Student & Family Update

I hope that you have had a good week.

It was fantastic to have a whole school preview of the Winter Concert on Wednesday this week. All students in grades 7-12 were able to see a shortened version of the show that families and students attended on Thursday evening. Congratulations to all performers and crew and the MTAA who helped make this happen. A huge thanks to Ms Clough for such hard work in putting this show on for helping develop the confidence and skills of our Music and Choir students!

In other related arts news, in spite of a few setbacks we are delighted to confirm that the Winter Play will take place in January. After pulling in some last minute guest stars, the show will go on for one night only on Friday January 10th.

Please read on for information and news related to our busy school. This includes:

• Annawon Weeden visit to MTRS
• MTSC Trip to the Mohawk State Park
• French trip to Metro Bistrot in Southbridge, MA
• Athletics updates
• MCAS updates
• Student Services updates
• College Conversations - alumni visit
• AP Brault's Culture Corner
• Grade 8 moving to 1:1 with chrome books in S2 (Starting January 27th)
• SEPAC updates
• Sustainability updates and proposed district suggestions
• Opportunities to work at MTRS

If you are reading this newsletter on a phone or laptop, don't forget to click on "read entire message" in order to see the complete newsletter.

Finally, we do our best to convey information to our community from a variety of sources, lots of them community rather than school based organizations. Unfortunately we are not able to share images and posters with live links through Smore but always ensure there is an email for inquiries. If you would like an e-copy of a poster with live links, please feel free to reach out to the office directly.

Have a great holiday and see you back at school on Thursday January 2nd at 7:45.

Best

Chris

Upcoming dates

• December 23 - 31st: Winter Break
• January 1: No school
• January 2nd: School starts again
• January 10 & 11: Winter Play
• April 2nd: SLC for grades 7,8,9,10,11,12 (11:30 dismissal for all students!)
  
• April/ May:TBD Capstone Community Celebration (The new version of Celebration of Learning)
• May 29th: Senior Awards
  
• May 30th: Class of 2025 Graduation

MCAS and AP schedule for 2024/25

Bell Schedule

District (Calendar for 24/25)

Student Handbook

Live course catalog 2024/25

Food Services Information

Live Solar Panel Energy Information

Twin Lakes has taken over from Suzor as our IT company. support@twinlakesconsulting.zendesk.com

Quarter 2: 45 days

First Day: Friday, November 1st, 2024

Last Day: Tues, January 21, 2024

Q2 progress report grades close on: Friday, December 6, 2024

Q2 progress report grading window: Thursday, Dec 5 - Thursday Dec 12 at 11:59pm

Q2 progress reports will be distributed on: Friday, December 13, 2024

Q2 grading window: Thursday, January 16th - Fri, Jan 24th 2024 at 11:59pm

Q2 report cards will be available in Aspen on: Monday, January 27th, 2024

Yesterday, 8th grade students dove deeper into their unit on Native American culture as they participated in a historical performance by Annawon Weeden who has deep roots in the Pequot/Narragansett tribes and is an enrolled member of the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe.

Weeden dressed in traditional clothes and acted out a history lesson that spanned hundreds of years. He spoke in his native language, inviting responses from the students. He also encouraged participation in a traditional dance that has endured since the Wampanoag tribe’s beginning. Holding hands, stepping to the beat of a drum, and moving in a circle, dancers connect with each other in kinship.

He went on to walk the audience through the 1400s and the first encounters between native and non-native people. Speaking in his native language, Weeden demonstrated the difficulty in communication and understanding whether those who encountered each other were friends or enemies. Moving through to the early 1600s, Weeden’s main character, Squanto, was recognized, perhaps, for his role in the Thanksgiving story. He served as an ambassador and interpreter for native-white relations and was instrumental in teaching the Europeans how to communicate, grow native crops, conduct trade, and more.

The history becomes dark through the 1700s and 1800s as native people were enslaved. Loss of language and culture due to the influence of the Europeans results in a dramatic erasure of history and knowledge. Weeden’s mission is to educate so that the traditions and stories of the native cultures may not be forgotten. His emotional performance offered a glimpse into what native people have endured, and continue to endure.

Students appreciated the interactive presentation and the intersections of what is taught in the classroom and “lived and told” history and experience. They found Weeden “funny” and “interesting,” but most of all, impactful. One student shared that, “the more points of view you see in history, the more you can understand it, and Annawon shared a different perspective than we often hear.”

