Greetings!

Winter weather has definitely made a reappearance! With the snow day yesterday, our new last day of school is scheduled for Tuesday, June 27th. Please plan accordingly.

Winter athletic are wrapping up. See below for the latest updates along with upcoming state tournament games.

March is a busy month for our performing ensembles and theater program. There are many performances coming up and the theater department is busy putting together the spring musical with performances on Friday April 28th, 29th,and 30th. Save the date!

Semester 2, Term 1 Progress Reports will be available this Friday. Please check the portal to review updated grades.

As a reminder, parent conferences are scheduled for next Wednesday March 8th. Teachers will be reaching out directly to parents to schedule time. They will be prioritizing conferences with parents of students who they feel would benefit the most. As always, if you have concerns, you should be reaching out to teachers regularly and not waiting for conferences to proactively support our students.

If you have not checked out the Oakmonitor, please do! The Oakmonitor is full of great articles written by our students and gives good insight into things happening here at Oakmont.

Thank you for reading this month's newsletter and updates.

Most Sincerely,

Jeff Lizotte - Principal

March 3 - Progress reports ready

March 8-10 - Student Council MASC - State spring conference - Hyannis

March 8 - 1/2 Day - Early Release 11:04am - Professional Development

March 8 - S2 Parent Conferences 5-8 PM

March 9 - Oakmont Winter Concert - 7PM

March 12 - Daylight Savings begins (Spring Forward)

March 15 - 1/2 Day Early Release 11:04 am- Professional Development

March 17 - Colin Carey Dodgeball Tournament - St. Patrick's day

March 22 - District Choral Night - 6:30PM

March 28-29 - English MCAS Testing

March 29 - District Concert Band Night - 6:30PM

March 30 - Community night 5:30-7:30 - More details to come

March is Music in our schools month.

The Music Department is preparing for "Music In Our Schools Month" this March with many public events. All events are free and open to the public.

Oakmont Winter Concert - Thursday March 9, 2023 7:00pm. Featuring the Oakmont Concert Band, Concert Choir, Select Choir, Jazz Band, Winter Percussion, and Winter Guard.

AWRSD Choir Night - Wednesday March 22, 2023 6:30pm. Featuring the Choirs from all schools.

AWRSD Band Night - Wednesday March 29, 2023 6:30pm. Featuring the Concert Band from all schools.

Join us for our concerts!

Indoor Percussion and Winter Color Guard

What is it?

Indoor percussion ensembles consist of the marching percussion (also called battery) and front ensemble (also called pit) sections of a marching band or drum corps. Indoor percussion marries elements of music performance, marching, and theater; thus, the activity is often referred to as percussion theater.

Winter color guard is a combination of the use of flags, sabers, mock rifles, and other equipment, as well as dance and other interpretive movement. Winter color guards can be found in high schools, middle schools, universities, and other independent organizations, some of which are related to drum corps.

You can come out to one of the indoor winter color guard or percussion ensemble performances. Here are the dates of their competitions:

Saturday March 11 - Salem High School (Salem NH)

Guard performs at - 4:36pm

Percussion performs at - 8:58pm

Saturday March 18 - Dartmouth High School

Guard performs at - 4:54pm

Percussion performs at - 8:23pm

Saturday March 25 - New Bedford High School

Guard performs at - 4:44pm

Percussion performs at - 8:52pm

Saturday April 1 - Salem High School (Salem MA)

Guard performs at - 3:56pm

Sunday April 2 - Dartmouth High School

Percussion performs at - 4:20pm

All times are subject to change. You can always check nesba.org for accurate times as we get closer to shows.

Declan LeClair to perform with All State Orchestra

Congratulations to Declan Leclair on his acceptance to the Massachusetts Music Educators Association All-State Orchestra. Declan will perform at the world famous Symphony Hall in Boston on March 4, 2023. Great job Declan on representing Oakmont and our communities.

Do you shop at Hannaford at Timpany Plaza in Gardner? Be sure to collect yout "school dollars" from the associate you check out with and drop them into the Oakmont slot on your way out. It only takes a few seconds but the funds we receive help us with many things. THANK YOU!

