Happy Holiday Season! Entering the month of November certainly indicates that we are changing seasons. One can certainly feel the chill in the air, especially in the early morning. It is crazy to think that we are almost a quarter of the way through the school year. To that end, a reminder that only AHS and AIHS are on the quarterly report card schedule. AMS, CES and Shay are all on trimesters so report cards will be distributed based on those schedules. You will also notice that the elementary grades will be using a different report card - one that is standards based. You will hear more about this in the very near future. Stay tuned!

This time is a very busy time in each of our schools. Many of the schools will also be holding Spirit Weeks with special dress up days and activities. Please be on the look out for the identified dress up day themes as well as opportunities to contribute non-perishables as part of food drives at the respective schools. I really love seeing the students and staff participate in these great culture building and community supporting activities.

I want to extend a quick congratulations to the girls' field hockey team on their season. On Thursday, they lost (2-0) to a very strong team from Joseph Case. From all accounts it was a hard fought game against a talented team. Proud of you all!

Last night, the #6 ranked Redhawk Football Team hosted #11 ranked Waconah High School in the first round of the MIAA playoffs at Landry Stadium. The Redhawks dominated from the start and spread the scoring around all to result in a 44-14 victory. According to the MIAA tournament brackets, Amesbury will travel to #3 West Bridgewater on Friday, November 10th for a 6:00 pm match up. In addition, Amesbury is hosting the Thanksgiving Game vs. Newburyport. This meeting represents the 100th game between the two of us. It should prove to be incredibly entertaining and quite a historical event. See below for an opportunity to purchase a commemorative t-shirt for only $20 sold by the AHS Boosters.

Over the next few weeks there will be many opportunities to support the students and staff in all of the schools. Take a look at the newsletter from your child's school to see what is happening. We love to see families at our events.

Please do not forget to vote on Tuesday, November 7th!

Hope your month is happy and healthy,

Elizabeth McAndrews

Superintendent

You may remember that when I officially assumed the position of Superintendent of Schools in July of 2021, I conducted an information finding tour from which I gathered information about all aspects of the Amesbury Public Schools. From this data, I generated a Report of Entry Findings. This report provided the foundation for the development of the District Strategy for the Amesbury Public Schools. The three versions of this document were shared with the public last January. The first version was the Community Document and its goal was to make our priorities transparent to the public and share some of the data that contributed to the District Strategy. The second version was a three and a half year overview of the plans and priorities for the District. It did not contain the details around the specific timelines nor the identified action steps. It was a 30,000 foot view. The third document was incredibly detailed and provided a tremendous amount of detail regarding timeline, individuals responsible, and action steps. Please follow the links to see those documents. During this past summer, the Leadership Team and I reviewed our progress on the three strategic objectives from January 2023 through June 2023. We identified the items that were completed, those in progress, and those not yet started. From there, we worked on a revised document that incorporated what had not yet been completed into the specific work for this year. This document is the referred to as the Revised District Strategy 23-24.

The District Strategy is supposed to be a living document. We are supposed to monitor progress on it throughout the year and as we begin a new one. One thing that has not changed from last year to this year are our Strategic Objectives:

• Enhancing Teaching and Learning
• Promoting Continuous Development of High Quality Educators
• Creating a Progressive Learning and Work Environment that is Safe and Accessible

I encourage you to check out all the documents linked above. This document has driven the work that we have done in our professional development opportunities, the decisions we make each day, and it will provide the guidance as we develop our FY25 Budget.

OMG! What a night it was! More than $42,000 in grants were awarded to members of the Amesbury Public Schools staff. The generosity of both the Sgt. Jordan Shay Memorial Fund and the Amesbury Educational Foundation Inc. (AEFI) is simply staggering. The only thing that might compare to the level of generosity is the level of creativity and vision of our staff.