On Friday December 13, The French 2 class was dined at the Metro Bistrot in Southbridge, MA. The 5 course French meal was funded by the Mary Lyon foundation. We enjoyed classic French dishes such as country pate, baguette,tomato soup, chicken and rice, and a cherry ice cream with a fruit compote.

The chef, who is also a classically trained chanteuse regaled us with a beautiful rendition of La Vie en Rose and French Christmas carols. We had a great French experience!

Students from MTSC took a brisk walk with Mr Billings this morning at Mohawk Trail State Forest to reset during assessments before holiday break and celebrate the final day in school for 2024.

During the first week of December, three MTRS teachers took off to New York City for a whirlwind tour of several schools doing innovative work with standards based teaching and learning, early college, and computer science. Brendan Leowolf (HS Photography, G8 Computer Science), Judy Licht (HS Science), and Cait Mans (G8 Math) visited Energy Tech, The Young Women's Leadership School of Astoria, and The Urban Assembly Maker Academy in conjunction with Springpoint schools.

Each of the schools shared some of their developments implementing SBTL, with our staff witnessing some impressive Student-Led Conferences. They also saw different models of what technical education can offer and how early college programs can help kids take steps towards future achievements.

While not all of the programs running in a New York City school can work in at our small rural campus, there was enough similarities for our staff to come back energized with new ideas and perspectives to share.

Quarter 2 Progress Reports are available to view in Aspen until 1/3/25

To view progress reports:

- login to Aspen

- look for "Published Reports" (right side of the screen, mid-way down)

- click on the icon

What are Progress Reports?

Progress Reports are a snapshot of a student’s academic progress at the mid-point of each quarter. Report Cards are the official report of the student’s grades and are published at the end of each quarter.

* Please be aware that progress grades (not term grades) from previous quarters appear on each progress report.

Last Day Q2: Tuesday, January 21, 2025

First Day Q3: Wednesday, January 22, 2025

Q2 Report Cards are planned to be available: Monday, January 27, 2025

Aspen

Aspen Login page can also be found on the MTRS website under Quick Links

Please contact Twin Lakes Technology with questions related to Aspen access:

https://www.twinlakesllc.org/support

The final part of our Options and Opportunities series for Grade 8 took place on Dec 19th. Grade 8 students had the opportunity to Hear from former MTRS students who are now in college or who have finished college and are now working. These former MTRS alums spoke with current students about how best to take advantage of opportunities inside and outside the classroom at MTRS and how these experiences set them up for success after leaving MTRS.

Caregivers in Grade 8, please be aware that as part of the gradual release of responsibility with chrome books, we will be moving to a 1:1 program at the start of semester 2. The expectation is that students will be responsible for charging and bringing their devices to and from school each day as well as making sure their devices remain in good condition. This will set all grade 8 students up for success in grade 9 and beyond.

Timeline for 24/25

• Friday Dec 6, 13, 20th: Timeline and documents shared in the newsletter

• Friday January 3rd & 10th: Families will be reminded of the progress via personal email and in the newsletter

• Monday January 13th: Students will be issued paperwork to take home, complete and return to Chelsea anytime before and including on Wednesday 29th January.(If they haven’t done so already)

• Friday January 24th: Devices to be taken to the IT office by 2pm

• Monday January 27th - Tuesday January 28th: Devices readied by Twin Lakes

• Wednesday January 29th: Grade 8 students to be issued devices

Wednesday January 29th

Students will be called to collect devices during the following times: 9:08 - 56

Students who forget their devices?

Students should be reminded to charge their devices each night and bring them in each morning. A single trolley of loaners will be kept with Emily in the library.

If a student comes to a class without a device, the teacher should email the advisor who should follow up with the student and communicate home.

If a student forgets their device on three separate days, the advisor should communicate this to Admin who will follow up at home. The student may be asked to move to a 1:1 in-school plan.

Mohawk Trail SEPAC Member and Parent

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Do you have a question about your child, their services, or resources specific to your needs? If you or someone you know would like to be added to the private list and receive emails and event notifications, please send an email to: MOHAWKSEPAC@gmail.com Please indicate your email, title (such as parent of a student with IEP/504), District, Interested Party or other)

Disclosure: SEPAC maintains the list of contacts and keeps the information private. This email is maintained by a parent and volunteer. Our goal is to respond in a timely manner. We will get back to you as soon as we can. Thank you in advance for your patience and understanding.

We received further advice from the state about MCAS testing and I hope that information helps provide clarity around who and when MCAS testing takes place and how, even though MCAS is no longer a graduation requirement, we still expect students to take MCAS tests during their time at MTRS. This information will be sent to all families and students in grades 7-12 and included in our weekly newsletter.

