Dear Medway families,
We have continued to enjoy seeing student learning in classrooms and are excited to support many efforts to meet the needs of our students. As you review this update, I ask that you pay particular attention to those items that request your action: Complete Yearly Information Update, Chromebook Insurance Review, and Complete Free and Reduced Lunch Forms. Please take a few minutes to take action and complete these tasks so that we have the updated information necessary as we begin the 2022-2023 school year.
Please find several updates and informational items below.
Be well,
Armand Pires, Ph.D.
Superintendent of Schools
No School: Monday, September 26, 2022
Just a reminder that there will be no school on Monday. To all those observing Rosh Hashanah, we wish you a healthy new year.
Action Items for All Families
Annual Information Update
Action Requested: Complete Yearly Information Update
The Medway Public Schools are required to obtain the latest demographic and health information for our students. This information is always kept private and complies with all FERPA and HIPPA regulations. All families must utilize the online Parent Portal system to update information and stay current with your child's progress, schedule, and enter absence requests.
All families must log in and complete the “Yearly Information Update” process by reviewing the current demographic/health information on file. If you need a Parent Portal account, please email parent@medwayschools.org, and we will be happy to forward an account activation code. The Parent Portal can be accessed by clicking here. Please log in and complete the review by clicking MORE > YEARLY INFORMATION UPDATE as soon as possible - the deadline has passed and we will be reaching out to families via other means.
Annual Student Device Policy, Care, and Insurance Review
Included in the Annual Information Update listed above, are opportunities to review and acknowledge our Handbook, Acceptable Use, and Chromebook Care & Use policies and guidelines. We also strongly encourage the purchase of insurance for any device designated as daily take home with our 5th through 12th grade students. Insurance covers all accidental or malicious damage, theft of the device, at a cost of $32 for the 2023 calendar year. The security of having an insurance policy covers the family responsibility of device repairs that can range from $15 to $350. For more information regarding insurance, please visit our website here.
Free and Reduced Lunch Application
Action Requested: Complete Free and Reduced Lunch Application
Children need healthy meals to learn. Medway Public Schools offers healthy meals every school day. During the 2022-2023 school year, all students will receive free breakfast and lunch at school. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts has provided money to do this for one year through the State budget.
We do need your help to ensure that families and our district receive all the financial resources for which it qualifies. Please fill out and submit the application for free and reduced price school meals. When a family qualifies by completing this form it provides additional support both locally and through the state. In addition, financial support to the Medway Public Schools is impacted based on the number of students who qualify for free or reduced priced meals.
The information you provide is confidential. We follow strict federal rules to keep your information private.
New Grade 5-12 Online Tutoring / Homework Support Program Launched!
In response to a great deal of feedback from our community regarding our students’ need to feel supported outside of the school day with homework and writing assignments, Medway Middle and High School have secured a partnership with Paper.co.
Paper is a secure, online tutoring service that provides students with unlimited, 24/7 academic support. Whether they’re stuck on homework, studying for a test, or need someone to read and make suggestions to their essays, there will always be experts available online to assist students in over 200 subjects and more than 4 languages.
Paper tutors have been specially trained to conduct expert, academic support in a secure, chat-based platform. With a commitment to helping students learn, they’ll never give students answers, but rather interact with them in an encouraging tone to lead them forward.
Students are encouraged to use it as much as they need, whenever they need. Our teachers also have accounts and will be able to review all student activity to see what they’re working on and provide more targeted instruction as needed.
School leaders are in the process of rolling this resource out to teachers and students and will offer families a chance to understand the platform during school sponsored events.
Recent Boston Magazine Ranking
From MHS Principal Murray:
I also wanted to take a moment to comment on the recent Boston Magazine annual rankings for public high schools in the greater Boston area. This is a topic that has come up a few times over the past few weeks and something that Dr. Pires commented on at a recent School Committee meeting. We were disappointed to see the recent Boston Magazine ranking of The Best Public High Schools in Greater Boston that resulted in the ranking moving from 47 to 96th. We have conducted a review of the methodology and data to determine the factors that impacted the change in ranking.
The Boston Magazine Ranking reviewed data from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. The methodology used data points including: MCAS results, SAT scores, AP success rates, class size, student teacher ratio, and percentage of exemplary teachers. These factors were then weighted and a composite score was created to allow for the ranking between schools.
