Dear RSU 21 Families and Community Members,

As we approach our December break, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on the incredible first half of our school year and share my warmest wishes with all of our students, families, staff, and community members.

The energy and dedication I've witnessed in our classrooms, hallways, and school events over these past months have been truly inspiring. Our students continue to amaze us with their creativity, resilience, and enthusiasm for learning, while our teachers and staff have gone above and beyond to create engaging and supportive learning environments.

As a reminder, our holiday break begins on Monday, December 23, with classes resuming on Tuesday, January 2. This pause in our academic calendar provides a wonderful opportunity for rest, reflection, and precious time with family and friends.

Whether your plans include traveling, hosting visitors, or simply enjoying quiet moments at home, I hope these days bring you joy and rejuvenation. For our students especially, this is a well-deserved break to recharge before we begin the second half of our academic year.

I also want to acknowledge that the holiday season can be challenging for some members of our community. There are several wonderful organizations in the district that help with resources and other needs listed in the "Community Resources" section of this newsletter.

On behalf of the entire administration, I wish you all a peaceful and restful winter break. We look forward to welcoming everyone back in January, ready to embrace the opportunities and challenges of the new year.

Much love,

Terri Cooper

Our annual TNTP Surveys help inform crucial decisions every year. We’re asking that you participate in our 15-minute survey that will help our school improve our communication, academic programming, and overall experience for you and your child.

TODAY is the deadline! Please fill out the survey by the end of the day.

Monday, December 23 - Wednesday, January 1

December break | NO SCHOOL

Thursday, January 2

Policy Committee | 12:30 p.m.

Monday, January 6

School Board Meeting | 6:00 p.m.

Wednesday, January 8

Facilities Committee | 8:30 a.m.

Curriculum Committee | 3:30 p.m.

Thursday, January 9

Finance Committee | 8:30 a.m.

Tuesday, January 14

Communications Committee | 1:00 p.m.

*All school board and committee meetings above will take place at KES/A102 unless otherwise indicated.

Full Calendar

To learn more about the Tommy McNamara Foundation or to donate, click here.

Each December for the last 14 years, KES has made a donation to Operation Gratitude of hand-knitted scarves and hats made by KES parents, grandparents, relatives, and friends. Operation Gratitude then takes those hand-knitted items and uses them to top off Care Packages that are sent to first responders and active duty US military personnel serving away from home during the holidays.

This year, the KES community collected more than fifty items to donate bringing our total of scarves and hats donated to more than 780 over the years.

Thank you to RSU 21 staff member Sandy Titcomb and her boys for taking the collections to mail each year to get them sent off.

We have nearly secured placements for all twelve students coming over from Madrid, Spain. However, we still urgently need two more families to host! Please sign up ASAP.

In the 2023-2024 school year, five RSU 21 families hosted students from Madrid, Spain as part of a multi-cultural and language immersion program with Gredos San Diego Cooperativa (GSD). It was a fantastic experience for both the visiting students and the host families. This year, the program is being expanded to 12 students.

• Students will arrive on Jan. 18 and depart on Feb. 14, 2025

• The students are in grades 8 and 10.

• Students will be matched with host families based on factors like age and common interests.

• Each family will be given a $100 per week stipend, or $400 total.

• Families are encouraged to take students to local areas of interest on the weekends and should take care of their student as if they were a member of their family.

• If you do not have a spare room, guest students can share a room with their host brother or sister as long as they are the same gender.

• Students must be provided a study desk at the host family’s home to allow them to work on tasks from their school in Spain.

• Host family must be able to provide transportation from/to the Portsmouth, NH bus station for the student’s arrival/departure.

KCS held its annual Celebration Day event on Thursday, Dec. 19, with activities that immersed students in a wide variety of cultural holiday celebrations from across the globe.

Students rotated through six activities throughout the afternoon, learning how various cultures celebrate during this time of year.

• Sri Lanka: Making a lotus flower
• Jewish Hanukkah
• Sweden: Making a Tomte
• Chinese New Year
• Making Poinsetta Flowers
• Winter Solstice: Yoga

It was a festive atmosphere in the MSK halls on Friday as the student band performed a pop-up holiday concert!

The students did a great job, and it was the perfect way to end the first half of the school year.

