November 14, 2025
Dear Saxe MS Family,
We had another chock-full week at Saxe MS this week! Thank you for taking the time to scan through and see some snapshots of what sets our school community apart from others. This week in the Saxe Weekly, we take a look at the latest Saxe MS podcast, Veterans’ Day, Kindness Week, Saxe Clubs, a Lost & Found reminder, Giving Season, a Thanksgiving Food Drive, Native American Heritage Month, NC Cares event, the first snowflakes of the season, staff professional learning, updated learning spaces, a Celebrate Saxe pizza lunch, our mascot “in the wild”, Science, Social Studies, ELA, gratitude, scenes around Saxe (&, beyond), Dogs of Saxe, and much more. Enjoy and have a wonderful weekend!
Be Well,
Dave Gusitsch
Principal, Saxe Middle School
Upcoming Noteworthy Dates:
11/19 Education Support Professionals Day
11/19 NC Cares Community Speaker (Lenore Skenazy)
11/26 Early Dismissal-Thanksgiving Vacation-No Homework
11/27 – 11/28 Thanksgiving Vacation
*Quotes that resonated with us this week:
“To bring about change, you must not be afraid to take the first step.”-Rosa Parks
“The whole purpose of education is to turn mirrors into windows.” – Sydney J. Harris
“Education is an admirable thing, but it is well to remember from time to time that nothing that is worth knowing can be taught.” ~ Oscar Wilde
“It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop.” — Confucius
Saxe Jokes of the week:
What’s the best song to play while cooking a turkey?” “All about that baste.”
NASA is launching a satellite to say sorry to the aliens. They’re calling it APOLLO G!
Why was the computer late for work? It had a hard drive.
Why are fish so easy to weigh? Because they have their own set of scales!
Saxe Weekly: The Podcast
Interested in getting an overview of the latest Saxe Weekly in podcast form? Using Google’s Notebook LM, we are able to offer an option to listen to all of the great “goings on” in our school community while you are “on the go”, with the Saxe MS Podcast! We invite you to give it a listen… Enjoy!
Veterans’ Day
This week, our students were able to hear important information about Veterans’ Day, directly from Veterans. Over the course of the week, there were assemblies in the auditorium, Zoom calls with active duty members, and acknowledgements of staff members and/or family members who have served in the United States armed forces. Messages and stories about commitment, planning, dedication, patriotism, teamwork, responsibility, resilience, and so much more were part of the experience our students got to have, and oftentimes, from people they know! This is such a meaningful way to celebrate and honor all who have served, and we are grateful to all who were involved in making it happen. Here is the announcement that was read to students, including all of our Saxe staff members who are veterans!
A special thanks to our Saxe SRO, Officer Blank, who is also an active duty service member of the US Army National Guard, for moderating the panels for each assembly! Here is a peek at our 7th-grade assembly:
Our panel included Ms. Smith’s husband, who brought their son to hear him speak about his experience in the Marines, and it was cute to see them acknowledge each other from across the auditorium 🙂
We are grateful for this dedicated panel of veterans who not only dutifully served our great country, they also continue to give back by sharing their experiences, stories, and advice with our Saxe MS students. Thank you, you are appreciated!
And, our 8th-graders also heard from this terrific panel of veterans, to learn more about why Veterans’ Day is so important to our students, families, & community & why we live in the best country in the world! Thank you to all who have, or continue to, serve!
Students on 7Green got to hear from Ms. Reed’s nephew Chris, who is a Captain in the US Army, through a virtual meet-up this week. Students were able to ask questions, and he shared experiences from his time at West Point and as a paratrooper with the Army Airborne unit (previously in Vicenza, Italy, and soon to be in Anchorage, Alaska). Students collaborated and asked some terrific questions! They also got to hear about some great life lessons that lead to success – planning, dedication, digital awareness/safety, hard work, trust, to name a few…
Kindness Week
Thank you to School Counselor, Ms. Beltran, for sharing the image below, in Honor of World Kindness Day!
The equation is really quite simple 🙂
Color for a Cause
Thank you to 8Red for sharing their updated bulletin board with “Color for a Cause”! We will be taking a closer look next week to share a few of the causes that mean the most to our students…
Saxe Clubs
Students in Dungeons & Dragons Club are embarking on an exciting campaign together, journeying through mysterious worlds and solving riddles through the power of storytelling and imagination. Students have been collaborating, strategizing, and bringing their characters to life as they navigate challenges and shape the story’s outcome. It’s been amazing to see creativity, teamwork, and critical thinking in action as the adventurers write their own legends one roll of the dice at a time!
Lost and Found
Thank you to our dedicated Saxe Custodians for keeping the Lost & Found so neat & orderly! Next month, we will pack everything up and donate it to a worthy organization (as we have always done in the past). So, please stop by and take a look to see if anything belongs to you!
Here are a few pics that were taken to share with staff to remind students, too:
Giving Season
We received the following message from a former Saxe student and felt it was worthy of sharing during this season of giving. If you would like to participate, please read on!
I hope this message finds you well. I’m writing on behalf of the Voices for Change Podcast Club at New Canaan High School. Our students are organizing a “Fill a Plate” Food Drive from November 10 – 21 to benefit the Thomas Merton Family Center’s food pantry in Bridgeport, which provides nutritious groceries to hundreds of local families each month.
We’re inviting Saxe Middle School families to support this effort in two ways:
- Donate online via our Amazon Wish List – high‑priority items such as canned tuna and chicken, peanut butter and jelly, rice and pasta can be purchased at www.tinyurl.com/tmfcwishes and will be shipped directly to the pantry.
