CPS Superintendent's Update

Dear CPS Community,

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season, and a great first week back to school after the break!

Project 300 begins on Monday, marking the 50th year of this incredible McCarthy Middle School tradition! This annual event is the largest contributor to the Merrimack Valley's food collection for our friends and neighbors in need. Eighth grade math teacher Tom Gallagher is leading this year's campaign, along with a group of dedicated students and staff. Project 300 is a wonderful opportunity for students to develop and demonstrate critical leadership skills. The entire Merrimack Valley depends on Project 300 and the community’s collective generosity, so it’s great to see this initiative continuing into its fifth decade.

The Parker School Building Committee met for the first time on Wednesday to get the ball rolling on some important tasks as we embark on the feasibility study phase of our partnership with the MSBA. We discussed the current status of the project and the upcoming steps we need to take, as well as selected a subcommittee that will be responsible for choosing our Owners Project Manager. To stay up to date on all that’s happening with the Parker Middle School Building Project, please visit our website.

Some important dates are quickly approaching. Kindergarten registration will be held on Tuesday, January 28, and Wednesday, January 29, from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. each day. If your child will be entering kindergarten in the fall, please visit our website to reserve an appointment time one of those two days. If you have friends or neighbors who will be sending a kindergartener to CPS and don’t have other children in the district, please share this information with them. A full list of stipulations and requirements for registration are available at the link above. And Chelmsford Integrated Preschool will be holding a virtual information session for prospective families on Thursday, January 30, at 6:00 p.m. Pre-registration for the 2025-26 school year will open on Friday, January 31.

Chelmsford Community Education’s Winter/Spring 2025 programming is now open for registration, with classes beginning on Tuesday, January 21. This is a great opportunity for kids, teens and adults to immerse themselves in courses related to hobbies and interests like fitness, dancing, photography, drawing and painting, cooking and baking, gardening, crocheting, knitting and quilting, as well as hone language and computer skills. Visit ChelmsfordCommunityEd.com to view the full list of programming, learn more about each course and to sign up.

Just a reminder that Tuesday, January 14, is a professional development day, which means students will be released early. Have a fantastic weekend!

Yours truly,

Jay Lang, Ed.D.

Superintendent of Schools

• Athletics Schedule
• Professional Development/Early Release Day: Tuesday, Jan. 14
• Council of Chelmsford Schools Meeting: Wednesday, Jan. 15, 7 p.m. (Virtual)
• Martin Luther King, Jr. Day: Monday, Jan. 20 - No School
• School Committee Meeting: Tuesday, Jan. 21, 6 p.m. CPS Administration Offices

If you missed the Jan. 7 School Committee meeting, watch it here:

Kindergarten registration for the 2025-26 academic year will be held on Jan. 28 and 29 at the Chelmsford Public Schools Central Administration Office, 230 North Road, Chelmsford.

Reserve a spot by visiting the CPS district website.

As our schools reopen, this is a final reminder that all students riding the school bus must be registered regardless if a fee is required.

Register Now

Please keep in mind the following:

• All riders must be registered online.
• INCOMPLETE REGISTRATION: Anyone who has received an e-mail message regarding an incomplete bus registration and/or has not completed the registration will not receive a bus pass or be on the driver’s passenger roster.
• ALTERNATE ADDRESS: Any student using an alternate address must contact the transportation department immediately. All riders' addresses are automatically reset to the home address each year. Alternate addresses must be for all 5 days of the week.
• FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE: Anyone who has chosen the 'seeking financial assistance' option during registration must apply and be approved for the free and reduced lunch program.

For more information, contact the Transportation Office at 978-251-5100 or by e-mail at brekalisp@chelmsford.k12.ma.us.

Order the 2025 CHS yearbook online here or by calling 1-877-767-5217. Still need a photographer?

CHS is partnering with O’Connor Studios of Tewksbury located at 1348 Main St., Tewksbury, MA, 01876; and Creative By O’Connor of Leominster, located at 98 Adams St., Leominster, MA, 01453. Pricing starts at $30 per session, which includes six studio indoor/outdoor poses. Contact O’Connor Studios.

For more information on the collection of senior portraits and baby/early childhood photos, visit the CHS 2025 Yearbook page.

Questions or concerns? Contact the Lions Yearbook 2025 editors at lionsyearbook2025@gmail.com

Join the McCarthy Drama Club as they transport you to a land of Pure Imagination for this year's musical, "Willy Wonka, Jr."

Tickets are now on sale to the public for all three performances: Friday, Jan. 31 at 7 p.m.; and Saturday, Feb. 1, at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.

Tickets can be purchased here: https://our.show/mcwonka2025

*Click the image above to view The Voice*

Sketchbook Spectacular is a FREE art initiative open to artists of all ages in the Chelmsford community and beyond. All mediums are welcome, including drawing, watercolor and collage. Participants are encouraged to explore prompts in their sketchbooks, but the prompts can also inspire free-standing artwork. Developed by Parker Middle School artist-educator Ashley Norman, this project is perfect for starting or maintaining an art practice throughout the year. Want to share your work? Email your art to normana@chelmsford.k12.ma.us.