Please reach out to me for any clarifying questions

What is MCAS?

MCAS stands for Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System, which is a set of standardized tests that assess how well students are learning the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks. The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) develops and administers the MCAS. The MCAS helps teachers, parents, and students understand where students are excelling and where they need help. It also holds schools and districts accountable for their progress on the assessment.

Testing typically takes place during March - June and the schedule is shared on the website and directly with students and families directly. The following grade levels take MCAS tests at MTRS in the following subjects:

Voters removed passing the MCAS exams in high school as a required measure of competency to graduate high school. This means that while students will still take MCAS, they do not need to pass it in order to graduate from high school. The law now requires students to pass high school coursework equivalent to that tested by MCAS to demonstrate competency, along with meeting local graduation requirements, to receive a diploma. This means, students will need to meet MTRS graduation requirements, which includes passing rigorous courses in math, ELA, and science.

It is the expectation of the school, district and state that all students take all of the MCAS tests administered in grades 3-8 and 10, along with a science MCAS test in high school. At MTRS the high school science MCAS offered is typically biology in 9th grade. Participation in the MCAS is required by federal and state law and the ballot question did not change this requirement. DESE's accountability system will continue to use assessment participation rates (and the resulting achievement and growth data) in its annual determinations made through the district and school accountability system. This means, schools and districts will continue to be evaluated by student participation and performance on MCAS. These exams also give educators important information about the efficacy of our curriculum and teaching practices.

Do high school students still need to earn a Competency Determination (CD) in order to graduate?
High school students will still need to earn a CD in order to graduate. Since 2003, the CD has been based on achieving qualifying scores on relevant MCAS tests. After the November vote, CD is now based on "satisfactorily completing coursework that has been certified by the student's district."

In order to graduate from MTRS, students need to pass their scheduled classes in Science typically offered in grade 9 and ELA and Math in grade 10 or the equivalent, as well as fulfilling MTRS Graduation requirements. For example, students typically must pass biology in 9th grade in order to meet the science competency determination. However, there are many other courses that fulfill the requirement, and competence could be demonstrated by passing chemistry, physics, anatomy, AP coursework, or other rigorous lab sciences offered at MTRS. Similarly, in math, students will need to pass Algebra and Geometry or more rigorous courses. In ELA, they would need to pass 10th grade English or more rigorous ELA courses.

1. Strong performance on 2 or more MCAS tests in high school makes students eligible for the Adam's scholarship, which offers 4 years of in-state tuition to a state university
2. Educators and administrators use the test results to help them assess the efficacy of their curriculum and instruction, and to make improvements to their own practices. We want to see what is working and what needs improvement.
3. It is required by state and federal law that students in MCAS grades (3-8, high school) participate in MCAS tests.

Fire Safety and Alumni at Colrain Central

On Monday, December 16, students at Colrain Central School were visited by local fire department personnel to learn about fire safety in half hour sessions. Chief John Taylor of the Shelburne Fire Department was joined by Ellie Snape MTRS ’24 and Alex Lilly MTRS ’22, both of the Colrain Fire Department. Alex is the SAFE - Student Awareness of Fire Education - Officer who teaches fire safety education in schools and to senior citizens through a grant funded program for fire departments.

Ms. Ahrensdorf’s kindergarten students identified, through pictures, whether an item is “hot”, “not hot” or “can be hot” such as ice cubes (not hot), an oven (can be hot), campfire (hot), and more. Their identification skills were superb! In the case of clothes catching on fire, students learned and practiced “Stop, Drop, Cover (your face!), and Roll” to smother the fire. Ellie demonstrated the maneuver and encouraged the students to try it themselves.

In Mrs. Shepherd’s fifth grade class, Chief Taylor asked who cooks at home and what they cook. Surprisingly, “scrambled eggs” is a hot menu item in Colrain homes among 5th graders! Knowing there were likely some budding chefs in the room, he brought along an oven set up and asked the students to share what they observed as dangers. Students identified that 1.) paper towels were placed too close to the heat source, 2.) a bottle of oil could pose an issue, 3.) the handle of a cooking pot was in a position that it could be bumped, and 4.) a kitchen towel was hung where it could catch on fire. Chief Taylor offered that “combustibles” - items that can catch fire - should be at least 3 feet away from any heat source. Also covering what to do in the case of a burn, Chief Taylor said a best practice is to run the burn under cold water for 10 to 15 minutes.

