Dear Medway families,
We hope that the transition into the 2018-19 school year has been smooth for you and your child(ren). Even during the days when temperatures were unseasonably high, during our school visits, we have seen students and educators alike demonstrating great focus and enthusiasm. It has been a great start to the school year!
As we look to finalize our 2018-2021 Strategic Plan through the Mid-Cycle Review Process that started last spring, we hope that you will join us in conversation during our upcoming Superintendent’s Chat. Additional district events and news can be found below.
Sincerely,
Armand Pires, Ph.D.
Superintendent
Superintendent’s Chat ~ Strategic Plan
We will again host Superintendent’s Chats for the upcoming year. We have found that these chats are most productive when they are topical. The first chat has been scheduled for Thursday, September 20, from 5:30-6:30 PM. The Chat will take place in the School Committee Room at Medway Middle School (door #7). The Chat will immediately precede the scheduled school committee meeting. The topic for this chat is the strategic plan. All interested members of our community are invited to join us in conversation for this Chat. We hope to see you there.
New Medway Public Schools Website
We are pleased to share the launch of our new Medway Public Schools website. The website can still be accessed at the same location: www.medwayschools.org. The new website features a streamlined look, along with simplified navigation. We expect to continue to make minor changes to website in the coming weeks.
Transportation Update
The transportation routes for the 2018-2019 school year were published in early August, late August and for the first day of school. Thanks to the hard work of our staff and Holmes Transportation the first few days went fairly smoothly. We appreciate all the ideas and comments from parents that helped us improve all the routes. Thanks to all parents and students for their patience as we worked through all the issues.
September Wellness Newsletter
Each month, we will be publishing a Wellness Newsletter in support our families and the societal and environmental challenges faced by our students. We hope that you find this publication to be supportive of our essential partnership.
In this month’s edition of the Medway Wellness Newsletter you will find information about vaping, social emotional learning, upcoming Medway T.H.R.I.V.E. events and more.
Medway T.H.R.I.V.E. Community Book Read Survey
Medway T.H.R.I.V.E. (Tools for Health, Resiliency, Inclusiveness, Vitality and Empowerment), a community and school based organization dedicated to providing wellness related, family informational and engagement opportunities has created a calendar of events for the 2018/2019 school year. These events take place in the evening and are open to all.
In addition to our scheduled fall programming, T.H.R.I.V.E. will be offering a series of workshops this winter/spring. One of these opportunities will be a community book read. In order to make this book read a success, T.H.R.I.V.E. believes it is important to gather parent input. Please take less than one minute to complete this three question survey by clicking here.
Upcoming T.H.R.I.V.E. Event: Secret Lives of Teens and Tweens
Medway T.H.R.I.V.E. will host its first event of the school year on September 26 at 7:00 p.m in the Medway High School Auditorium. Jon Mattleman will present The Secret Lives of Teens and Tweens, the full program description can be found here.
Class of 2019 Graduation Date
At its September 6 meeting, the school committee approved the superintendent’s recommendation to designate Sunday, June 2, 2019 as the date for Class of 2019 Commencement. Please save the date!
Middle School Recess
A significant focus area that rose out of our 2015 Strategic Planning conversations was connected with providing enhanced opportunities for our middle school students to engage in less structured movement time. A Middle School Recess Task Force engaged in a year long study of research and practices associated with this opportunity. At the end of the Task Force’s collaboration, a recommendation to institute middle school recess, starting first as a pilot during the 2017-18 school year and then as part of the school scheduled during the 2018-19 school year, was forwarded. We are pleased to share that this year all of our middle school students have the opportunity to participate in recess around their lunch block. We would like to extend gratitude to our teachers at the middle school for their partnership in making the implementation of recess a reality. We were pleased to celebrate this accomplishment in a recent feature: Metrowest Daily News: Recess Added at Medway Middle School
West Nile Found in Medway
The Medway Board of Health and The Massachusetts Dept. of Public Health have confirmed that the West Nile Virus has been detected in mosquitoes collected in Medway, MA. Please use an abundance of caution when outside.
Apply insect repellent, cover skin with clothing, be aware of peak mosquito hours. In addition, if possible, drain standing water and/or repair window/door screens. Press release from MDPH https://www.townofmedway.org/sites/medwayma/files/news/west_nile_virus.pdf and Historical Arbovirus Data: Annual Surveillance summaries https://www.townofmedway.org/board-health/news/west-nile-virus-confirmed-medway-september-5-2018
Upcoming Events
September 18, 2018 | SEPAC Meeting, Medway Public Library, 7:00 p.m. |
September 19, 2018 | No School: Yom Kippur |
September 20, 2018 | Superintendent’s Chat, Presentation Room, Medway Middle School, 5:30 p.m. School Committee Meeting, Presentation Room, Medway Middle School, 7:00 p.m. |
September 26, 2018 | T.H.R.I.V.E. Event: Jon Mattleman presents The Secret Life of Tweens and Teens, Auditorium, Medway High School, 7:00 p.m. |
October 4, 2018 | School Committee Meeting, Presentation Room, Medway Middle School, 7:00 p.m. |
October 8, 2018 | No School: Columbus Day |
October 9, 2018 | No School: Professional Development Day MFPA Meeting, Medway High School 7:30 p.m. |
October 17, 2018 | SEPAC/T.H.R.I.V.E. Event: Carrie Stack: Parent Self-Care and Childhood Mental Health, Auditorium, Medway High School, 7:00 p.m. |
October 18, 2018 | Burke Memorial Plaque Ceremony, Cafeteria, Burke Memorial, 5:30 p.m. School Committee Meeting, Presentation Room, Medway Middle School, 7:00 p.m. |
October 24, 2018 | SEPAC/T.H.R.I.V.E. Event: Responsive Classroom: Techniques Parents Can Use at Home K-4, Cafeteria, Burke Memorial, 6:30 p.m. |