Chelmsford High School is seeking guest speakers to discuss their career journey with a group of Innovation Career Pathway students. CHS is looking for guest speakers in the following fields: Information Technology/Computer Science, Business & Finance, Life Science and Engineering/Manufacturing. If you have experience in any of these fields and are interested in sharing your career and career path with high school students, please reach out to Career and College Readiness Facilitator, Alex Cunningham at cunninghamalex@chelmsford.k12.ma.us.

Chelmsford Community Education’s Winter/Spring 2025 Programming is now open for registration, and will begin on Tuesday, Jan. 21.

This season, there are many great youth classes like:

• Kidding Around Yoga
• Circuit Makers 101
• Kids’ Test Kitchen
• Chess for Kids
• Painting for Kids: Color and Expression

... along with a variety of cooking, baking and crafting classes for adults!

Visit ChelmsfordCommunityEd.com for the full list of programming and like their Facebook account (Chelmsford Community Education) and Instagram (@commedwestlands) to learn about new class announcements as they happen.

We are excited to announce that Harrington Elementary School PTO has been selected again as a nonprofit partner in the Stop & Shop Community Bag Program. HPTO will receive $1 for each $2.50 reusable Community Bag sold at Stop & Shop Chelmsford during the month of January.

This year, Massachusetts is offering all school lunch and breakfast at no charge to students. This does not automatically make families eligible for any other benefits. Families that feel they are eligible for transportation or extended day reduced tuition are strongly encouraged to fill out the online free and reduced meal application.

Inspired by the Mahatma Gandhi quote, “Be the change you wish to see in the world,” Parker Middle School students and staff embarked on a service-learning project to make a positive impact on the world around them. The Be the Change Project served as an opportunity to empower students to make a difference in their school, community, or on an even larger scale. Numerous teams were established, and each had the three-week period from Dec. 2-20 to make a positive impact locally, nationally or globally. The teams were tasked with identifying a problem that needs changing, then planning and executing a strategy to make that change.

To read more about the Be the Change Project, please visit our website.

They feel the need for speed. And getting a foot or two of snow wouldn’t hurt their outlook, either. Regarding area schools are excited for the high school skiing season. Locally, skiers from Westford Academy, Chelmsford and Tyngsboro/Groton-Dunstable are excited to hit the slopes. Nashoba Valley Ski Area in Westford will host several meets again this winter.

Read the full preview at LowellSun.com.

The Chelmsford High girls basketball team is off to a terrific 7-0 start, which includes knocking off perennial state contender Andover, 59-51 on Tuesday night.

“Our team battled from start to finish – all the way through the two overtimes,” said head coach Mike Crowley.

The Lions have only allowed an average of just 36 points in wins over Saugus, Tyngsboro, Tewksbury, Wilmington, Bedford, Acton-Boxboro and Andover. Julianna Lanzillo and Anna Bierwirth are the defensive leadersRead the full roundup from Tuesday at LowellSun.com.

The Chelmsford Public Schools utilizes SchoolSpring to advertise job postings and the online application process. To apply for any of our positions, please visit our website.

The CPS Health Services Department is committed to providing evidence-based/ best practice holistic nursing care to the unique, culturally diverse students of Chelmsford Public Schools. In collaboration with all stakeholders, we advocate for their safety and healthcare needs. We are dedicated professionals who are committed to bridging health care with education and making a positive impact on the present and future wellness of Chelmsford’s school community. Please visit the Health Services page on the website for all your health services needs.

More than 75 colleges and universities sent representatives to Chelmsford High School this fall to meet with students interested in continuing their education at a post-secondary institution. More dates will be added to the College Visit Schedule soon.

Follow the CHS Career and College Readiness Center on Instagram: @chs.careercenter

There are a plethora of local youth sports and scouting organizations that hold fundraisers and recruiting events throughout the school year. Some may also be seeking volunteers. If you're a parent looking for social and skill-building opportunities for your child or children, we have launched a new webpage devoted to just that. In addition to event information, this resource page will also feature links to all the websites or social media accounts for youth sports leagues and scouting troops. So head on over there and check it out!

Looking for information about the ongoing Parker Middle School Building Project? Visit our website to learn more and stay updated. And if you missed the public information session that was held in the spring, during which Superintendent Dr. Jay Lang shared a plethora of information, view it here:

Chelmsford High School has a cashless system for admittance to its regular season home athletic events. To get your tickets, CHS has partnered with GoFan.co, a digital, cashless ticketing app used by more than 10,000 schools, for fast and convenient payments for regular season home games. CHS fans are encouraged to download the GoFan app. For Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association postseason tournaments, the MIAA also utilizes GoFan.co as its own ticketing system. Visit the MIAA Ticket Information page.

The mission of the Chelmsford Public Schools is to educate, engage, prepare, and empower well-rounded and knowledgeable learners who PERSEVERE through challenges, demonstrate RESPECT and INTEGRITY in their words and actions, are DEDICATED to their community, and display EMPATHY as global citizens while discovering and pursuing their full potential.

Email: information@chelmsford.k12.ma.us
Website: https://chelmsfordschools.org
Location: 230 North Road, Chelmsford, MA, USA
Phone: (978) 251-5100
Facebook: facebook.com/chelmsfordpublicschools

Instagram: @chelmsfordpublicschools X: @CPSchoolsMA