Three Grants were awarded from the Shay Foundation and they were given to:

• Jennifer Slater - CES Physical Education Teacher - "Net Sports in Physical Education" for a total of $1954.99
• Heather Eigen - Asst. Director of Student Services - "Planning Programs and Progress" for a total of $5115.00
• Stacey Fijalkowski - AMS 6th Grade ELA Teacher - " Kaleidoscope Continues" for a total of $2853.00

A total of ELEVEN grants were awarded by AEFI and they were given to:

• Tia Costello - AMS 8th Grade Social Studies Teacher - "Senator for a Day" for a total of $2120.00
• Jonathan Boles - AMS Art Teacher - "Garden Club" - for $200
• Jennifer McIntyre - CES Librarian - " Books for All: Building a New Generation of Readers" - for $1900.00 - These books will be added to the library at Shay Memorial for students in grades K-2
• Beth Cavalier (Math Interventionist) and the CES Leadership/PBIS Team - "Cashman Corner Store" - for a total of $2948.96
• Ashley McKenzie - Shay STEM Teacher- "Full STEM Ahead" - for a total of $4,445.20
• Lindsay Miller - AHS Science Teacher - "The Future of Science Belongs at AHS" - fo a total of $4240.00
• Nilsa Melendez - AMS Spanish Teacher - "El Rinconde la Lectura" - $700.43
• Kathy Fowler - CES Technology Teacher - Ready, Tech, Go! Bringing Second Language Learning (back) to Upper Elementary" - for a total of 2,989.00 AND "Merge" - for $3,368.36
• Jennifer Tedeschi - Shay Pre-K Teacher - "Pop-Up Learning Spaces" - for $4,339.65
• AIHS Staff - "CBITS: Cognitive Behavioral Intervention for Trauma in Schools" - for a total of $5,000

A HUGE thank you to both AEFI and the Sgt. Jordan Shay Memorial Foundation - we are so lucky to have both of you!

I would be remiss if I did not congratulate and thank all of the staff members who wrote grants and thought about the needs of our staff and students as they did so. There are some very unique grants that will most definitely help us be even more successful with our students!

Thursday, November 2nd was a big day for our current 8th grade students and their families! During the day, the 8th grade students took a field trip to Amesbury High School. During this time, they had a chance to attend an activities fair, hear from some of our students about the AHS experience, and ask questions about AHS. Later that evening, future freshman families had the opportunity to attend an Open House and learn about what AHS has to offer as well as see some of the hands on and STEM opportunities that AHS offers. Members of the AHS staff and administration are always available for questions or clarification. Please do not hesitate to reach out to a particular teacher, the administration or one of our school counselors. District wide our emails are firstname.lastname@amesburyma.org. We look forward to working with all of our families!

On Friday, I had the opportunity to get what I call a "Two-For"! I was asked to lead a tour of Shay Memorial for the Superintendent of Ipswich and members of his School Committee. They are hoping to build a new elementary school for their students and families. Of course, I love showing Shay off but what I really loved was that I got to see so many students and staff learning together. As someone who has spent the majority of her career at the secondary level, walking through an elementary school is a totally different experience. I LOVE IT! Here is my favorite scene from my Friday visit!

Tuesday, November 7th

• No School for Students
• Election Day - 7 am to 8 pm
• Professional Development Day 8 am to 2 pm

Friday, November 10th

• No School - Celebrating Veterans Day

Wednesday, November 22nd

• Early Release Day
• Middle and High Schools - 10:50 am dismissal
• Elementary Schools - 11:30 am dismissal

Thursday, November 23rd (Thanksgiving) and Friday, November 24th - No School

Thursday, December 7th - PRT Day

• Middle and High Schools - 11:30 am dismissal
• Elementary Schools - 12 noon dismissal

Friday, December 22nd through Monday, January 1st - Holiday Break

• School resumes on Tuesday, January 2nd

On Wednesday, a beautiful ceremony took place in the Amesbury High School cafeteria and on the AHS patio. Many years ago, Woody Cammett donated a significant amount of money to honor 4 women in our community who donated organs for others. These women are Cathy Toomey, Linda Cammett, Sue Deorocki, and Terri Doerffler. On the AHS patio, there are four beautiful benches with a label on each in recognition of these women - Solitude, Compassion, Tranquility, and Loyalty. Originally, this project was intended to go inside the AHS courtyard but instead it will live on the AHS patio so that both students and the community can take advantage of all it has to offer. Shortly, there will be an awning to cover this area so that it can be used in all types of weather. Thank you to Patty Hoyt, Dr. Danielle Ricci, and all the members of AEFI who made this happen.

Use this link to order your own T-shirt! This game will be a memorable one for sure!

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/12cUhrWCbTB5bBf7cpxZoviyJhoFwf1BPzbQ4OnJ4RN0/viewform?edit_requested=true

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