Our Team

Welcome to the 2025-2026 school year at Haven Middle School! As I begin my sixth year on our school's leadership team, I am more energized than ever by the incredible community we've built together. It is an honor to welcome our new and returning Northstars to a place where students and adults are empowered to grow, learn, and make a positive impact.

As Haven Northstars, our mission is to cultivate an equitable and dynamic learning environment that nurtures the academic growth and social-emotional well-being of every student. We are committed to building a safe, student-centered community where each student feels known, valued, and supported. Through their middle school experience, our students learn to navigate challenges and contribute meaningfully to their current and future communities.

Haven is an evolving place and a community for learners of all ages, where everyone benefits from our collective efforts to align our systems. To bring our mission to life each year, we focus on clear, actionable goals that support this vision.

Our Goals for the Year Ahead

This year, our school improvement efforts are focused on three key areas:

• Fostering a Safe and Supportive Community through Restorative Practices: To deepen our commitment to a student-centered environment, our goal is to reduce student incidents by 5%. We will achieve this through school-wide proactive strategies, creating a student Peacekeeper Team for our 7th and 8th graders, ensuring our staff uses a consistent and supportive approach, and strengthening our partnership with families.
• Ensuring Every Student Can Thrive with Strong Attendance: Through a school-wide and equity-centered initiative, our goal is to increase our average daily attendance by 1 percentage point. We will work toward this by fostering a culture where every student feels known and successful, communicating early with families, and providing personalized monthly check-ins for students who need extra support.
• Creating a Dynamic Learning Environment for Student Growth: To accelerate learning for every student, we are focused on academic growth in ELA and Math. While our specific STAR growth targets will be set this fall, our strategy is clear: we will provide personalized support through WIN time in all ELA and Math classes, empower our teachers with targeted professional development and instructional coaching, and use data to monitor progress and tailor instruction.

Building on Our Success

Last year was filled with incredible milestones. Our State of Haven Showcase brought our community together to celebrate student voice and achievement. We saw measurable improvements in student belonging, attendance, and academic gains while expanding key programs like AVID. This momentum fuels our work as we continue to deepen teacher-student relationships and expand family engagement this year.

Community Engagement Events

This year, we want to make sure you are aware of the community engagement events we have scheduled throughout the year! These gatherings are wonderful opportunities to connect, celebrate our students, and strengthen our Northstar community. Please be sure to save the dates for key events like:

• Curriculum Night
• The Fall Play
• Family Movie Night
• The State of Haven Showcase
• ...and many more!

Stay Connected

Your partnership is the cornerstone of our success. We encourage you to stay informed and engaged throughout the year.

• Key Resources: Please review the District 65 Student Handbook and our official school calendar (where you can find the dates for the events above).
• Weekly Updates: Our primary channels for news and announcements are the Haven website and our weekly digital newsletter.

Thank you for the profound trust you place in us by sharing your children with our school community. Your partnership is the foundation of everything we do, transforming our school from a building into a vibrant ecosystem of learning and support. This year is especially exciting; as we look ahead to celebrating Haven's 100th anniversary next year, we are not just marking time. We are honoring a legacy and boldly shaping the next chapter. I am incredibly optimistic about the journey ahead and proud to be a part of it with you.

I hope you are having a restful and enjoyable summer. I am excited to be returning to Haven in a new role as 6th Grade Administrative Advocate. The 2025–2026 school year will mark my fifth year at Haven Middle School, and I am energized by the growth and progress of our community.

In this role, I will loop up with students as they move through their years at Haven, supporting them from their first days in 6th grade through to their 8th grade graduation. I have seen the benefits of looping with students in my work as an administrator. It allows me to build stronger relationships, create consistency, and walk alongside students and families during these important years of growth and development. I look forward to beginning that journey with your children this year!

For those of you who may not know me, I am a native New Yorker and have spent most of my life and professional career on the East Coast. I completed my undergraduate study at the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, MA. I earned my graduate degree in Education at Northwestern University and completed Educational Leadership (Summer Principals Academy) at Teachers College, Columbia University. Over the past sixteen years, I have served in many roles in education including Dean of Instruction, Dean of Students, Department Chair, Grade Level Leader, Instructional Coach, and as a science and mathematics teacher. 

As we begin this school year, I am eager to center our students in every decision we make and ensure that their learning and growth remain at the heart of our work. I look forward to collaborating with you and partnering together to support a strong and successful start to your child’s Haven experience. The best way to get in touch with me is sending me an email! 

Here’s to an exciting year ahead. I look forward to welcoming you and your students into our Haven community!