FIRST UP on GMW is an occasional column that highlights shorter announcements or updates, and helps you get a quick start to the Wilton news of the day. Today’s School edition highlights items from the Wilton Public Schools. Have a news tip, item or something you know people are chatting about? Email us at editor@goodmorningwilton.com.
Community Invited to Middlebrook Winter Concert Series and Art Show
The Middlebrook Music Department is inviting the wider Wilton community to attend its annual Winter Concert series. Each evening will be an exciting mix of fun and festive music from diverse composers, multiple genres, and historical periods. School officials are welcoming members of the public to join the school community for performances by Middlebrook’s band, choir and orchestra students; enjoy original artwork by Middlebrook’s visual artists; and browse the Book Fair in Middlebrook’s LLC.
The Middlebrook Winter Concert schedule is as follows:
- Monday, Dec. 16 — 6th Grade
- Tuesday, Dec. 17 —- 7th Grade
- Wednesday, Dec. 18 — 8th Grade
Each night, the first set begins at 7 p.m. with the chorus, followed by a brief intermission. The second set, with orchestra and band, begins at 7:45 p.m.
All Wilton Public Schools concerts are free and open to the public and tickets are not required. Visit the WPS Fine And Performing Arts website for more information about art and music events throughout the district.
Wilton Students Shine in PTA’s Annual Reflections Art Contest
The second annual Wilton Public Schools Reflections Art Contest Ceremony was held in the Wilton High School Library and Learning Commons (LLC) on Friday, Dec. 6. Joined by special guest Wilton First Selectman Toni Boucher, Wilton Public Schools Superintendent Kevin Smith announced the winners from each school to an audience of over 100 people.
For over 50 years the National PTA has sponsored the Reflections Art Program, encouraging students in grades K-12 to create original works of art in response to a student-created theme. By allowing students to explore their own thoughts, feelings and ideas, Reflections helps students develop artistic literacy, increase confidence and find a love for learning. This year’s theme is “Accepting Imperfection.”
Wilton students submitted more than 150 works of art across seven disciplines — photography, visual art, film production, music composition, dance choreography, literature and accessible arts. Representing each of the four schools in the district, student submissions were judged by independent professionals who considered the entrant’s creativity, technical skill, interpretation of the theme and an accompanying artist’s statement.
Wilton’s first-place winners advance to the state-level Reflections Art Competition; any artists who take first place in Connecticut will proceed to the national-level finals. Both state and national winners will be honored at a statewide ceremony in May 2025.
Wilton’s winners:
Miller Driscoll School
- Photography First Place: Henry Phillips
- Film Production First Place: Diya Avadani
- Visual Arts
- First Place: August Wu
- Second Place: Madeline Mark
- Third Place: Ayann Mohamed Shafran
- Music Composition
- First Place: Sabrina Gulati
- Second Place: Adelyn Pham
Cider Mill School
- Photography
- First Place: Elaine Neshewat
- Second Place: Sahana Kaushik
- Visual Arts
- First Place: Dhruti Patel
- Second Place: Sahana Kaushik
- Third Place (tie): Emily Phillips and Leela Ghuman
- Literature
- First Place: Rose Mack
- Second Place: Poorvi Muppalla
- Third Place: Aarughya Balakarishnan
- Film Production
- First Place: Sahana Kaushik
- Second Place: Grayden Tesler
- Third Place: Mason Alleva
- Music Composition First Place: Eleanor Zawoski
- Dance Choreography
- First Place: Avery Pham
- Second Place: Cecilia Spillane
Middlebrook School
- Photography
- First Place: Parker Bailey
- Second Place: Jeffrey Neshewat
- Third Place: Hogan Phillips
- Visual Arts
- First Place: Zoe Sigmond
- Second Place: Auburn Upright
- Third Place: Myra Jaiswal
- Film Production First Place: Jiya Praveen
- Literature
- First Place: Sofiia Mykhailenko
- Second Place: Elyse Pencu
- Third Place: Sloka Attaluri
- Music Composition First Place: Jiya Praveen
- Accessible Arts First Place: Magnolia Tesler
Wilton High School
- Photography
- First Place: Ishanvi Jaiswal for “A Reflection Into Our Souls”
- Second Place: Alyssa Mariani for “A Bee’s Heaven”
- Third Place: Sarah Viggiano for “Weightless Beauty”
- Visual Arts
- First Place: Grace E. Gordon for “Eye of the Beholder”
- Second Place: Samantha McDonnell for “Faces of Unity: A Dual Sided Collage Uniting Unique Faces from Diverse Cultures”
- Third Place: Langyue “Moon” Zhang for “Reform”
- Film Production
- First Place (tie): Bridget Chase for Perfectly Human and Cristina Perez Palaez for Imperfection: Find Your People
- Second Place: Nate Phippen for Imperfection
- Third Place (tie): Gavin Levenherz for Let Your Art Define Itself and Ashley Pencu for Redefining Perfection
- Literature
- First Place: Harper Crawford for “Embracing the Moon”
- Second Place: Anjulie Bervoets for “The Meadow”
- Third Place: Maurya Muppalla for “The Graveyard Grove”
- Music Composition
- First Place: Arnav Pandey for “Broken Sunrise”
- Second Place: Riley Griffin for “Big Bang”
WHS Students Visit Mark Twain House and Enjoy UConn German Immersion Day
Wilton High School German students have experienced two exciting trips this past semester. On Oct. 24, students from Christine Higgins’ German classes and Heather DeLude’s English classes visited the Mark Twain House in Hartford. There, students toured the historic home and learned about the famous author and his many connections to the German-speaking world.
On Nov. 20, UConn Early College Experience German students were invited to participate in an immersion day on the UConn Storrs Campus. German students from Staples High School shared a bus with Wilton students.
The educational itinerary began with students hearing from a current UConn student who just returned from her study abroad and a paid internship experience in Germany. She talked about how she became a dual engineering and German major at UConn and how this ultimately led her to a paid internship at BMW in Munich. Students then participated in language workshops led by current teaching assistants in the program and met other high school ECE German students from across Connecticut who were also participating. After lunch, students returned to the student union theater to hear more about the many career opportunities with German businesses (including over 150 German companies in Connecticut). They also learned more about the dual degree programs at UConn, including EuroBiz and EuroTech. The day ended with a Quiz Bowl competition in the target language, with Wilton students finishing in second place, earning them a trophy — and congratulations from UConn’s real husky mascots. The day ended on a sweet note with a last-stop visit to the UConn dairy bar.
Editor’s note: the story has been updated to correct the start time of the Middlebrook music concerts. They begin at 7 p.m., not 6:30 p.m.