The Bishop Pennant
Bishop Elementary School, 25 Columbia Road, Arlington, MA
June 2010
A Tribute to Our Principal, Mr. Carme
The Bishop Community would like to thank Principal Steve Carme for his many years of service
and dedication to Bishop School. Among Steve‖s many strengths, the Bishop community is going to miss his contagious pride and school spirit and his commitment to our students and parent
community.
Steve‖s leadership has fostered a strong partnership among children, staff, and parents at the
school, and his consistent modeling of our annual school theme of Respect and Responsibility
exemplifies the welcoming, nurturing atmosphere that characterizes the Bishop School.
The most fitting tribute comes from our students. A few words from our little Bishop Bears on
what they‖re going to miss most about their Principal, Mr. Carme.
Patrick O‖Toole: “The way he always says Hi Patrick every morning. He remembers everyone‖s name.”
Julia Zak: “His awesome ties”
William Clifford and Ilan Saenz-Grant: “The smell of his cologne and the way he makes everyone feel important”
Olivia Bonardi: “his relaxed personality. Nothing is a big deal to him.”
Sylvia Billingsley: “how he always made everyone feel special on their birthday”
Madeleine Cox: “how he taught us about Respect and Responsibility in the morning announcements”
Nico Tapiero: “ he‖s the best principal, and it‖s going to be hard to get a new one as special as
him”
Carly Newell “ he always made sure that he had enough money to buy us all sketch books”
Ben Clossey: “The way he let the students do the announcements and his love of the Red Sox!”
Sana Mohtadi: “I‖m going to miss him greeting us on the playground every morning and hearing
him blow the morning whistle”
Our loss will certainly be someone else‖s gain…. much happiness and success in your new ventures Steve….
The Bishop School Community
(tribute continued on page 2)
Steve‖s History As An Educator
Steve‖s career in the Arlington Public Schools started over 25
years ago as a teacher in the former Crosby School. It is here
where he started his life-long passion for education and where
he met his wife and best friend Lanise, who currently teachers at
Peirce School. When the Crosby School closed he moved to
Bishop where he taught 6th grade. Unfortunately, the following
year, due to the closing of Parmenter, Reduction in Staff and
budget constraints Steve found himself without a teaching position.
After many attempts to secure a job in teaching during a summer and fall when there were no
teaching positions in Arlington or any surrounding community, he was offered a position at the
Gibbs Junior High teaching 8th grade Science. Although a bit apprehensive, Steve took on this
new role with all the enthusiasm and energy that he puts into all he does.
Three years later, Steve was thrilled to be able to return to Bishop School where he taught fifth
grade until he became Interim Principal of the school and finally appointed permanent Principal
of the Bishop in 1992
“Education is the profession in which I was meant to spend my entire career. It was always more than work; it
defined me as a person. I always looked forward to coming to school, interacting with the children in the teaching/
learning process, and working with talented educators. I learned something every day from a child. I always gave
it my best effort and learned from my mistakes; a message I consistently convey to children. “ Steve Carme
A Picnic In Honor of Principal Steve Carme
Please join us on Friday, June 25 at 6pm in the Bishop Field for a picnic to
honor our retiring Principal, Steve Carme.
Bring blankets, lawn chairs, and dinner - maybe a dish to share, potluck style
(ingredients listed please). Popsicles, ice cream, etc. will be available for
dessert.
More details will follow as planning goes forward ... stay tuned. If you would
like to help, email Laura at [email protected]
2
PTO Board Positions Available
Last chance to get your name on the ballot. We need 4 positions filled for the 2010-2011 school year ... CoPresident (2 yr term), Treasurer (2 yr term), Recording Secretary (2 yr term) and Corresponding Secretary (1
yr term). If you would like to run, or have any questions, please email me ASAP. Ideally we'll have candidates for an election this week, so our new board can attend the final meeting of the year, on Monday June
7th.
Kindergarten Connection
Would you like your kindergartner-to-be to see lots of familiar faces on the first day of school this fall?
Would you like to meet other parents in your school district? Arlington Family Connection‖s Kindergarten Connections volunteers have scheduled lots of play dates for incoming kindergartners and their families to meet one another this summer! The following events are for children who will enter kindergarten
in September.