Thanks to the fire department staff for raising awareness about fire safety and working to keep our homes and communities safer!

Sustainability Study: Looking Back and Looking Forward

As the end of the calendar year nears, it’s a good time to take stock of what has happened since the summer, and what to expect in the coming months in the 2D8T Sustainability Study.

Over the summer and through October, a number of reports were added to the study’s resource library:

• Enrollment

• Community Outreach

• Finance & Personnel

• Early Childhood Brief

• Education Quality

• Facilities

• Progress Report

Discussion has been generated about these reports by committee members, staff, and community members. One such discussion was during a hybrid update on November 14. To view the November 14 presentation, please click this link to access the Zoom recording and when prompted, enter this passcode: @Ju5c$HC

In an effort to explore how to create a more sustainable education system across our districts, BERK12 has considered all of the information collected and is working on five models to present to the community. They are looking at cost-saving measures and possible consolidations. And in these models, they are considering what elements will strengthen how we educate and interact as a result of a change in structure and resource.

This winter, the community will again be called upon to come together to more fully understand what moving to any model would mean to the districts, towns, and individuals involved. Please keep an eye out for these dates so that you may understand the reason for the study, the information that has been collected, and the reasons for moving in any one direction. It is important to note that, in the case of any change, it will take place over a matter of years and only with the cooperation of our district towns.

Another Opportunity to Engage: Student Retention Working Group

The school committee of the Mohawk Trail Regional School District is forming a Student Retention Working Group because we understand the need to retain more students meant to be served by our district. The work of the committee is yet to be fully determined, but will examine the key issues affecting student retention and outline a student retention strategy that can be reasonably implemented in the near future.

On Tuesday, January 7th, there will be two 30-minute opportunities—at 2:00 pm and 7:00 pm— in which participants will discuss the purpose and scheduling of the work group. By June 2025, a Student Retention Plan will be developed.

The effort seeks involvement from parents and community members. If you are interested in this topic and want to have an impact on the vitality of the local student body, please contact MTRSD school committee member Rachel Wang at rwang@mtrsd.org.

BRYT Academic and Clinician Support Personnel

To assist students who have fallen behind in association with a mental health disruption make rapid progress toward completing the school year fully caught up and on track for graduation. This is a grant funded position with the grant covering through June 2026. Among other duties, these are central to the position:

● Assists the clinician with the implementation of the academic component of the overall case management plan for each student in bryt.

● Assists with meeting the individual needs, interests, and abilities of students to allow bryt students to rapidly achieve credit.

● Develops and maintains a work tracking and academic data management system for students in bryt.

● Assists in providing instructional methods and materials that are most appropriate for meeting stated objectives, including leading small-group and 1:1 tutoring sessions with bryt students.

Paraprofessionals, High School and Middle School Team Special Education Team

Full-time - Experience working with students with Individual Education Plans preferred but not required. Must be a team player and willing to work with a Special Education Case Manager. Candidates should be comfortable working in person with students. Full benefits available.

For either position, forward cover letter, resume and recommendations to: ktotman@mtrsd.org. Applications will be accepted until the positions are filled.

Please see the latest Student Services updates

Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts

Over 160 different scholarships available through our program, with most to residents of Franklin, Hampshire and Hampden counties. We give away over 1,000 individual awards. This equates to approximately $1.4 million in scholarships.

Our online application opens January 1, 2025 and closes on March 31, 2025.

Local Education Council (LEC)

This meets virtually every second Wednesday of the month between 3:45 and 4:30pm. More information can be found here. The next meeting will take place on Jan 8th

The virtual joining information is as follows:

Meeting ID

meet.google.com/gzo-toke-ibz

Phone Numbers

(‪US‬)‪+1 813-435-9650‬

PIN: ‪741 012 215#‬

Principal Drop-ins

As was the case last year, I will hold regular virtual office hours. You don’t need an appointment to come and talk with me and share your thoughts on what goes on at MTRS. I will try to be available for the whole 60 minutes but can't always guarantee it at our busy school. The next drop in will take place on January 24th- normally the fourth Friday of each month!

Fourth Friday of each month: 8:00 to 9:00 a.m.

Meeting ID: meet.google.com/jtz-yhet-ipo

Phone Number: (US)+1 (813) 773-5581

PIN: 636 883 303

Email: cbuckland@mtrsd.org
Website: www.mtrs.mohawktrailschools.org
Phone: 413-625-9811
Facebook: facebook.com/mohawktrailregional