Newsletter

Quaboag Regional

School District

December 2017

My thoughts are prayers remain with the families of Christian, Jaclyn and Lena. November 7th will never be the same for any of us.. Please know that the QRSD is here to support our students, staff and our entire school community. If anyone is in need of assistance, in any way, please reach out to me, a colleague, trusted friend or a member of the Quaboag administration team. Stay Quaboag Strong. The winter break is just around the corner and I hope everyone enjoys this holiday season. Friday, December 22nd is a half-day and the last day that school will be in session for the 2017 calendar year; we will re-open for students on Tuesday, January 2, 2018. Our first delayed opening is scheduled for Monday, December 4th. The delayed opening is a new approach to staff professional development and the opposite of our traditional early release days. The QRSD is interested in your feedback. Please consider taking a brief survey at: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/Q5LFNLL Massachusetts State Auditor, Suzanne Bump, recently released a report outlining the challenges that regional school districts face concerning school funding. This is a very timely report especially as the QRSD begins to prepare for the next fiscal year (FY 2019). Auditor Bump calls for: legislators to fully fund regional school transportation at 100%; developing incentives to increase regionalization across Massachusetts; offering planning grants to explore possibilities of regionalization. I have created a template letter for anyone wishing to contact our legislators and I am happy to share with everyone in our school community. Simply email me for a copy of the letter and suggested officials to send it to. Auditor Bump’s full report can be found at: https://www.mass.gov/files/documents/2017/10/18/RegionalSchoolDistrictsMunicipalImpactStudy_1.pdf Our schools will have lockdown drills, in conjunction with state and local authorities, in the very near future. I anticipate a lockdown drill in early December before the holiday break. The next district safety meeting is Thursday, December 7th at 6PM at QRMHS. The next Superintendent’s Coffee meeting is scheduled for Friday, December 1, 2017, at 10:00AM in the central office. All families, community members and stakeholders are invited to meet with me to discuss the past, present and future of the QRSD. Coffee will be provided. Finally, I am hosting office hours for all staff at the WBES library on Wednesday, December 6th from 3:004:00PM. I am also available to all staff on every Wednesday during my visits to all three schools. The Superintendents Advisory Council will meet at 2:15PM on December 18th in the QRMHS library. As always, if you have any questions, comments, concerns or suggestions please contact me at [email protected] or 413-436-9256 ext. 1003. Brett Kustigian, Superintendent

The mission of the Quaboag Regional School District is to form a partnership with parents and the community to prepare our diverse population of students to become lifelong learners in a nurturing, safe environment with high expectations so they will become responsible, productive citizens in an ever-changing global society. Most importantly, decisions are made in the best interests of our students.

Quaboag Regional Middle/High School News

Thank you to all those who came out to participate in the 5K Memorial Run on Wednesday, November 15th! We had hundreds of runners, including busloads from surrounding schools, community members, students, faculty, staff, and alumni who came to show their support for each other and the families of Lena, Christian, and Jaclyn. Camaraderie and support at its best, this run again exemplifies why Community is our first Core Value. Thank you to Mr. Bostock, QRMHS English teacher and Cross Country coach, for organizing this important event. On Saturday, November 25th, a well-attended 3-on-3 Basketball Tournament was held as well, organized by WCES paraprofessional Meaghan O’Keefe. Proceeds from these events will be donated to the families. On Friday, December 15th, a Spaghetti Supper will be held at QRMHS (see www.quaboagrsd.org for more info). Proceeds from this event will fund scholarships in the names of Lena, Christian, and Jaclyn. Congratulations to all of this year’s winners of the John & Abigail Adams Scholarship! Last month we shared the news that twenty-four seniors who scored in the “advanced” category in at least one 10th grade MCAS test and whose overall MCAS scores rank in the top 25% of their class qualify for the scholarship, which entitles them to tuition waivers at any public state college or university in Massachusetts. Missing from last month’s photo of the winners of the J & AA scholarship were Liam Carlson (left) and Drew Greuter (right). On Wednesday, October 25th, Freshman Team Mathletes Sadie Bridges, Elizabeth Chambers, Conner Merrill, Bradyn Cloward, Andrew Aravjo, Ainslie Lafko, Mackenzie Fagan, Xavier Gagnon, Miranda Bartley traveled to Assabet Valley to compete in the first Worcester County Math League Freshman meet of the year. Thanks to Freshman coach, Mr. Reilly, for accompanying the mathletes to this event!