Kindergarten Connections in June:
Bishop: Saturday, June 19th and Tuesday, June 29th at Bishop school playground from 10:00 – 12:00. Rain
dates, Sunday, June 20th and Wednesday June 30th, same time. Contact: Mary Ellen Aronow at [email protected], 617.06.786, Susan Vickers at [email protected].
Look for monthly announcements about upcoming dates for all of Arlington's kindergartens! For more
information about AFC, visit www.arlingtonfamilyconnection.org. For general information about Kindergarten Connections, contact Mary Ellen Aronow at [email protected]
Advisory Council Election Process for a Parent Position
Election Day for the parent positions on the School Advisory Council is Friday, June 4, 2010. You may
vote in either of the following two ways

Vote for two people in the school office on Friday, June 4th from 8:00 A.M. to 3:00 P.M. Your name
will be checked off against a school roster and you will place your completed ballot in a ballot box.

Download the on-line form and return your completed ballot in a sealed envelope Marked: Election
Ballot – Parent Position – School Advisory Council or you may vote on-line and resend the Election
Ballot to Mr. Carme or Mrs. Gonsalves. If you choose to send a hard copy remember to print your
name on the envelope {not the ballot} in order for the ballot to be counted. The envelope will be separated from the ballots before the ballots are unfolded and counted. In this way, your vote will be confidential and your name will just be used to verify that you are a parent in this school community.
Last Call for Lost & Found!
This is the last call for the Lost & Found. All items will be donated to charity by June 4. Some items have
been returned, but there are still over a hundred items waiting to be claimed. GAP, Old Navy, LLBean, a
couple of Black Dog fleece pullovers, 2 Watertown Ford sweatshirts, 2 yellow MAINE sweatshirts, one
Cleveland Indian starter jacket, a couple of winter coats, 2 pairs of winter boots, and lots more. So check
through your children's things and if you are missing something email Christine Carney at [email protected] with a description of the item and hopefully it will be returned to you.
On behalf of the Bishop Community, our hearts and prayers go out to Bishop assistant teacher Angela
Morais and her family. Angelas husband Manny passed away suddenly on May 21.
May you find solace and peace during this difficult time.
3
Stop and Shop Rewards Program
Thank you to the 98 families that signed up for the Stop and Shop Rewards Program and signed on for
Bishop School. Earlier in the year I presented a Principal Challenge. I challenged the Bishop community
to have 100 families sign up. If we did I would take the children of one family shopping for their groceries
and they would receive $100 toward the groceries. As we got closer to the end of the year and the program
is closing for the year the PTO and I decided 98 was close enough to our goal. We submitted the names of
the families into a box and I drew out the Roy family name.
On Tuesday, May 4, MacKenzie, Kelsey, and I went grocery shopping. Armed with the list from mom,
Heather, we headed to the Arlington Stop and Shop. The girls were great, knowing exactly which food
items to purchase. We completed the shopping in record time and I dropped the girls and groceries at the
Roy house.
Thanks to Stop and Shop and the Bishop PTO.
Steve Carme
Science poster winners
Out of a lot of great entries, the following students won the 2nd Annual Science Poster Competition:
5th grade
4th grade
3rd grade
2nd grade
1st grade
K
First place: Gianna Tuminello; Second place: Ella Ballin; 3rd place: Hannah Barrett
First place: Ione Heigham; Second place: Adriana Sutton
First place: Leonardo Drake; Second place: Jack Simon 3rd place: Milo Rosen
First place: Elizabeth Wren; Second place: Liam Barthelmy;3rd place: Mark T? (2 S)
First place: Rebecca Kalik; Second place: Aoife Gillies
First place: Emma Beal; Second place: Julia Simon
Prizes will be delivered to their classrooms and the winning posters will be hung on the Science Activity
Center's bulletin Board. Other poster entries will be returned to their owners.
Thanks to all for participating!
4
Art Night 2010
This year's Bishop Family Art Night was a great event, celebrating the wonderful art created in Ms.