SHOP – Look for shelf tags on over 1,500 participating products.

CHECK OUT – Collect your School Dollars from an associate at checkout.

DEPOSIT – Drop your School Dollars in the Hannaford Helps Schools collection tower in-store.

Cheering - Congrats to the cheer team on placing FIRST PLACE in their Division on Sunday and 5th Overall. They compete THIS Sunday, March 5th at Shepherd Hill at 11 am.

Boys Basketball (16-5) - The boys basketball team defeated Worcester Tech to win the Central MA Class B tournament last Friday. The boys basketball enter the Division 3 State Tournament as the #8 seed and will host the winner of Nipmuc and Greater Lowell Tech THIS FRIDAY, March 3rd - HOME at 7PM

Girls basketball (12-9) - The girls basketball team lost to #1 Seed Hudson in the Central MA tournament last Friday. The girls basketball enters the Division 3 State Tournament as the #19 seed and will travel to #14 seed Watertown THIS Friday, March 3rd for a 7pm game in the Round of 32.

Girls Ice Hockey (15-4-1) (Co-op with Leominster HS) The Leominster girls are the #27 seed in the Division 2 girls state tournament and will play #6 seed Sandwich THIS Thursday, March 2nd at Gallo Arena in Bourne at 5:30 PM.

Good luck to all our teams!

On February 14th, the Oakmont Spartans cheer team hosted a collaborative practice with the Hopkins Academy cheer team from South Hadley. Similar to the Spartans, the Hopkins Hawks have been rebuilding their cheer program over the past couple of years. The Spartans and Hawks worked together on stunting, jump, and tumbling combination skills. The opportunity gave the girls the ability to engage with the greater Massachusetts cheer community.

Congratulations to Seniors Zachary Bessette and Isaiah Smith on being recognized as the February 2023 Spartans of the Month. Zachary and Isaiah were nominated by Mrs. Roy for their efforts and support in the unified fitness class.ort he

unified fitness class.

SENIORS:

Seniors should make sure to submit the General Scholarship Application (available on Naviance), which qualifies them for many local scholarships that they are eligible for. Seniors are encouraged to update their result status on the “Colleges I’m Applying To” page of Naviance regarding acceptances. Also, many scholarship opportunities are posted on Naviance. Seniors are encouraged to check the postings frequently as it is updated on a regular basis. See Ms. Mac with questions.

JUNIORS:

Juniors will receive a course selection presentation during an extended homeroom on March 6th

and will complete their online course selection forms over the course of that week. These will be

reviewed and finalized during Junior Conferences which will begin in March with individual

students and will cover plans after high school, careers and pathways. A google form will be

sent out via email to parents/guardians of Juniors, who can indicate whether they want to be

present for their student’s conference.

Juniors who are interested in applying to a four year college or university can register for the

ACT or SAT. Students should be able to sign-up for this test on the College Board or ACT

websites.

Students who took the PSATs can use Khan Academy to prepare for upcoming SAT tests. Khan

Academy gives personalized test preparation based on areas of need from the PSATs. Students

who did not take the PSATs can also use Khan Academy, but will not receive the personalized

help.

Juniors are encouraged to visit Naviance, a comprehensive web-based tool that contains data on

colleges and careers. Naviance is linked under School Counseling on the School’s web page.

SOPHOMORES:

The Course Selection process began for sophomores during the week of

February 6th and is still underway. During an extended homeroom they were presented with

pertinent information and were instructed on how to use the online course selection form.

Students filled out a rough draft of their course selection form in their PlusPortal and will review

their choices with a counselor to assure that they are working toward accomplishing their goals.

Parents have the option to approve student course selections in their Parent PlusPortal account.

FRESHMEN:

Freshmen will meet with counselors in April to complete their course selection forms. Parents will be able to review and edit their selections in the Plus Portal.

NHS’s hard at work for the month of February continues into March! Most afterschool days consist of NHS members helping out middle and high school students in the Learning Lounge at the Oakmont library and volunteering at Forbush Memorial Library. Our Environmental Committee has cleaned up the Oakmont Cross Country courses, and the Food Drive Committee is planning the spring food drive. NHS is also busy at work planning a prom/homecoming dress drive with surrounding schools in our area. NHS members have also shown acts of service by helping prepare for the St. Dennis Spaghetti Supper and assisting at dance productions.We look forward to serving our community!

