Dear Nashoba Community,

It’s that time of year again! The time to offer gratitude and reflect on what makes our lives and relationships more meaningful. I want to take a moment to express my heartfelt thanks to our incredible school community for making Nashoba such a wonderful place to work, learn, and grow.

To our teachers and staff who work directly with students, thank you for your tireless dedication and commitment to their success. To those working behind the scenes to ensure that everything runs smoothly, your efforts often go unseen but are deeply appreciated. To our school and district leaders, thank you for your vision and determination to create a joyful, enriching school experience. To our School Committee, thank you for the time and energy you invest in ensuring our students have access to quality education. To our families, your unwavering support and positive encouragement mean the world to us.

Finally, I am deeply grateful to the community for trusting us with the privilege of working with your children. They are the heart of everything we do and the reason we show up with purpose and dedication every single day.

Thank you all for being an essential part of what makes Nashoba so special.

Wishing you peace and gratitude,

Kirk Downing (He/Him)
Superintendent

Nashoba Regional High School is planning to launch its third Innovation Pathway Program, the Information Pathway, in fall 2025. This new pathway would expose students to learning and real-world application of skills in the fields of information technology, digital media, and data sciences. A survey of students in grades 6-10 and their families in early October revealed high interest in the Information Pathway, with 91.4% of respondents expressing interest in information and technology opportunities. Digital Creation and Computer Science emerged as the most popular focus areas. With anticipated support from the Innovation Pathways Planning Grant, Innovation Pathways Coordinator, Bridget Hannigan, will continue her work with the high school faculty, Dr. Boynton, and the Department of Teaching and Learning to launch this pathway with the necessary support, course trajectory, and requisite culminating capstone/internship opportunities. As with our previous two pathways, we will pursue implementation funding through additional grant opportunities.

The Great Road Podcast, hosted by Director of Digital Learning and Innovation, Jed Stefanowicz, is back for season two! The first episode covers Hale's No Place for Hate. Listen in to hear staff and student voices discuss the impact. You can find the link to listen in below, or by checking out our NRSD Homepage, where you'll find all new episodes.

Students across the district enjoyed a special Thanksgiving Feast this Thursday, thanks to the efforts of the cafeteria staff and Whitsons. The special menu featured roasted turkey with gravy, mashed potatoes, stuffing, green beans, cranberry sauce, whole-grain biscuits, and cobbler for dessert. District administrators were on hand to help serve lunch, joining in the celebration. A heartfelt thank you to our dedicated cafeteria workers, who make delicious meals like these possible every day!

As the colder months approach, we enter the peak season for colds, flu, and other respiratory illnesses. The District’s Local Board of Health recently notified the towns they serve that there is a higher rate of illness than usual across the Commonwealth at this time of year. In an effort to educate and support families, Nashoba’s Health and Wellness Department is reaching out with reminders about how to reduce your risk of contracting and spreading illness during winter and the respiratory illness season!

Key Points to Prevent Illness

Hygiene Practices

• Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially before eating.

• Cover your mouth and nose when coughing or sneezing.

• Avoid touching your face.

• Use hand sanitizer when soap and water aren't available.

• Stay home if you're sick.

Vaccination:

• Get vaccinated against common viruses like influenza, Covid, pertussis, and RSV.

Additionally, Nashoba has COVID tests for home use available at each of our schools. If you are looking to have access to at-home tests, please reach out to the Main Office at your school.

To learn more about illnesses that are common during this time of year, please see the following links: Common Respiratory Illness, Strep Throat, and Mycoplasma Pneumoniae. If you have additional questions, please reach out to your child’s School Nurse.

Nashoba SEPAC offers virtual and in-person events to families. To learn more about upcoming events and to access important meeting links see the flyer and download below.

Nashoba Special Education Parent Advisor Council (SEPAC) focuses on providing support, information, training and workshops related to special education to families of children with special needs. This December 12th webinar gives an overview of the complex special education laws and procedures and will focus on Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and Massachusetts Laws, Referral and Consent to Evaluate, Required and Optional Evaluations, Team Meeting Process, Eligibility Determination Process, Difference between IEP and 504 Plan, Free and Appropriate Education (FAPE) and Least Restrictive Environment (LRE), Parent/Caregiver's Response to IEP, and Procedural Safeguards. Register Here!

Students in Bolton's Pre-K made "Exploding Apples" with hollowed out apples, baking soda and vinegar this week. What a fun hands-on science activity! There are still open spots remaining in our half day integrated pre-kindergarten programs for students who are 3 and 4 years old. Please reach out to Kristen Ryan, Director of Early Childhood at kryan@nrsd.net for more information.

Nashoba Drama is exciting to present A Christmas Carol this November! A Christmas Carol recounts the story of Ebenezer Scrooge, an elderly miser who is visited by the ghost of his former business partner Jacob Marley and the spirits of Christmas Past, Present and Yet to Come. Tickets are available for Friday, November 22nd at 7:00 PM, Saturday, November 23rd at 7:00 PM, and Sunday, November 24th at 2:00 PM. Check out the flyer below and click here or scan the QR code to get your tickets!

Celebrating everyday greatness! Is there a Nashoba teacher or staff member out there who you think deserves some special recognition? Send a Nashoba Notable Award their way! Fill out the form below and thank a Nashoba employee today!

Nashoba Notable Awards thank Nashoba employees for supporting students, families, and their school communities in all ways great and small.

Employees will receive a certificate that includes a brief explanation from the nominator of why they are Nashoba Notable. This form is open to everyone. Students, families, staff and community members can send a Nashoba Notable Award to any Nashoba employee.

There is no limit to the number of Nashoba Notable Awards someone may receive. Thank a Nashoba employee today!

Click here to tell someone they are Nashoba Notable!

Congratulations to Florence Sawyer School's Thea Tully, who accepted the 2024-2025 Middle Level Social Studies Teacher of the Year Award from the National Council for Social Studies (NCSS) on Friday!

Center School Kindergarteners in Mrs. Hargrave's class learned handwriting through Foundations. The letter P? No problem!

Seven students were chosen to represent Nashoba in this year's Massachusetts Music Educators Association (MMEA) Future Music Educators Summit. This is an opportunity for students in grades 9-12 who may be interested in pursuing a degree in music education someday, and an opportunity for our students to meet with other students from around Massachusetts who are in leadership roles.

Students from Hale attended the Middle School Model United Nations at Northeastern University last Saturday.

Innovation Pathways students in the Advanced Engineering and Manufacturing Pathway got the chance to tour the building site for the new NRHS high school and talked to a Consigli Construction Surveyor.

Fourth grade students at MRE took part in a 'What I Need Now' WINN block that focused on mathematics.

Mrs. d'Entremont's and Mr. Poirier's Sophomore Facing History classes visited the Armenian Genocide Museum in Watertown.