The Mather Memo

Spring Greetings Ranger Families! What beautiful, welcomed weather we are having right now. I hope that you are enjoying the sunshine and spring weather.

Next week we will end the 3rd quarter - congratulations to everyone for sticking with remote learning this far! We have just 10 weeks to go, and Ranger staff and students working hard to ensure that it is a successful end of the year for all! Whether you have opted-in to hybrid, in-person learning, or have chosen to remain learning from home - the goal is the same: Academic success through hard work and meaningful collaboration. We are ready to support your students through the end of the year. To assist families, we will continue to hold special town halls and regularly scheduled meetings virtually (including parent-teacher conferences) so that you can be prepared not only for the reopening of schools but to also continue to support your child academically and emotionally. This week you have two such opportunities, you can read below about College Family Night (Wednesday) and Mather Reopening Town Hall (Thursday). I highly recommend both sessions and hope to see you online this week!

We are almost there - let's go, Rangers!

Principal Auffant

Wednesday, April 7: College Family Night @ 6:00pm

Wednesday, April 8: Return to School Townhall @6:00pm

Tuesday, April 13: SAT - 11th and select 12th graders, no school for 9th, 10th, & 12th grades

Thursday, April 15: Quarter 3 ends

Friday, April 16: School Improvement Day, No school for students

Thursday, April 22: Parent/Teacher Conferences (Virtual)

Hosted by: Mather HS, Northeastern Illinois University, Wilbur Wright College, and Caminos al Exito Partnership

Wednesday, April 7th, 2021, 6:00pm - 7:00pm

Join us for a conversation about the college selection process and the realities of the student college experience.

Click on the flyer below for the link to the meeting! Or go to the Mather website and you will find the link there!

Mather will host a Townhall meeting to discuss school reopening and answer any and all questions we can as we prepare to welcome students back to Mather.

The link will be available on the Mather website before the meeting starts.

CPS will offer our 11th-grade students the opportunity to take the SAT exam in person at our school on April 13. This is a day of attendance for all 11th graders.

This spring, your child will take the SAT, which measures the knowledge and skills students have developed in reading, writing and language, and math as well as reasoning and critical thinking skills. One benefit of taking the SAT is that students can select up to four colleges, universities, or scholarship programs to receive their scores for free. Sending scores to additional colleges, universities, or scholarship programs can be requested for a fee online.

To ensure the health and safety of our students and staff during in-person testing, we will implement the following protocols at our school:

• We will fully sanitize all rooms, before and after testing, in line with the district’s enhanced cleaning procedures.

• Students and staff members will be required to pass an online health screener and temperature check prior to entering the building.

• Everyone who enters our school will be required to clean their hands either by washing with soap and water or by using hand sanitizer.

• All students and staff will be required to wear a cloth face covering while inside the building, including during the test and during testing breaks.

• Students will be seated six feet apart with no more than 25 percent of the room’s capacity being utilized and no more than 50 people per room.

• Masks can be removed for eating and drinking, and strict social distancing will be required when masks are removed.

• During testing breaks, students will remain in their testing room and maintain strict social distancing.

• We will implement procedures for restroom breaks that maintain the requirements to socially distance, wear cloth face coverings, and clean hands.

• We will establish and communicate clear arrival and dismissal procedures, taking advantage of the College Board’s flexible, staggered start time policy.

We are glad to be able to provide your child with an opportunity to begin planning for their future. Feel free to reach out to Assistant Principal Altstiel at cafusaro@cps.edu with any questions.

All students should begin preparing for the SAT by signing up for and practicing on Khan Academy.

Spring Sports are starting this week! If you are interested in the following sports please reach out to the coaches listed!

Boys Volleyball - Coach Napoles and Coach Ziehm - aziehm@cps.edu

Boys Tennis - TBD

Girls Softball - Coach Ramos - jcramos4@cps.edu

Boys Baseball - Coach McKinney - ndmckinney@cps.edu

Boys/Girls Track & Field - CoachSullivan - jtsullivan3@cps.edu

Wrestling - Coach Luca (Start date April 19) - avluca@cps.edu

We want to make you aware of an upcoming mental health webinar we will be offering for parents and teachers. "Adolescent Depression & Substance Misuse" will be on Wednesday, April 7th at 7:00 PM. In this webinar, psychiatrist Dr. Karen Swartz, Director of Clinical Programs at the Johns Hopkins Mood Disorder Center, will address the relationship between depression and substance use and the factors leading to escalating use for some teens. She will also discuss the importance of comprehensive treatment addressing both issues. To register, please go to:

https://www.adapeducation.org/event/depression-teens/

Looking for a way to connect with the Mather Community? We offer an array of Social-Emotional Supports to students and families. If interested in having your student participate, please reach out to their counselors:

• Calm Classroom/SEL 3Ts (breathing, mindfulness) during classes

• SEL check-ins and incorporating SEL skills into academics sessions

• Advisory, including mindfulness lesson, check-ins, and games

• Lunch Chats

• Community-Building Circles

• Counseling Office Services

• Grief Group: Are you a Mather Student that has experienced the loss of a loved one? (Has your student experienced the loss of a loved one?) Mather Grief Group is an 8 session student support group facilitated by two of Mather's school social workers. The group will provide a safe, interactive, and supportive group environment for students who are grieving the loss of a loved one while also providing education and offering students a variety of coping strategies to help effectively manage their grief.

  
  

  Please email NaVandermolen@cps.edu if you (or your student) are interested in joining or learning more information. This is a voluntary group and students must be assessed and found eligible by a social worker before joining.

Are you experiencing technical difficulties? Call the CPS Hotline for support: 773/417-1060. They are available from 7:30 am - 4:30 pm to provide support to CPS students.

Are you having a password issue? Did your Chromebook break? Check out the links on your Google Classroom "Class of" page and we will help you out!

Do you still need a Chromebook for your student to log into their classes? There is a link on the "Class of" page as well! Students can access this page and add parents!

The health and wellbeing of our students and staff is always our top priority. Since the temporary closure of our schools due to COVID-19, Chicago Public Schools (CPS) has served millions of grab-and-go meals to families. We are committed to providing meals throughout the closure, during the remote learning schedule. Parents/Guardians/Students can pick up meals at more than 450 schools, Monday through Friday from 8 am to 1pm.

Please go to Door 4 at Mather High School to pick-up food

Email: contactmather@cps.edu
Website: matherhs.org
Location: 5835 North Lincoln Avenue, Chicago, IL, USA
Phone: 773-534-2350