The Cohasset Compass

Hello Cohasset Families,

Welcome to October! October in schools is a great month. Our routines are in place, allowing for more independence from students in grades PK-12, first units are wrapping up which means first tests of the year are upon us, and students are starting to find their places in clubs, sports, arts, and more. The year is in motion.

As a District, we are similar. We have set our goals and are actively engaging in the work to achieve them, and we are doing the day-to-day work that keeps our schools moving forward. We presented our 2024 - 2025 District Goals to School Committee at the October 2 meeting and want to share them with families as well. This year, we are focusing on five key initiatives that will allows us to complete some of the work that was started during the last Strategic Plan. It will also allow us to bridge the work from previous years to work that may be identified in the new Strategic Plan that will be created this spring. The five key initiatives we have set are:

• During the 2024 - 2025 school year, the District will strengthen the Multi-Tiered System of Support framework by documenting a consistent process, identifying tools, and creating a training and implementation plan to support the progress of students requiring interventions and/or specialized instruction across PK-12.
• During the 2024 - 2025 school year, K-12th grade curriculum maps will be reviewed, aligned, and used to inform the creation/adoption and implementation of benchmark assessments in all subject areas.
• By the end of the 2024 - 2025 school year, we will have trained a restorative justice leadership team that will build an implementation plan to introduce and use restorative practices and community-building circles at the secondary level.
• By the end of the 2024 - 2025 school year, we will assess and analyze district resources including staffing, budget, transportation, class size, time on learning, technology, etc to forecast future budgets, needs and strategic plan.
• During the 2024 - 25 school year, we will implement a minimum of three practices to increase opportunities for ALL families to engage and have a voice in the school community.

If you'd like to access the full CPS 2024 - 2025 District Goals document, please click here. And, as always, should you have questions or wish to sit and talk, please do not hesitate to reach out to me at sshannon@cohassetk12.org.

Ever Onward,

Sarah

We'd like to congratulate the Cohasset High School staff and students for receiving the AP Platinum Award. This award is the College Board's highest honor for schools who participate in Advanced Placement testing. To achieve this award, CHS had:

• 82% of students take at least one AP course and exam before they graduate
• 74% of students receive a score of 3 or higher on all AP exams
• 20% of students take 5 or more AP courses and exams before they graduate

In each of these three areas our students achieved at a higher rate than what the platinum threshold is. We are very proud of our students and staff for their hard work, dedication, and accomplishments.

Today, October 11th, was a full day of professional development and curriculum development for all of our CPS staff. It was filled with many opportunities to collaborate and learn, allowing us to continue to enhance the student learning experience and to engage in work aligned to our district goals (references above).

• The majority of teachers in the middle and high school collaborated on benchmark assessment work as outlined in our third District goal, while some faculty participated in Restorative Justice training with Suffolk University thanks to a grant from METCO Inc, which is aligned to our District SEL goal.
• Osgood faculty participated in MTSS work together, and classroom and special education teachers participated in training in Readers’ Workshop provided the Teaching Learning Alliance (TLA), all of which is aligned to our District student learning goal.
• Data analysis was a focus at Deer Hill as well as a presentation by teachers about Responsive Classroom strategies. Deer Hill's work aligned with both our District SEL goal and our student learning goal.
• Safety Care Training was also provided to staff who are in our student service department. This work allows us to better meet the SEL needs of many of our students.
• The day ended with the whole CPS faculty and staff gathering at the middle/high school to participate in Community Circles. We opened the school year with Community Circles to support the social emotional wellness of the staff and to build our district community. Following that day, many on the staff shared how much they liked the opportunity to meet with and get to know others in the district. We will be continuing this work at each of our full day professional learning days because we know that taking care of our adults is just as important as taking care of our students!

On August 1, 2024 the Federal Title IX regulations were updated. Staff training was updated this year as well as the Title IX Grievance Procedures and the Title IX Complaint Form. All information is on the website. The Title IX Coordinator for the district is Dr. Leslie Scollins, Assistant Superintendent.

Her contact information is:

Leslie Scollins, Ed.D.

143 Pond St.

Cohasset, MA 02025

781-383-4210

lscollins@cohassetk12.org

Common Sense Education is offering a free webinar, Online Safety: Parenting Tips for Kids and Teens on October 16th. The CPS Instructional Technology Teachers have put together a list of Family Internet & Device Resources for families.

Have you done it yet? Read below for last month's overview of our Power of Play and Responsible Risk Taking Challenges and get out there to hop, skip, jump, etc and trying a new food so you can send your photos and videos in to us. Thank you 😄

Our community conversation about Jonathan Haidt's book The Anxious Generation highlighted not only the need for us to manage our children's and our own cell phone and social media usage but also the power of play for everyone, no matter our age, and the need to take responsible risks. To keep this conversation going in our Cohasset community, I will be posing monthly challenges that we can all engage in as adults and with our children. I encourage you, as you do these challenges, to send us photos to be included in future newsletters. You can send them to sshannon@cohassetk12.org.

Our October Challenges (because we're so close to October 1 🎃)

A Play Challenge

Get outside and Jump Rope, Skip, Play Hop Scotch, or Spin

Yes, even you.... no matter how old you are! And, yes, drag your high schooler outside with you!

Our Responsible Risk-Taking Challenge

Try a new food

And, a Special October Challenge For Our Elementary Families

Join your peers in "waiting until eighth" to provide your child(ren) with internet connected cell phones (see the photo below for details)

We are grateful for our community partnership with Holly Hill Farm and the work they do with our students in grades PK-12 as well as with Vinicio Cordon, our Food Service Director. The collaboration by all three parties leads to amazing learning opportunities and delicious food for our school community. Please click here to see some of the great work that's been happening at the Cohasset Middle School and click here to learn more about an offering from Holly Hill farm for teens to learn more about how they can use food to support mental wellness.

• October 11 - 12: Yom Kippur
• October 14: No School (Indigenous People's Day)
• October 16: PSO Fun Run @ Deer Hill
  
• October 16: School Committee Meeting @ 6:00pm (CMHS Learning Commons)
• October 23: Elementary Early Release for Parent Conferences
• October 24: Elementary Early Release for Parent Conferences
• October 24: CHS In-School SATs