Seniors enjoyed one of the graduating class rites of passage on Halloween, parading through the building last period in costume for the annual Senior Halloween Walk. Above, the group gathered for a photo before heading into the hallways to provide some spooktacular entertainment for the students, faculty, and staff. Students in our 21st Century After School Program, Beyond The Bell, dissected owl pellets in October. Pellets are the indigestible portions of items eaten by the owl, unable to pass through the bird’s digestive system. Instead, the owl’s gizzard tightly compacts the material and the bird regurgitates the pellet. These are fascinating to pull apart, long after

they’ve dried out and become desiccated, and are a favorite for lab time! Students were able to identify all types of items in the pellets, including bones, insects, and seeds, using a key. With this information, the students constructed food webs for the barn owl (Chloe Fish Johnson’s and Casey Moran’s is shown beside their picture). Drama provides comic relief! We hope you caught November’s middle school production of the play Laffin’ School. Poor Miss Quackenbush had to whip a group of students into shape in order to get them to advance to the next grade. Hilarity ensued as students challenge the expected norms and when the four food groups are “…fresh, frozen, fast, and junk…,” Ms. Q has a real task on her hands! Don’t miss Rent coming in January! Laffin’ School cast: (back row, left to right) Mary LePage, Ryanne Nason, Ainslie Lafko, Alexis Thayer, Nicholas Osborne, Adrik Matys, Lucy Sanelli, Anjolina Fantaroni, Hayley Cook; (front row, left to right) Kaitlyn Osborne, Arianna Belen, Shianne Bateman, Joey Landon, and Thatcher Atwood.

On Saturday, November 18th, nine Quaboag students went to Grafton High School to audition for the Central Massachusetts Music Educators Association Festival (CDMMEA). Shown (left to right, back row) are Maria Matys, Emily Pease, Mary LePage, Jacob Para, Sam Berthel and Aris Belen; (left to right, kneeling) Savannah Finney and Cassie Champagne. They have been practicing singing an Italian Art Song, sight reading and interval matching. Out of the nine, five Students scored well enough to be selected to participate in the festival this year! Aris, Sam, Cassie, Emily, and Maria. These students will have two rehearsals in January at Wachusett Regional High School and then perform that Saturday at Mechanics Hall in Worcester in January. If students score in the top five percent of their section, they receive a recommendation to audition in January for the MMEA All State Festival and this year, Quaboag got the most All State Recommendations we've ever received! Good luck Sam Berthel, Emily Pease, and Cassie Champagne! On Monday, Nov. 20th, three students were selected to participate in the All New England Band Festival at Plymouth State University. Congratulations Samantha Lacey, Savannah Finney and Sam Berthel, as they had the opportunity to work with world renowned composer William Owens, playing some of the music the composer wrote during their performance that evening! Congratulations to our fall athletes for a great season! Special kudos to Girls Varsity Soccer for reaching the Central MA Division 4 District Semi-final and Varsity Field Hockey, who made it to the Central MA Division 2 Championship Game. Despite losses in these tournament games, the teams and coaching staffs have much to be proud of. Congratulations also to Varsity Field Hockey player and QRMHS Junior Carly Duff, named Telegram and Gazette Field Hockey Super Team All-Star! Winter sports kicked off with try-outs on the Monday after Thanksgiving. For more information, go to our Athletics webpage by clicking here. The Lucy Stone Chapter of the National Honor Society would like to invite everyone to donate blood at the blood drive on December 1! Your donation will provide a positive impact or even life-saving benefit of up to 3 lives!! If you are unable to attend, you can donate blood at any Red Cross facility, or stay tuned for our next American Red Cross Blood Drive later this year! College visits are wrapping up, but there are still schools visiting QRMHS in December! Students interested in meeting with college representatives should see his / her guidance counselor for a pass out of class. If you have any

