14 NCHS Student-Athletes Sign Letters of Intent To Play Sports in College

Fourteen New Canaan High School seniors on Wednesday signed commitment letters to play sports in Divisions I and II in college starting next year. 

NCHS Athletic Director Jay Egan said during the school’s annual ceremony for the student-athletes that it’s “one of the happiest days and one of the nicest events that we have all year.”

Thanking the All Sports Booster Club and specifically its vice presidents of special events, Nancy Roeder and Meredith Sullivan, Egan told a crowd of student-athletes, friends, families and coaches gathered in the Wagner Room at NCHS that the ceremony marks “the end of the high school [athletic] career.”

“It’s the achievement of something that maybe families have thought about and dreamed about for a long time,” he said. “You think, how did you get here? You get here when you have really dedicated athletes, you have a combination of resources and great coaches and you have the parental support which is really key. So this is a day to celebrate all the time and effort that was put in for all of those years, for all of those trips to Maryland, for all of those trips to Long Island and everywhere that people went. And all of those Mother’s Days and Father’s Days and Memorial Days and Labor Days that you spent on some field or in some gym somewhere.

Attention Local Businesses: NCHS ‘Senior Internship Program’ Is Seeking Host Sites

One of the most popular programs at New Canaan High School is seeking local business to place seniors for about three weeks next spring. In 15 years, the NCHS Senior Internship Program has grown from a handful of student participants to 98% of the entire graduating class. From approximately mid-May through mid-June, NCHS seniors participate in unpaid internships with local businesses and organizations (typically during school hours, 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.), earning academic credit. The host sites that take in one or more students “consistently tell us that our interns bring fresh energy, curiosity, and creativity to their workplace,” according to Kelly DelMazio, senior internship coordinator at NCHS. She added: “They appreciate the extra support on projects and are impressed by the professionalism and skills our students demonstrate.”

Seniors complete 80 hours of work, and host sites report positive experiences, with 97% saying they were satisfied with their interns’ contributions last year.

District Addresses Transportation Woes Amid Successful Start at Public Schools

Though a problem with a bus routing software that’s new to the district has caused “significant transportation challenges,” the superintendent of schools said last week, it didn’t take away from the positive energy and learning that students experienced at the start of the school year. “Our students are engaged, our teachers are energized,” Dr. Bryan Luizzi told members of the Board of Education during their regular meeting, held Sept. 2 in the Wagner Room at New Canaan High School. He continued: “It’s really wonderful and we’ve been out and about throughout the week in the buildings to see that firsthand. That being said, though, I also want to acknowledge that we’ve had some significant transportation challenges this past week.