May 2024 District Newsletter

~Mission~

We empower our community of learners in a safe and supportive environment to nurture compassion, cultivate curiosity, and inspire innovation.

~Vision~

The Barrington School District strives to be a community learning and growing together; giving students roots and wings.

Hello Barrington Families;

Wow! There are just over 4 weeks remaining in this school year. I continue to be amazed at how quickly the years pass although the summer sun and warmth sure are taking their time getting here. 🌞 Over the next 4 weeks your children will be engaged in a variety of assessments and culminating curriculum and classroom activities. It is a time for celebration as well as the continuation of hard work and perseverance. We are excited to see all of the growth and development that is evident across all classrooms!

On Thursday, May 9, 2024 the District and School Board held a High School Choice Community Forum. The purpose of this forum was to gather feedback from the citizens of Barrington regarding our options for high school education and transportation in order to mindfully negotiate upcoming tuition agreements and memorandums. It is important to note that the District is legally required to have secured, through agreements, the ability to provide a “seat” for high school education for all of our high school aged students. This means that it is critical, as a community, for all of us to be educated and mindful of the 9-12th grade options that will be put forth as Warrant Articles for the 2025/2026 budget cycle. Additionally, as you will hear as part of the Community Forum (found here) the intention of this process is not to limit the high school choices that your children currently have. Our long term agreements are expiring with both Dover and Oyster River and it is time to re-negotiate those contracts. Historically, we have had either 1 or 2 year Memorandums with Coe Brown in order to provide yet another choice for our students. Please take a brief moment to respond to this High School Choice survey . We value your input.

Thank you to everyone who responded to our Portrait of a Learner survey. We had an outstanding 713 responses! The focus of this survey was to gather your thoughts on the 3 durable skill areas that are most essential to the success of Barrington students. What are those skills that we want to ensure that our students have as they head off to high school. In case you aren’t familiar with the term, durable skills (also known as soft skills) are those skills that we use to share what we know like critical thinking, collaboration, or communication, as well as character skills like fortitude and leadership. I will share more information as the Committee continues with this important work.

This summer Barrington will be participating in a summer meals program offered through the Community Action Partnership of Strafford County. For the first time, Barrington qualifies as a rural site to receive this free assistance. There is no need to sign up and no personal or identifying information is needed. Once I have the day of the week and time confirmed from the County I will share that information with all of you. It will be an easy and convenient service. On a specified day of the week and time there will be employees and volunteers from the Community Action Partnership at the Middle School parking lot. You will simply need to drive through the line, tell the worker how many children you have from birth to age 18 and they will provide you with a week’s worth of meals for your family. We are extremely grateful to be able to offer this service.

Repeated Information:

At the Tuesday, April 16th School Board meeting the Barrington School Board determined the Last Day of School for Kindergarten - 8th grade students to be Tuesday, June 18, 2024. This will be a half day of school. Morning PreSchool students will also have their last day of school on Tuesday, June 18th with afternoon Preschool concluding their school year on Monday, June 17th.

Our 8th Graders will be celebrated on Thursday, June 13th at 6pm on the Middle School soccer field (weather permitting of course). Further details for this event will come directly from the Middle School. The families of 8th graders may choose to send their children to school on June 14, 17, and 18 however, please know that this is your choice and there will be no penalty for not returning after the Celebration Night given that we will have met the state instructional hour requirement.

Early Dismissal Schedule (for 6/18)

Middle School: 11:30am dismissal

Elementary School: 12:25pm dismissal

Early Childhood Learning Center: 12:25pm dismissal

Don’t Forget!

• May 24, 2024: This is now a FULL regular school day for students and staff. No longer an Early Release.

• The last day of school will be a half day on Tuesday, June 18th.

• 8th Grade Celebration: Thursday, June 13th at 6pm at BMS.

• For long term planning purposes : Here is the Approved 24-25 District Calendar .

I hope you all enjoy the upcoming long weekend (May 25-27). As we celebrate Memorial Day, we would like to take a moment to acknowledge those individuals who have passed in service to our country. We are grateful for their dedication, support, and bravery.

Have a wonderful week everyone!

Respectfully,

Respectfully,

Deannah Rae

Superintendent

drae@sau74.org

Good Afternoon Barrington Families,

I cannot believe we are approaching June already this year! NH State SAS testing will be commencing in the next few weeks for our schools and we have begun our iReady and Acadience assessments for the end of the year. We are very excited to see how each student has grown academically over this school year and we are ready for the students to shine and show off all they have learned!

Monday, May 20th select teachers are participating in the ELA Programming Pilot training in for EL, Imagine Learning and HMH Into Reading/Into Literature. All materials have been delivered to the schools, Jeff DeLangie has uploaded all technology needs for students and teachers, and we are ready to learn! ELA programming is such an integral part of how the District is embracing the tenets of the Science of Reading and the importance of early reading skills coupled with a strong knowledge base, vocabulary, and comprehension.

I am excited to announce that we were able to do so many wonderful things at Barrington Middle School with our Promising Futures Grant this year. Select students in grades 4, 5, and 6 participated in a student leadership program presented by "One Trusted Adult". In this workshop students build personal and leadership skills, gain strategies to strengthen connection and belonging, and explore possibilities to make a positive impact in their communities. We look forward to continuing this work next year and beyond. The grant also allowed us to create and build an area for students that is dynamic and effective in supporting students' sensory development, engagement, and well-being. By incorporating movement-based activities that stimulate the senses, sensory pathways promote integration, regulation, enhancement of learning, and improve physical health.

Enjoy the weather as we move into the warm months of spring and summer!

Take care,

Sarah E. Rollins, PhD

Curriculum Coordinator

srollins@sau74.org

Warm regards,

Katie Kukesh

Director of Student Services

kkukesh@sau74.org

.

We have added the topic of "For Families" to the main navigation. This better represents the options provided in this section of the website. Student Services, which are focused primarily on special education services, are now located under the "Family" tab within their own sub page called Student Services!

Under the "For Families" tab you will find information such as Transportation, School Lunch menus, and New Student Registration. As we continue to revise and update the website all family related items will be located here!

Happy May! Last push to the end of the school year!

Jeff DeLangie Sr.

Director of Technology

jdelangie@sau74.org

Hello Barrington Families,

We are currently getting caught up from all of the down trees. We still have some work to do in the Owl’s Nest. We have buttoned up a lot of the security projects. Everything will be complete by the middle of June.

We will be doing an assessment of our roofs throughout the district for longevity and a Capital Improvement Plan for replacement and or repairs.

Everything blooming around the district looks great and very much spring.

Best,

Joe Williams

Facilities Manager

Phone: 603-664-2715

jwilliams@sau74.org

Greetings Barrington Families,

The following is the Breakfast, Lunch and Milk cost for the 2023-2024 school year:

Breakfast:

$2.00 Regular

Reduced rate- Free

Lunch:

$3.25 Regular

$.40 Reduced rate

Milk:

$.65

Best,

Sue Williams

Food Service Director

Fresh Picks Cafe

Barrington School District SAU74

Barrington@FreshPicksCafe.com

www.freshpickscafe.com