questions about college applications, college visits, financial aid, etc., please call our Guidance Department at (413) 436-5508. Seniors are also encouraged to ask their teachers for letters of recommendation well ahead of any college admissions deadlines! Parents, don’t miss out on the opportunity to leave a lasting legacy in your child’s yearbook! Parent ads are due by December 20th, emailed to Ms. DiRico ([email protected]) or Ms. Cutter ([email protected]) in digital format. See The Friday Memo from November 24th for details! Seniors!! Your yearbook portraits are due as well, by December 15th along with the portrait message. Seniors with questions should see either Ms. DiRico or Ms. Cutter for more information! Sincerely, Mary M. LaFreniere Principal

Joe Salvadore Assistant Principal

Quaboag Regional High School Guidance News The college representatives visit season is winding down. This year, nearly 40 colleges visited Quaboag Regional Middle School to talk with students about what their colleges have to offer. The final college visit of this school year is Decision Day from Quinsigamond Community College (QCC) on Friday, December 8th at 8:30 a.m. On this day, seniors that are interested in applying to QCC will meet with a member of the admissions team and have their application reviewed and decided upon immediately. Interested seniors should sign-up in guidance prior to the event. This time of year is very important for seniors applying to college. Students applying to colleges that use the CommonApp must invite their guidance counselor on the CommonApp to ensure important documents can be uploaded. For students applying to colleges that are not members of the CommonApp, a paper request form must be filled out in Guidance in order for their materials to be sent to the appropriate college. Seniors seeking a letter of recommendation from guidance counselors and/or teachers should contact each counselor and/or teacher individually. Often times it takes a few days or longer to write a letter of recommendation; therefore, students are urged to not wait until just before the application submittal deadline to ask for a letter of recommendation. The college financial aid presentation scheduled for November 19th is in the process of being rescheduled. Once we hear back about the new date, we will communicate that information to students and families. Report cards were distributed to students on November 15th. If your student did not receive a report card, please contact Guidance to obtain a copy. On November 17th and 21st, member guidance counselors met with freshmen in their English classes to present important facts about being a high school student. Topics included credits, graduation requirements, attendance policy, grade point average and more. Guidance Department Eric Urban – Guidance Counselor (Grade 9-12, A-L) Erin Baffuto – Guidance Counselor (Grade 9-12, M-Z) Christina Arpin – School Adjustment Counselor Erica Griffin – Middle School Guidance Counselor Lorna Fairbrother – Guidance Office Administrative Assistant

Warren Community Elementary School News

WCES students and staff had the privilage to honor our Veterans at our annual Veterans Day Assembly. This assembly presents itself with the opportunity to educate our students on the many sacrifices that our Veterans have made in order to provide us with rights that may be taken for granted on a daily basis. This year’s assembly incorporated work from the Neal Grant as students provided a visual presentation of poems that were read by teachers in Grade 5. These presentations helped our younger students interpret the meaning of the poems and also helped our older students make direct connections to the sacrifices many have made. Following the assembly, our Veterans and families met in the cafeteria for a light breakfast and to share thanks for all they have done. Thank you to the entire WCES Community for making this such an impressionable ceremony and a special thank you to the 5th Grade Team for coordinating this event.

Ms. Gaucher was invited by the NEAL Consortium in Washington to represent the work being done across three districts including QRSD. The conference that she attended was a pivotal conference with many financial supporters present. Her presentation highlighted work being done at WCES which has changed and shaped student learning in the classroom and beyond. We are hopeful that the NEAL work will continue to be funded and are thankful for the efforts of the QRSD to implement this inititative.

