As principal of Milton School, I welcome you to our website.  Milton School is, indeed, a very special place.  For the past nineteen years, in my role as principal, I have had the pleasure of collaborating with a supportive and caring parent body, a highly dedicated and inspirational faculty and staff, and an inquisitive, motivated, and talented student body.  Milton School is located within a community that consistently devotes its resources and energy to sustaining our exemplary school system. As a resident of Rye, I enjoy meeting our families in town as they share the wonderful accomplishments of their children in secondary school, college, and beyond.

In order to fulfill our mission of: “developing respectful, responsible, life-long learners who are able to achieve their highest potential and contribute to their school and community,” we provide many, varied opportunities to our students.

A rich, comprehensive Cultural Arts program is supported by the PTO and aligned with New York State Standards and the district Strategic Priorities.  Each year the program is refined to meet our needs, and special events are planned for each grade throughout the year, such as the kindergarten art/music multicultural program, first grade Children’s Museum STEM program, second grade Energy Day, third grade Japanese Festival, fourth grade Colonial Day, and fifth grade Visual Literacy event.

In support of our district’s reading and writing initiative, Reader’s and Writer’s Workshop, activities, such as a school-wide Read-a-Thon, Family Reading Night, and book fairs captured our students’ passion for reading and writing as they raised funding for our school.  In addition, through the generosity of our parents, classroom libraries have been expanded to include both fiction and nonfiction titles for each component of Reader’s and Writer’s Workshop.

As our faculty, staff and students strive for their very best work, their efforts are supported by several programs that emphasize a healthy lifestyle, including exercise, nutrition, stress reduction, and allergy awareness.  Our new “Mindfulness” initiative has received rave reviews. Faculty and staff members participate in training sessions and “Mindful Sits” to acquire strategies, such as breathing exercises, and visualization to foster relaxation and focus for themselves and their students.  To reduce test anxiety, our students were treated to Yoga sessions prior to testing.  Our Jump-Rope-For-Heart program continues to be a resounding success; students learn about nutrition, exercise and the circulatory system while they engage in a fun-filled event that also raises funding for our school.  Our entire school community also celebrates Allergy Awareness Week and participates in Walk-to-School Week.

Fostering citizenship and respect is at the root of our Character Education program.  Through our Responsive Classroom philosophy and accompanying strategies, students acquire important communication, thinking, and organization skills as they participate in a strong community of learners.

To further enhance the fabric of our Milton School community and prevent bullying, we have implemented the “Start with Hello” program which focuses on relationships and the value of every member of our school and community. Student leaders, such as members of the Student Council and Lunch Bunch play an important role in encouraging positive relationships. All Milton School students participate in the St. Jude Math-a-thon to raise funding for the prevention of childhood cancer as they develop their math skills.

Character Education also extends to protecting our environment.  Our active Milton School Environment Committee focuses on conserving natural resources and beautifying the school and community. In recent years, our parents, teachers and students created a lovely butterfly garden and a vegetable garden tended by all members of our school community. The student recycling team collects and recycles paper goods throughout the week, and everyone at Milton enjoys the new water refilling station funded by the PTO.  The entire Milton School community participates in Earth Week activities to become informed citizens who conserve natural resources.

We invite you to participate in our special events throughout the year and to observe our school activities on our Visix screen in the main lobby.

At Milton School we truly are: Roaring with Pride!