Martin's classes and the creative spirit within us all. Beautiful May weather brought an enthusiastic
crowd together to admire the students' art in the "Bishop Gallery", eat pizza and dessert in the outdoor
"Art Cafe", experience a variety of art mediums in the "Bishop Art Studios", and have fun socializing
with the Bishop community. It was a wonderful reminder of the value and importance of a quality art
education program in our public schools.
Thanks to Ms. Martin, and the many volunteers who helped set up, staff the art stations, and clean up at
the end of the evening. This special night couldn't have happened without you!
Sol Y Canto
On May 28 Bishop fourth graders joined fourth graders from all the Arlington schools to celebrate the
Central American cultures through the riveting music of Sol y Canto. This first ever town-wide fourth
grade concert was a great success. The children and their teachers enjoyed the concert — singing along,
tapping their feet, and moving to Spanish and English tunes.
Fourth graders across Arlington learned about Teosinte, a small village in El Salvador as part of their
Social Studies curriculum this year and participated in a letter exchange with the children in Teosinte.
This was a wonderful way for children to be exposed to a different culture through its music and songs,
to meet other fourth graders, and celebrate global friendship together.
This program and the curriculum is part of the mission of the Arlington Teosinte Sister City Project.
Many thanks to the town-wide PTO, the Arlington Education Foundation, fourth grade teachers, Sol y
Canto, and the children for making this a successful event.
Please submit school related submissions to Pennant Editor Michele Clifford @ [email protected].
The deadline for each issue is the last Friday of the month.
Current and past Pennant issues can be found at the Bishop school web site
http://www.arlington.k12.ma.us/bishop/newsPennant.asp
5
The Bridge the Gap Fund continues to build momentum as we enter the last week of the campaign. The campaign
closes June 7th and we need your support!
The response from the Arlington community to this fundraiser has been enthusiastic. Every donation – no matter
how large or small – makes a difference. By combining what we can give as individuals, together we can achieve so
much more!
May 31 – June 7 Online Auction. Bid on a wide variety of items including an art party, a drumming party, a sing-along party and a tumbling party, lunch with Click and Clack of Car Talk, Music and cooking lessons, A pajama story
hour at the Robbins Library, Speech therapy, and reading or writing tutoring, Two nights at a Maine Farmhouse, Arlington Soccer Club Fall registration, A luxury bike tour of Italy, Theater tickets and museum passes, Ride to school
on a fire truck, gift certificates for cakes, pizzas, art supplies, steaks, massages and other great donations from local
businesses.
June 3rd Tom Ferrante Jazz Band Concert
7:30pm at the High School Auditorium. This professional 12 piece Big Band jazz band will get your feet tapping in
no time and put a smile on your face. Come enjoy a great night of music and help support the schools. Donations
accepted in lieu of admission.
June 5th Neighborhood Yard Sale at the top of Bartlett Ave., Woodland St, & Lincoln St., 9am-1pm. To donate items,
refer to our Web site.
June 5th Black Top Yard Sale, Stratton School, 180 Mountain Avenue. 9am-2pm. Sponsored by the Stratton and Dallin Elementary Schools. To donate items, refer to our Web site.
June 6th Music Variety Concert 4-7pm, Town Hall. The Ottoson Middle School Chorus, a unique quartet comprised
of Kevin Greeley, Joe Curro, Tim Ruggere and Charlie Skidmore, and Judson Pierce‖s band Trial Run. Donations
accepted in lieu of admission.
Checks made out to ―Arlington Education Foundation‖ can be sent to AEF, c/o Bridge the Gap, PO Box 80, Arlington
MA 02476. Please specify that your donation is for the Bridge the Gap Fund.
Also ...Starting May 18, the first 100 donations at or above $500 will receive a free copy of Further Fenway Fiction, by
Adam Pachter.
From now until June 7th, mention Bridge the Gap when signing up for youth martial arts classes, summer camp or
birthday parties and Mind Body Systems will donate 50% of the fee to the Bridge the Gap Fund.
From now until June 6th Tryst Restaurant will donate the proceeds from their featured dessert (chocolate crème
brulee) for each dessert ordered with an entrée. Please mention the Bridge the Gap campaign when you order.
More offers and details on the campaign are on our Web site at http://www.arlingtoneducationfoundationma.org
6