WCES hosted its first of three Engineering Fairs last week across all grade levels. Students are required to follow the engineering design process and identify the different steps that are required to complete the process. Following their designs, students worked collaboratively to build their projects, test their designs and make improvements or modifications. Finally, students presented their projects to the many families that attended the fair and also asked families for input on how to improve their projects! The Grade 6 Leadership Club at WCES is a club that is organized to support the needs of our students, school and community. To be eligible for the club, Grade 6 students must have teacher

recommendations, solid academic standings and a desire to give back to the school community as a whole. Our Leadership Students are responsible for tutoring students, assisting classrooms, organizing school and community events, and most importantly, being role models for our younger Cubs! Congratulations to our students selected to the club!

WCES’s Parent Teacher Organization continues to support the needs of our students and staff at WCES on a monthly basis through different events and fundraising. Much of the fundraising activities goes towards purchasing items that cannot be supported due to very tight budgets. Recently, the PTO has purchased new playground equipment for the Kindergarten/Preschool playground which will be installed next month. They have also hosted three fundraiser events including a chili cookoff/bonfire, Trick or Trunk and a fall catalog fundraiser. We cannot thank the PTO enough for their dedication to the needs of our students and staff. On Behalf of the WCES Team, Mr. Duff, Principal

West Brookfield Elementary School News

WBES opens a Little Free Library: On November 23rd our Summer Cub Den students unveiled one of their summer projects. The students had researched Little Free Libraries and decided that they would like to open one on the grounds of WBES. There are over 60,000 Little Free Libraries across the world. Our Little Free Library is registered as a children’s library and the concept is to borrow a book and to share a book. Our students have been stopping by the library on a daily basis and borrowing books. It is so awesome to see their enthusiasm and the care that they take with the library and the books. To learn more about Little Free Libraries and to look us up, you can visit the website littlefreelibrary.org. The winter concerts will be held on Tuesday, December 5th at 6:00 pm for KindergartenGrade 2 students and Thursday, December 7th at 6:00 pm for Grades 3- 6 and band students. Immediately after the concerts, Ye Olde Tavern will be hosting families and providing a warm place to gather and connect. Complimentary milk, cookies, and hot cocoa will be available as well as a “child-friendly” light menu offering. We encourage everyone to bring your family and friends. This is sure to be a fun, festive night for all! Reminder Script Fundraisers can be picked up before and after the winter concerts on December 5th and 7th from 5:30-6:00 and 6:30-7:00 pm.

The day before Thanksgiving is always busy here at West Brookfield Elementary School. We hosted our annual Community Reading Day, Preschool Share-A-Meal, and Charlie Brown Thanksgiving. Be sure to ask your student about these fun learning activities.

Special thank you to the WBES PTG for sponsoring these great events as well as the Elves R Us Shoppe. Our students are fortunate to have all the opportunities that the PTG provides.

District Technology Easy ways to save resources! Let’s work together to conserve energy and supplies! Conservation of energy and school supplies is very important to the district as a whole and to the tax paying base that supports everyday operations. It is very easy and quick to turn off our overhead projectors when they are not in use. This saves both electricity and prolongs the life of fairly expensive replacement bulbs for the projectors. Leaving the projectors off through free blocks and lunches every day will save hundreds of hours from the bulbs life. Computer monitors will automatically go into power save mode when the computer has been idle for its allotted time, but pressing the power button off immediately will speed up the process and help conserve. As always, we also need to be aware of our printing and copying use and what we can do to reduce toner and paper waste. If you have any ideas on ways to conserve please feel free to share them with me. I’m confident that as a team we can reduce our district footprint. Peter Hadley, Technology Coordinator

QRSD Grant Update Quaboag Regional School District was awarded an additional $30,950 to focus on Early Literacy. These additional funds will allow both schools to benefit from year-long professional development from DESE. A consultant will now work with both schools. WCES and WBES will be able to purchase a literacy screener, textbooks and materials for the project, fund substitutes for state meetings, and provide stipends for teams of teachers. Professional Development for 21st CCLC staff and coordinators will be held December 7th and 8th on equity, diversity, and inclusion, media literacy and building a reflective, collaborative environment. The two-day seminar series will be held at Devens Commons, Devens, Ma. Ongoing Grants:

