Jacksonwald

It’s An Exeter Karaoke Throw-Down!

photo of Alex Brown and Saishree Mupparaju
It’s an Exeter Karaoke throw-down! Exeter Township Junior High Principal Alex Brown and Exeter Township Senior High student Saishree Mupparaju are among local “celebrities” looking for your vote to see who will perform their chosen Karaoke song live in the 1st Annual Raise Your VOiCE Celebrity Karaoke Contest. To vote for Brown or Mupparaju (as part of a trio called the “Girl Gang”) to perform, you can donate an amount of your choosing at https://secure.givelively.org/donate/berks-county-community-foundation-inc/1st-annual-raise-your-voice-celebrity-karaoke. The top three contestants who raise the most amount of money will perform live on Friday, April 29th at the GoggleWorks (or you can view the performances live via Zoom).
Mupparaju and Brown are competing against five other local Berks County “celebrities,” including Dr. Kevin Terefenko, Dr. Denny Mauro, Stephanie Delozier, Rick Perez and Rob Flowers. All proceeds from vote donations benefit VOiCEup Berks and the Youth Volunteer Corps of Reading.

ETSD Names New Member During Special Voting Meeting

The Exeter Township Board of School Directors unanimously selected Robert Quinter to fill the vacated seat left by Michael Jupina’s resignation during a special voting meeting held at the Exeter Township Administration Building on Tuesday, March 29, 2022. During the meeting, the Board interviewed three candidates–Brad Fox, John Scaccia and Mr. Quinter–who applied for the unpaid seat and selected one through a vote according to Board Policy #004. Mr. Quinter will serve the rest of Mr. Jupina’s term, which expires in December 2023. 

Mr. Quinter is a 1964 graduate of Exeter, a decorated and retired Marine, and has worked in medical operations and as a Realtor as a civilian. He previously served on the ETSD Board of School Directors from 2001-2017.

To view a video of the interviews and selection process, please click HERE.

March Madness Comes to Jacksonwald

Karlee Schmidt's 3rd grade class
march madness book bracket

The end of March is traditionally known for its crazy weather (check!), anticipation of spring (check!), and for sports lovers everywhere, the last few games of the NCAA "March Madness" basketball tournament and surprise bracket-busting upsets. In looking for new ways to engage her students and encourage their love of reading, Miss Karlee Schmidt, a third grade teacher at Jacksonwald (and sports aficionado herself who makes a bracket every year), thought that her students would love a similar-style bracket competition with a twist--instead of guessing which basketball team was favored to win, they'd select 16 books to read out loud in March and line them up in a head-to-head competition to find everyone's ultimate favorite book by the end of the month. Last week, just as Villanova was getting ready to beat Michigan for a berth in the Final Four, Miss Schmidt's class was in a nail-biting and heated vote to find out if "Baby Rattlesnake" or "Button Up!: Wrinkled Rhymes," their final two bracket books, would prove victorious. After a drum roll by students pounding their hands on their desks, "Button Up!," Alice Shertle and Petra Mathers' poems about animals wearing clothes, became Miss Schmidt's final winner!

"This was a great opportunity to use a current event in my classroom while incorporating the Fountas and Pinnell curriculum," said Miss Schmidt. "It was a great way to compare and discuss the new interactive read alouds," she said. In fact, word spread quickly around the third grade classes at Jacksonwald that Miss Schmidt's class was making book brackets, which inspired all of the third grade classes to participate. "All of third grade decided to use the same books, and now my class can't wait to see what the other classes pick." Miss Schmidt says that even though no one in her class had a perfect bracket, this year's bracket was the most successful and gratifying March Madness she's ever participated in just by seeing the love of reading that the friendly competition fostered in her students. "My class was so excited about this. I definitely plan to do it again next year!"

Students Earn Reading Musical Foundation Scholarships

exeter reading musical foundation scholarship winners
March is Music in our Schools month; to celebrate, we hope you'll help us congratulate the following students for receiving scholarships through the Reading Music Foundation. They are (from top left, clockwise):

  • Xadiel Benejan-Rodriguez, 12th grade, alto saxophone
  • Jillian Crotty, 7th grade, French horn
  • Grace Campling, 7th grade, double bass
  • Scarlet Jordan, 2nd grade, violin
  • Michael Jordan, 6th grade, double bass
  • Colette Jordan 5th grade, cello
  • Lily Jordan, 6th grade, double bass
Congratulations to these outstanding musicians!

School Community Survey & Superintendent Application Now Open

exeter township school district fancy header with logo

The Exeter Township Board of School Directors is seeking a dynamic individual with integrity, visionary leadership, superior communication skills and outstanding administrative ability to lead a district of over 3,900 students and is seeking your opinion on the qualities you'd like to see in the next Superintendent of the Exeter Township School District. The desired candidate must possess experience in achieving high academic performance, creating academic equity, and sound school finance and business management; excellent verbal and written communication and leadership skills; a proven track record of staff accountability; experience with development and implementation of curriculum; knowledge of educational and technological best practices; and success in community engagement and involvement. Minimum of 10 years in education; building administrative or central office experience required. Superintendent experience preferred.

Your opinion matters and is an important part of the Board's selection process! Members of the community are invited and encouraged to participate in a survey to share their thoughts about qualities that are important to them in the next superintendent. Please click on the button below to complete an anonymous school community survey by April 11, 2022. We hope to hear from you!

To take the survey or apply for the Superintendent position, please visit https://exetersd.org/search.

ETSD Board of School Directors Looks to Fill Open Seat

exeter township school district fancy header with logo
The Exeter Township School Board has a vacancy for a school board director. The term of this vacancy runs through the December 2023 Reorganization Meeting of the School Board. Interviews for this position will be held on Tuesday, March 29th starting at 6PM in the Lausch Administration Building. The selected candidate will be appointed by the board by a majority vote as outlined in Policy #004.
Interested candidates should send a letter of interest and resume to Board President, Dr. Ann Hearing, at amhearing@nullexetersd.org by Friday, March 25th.