new school opened on August 29, 2016. [20]
This section needs to be updated.(July 2016) |
School | Type | Location | Grades | Enrollment (year) | Teaching staff (year) | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Newtown High School | High school | Sandy Hook | 9-12 | 1,679 (2016) | 124 (2012) | Won Blue Ribbon school status |
Newtown Middle School | Middle school | Newtown | 7–8 [3] | 897 (2012) [3] | 70 (2012) [3] | Previously the high school, see #History [6] |
Reed Intermediate School | Intermediate school | Newtown | 5–6 [3] | 895 (2012) [3] | 55 (2012) [3] | The school is named after John Reed, who was superintendent of schools in the district for 20 years. [21] |
Hawley School | Elementary school | Newtown | Kindergarten–4 [3] | 416 (2012) [3] | 26 (2012) [3] | Previously the high school, see #History [6] |
Middle Gate School | Elementary school | Newtown 41°21′59″N73°16′26″W / 41.3665°N 73.2740°W | Kindergarten–4 [3] | 480 (2012) [3] | 33 (2012) [3] | |
Head O'Meadow School | Elementary school | Newtown | Kindergarten–4 [3] | 369 (2012) [3] | 24 (2012) [3] | |
Sandy Hook Elementary School | Elementary school | Newtown | Kindergarten–4 [3] | 337 (2016) [22] | 38 (2012) [23] | Site of the December 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. - Old Sandy Hook school demolished after shooting - New Sandy Hook school opened on August 29, 2016 |
Remington Arms Company, LLC, was an American manufacturer of firearms and ammunition. It was formerly owned by the Remington Outdoor Company, which went bankrupt in 2020 with its lines of business sold to several purchasers. Two resulting companies each bear the Remington name—the firearms manufacturer is Remington Firearms owned by RemArms, LLC., and the ammunition business is Remington Ammunition owned by Vista Outdoor Inc.
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Newtown is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. It is part of the Greater Danbury area as well as the New York metropolitan area. Newtown was founded in 1705, and later incorporated in 1711. As of the 2020 census, its population was 27,173. The town is part of the Western Connecticut Planning Region.
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The history of Newtown, Connecticut.
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The December 14, 2012, Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting—in which a gunman shot and killed his mother at home, 20 students, 6 teachers, then himself—received international attention. Governments and world leaders offered their condolences, while tributes and vigils by people were made in honor of the victims. U.S. President Barack Obama gave a televised address on the day of the shootings, saying, "We're going to have to come together and take meaningful action to prevent more tragedies like this, regardless of the politics." Obama paused twice during the address to compose himself and wipe away tears, and expressed "enormous sympathy for families that are affected". He also ordered flags to be flown at half-staff at the White House and other U.S. federal government facilities worldwide in respect for the victims. Three days after the massacre, 151,000 Americans had signed up at the Obama administration's We the People petitioning website in support of a renewed national debate on gun control. Obama attended and spoke at an interfaith vigil on December 16 in Newtown, Connecticut.
Victoria Leigh Soto was an American teacher who was killed in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. After the gunman, Adam Lanza, entered the school, she hid her students in her classroom. When Lanza entered Soto’s classroom, Soto claimed that the students were in the gym room. Lanza then shot Soto, causing the students to run from their hiding places. She was reportedly shot four times by Lanza and died trying to shield them with her body. She has since been hailed as a hero. She is a posthumous recipient of the Presidential Citizens Medal.
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Christopher Lyddy is an American politician who served in the Connecticut House of Representatives from the 106th district from 2009 to 2013. He was previously elected to the Town of Newtown's Legislative Council where in his first run for office received the highest number of votes of any council candidate during the 2007 election, surprising veteran politicos in Newtown and throughout the region.
Joseph Theodore Lewis is an American school safety advocate. Lewis started Newtown Helps Rwanda, a charity that raised money for survivors of the 1994 Rwandan genocide as well as former child soldiers in Uganda. He previously was a candidate in the 2020 elections for Connecticut state senator for the 28th district, dropping out before the August primaries to work on a national campaign. His younger brother Jesse Lewis was a victim of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown, Connecticut.
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