Quaboag Regional School District was awarded $59,900 to focus on Early Literacy. The purpose of Early Grades Literacy grant program is to support alignment of curriculum, instruction, assessment, professional development, and literacy planning with the March 2017 Mass Curriculum Frameworks for ELA Kindergarten – 3rd grade. Quaboag Regional Middle School was awarded $50,000 from the Mass Life Sciences Center to purchase lab tables, microscopes, Project Lead the Way kits, science textbooks and materials. QRSD - New England Arts for Literacy (NEAL) fourth year, $63,723. Quaboag Regional Middle School was awarded $145,000 to implement a 21st Century Community Learning Center for 7th and 8th grade students for the 17-18 school year and summer. The grant was awarded to create a program that focuses on project-based learning and social emotional wellness. Warren Community Elementary School was awarded $97,614 to continue the 21st Century program afterschool for the 17-18 school year and summer following an in depth review and lengthy application process. If you have any questions about these grants please contact Madeline Smola at [email protected], 413-436-5991, ext. 1903. Madeline Smola, Grant Manager/21st CCLC District Coordinator/Administrative Analyst

District Finance and Operations The Budget Committee met during November and provided some guidelines for the FY2019 budget preparation. Administration has been asked to prepare a level funded budget version as well as a 5% reduction version listing any potential line item reductions to occur under this version. The Budget Committee wants to be prepared, well in advance, if the District were to be faced with increased expenditures and no increase to our revenue sources. The District will not receive any information about revenue sources until late January. At that time, the Governor’s budget will provide us with one version of the state budget including any potential increase we can anticipate in Chapter 70 state aid funding, increases to Minimum Local Contribution amounts both Warren and West Brookfield would be expected to provide as well as any other state revenues. Invitation for Bids has been advertised for the WCES window and door project. We will be holding a Bidder’s pre-bid meeting at WCES on December 6th at 10am for potential bidders to review the site and project scope with the Owners Project Manager and Architect. Bid deadline is December 19, 2017 1:00 p.m. at which time all bids received will be opened and read aloud. We anticipate the School Committee, with MSBA approval, to award the contract at their January, 2018 meeting. Work would begin during the summer of 2018. There have been a number of heating issues in particular classrooms and/or other areas in each of our three schools. We continue to address these situations and make the necessary repairs as quickly as possible. We continue to seek the best solution to either repair and/or replace part of the PA system at the Middle/High School in order to make the system audible again. We anticipate having work performed on the system in January. We have posted on the Quaboag website (www.quaboagrsd.org), the AHERA (asbestos management plans) for all three of our schools along with the annual notice. We are required by law to notify all staff and parents of our plans as published on our website. Recently, it has been a very difficult time for many. I wanted to share two links you may want to use (just copy and paste the link):

https://www.thriveglobal.com/stories/15834-how-to-be-happy

https://www.forbes.com/forbes/welcome/?toURL=https://www.forbes.com/sites/amymorin/2014/11 /23/7-scientifically-proven-benefits-of-gratitude-that-will-motivate-you-to-give-thanks-yearround/&refURL=https://www.thriveglobal.com/stories/15834-how-to-behappy&referrer=https://www.thriveglobal.com/stories/15834-how-to-be-happy#7f7ef61c183c Camie Lamica, Assistant Superintendent for Business

Student Support Services I hope everyone had a restful and peaceful Thanksgiving. The next SEPAC meeting will be held on 12/6/17 @ 6:30 p.m. at Warren Community Elementary School. Feel free to attend if you would like to be a part of this parent advisory council for students with special needs. The following early childhood activities are FREE for you and your children to attend: Early Reading Skills Hola Amigos y Amigas

12/4/17 12/15/17 12/6/17 12/13/17 12/14/17

10-11:30 a.m. 10:30 a.m.-12 p.m. 10:30 a.m.-12 p.m. 9:30-11:30 a.m. 9:30-11:30 a.m.

Easthampton Family Center Granby Public Library Granby Public Library Ware Family Center South Hadley Family Center

Grandparents, Let’s Talk

12/7/17

10-11:30 a.m.

Belchertown Family Center

Dads ROCK!

12/9/17

10 a.m.-12 p.m.