A review of the data seems to indicate that non-outcome factors were weighted heavily in the ranking system. Specifically, the factors of class size, student teacher ratio, and percentage of exemplary teachers pulled the ranking lower in the overall system. A review of outcome measures (MCAS results, SAT scores, and AP success rate) shows that Medway is ranked higher than the overall placement of 96th. For example:
| MCAS (ELA) | MCAS (Math) | SAT (CriticalReading/Writing) | SAT (Math) | AP Success Rate* | |
| Ranking | 35 | 32 | 57 | 50 | 69 |
A couple of caveats with the data:
- It should be noted that at Medway High School we have worked to ensure that all students have access to AP classes. We do require that any student who takes an AP class sit for the exam. These two factors related to AP are not the same in all schools and the methodology of this ranking did not include an AP participation rate as a factor. For instance, last year 54% of students in grade 10-12 participated in an AP course.
- We also found a discrepancy in the data connected to the educator evaluation data. Our review of the evaluations from the year that the data is based shows that all staff were evaluated.
This past spring, we were ranked #41 by U.S. News and World Report, on Niche we have an A rating, and on GreatSchools.org we are a Gold Medal school for College and Career Readiness. Rankings such as these and the Boston Magazine rankings can be a point of pride in communities, but do not share the whole story. Ultimately, the individual growth and experience of each of our students and families is most important to us. We are proud of the hard work of our educators and staff to ensure that we are meeting the ever-changing needs of all of our students.
Equity Assessment Update
As we have shared, we are in receipt of our Equity Assessment report from our partnership with SchoolWorks last Spring. Next week, we will be sharing an update with the community that includes information about an upcoming Community Forum to discuss the Equity Assessment and next steps (to take place on Thursday, October 13 at 6:00 p.m.). In next week’s communication, we will share a few high level points of information and also share the report so our community has a chance to review it prior to the Community Forum.
Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment Update Shared with School Committee
Over the course of the year, the Medway School Committee will hear updates connected with our continuous improvement efforts to address the learning and social and emotional development of students. The curriculum update that was shared with the School Committee during their September 15 meeting can be found here.
New Director of Student Services Entry Plan Presented
On September 15, the new Director of Student Services, Dr. Ryan Place shared his entry plan with the School Committee. The main goal areas mentioned during the presentation included building trusting collaborative relationships with key stakeholders, ensuring efficient, effective, honest and open communications with all stakeholders, identifying the strengths and opportunities for growth within Medway in the area of Student Services, and ensuring that systems, structures, and supports are in place to support smooth and effective operations in the area of Student Services. The presentation to the School Committee can be found here.
Responding to Student Needs Update to School Committee
Thanks to feedback that we received from families and faculty and staff over the last year, we were pleased to share with the School Committee an update on how funding allocations have been dedicated to four key identified areas:
- Math Support
- Literacy Support
- Study Skills/Tutoring/Homework Support
- Support for special education, English Learner, student services
While not an exhaustive list of all of the efforts in place and what may be considered in the future, this update will provide our community with a clearer understanding of how we have and will continue to utilize various funding sources to respond to student needs. You can access the memo shared during the September 15 School Committee meeting here.
Community Education
Families of students invited to participate in the W.I.N. (What I Need) programs will be contacted directly by the Community Education Department. All programs are scheduled to begin October 4.
Fall After School program flyers will be sent home in the backpacks of students in kindergarten through grade 8 on Thursday, September 29 with registration opening that day at 5:00pm. Programs will begin the week of October 17.
Fall Brochure programs have begun and it is never too late to join! Please take a look at the one night and multiple session programs available this fall. A wide-variety of programs for all ages, including Wellness, Fitness and Enrichment, are featured. Please visit our website to register for both school and brochure programs.
Caregiver Connections and Support Group
A high percentage of Medway youth are learning to manage their mental health concerns, and most are supported by a parent or caregiver. Those caring for children with mental health concerns often feel overwhelmed with figuring out how to best support their loved ones while finding time for self-care. Paula LeBlanc, Family Partner at You Inc., will facilitate a monthly group to support caregivers of children with mental health concerns and create peer connections. The first meeting will occur at the Medway Public Library on September 28 at 6:30 p.m. For a complete meeting schedule, topic descriptions, and to register, please click here.
