Dear Newmarket Families,
I hope everyone had a great start to 2026 and enjoyed the recent snow days and cold weather. We’re big skiers in my house, so this has been a fun stretch of winter! As we enter the second half of the school year, I want to share some important upcoming events.
Our counseling department has begun course selection for the 2026–2027 school year. This is a collaborative process between families and the school. All students in grades 9–11 will have the opportunity to meet individually with their counselors to review course options and plan for multiple years. Counselors are visiting classes to provide an overview, and individual meetings are being scheduled over the next few weeks. Please ask your students about these presentations and begin discussing their course choices for next year. We are focusing on current 9th–11th-grade students before the February break because, due to recent legislative changes, current 8th graders will have a fundamentally different high school experience, including new course offerings and graduation requirements.
To explain these changes for the current 8th-grade class, we will host our annual 8th Grade Step-Up Night on Wednesday, March 11, at 6:00 p.m. in the café. We invite all 8th-grade students and their families to an informational evening with our counseling department, administration, and a team of 9th-grade teachers to discuss the transition from middle school to high school. Staff will be available to answer questions about how high school differs from middle school, the supports we provide during the transition, and the academic and extracurricular opportunities available. This is always a popular event, and we look forward to welcoming the Class of 2030 and their families.
We also have several other February events I’d like to highlight. Tomorrow at 10:00 a.m., here at the high school, we will hold the school portion of the town-wide deliberative session on next year’s budget. I encourage everyone to attend and make their voices heard. On Wednesday, the 11th, our performing arts department will host its annual Chocolate Fest fundraiser at the school. Please join us for an evening of music and some of the best sweets Newmarket has to offer.
As always, my door is open, and we welcome your input. Please feel free to contact me with any ideas or concerns.
Thank you, and have a great weekend.
Andrew Korman, PhD
Principal
Newmarket Junior Senior High School
kormana@newmarket.k12.nh.us