Palmer-Monson F. Network

Tips of the Month With the holidays here upon us, there are some things you can do to help your children cope with stress (by Dr. David Fassier, M.D.): 1. Discuss holiday plans well in advance. Predictability reduces stress. 2. If you’re traveling, leave extra time and bring snacks, games, and music. 3. Don’t overschedule. Kids get overtired and cranky if the day is packed with one event after another. 4. Give kids some quiet time by leaving the room, taking a walk, or reading a book. 5. Make sure kids get plenty of sleep. Lack of sleep leads to irritability. 6. Allow kids to be honest about their feelings. They should not be expected to act happy and excited if they are not. 7. Don’t make promises you cannot keep or control. 8. Maintain family traditions even if a member is missing. This will show kids that even though some things have changed, others remain the same. 9. Don’t try to compensate for an absent family member with extra gifts. What most kids really want is time, attention, and reassurance. 10. Take care of yourself. Try to avoid getting overloaded. Your stress becomes you children’s stress. As always, my door is open. If you would like to meet with me, please feel free to give my secretary, Renee Dalve-Contacos a call to schedule an appointment. She may be reached at 413-420-1994. Sincerely, Dr. Deidre Osypuk, Director of Student Support Services\

Important Dates & Reminders The Quaboag Regional School District is committed to continuous improvement in every aspect of teaching December 1st QRMHS American Red Cross Blood Drive, 8a.m. - 1 p.m. (gym) DISTRICT Superintendent’s coffee 10 AM QRMHS December 2nd

WCES

10 AM Craft Fair WCES Café by Quaboag Panthers Youth Football and Cheer

December 4th

QRMHS WCES WBES DISTRICT DISTRICT

Half day of school for students (delayed arrival by 9:40 a.m.) Professional Development for faculty, a.m Rescheduled School Council Meeting, 5:30 p.m. (conference room) Delayed Opening (10:30 a.m.) Delayed Opening (10:30 a.m.) School Committee meeting 6:30PM at WBES Wellness yoga for staff at 3:15 at QRMHS above library

December 6th

DISTRICT QRMHS WCES DISTRICT

Special Education Parent Advisory Council, 6:30 p.m. (WCES) Athletic Boosters, 7:00 p.m. (cafeteria) NEAL Grant Visiting Artist to 4 Mrs. Cygan’s Class Superintendent’s office hours 3-4PM WBES library

December 7th

DISTRICT

Wellness meeting 3:15 at QRMHS library

December 8th

QRMHS WCES

Quinsigamond Community College Decision Day, Time TBD School Banking

December 9th

WCES

7:05 PM WCES students singing at the Providence Bruins, Dunkin Center, RI

December 10th

WCES

9 AM – 5 PM Preschool playground build

December 11th

DISTRICT

6PM Bldg. Subcommittee at QRMHS library 6:30PM Budget Subcommittee at QRMHS library

December 12th

QRMHS WCES

Worcester County District Attorney Anti-bullying assembly NEAL Grant Visiting Artists to 4 Mrs. Cygan’s Class

December 13th

WCES

Picture Retake Day starting at 10 AM

December 14th

QRMHS WCES

Sophomore Class Ring Breakfast, 8:30 a.m. (cafeteria) 6-8 PM WCES Holiday Concert at Quaboag Auditorium (Grs K &1, Chorus 4-6) SWCEC meeting 8:30AM at Oxford High School

DISTRICT December 15th

WCES

Spaghetti Supper for scholarships in memory of Christian, Lena and Jaclyn. Seatings at 5:00, 6:00 and 7:00

December 18th

WCES DISTRICT

PM NEAL Grant Visiting Artists to 4 Mrs. Cygan’s Class Superintendent’s Advisory Council 2:15PM QRMHS library

December 19th

QRMHS

Winter Holiday Concert, 6:30 p.m. (auditorium)

December 20th

WCES

AM NEAL Grant Visiting Artists to 4 Mrs. Cygan’s Class

December 22nd

WCES DISTRICT

School Banking & 10:30 Assembly Early Dismissal/1/2 day schedule at all schools