August 13, 2025
Dear Saxe MS Students and Families,
It is my hope this letter finds you well and enjoying each moment that the summer months bring! As we begin the transition of shifting our thinking to the upcoming 2025-26 school year, we eagerly anticipate building upon the positive momentum from the past year. Our goal is to provide the best for our students, and families, learn important academic and life lessons/skills along the way, and have fun while doing it! It truly is an honor and a privilege to serve in this wonderful town of New Canaan, in the special learning community that is Saxe Middle School, and I am continually humbled to be surrounded by some of the best professionals that the field of education has to offer.
Looking ahead to August 26th, we will have new “leaders” in our building as our 8th-graders return to the building, prepared to set a positive example representing the meaningful values that we hold within our school community. Our 7th-graders will be learning what it means to be in “middle school” and the responsibilities and expectations that come along with being a year older within our school system. And, some students will be joining us by stepping foot into the building for the first time, ever. Regardless of which best describes you, we eagerly look forward to the upcoming school year and are optimistic and enthusiastic that we will continue to provide the best environment possible for us all to enjoy, learn, and grow in!
Below are a few noteworthy updates and some relevant information as we look ahead to our return…
Digital Wellness
As we have seen, our move to Phone Free Schools last year, and a general emphasis on digital wellness, was hugely beneficial to students (and, adults) in the way we operate within our building during school hours. We will continue to build upon this, and students are reminded to bring their Yondr pouches on day 1 (there will be pouches available for students who are new to Saxe, or in need of one).
“One-Word”
For those who have been part of our Saxe community, you may recall the concept of “one word” that has seen us weave in caring, community, connected, united, and believe into our work and focus throughout the past several years. Reflecting on feedback from staff, and the work we will be focusing on this year, we have landed on “Inspire” as our “one word” for 2025-26. For students, we feel it is important for them to know, recognize, and feel that there is more than coming to school and going through the motions each day. We recognize there is more than simply choosing a “word” to positively impact our school culture, but we plan to be purposeful in our approach for our students to be truly inspired by the experiences they will have over the course of the year. This is part of what makes Saxe MS special!
Student & Parent Voice
At the beginning of each year, we share a Google form to provide an opportunity to hear from our students and families. It includes a section to ask questions and/or an opportunity to simply share what you are most looking forward to. For those of you who wish to participate, all questions are optional, and you will be helping us plan and/or reinforce all that we have to celebrate and be grateful for at Saxe Middle School!
New Staff
As is the case each year, we open our arms to warmly welcome our newest staff members. We also welcome returning staff members into new or revised roles. This year, please join in welcoming:
| Staff Member: | Assignment: | Staff Member: | Assignment: |
| Tori Aufiero | Building Intern (&, G8 SS) | Katie Bagely | Specialized Social Work |
| Anne Marie Carlson | Special Education | Joseph Christinat | Special Education TA |
| Lara Dower | School Psychologist | Ouaria Martin | French |
| Dan Martinelli | Daytime Custodian | Amir Preston | Special Education TA |
| Peter Stacom | Special Education |
| Returning in a new (&/or, “non-temporary”) role: | |||
| Sam Christel | G8 Science (Temp sub) | Mike Fiorillo | Grade 7 Math |
| Jessy Giannetta | Art | Clinton Norton | French |
| Patty Potts | Special Education (Temp sub) | ||
We are rounding out some of our final hires and will be excited to announce them soon as well. Keep an eye out for their “Welcome Bios” in the Saxe Weekly, too. Each year, it is a celebration to welcome each person to “Our Saxe Middle School Family”!
Words of Advice
The following “Best Middle School parenting advice” article was recently shared by the Association of Middle Level Education (AMLE) CEO, Stephanie Simpson. It was crowdsourced by educators from across the country and sums up what our students (children) are, or will be, going through, together with us. This snippet captures the beauty of middle level education, and whether this is your 1st, or 5th, go-around with this developmental stage, the entire article is worth the read.
“Middle school is a glorious mess of growth, goofs, and grit. Your job isn’t to pave a perfect path but to be a steady guide. Embrace the weird, cheer the tries, and let your kid stumble a bit—they’ll learn to soar. And you? You’ll survive this adventure too with a few laughs and a lot of love.”
Upcoming Dates
Below you will find important dates and information regarding our return to school. More details may also be found on our website &/or the Saxe PTC website:
| Tuesday, 8/19 | *PowerSchool Portal opens to view schedules/classes(Questions on PS Access? Please follow this link, or call Ms. Jarosik: 594-4564). | Late afternoon (after 3:00 p.m.) |
| Wednesday, 8/20 | Grades 7, 8 New Student Orientation | 2:00 – 3:30 |
| Tuesday, 8/26 | Welcome Back, Saxe Middle School students! | 8:00 a.m. (doors open at 7:40) |
| Tuesday, 9/16 | Saxe PTC Welcome Back Coffee @ Waveny House | 10:30 a.m |
(More detailed information about specific events (Open House, Parent Coffees, Photo Day, etc.) will be sent out in the near future).
* Please note: The scheduling process is an extremely involved process that takes into account the needs of every student while evenly balancing all students across the 4 teams in each grade level. Once the PowerSchool Portal opens, schedules are not able to be changed. Thank you for your understanding.
There are many moving parts that make a school building come alive and provide a rich learning experience, for all. We foster a balance between academics, the arts, and extracurricular activities in educating the whole child during this transformational period in the lives of our students. And, we make sure to have some fun along the way! Whatever the chosen path for each individual student, it is our intent to nurture and grow good, resilient people who care about one another and their community. Every stakeholder matters, and each plays a role in making up Saxe Middle School. We are Saxe Middle School, and we want to provide the best, safest, most well-rounded, experience possible for our entire learning community!
In addition to the above information, we will be sending more specifics about the start of the year, soon. We will also be celebrating our Saxe students, staff, and activities through our weekly newsletter (saxems.com), our website, and our X (Twitter) handle, @SaxeMS if you would like to check those out. I look forward to connecting, or reconnecting, with each of you over the course of the year.
Wishing you a wonderful remainder of your summer, and we look forward to seeing you soon!
Best,
Mr. David M. Gusitsch
Principal, Saxe Middle School
