๐๐ง๐ ๐๐ข๐ง๐๐๐ง ๐๐๐ฅ๐๐จ๐ฆ๐: ๐๐๐ฐ ๐๐จ๐ง-๐๐๐ซ๐ญ๐ข๐๐ข๐๐๐ญ๐๐ ๐๐ญ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ญ ๐ ๐๐จ๐๐ซ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ญ๐๐ซ๐ญ
๐พ๐ก๐๐ฅ-๐๐ฃ ๐๐ญ๐ฉ๐๐ฃ๐๐จ ๐๐๐ฃ๐๐๐ฃ'๐จ ๐ฌ๐๐๐ ๐ก๐ค๐ฃ๐ ๐ฌ๐๐ก๐๐ค๐ข๐ ๐ฉ๐ค ๐ฅ๐๐ง๐๐ฅ๐ง๐ค๐๐๐จ๐จ๐๐ค๐ฃ๐๐ก๐จ, ๐๐๐๐๐จ, ๐๐ช๐จ๐ฉ๐ค๐๐๐๐ฃ๐จ ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ค๐ฉ๐๐๐ง ๐๐ข๐ฅ๐ก๐ค๐ฎ๐๐๐จ ๐ฌ๐๐ค ๐๐๐ก๐ฅ ๐จ๐๐๐ค๐ค๐ก๐จ ๐ง๐ช๐ฃ ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐จ๐ฉ๐ช๐๐๐ฃ๐ฉ๐จ ๐ฉ๐๐ง๐๐ซ๐
LINDEN PUBLIC SCHOOLS, NJ (Aug. 27) โ They came to Linden Public Schools with different job titles and different responsibilities. On Thursday afternoon (Aug. 27), they entered School No. 4 the same way โ through a corridor of cheers, applause and a roaring Linden welcome.
Paraprofessionals, part-time aides, custodians, student teachers and interns, hall monitors and school lunch monitors began New Staff Orientation with a spirited 1 p.m. clap-in before settling in for an afternoon designed to introduce them to Linden Public Schools โ and the role each will play in supporting students when schools reopen Sept. 2.
Mayor Derek Armstead and Board of Education Vice President Dr. Marlene Berghammer joined Superintendent Dr. Atiya Y. Perkins, Assistant Superintendent Annabell Louis, and Human Resources Director Dr. Kayla Lott in welcoming the new staff members and spotlighting the rich diversity of the community they are joining.
Linden Public Schools is preparing to welcome about 6,272 students, with families representing more than 30 countries and nearly 40 languages across the district.
"Our greatest strength is our diversity," Mayor Armstead told the group.
That diversity, district leaders emphasized, is more than a demographic. It shapes the classrooms, hallways and communities in which the new employees will work -- and calls on every staff member to help create an environment where differences are valued, innovation can flourish and every student has an opportunity to thrive.
Dr. Perkins and Louis also used the opening session to give the new employees the bigger picture of the district they were joining, outlining Linden's mission and vision, its 2025-2030 Strategic Roadmap and the goals and priorities intended to move that vision from words into daily practice. The roadmap centers on five priorities: student learning and academic excellence; personalized pathways for student success; staff excellence and professional growth; fiscal stewardship and operational excellence; and community and stakeholder partnership. For the new staff members, the takeaway was immediate: Their work โ whether in a classroom, hallway, cafeteria or elsewhere in a school โ is part of that larger mission.
Thursday (Aug. 27) marked Day 4 of New Staff Orientation and carried forward the same energy that launched the week Monday, when Linden's new certificated staff entered School No. 4 through a makeshift, Soul Train-style tunnel of cheers, roars and applause led by the district's Tiger mascot and many of Linden's administrators.
Four days later, the job titles were different. The welcome, and the message behind it, remained the same: Every employee has a place in Linden and a part to play in the success of its students.
More Than a Job Title
Thursday's orientation brought together employees who will serve Linden students in distinctly different ways.
Some will work side by side with teachers and students in classrooms. Others will help keep buildings safe and welcoming, supervise hallways, support students during lunch or gain firsthand experience as student teachers and interns.
Together, they are part of the network of people whose work, often behind the scenes, helps make teaching and learning possible each day.
That message reinforced a theme introduced to new certificated staff earlier in the week: Joining Linden means becoming part of a community built around collaboration, growth and service to students with different talents, experiences and needs.
From Welcome to the Work Ahead
After the applause subsided, the afternoon moved quickly from celebration to preparation.
New staff members participated in District BINGO before Ryan Devaney, supervisor of student services, led a session on social-emotional learning and harassment, intimidation and bullying.
Dr. Lott closed out the afternoon with a 45-minute presentation on district policies and procedures that provided employees with expectations and practical information for the start of the school year.