This is not an exhaustive calendar. For a full list of diversity and interfaith dates, check out reputable sources like the NIH Diversity Calendar.

The Communications Committee has met monthly since September and we have begun the implementation of three major goals which align with our new District-wide Strategic Plan. First, our committee will work to foster transparency and connection with our community by providing monthly updates and video content via our School Board Committee Chairs. Next, we are prioritizing mentoring and working alongside our Student Representatives so that their voice is heard and involved in decision-making at both committee level and full board meetings. Lastly, our third major goal is to formally and informally highlight staff accomplishments publicly via regular press releases, district newsletter updates, and social media posts.

Leah Bares, Communications Committee Chair

lbares@rsu21.net

The Curriculum Committee convened in October to get updates on the implementation of the new 6-12 ELA curriculum and progress on the Social Studies curriculum implementation. This year, district staff are reviewing PK-5 Science and PK-5 Social & Emotional Learning (SEL) curriculum - exploring what we've been doing, how national best practices have developed, alignment with state standards, and effective teaching practices. The committee's next meeting is on January 8 at 3:30 p.m.

Megan Michaud, Curriculum Committee Chair

mmichaud@rsu21.net

The December maintenance and facilities meeting focused on the status of various repairs and replacements throughout the district. In addition to finalizing the winterization of facilities, athletic fields, HVAC equipment, and the Bus Barn, Operations Director Richard Tewrilliger-Smith met with all of the school principals and staff for their needs list for the next budget cycle. Staff shortages are still an issue for transportation and facilities maintenance, however, Richard is working hard and the current staff is picking up the slack, including driving extra bus shifts, getting salt and sand out early on school mornings, and making sure that all boilers were serviced before the winter. All equipment is on a preventative maintenance schedule, however, most of the boilers are not new and we have HVAC contractors on call to handle items as quickly as possible.

Lesley Stoeffler, Facilities Committee Chair

lstoeffler@rsu21.net

The Finance Committee is working on completing its goals and aligning them to the strategic plan. With budget season quickly approaching, we will welcome questions from all community members. These can be sent directly to Finance Chair Britney Gerth at bgerth@rsu21.net, or all stakeholders are welcome to attend our meetings in person or virtually. Questions will be addressed both in writing and during our newly established Q&A section of the committee agenda. A new schedule for 2025 will be released in the coming weeks.

Britney Gerth, Finance Committee Chair

bgerth@rsu21.net

The HR Committee is focused on strategic initiatives to optimize staffing and employee retention across RSU 21 while conducting deep-dive reviews of ADP system enhancements to streamline district-wide HR processes. The committee also received comprehensive presentations on MEA benefits trust healthcare data and the National Board Teacher Certification cohort program. The focus of the HR committee reflects our commitment to strengthening operational efficiency while supporting and retaining our valued staff members across the district.

Matt Stratford, HR Committee Chair

mstratford@rsu21.net

The Policy Committee has mostly been revising B-series policies to correct errors or inconsistencies with other policies, remedy ambiguities, and address topics about which current policy was silent. The committee has also formulated goals for the upcoming year that align with the strategic plan. These will be posted soon. At our regular December meeting, we will turn our attention to this year's policy focus: completing our review of all the student-centered J-series policies, followed by the curriculum-focused I-series policies.

Claudia Sayre, Policy Committee Chair

csayre@rsu21.net

Thanks to the community's incredible support, the Education Foundation of the Kennebunks and Arundel (EFKA) has provided nearly $1.8 million to teachers and students in RSU 21's six schools in support of STEM, Music, Literacy, the Arts, and Professional Development since 2006.

To ensure EFKA is able to continue doing its amazing work, they need donations! These tax-deductible donations help them empower our students and provide our educators with the tools they need to succeed.

Offer is for students and families of Mildred L. Day School, Sea Road School, Kennebunkport Consolidated School, and Kennebunk Elementary School.

Winter Schedules

GO RAMS!

District Contact Information

2024-2025 School Calendar

Job Postings

24/7 Hotline

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Call or Text 988 or 1-888-568-1112

Kennebunk

Tabetha Barden

207-604-1394

Arundel

Wendy Lank

207-985-4201 ext. 113

Kennebunkport

Alison Kenneway

207-967-4401

Kennebunk Chamber of Commerce

Laura Dolce

207-967-0857