- Drop off non-perishable goods – peanut butter, pasta, rice, canned vegetables, tuna, cereal and soup can be brought to the collection boxes outside the NCHS Guidance Office between Nov 10 and Nov 21.
If you have any questions or need additional details, please feel free to reach out. Thank you for considering our request and for supporting community service efforts that help our neighbors in need.
Warm regards,
Voices for Change Podcast Club
Thanksgiving Food Drive
Reminder that this Monday (11/17), is the last day for donations for the Saxe Thanksgiving Food Drive, coordinated by the 7th & 8th grade Leadership Team! Please see the following flyer for requested items, which will go to the local New Canaan Food Pantry. Thank you for your contributions to help provide Thanksgiving meals for local families!
Native American Heritage Month
November is Native American Heritage Month—a time to celebrate and recognize the many contributions and rich traditions of Native Americans across our country. Today, we celebrate Tecumseh, Navajo Code Talkers, Allan Houser, Dr. Kat Milligan-McClellan, and Marilynn “Lynn” Malerba.
NC Cares Speaker
Save the date, she is an engaging speaker!
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Below are photos and phrases that were included on our Saxe Middle School page (@SaxeMS) this week. Enjoy!
It’s a beautiful day at Saxe MS today. We are grateful to be able to honor many veterans both in person & beyond. Happy Veterans’ Day & thank you to all who have served!
We have displays all around Saxe MS to honor veterans this week. It’s special for our staff to be able to share family members who have served. I’m proud to share my Dad, who served in the USAF, working on B-47s, & my brother, who flew the MH60 Blackhawk in the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment in the US Army.
The pictures don’t necessarily do it justice, but the snow was flying around Saxe MS today! You never really outgrow that first snowfall feeling/excitement!
As we recognize the sacrifices that have been made for our great country on this Veterans’ Day, hearing the inspiring story of Medal of Honor winner Sammy Lee Davis at the AMLE conference last week, for his courageous efforts in Vietnam, was certainly one of the most amazing!
His unbelievable story, including important life lessons, has been captured in the book, You Don’t Lose Until You Quit Trying.
Hearing the inspiring story of Mr. Davis for his courageous efforts in Vietnam, was amazing… Hearing him share the story about the harmonica that his Mom sent him over 6 decades ago, and then hearing him play Shenandoah on it, live? Unreal! (Click to listen!)
Finding out he was the ACTUAL Forrest Gump (they used video from his ceremony, and his story, for the movie), was also pretty incredible…
The “bench sign” on East Ave. was in line with our Veterans’ Day celebrations at Saxe MS this week! Thanks to all who have served!
This week, our Saxe MS Staff Meeting was in the “Think Space” (upper library) to dive into the “Curiosity” competency of our NCPS Portrait of a Graduate… The newly updated space served as a great spot to collaborate with colleagues & capture the thinking of each group!
This week, our Saxe MS Staff Meeting was held in the “Think Space” to dive into the “Curiosity” competency of our NCPS Portrait of a Graduate… We also heard about other recently updated spaces around the building from our Tech/STEM specialists, Ms. Nicholas & Mr. Petrakopoulos!
Work continues around Saxe MS! Here are a couple of updates to our Saxe Library “Think Space” & the adjacent “Production Lab”.
We got to enjoy the great company of this Saxe MS 7th-grade crew as we held our first Celebrate Saxe “Pizza Lunch”… Congrats to all!
Our mascot (Click to see the hawk!) was spotted just hanging out around our Saxe MS campus this week!
Rain or shine, the Saxe MS morning crew has remained committed to their morning routine!
Some engaging conversations in Saxe Science this week as students used evidence to discuss factors in climate impacts & patterns…
Students in Saxe SS used multiple resources to collaborate & come to a consensus on the country of Brazil & the global influences & impacts that went along with it. Great discussions!
The Saxe MS 7 Blue “word of the week” is a great one! We can all benefit from being more “resilient”, especially when the going inevitably gets tough… Can’t wait to hear the haikus!
Students in Mr. Devine’s Saxe SS class were “putting in the work” as they prepared to meet up virtually with Ms. Reed’s nephew, who is currently actively serving in the US Army. What a great opportunity as we honored all who have served for Veterans’ Day this week!
Another great spread for TGIF breakfast at Saxe MS… Thanks to the Hospitality Crew & anyone else involved!
Any guess where these two are heading?! Good luck to you and your teammates at the meet this weekend!
Scenes Around Saxe (and, beyond)…
Thanks to Ms. Perretti for sharing a picture of our mascot, from across the Sound in Long Island!
We have shared some of Ms. Jarosik’s photos before, but these two recent ones of a humpback whale with the Sagamore Bridge in the background, & Lady Liberty in the foreground of last week’s Beaver Moon, are pretty amazing, & worth sharing, too!
Hopefully, some members of our community had a chance to catch the fabulous celestial display that was put on by a tremendous solar flare this week! I have seen the northern lights extend this far south before, but not quite like this… These pictures were taken outside my house in Bethel, and the photos don’t quite do it justice – what a treat to see!
Dogs of Saxe
Rosie was one of our favorite Dogs of Saxe this week!
Have a great week, see you next Friday!
Thank you to all of our Saxe Weekly contributors! Each weekly edition is an example of collaboration in action. A special thanks to Melissa DiMeglio for the continuous stream of positive, optimistic quotes!
Saxe Resources (live links)
Website: https://www.ncps-k12.org/saxe
Saxe Middle School
Celebrating Our Learning Community Through Caring, Communication, & Commitment