COVID-19 and Flu Vaccine Clinic
Medway Schools and the Public Health Department have partnered to offer a COVID-19 and influenza vaccine clinic. The COVID-19 vaccine will be offered to children ages 6 months to 11 years old, and the flu vaccine will be offered to anyone over 3 years old. The vaccine clinic will be held at the Burke-Memorial Cafeteria on October 6 and November 3, from 3:30-6:00 p.m.. For more details and to register, please click here.
T.H.R.I.V.E. Speaker Series
This school year, Medway T.H.R.I.V.E. is offering opportunities for parents/guardians to learn how they can promote student self-efficacy and sleep. Joanie Geltman, MSW, will share best practices for growing children’s self-efficacy, and Judith Owens, MD, will help parents and guardians understand the impact of sleep on academic and athletic achievement. Full event details can be found here.
'SUP Medway Coalition seeks Family Input
'SUP Medway, the community-wide youth drug prevention coalition, asks all families to complete a brief, anonymous survey. It takes about 8 minutes and there is the option to be entered to win a local gift card for your participation. More details: https://bit.ly/MedwaySurvey
Follow the Medway Public Schools on Social Media
Medway Public Schools: Twitter: @MedwaySchools Facebook: @medwayps Instagram: @Medwayschools
Medway High School: Twitter: @MedwayHighInfo Facebook: @medwayhighschool Instagram: @medwayhighschool
Medway Middle School: Twitter: @Medwaymiddle Facebook: @medwaymiddleschool Instagram: @medwaymiddle31
Burke-Memorial Elementary: Twitter: @BurkeMemorial Facebook: @burkememorial Instagram: @burkememorialelem
McGovern Elementary School: Twitter: @McGovernElem Facebook: @mcgovernelem Instagram: @mcgovernelem
Medway Community Education: Twitter: @medwayce Facebook: @medwayce Instagram: @medwaycommunityed
Upcoming Events:
| September 21, 2022 | Grade 2 Curriculum Night, Burke Memorial Elementary, 5:30 p.m. |
| Medway High School Tri M Induction Ceremony, Thayer House, 7:00 p.m. | |
| September 22, 2022 | McGovern Elementary Back to School Night, McGovern Elementary, 5:30 p.m. |
| September 26, 2022 | No School: Rosh Hashanah |
| October 1, 2022 | Medway High School Homecoming Dance, Cafeteria, Medway High School, 7:00 p.m. |
| October 5, 2022 | No School: Yom Kippur |
| October 6, 2022 | School Committee Meeting, Presentation Room, Medway Middle School, 6:00 p.m. |
| COVID-19 Flu Vaccine Clinic, Cafeteria, Burke-Memorial Elementary, 3:30 p.m. | |
| October 10, 2022 | No School: Columbus Day |
| October 12, 2022 | T.H.R.I.V.E. Speaker Series, Joanie Geltman “Promoting Self-Efficacy”, Medway High School, Auditorium, 7:00 p.m. |
| October 13, 2022 | School Committee Forum: Equity Assessment Update and Next Steps, MHS Auditorium, 6:00 p.m. |
| October 18, 2022 | Parent Teacher Conferences, Medway High School, 6:00 p.m. |
| October 19, 2022 | T.H.R.I.V.E. Speaker Series, Joanie Geltman “Promoting Self-Efficacy”, Burke-Memorial Elementary, Cafeteria, 6:30 p.m. |
| October 20, 2022 | School Committee Meeting, Presentation Room, Medway Middle School, 6:00 p.m. |
| October 21, 2022 | Medway High School Tri M, Coffee House, Medway High School, 7:00 p.m. |
| October 27, 2022 | COVID-19 Flu Vaccine Clinic, Cafeteria, Burke-Memorial Elementary, 3:30 p.m. |
| Medway Middle School presents James and the Giant Peach, Auditorium, Medway Middle School, 7:30 p.m. | |
| October 28, 2022 | Medway Middle School presents James and the Giant Peach, Auditorium, Medway Middle School, 7:30 p.m. |
| November 2, 2022 | SEPAC Meeting, ZOOM, 7:00 p.m. |
| November 3, 2022 | COVID-19 Flu Vaccine Clinic, Cafeteria, Burke-Memorial Elementary, 3:30 p.m. |
| November 5, 2022 | Medway High School Fall Play, Medway High School Auditorium, 2:00 p.m. & 7:00 p.m. |