We are pleased to inform you of Ashburnham-Westminster’s participation in the Massachusetts State Seal of Biliteracy Program. This seal is a recognized credential for those students who can prove they are literate in English and another language. For more information please click the link below.

The Thomas Anderson Collection was created to honor Tom Anderson’s years of teaching and of providing outstanding resources to students and faculty in support of Oakmont’s educational mission. Tom inspired and promoted curiosity and a love of learning. Tom was never alone in this pursuit, and

through the Honor Fund, we similarly recognize those teachers who shared in Tom’s inspiring work. Donating to the Thomas Anderson Collection to honor a beloved Oakmont teacher on their retirement or at their passing will help keep their legacy in the building and inspire new generations of readers, just as Tom envisioned.

Click here for more information on how you can help support this collection which has benefited, and will continue to benefit Oakmont students.

Congratulations to Oakmont senior Cameron Stickney. Cam won and advanced through three rounds of the annual Lions Club Speech Contest.

Presenting her speech on the assigned topic of Environmental Crisis: Fact or Fiction, Cam was awarded First Place in the local School Round, the Zone Round, and the Regional Round. Receiving many accolades, compliments, and monetary prizes along the way, Cam placed 2nd in the competitive District Round on Feb 19th, with her fully memorized six-minute speech.

Oakmont and the local Ash/West Community are proud to see a local Spartan show such impressive skills in writing, critical thinking, environmental awareness, and the art of public speaking.

Thank you to the Lions Club - especially, thanks to the local contingent and representative George Simmons for offering such an important and unique opportunity.

Also, a local shout-out to Hydeia Hamilton, and Paulina Arsenault who won 2nd and 3rd Place respectively in the local November Speech Contest.

General membership to the Ashburnham-Westminster Special Education Parent Advisory Council (SEPAC) is open to all AWRSD parents/guardians of children with Individual Education Plans (IEPs) and Section 504 Plans and other interested parties. We are in need of volunteers to help plan workshops, staff tables at local school and community events, become future leaders, assist other parents, and plan new activities and projects.

We welcome you to learn more about SEPAC and our work on our website, https://sites.google.com/view/ashburnham-westminster-sepac. You can also follow us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ashwestsepac. Please contact the current co-chairs about getting involved with SEPAC at awrsdsepac3@gmail.com (Kim Caisse's email) and awrsdsepac4@gmail.com (Dorene Francis' email)

Scholastic Creative Writing and Journalism Award Winners

Congratulations to the following Scholastic Writing Award winners:

Erin Boc, senior, Unholy Mary, Short Story, Honorable Mention

Vic Vallee, senior, The Desperate Man, Flash Fiction, Honorable Mention

Olivia Palubeckis (2), junior, A Quiet Walk Through Time and A Fine Line Between Life and Death, Short Story, Honorable Mention

Amber Kay-Michaud, senior, Perfectly Empty, Flash Fiction, Honorable Mention

Charley Dupuis-Loiselle, junior, Mindless Wonder, Poetry, SILVER Key

McKinley Chabot (2), junior, Oakmont one of many schools cracking down on phones, Journalism, SILVER Key and Freedom in the Saddle, Flash Fiction, SILVER Key

Gage Ahern, junior, Poetry Collection: Revolution, GOLD KEY

Congratulations to all who submitted and won awards. GAGE AHERN'S Gold Key winner has been passed on to the National Stage where it will be judged in the National Round with an opportunity to win a prestigious Scholastic Gold or Silver MEDAL - Click Below to see and read Gage's poem.

The School council is seeking a community representative from the town of Ashburnham. If you know of someone who would like to be involved, please have them reach out to Mr. Lizotte at jlizotte@awrsd.org.

The School Council consists of school administrators, parents, teachers, students, and community representatives who serve as an advisory committee, assisting in the identification of educational needs of the students and making recommendations to the principal. Meetings are held on the first Wednesday of each month from October to May.