CPS Superintendent's Update

Dear CPS Community,

November, the 11th month of the year, has 30 days and marks the beginning of the winter holiday season for many people. November also brings a total lunar eclipse in the early morning hours of November 8th, visible from much of North America. The full eclipse begins at 5:16 a.m. reaching totality at 5:59 a.m. You can read about the upcoming November lunar eclipse, also referred to as the Blood Moon, here to learn more.

While November is an action-packed month for holidays, elections, and lunar events, at CPS we are just as active with upcoming events for you to be aware of in the coming weeks. November is always a tricky school calendar to navigate, with no school on election day, early release days, Veteran’s Day, and thanksgiving holiday break. Earlier this week, I sent a notice to all families about the school calendar for the month, to clarify the early release and no school days. Please take time to review the school calendar, so you are up to date on the days your child will be dismissed early or not attending school in November. New this year, is the addition of middle school parent/guardian conferences on the November 17th early release day. Traditionally, the additional November early release day was reserved for elementary school teachers to hold conferences, this year middle school teachers will also be using this day to connect with interested parents/guardians. Information will be sent directly from your child’s school soon on how to sign-up for conferences.

Our Chelmsford School Nutrition department has launched an online ordering system to better estimate the demand and interest of families desiring to receive lunch on our upcoming early release days. For the November 17th half-day, please be sure to place your order using the new online system by Thursday, November 10th. If you would like your child to have lunch on future half days, online ordering is open for you to select those dates. Please see the directions on how to sign-up for online ordering on half days, along with the dates of the remaining early release days of the school year in the newsletter below.

In closing, this past week I also sent a message to families about the upcoming Special Education Opportunities Review that will be conducted over the next few months as part of the new strategic planning process. This review process is an effort to improve the effectiveness and equity of services for supporting students with disabilities. While we are proud of the quality of services provided to students with disabilities and the hard work of our staff who help all children achieve at high levels, ever-higher expectations require us to look for ways to further increase student learning and improve the way we deliver services to our students. CPS is continuing its partnership with the District Management Group (DMGroup), a Boston-based education organization, to assist with this project. We are excited to be undertaking this study, and I will be sure to keep you updated as the project achieves key milestones.

It looks like the mild fall weather will be with us for another weekend, temperatures may even reach the upper 70s! I hope you are able to get outside and enjoy the beautiful weather this weekend. Please don't forget to set your clocks back for daylight savings this Sunday. The extra hour of sleep will be a welcomed treat!

Yours truly,

Jay Lang, Ed.D.

Superintendent of Schools

• View complete athletics schedules here

• Daylight Savings, 11/6, 2:00 a.m.

• No School, Teacher Professional Day, 11/8, All-Day

• Byam BSA Meeting, 11/9, 7:00 p.m.

• No School, Veteran's Day, 11/11, All-Day

November is Banana Pudding Lovers Month—who knew? Here are some more wacky celebrations to look forward to:

• Nov. 1: National Cook for Your Pets Day
• Nov. 6: Zero-Tasking Day
• Nov. 9: National Scrapple Day
• Nov. 16: National Button Day
• Nov. 21: World Hello Day
• Nov. 23: Fibonacci Day

2022-23 CPS Half Day/Early Release dates

• Thursday, 11/17 (elementary & middle schools only)
• Wednesday, 11/23
• Wednesday, 12/7
• Tuesday, 1/10
• Wednesday, 2/8
• Thursday, 3/2
• Thursday, 4/13

If you would like your child to have lunch on future half days, online ordering is open for you to select those dates.

Set Up Your Account Now

Directions to set up your account and order:

1. URL Link: family.onlineordering.linq.com
2. Sign up now: Email, create password.
3. School District: Chelmsford Public Schools
4. Student ID: This can be found on x2- Child’s student ID number
5. Last Name: (You can also search and add siblings/family members at this time). Once this is completed, student’s name should appear on page.

How to order meals

1. School Menu-select online lunch ordering (all schools)
2. Scroll to week of half day/early release date (top right of page)
3. Find date, select meal option
4. Add item to cart/Select Add to order
5. Click on shopping cart icon at top right of page
6. Click Check out
7. Select pick up location: Elementary pick-up location classroom. Middle/high school pick up location cafeteria.
8. Place order

Please join the Chelmsford High School and curriculum department administration on Wednesday, December 7th from 6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. in the Performing Arts Center (PAC) located at 200 Richardson Road to learn more about all things high school and how you can best prepare for the transition of your child(ren) to CHS. Please see Principal Murray's notice to families for more information about this event.

On October 20th, students in Dan Richter and Julie Durkin’s civics classes had the opportunity to tour the State House, observe the legislative process, and meet with Representative Arciero.

A big THANK YOU to Debbie Taverna who volunteers her time and shares her deep historical knowledge with our 3rd grade students. Beginning in October through early November, third grade classes have been traveling to the Garrison House to learn about life in colonial Chelmsford. Students explored the various rooms and artifacts from the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries and learned more about the history of our community. To learn more about this unique historical gem in Chelmsford please visit their website.

The HCKY Stick is a street hockey stick that is inexpensive, collapsible, durable, easily stored, and ideal for schools and recreational facilities. The HCKY Stick, the product of seniors Braydon Gray, Ayush Mitra, sophomore Catherine West, and freshman Gabriel Silva, was the winning product idea at the Chelmsford High School DifferenceMaker Idea Challenge Tuesday morning at the Carl J. Rondina Performing Arts Center. The HCKY Stick foursome, which received the award for Best Overall Group, will advance to the fourth annual DifferenceMaker High School Idea Challenge at UMass Lowell Wednesday, Nov. 30 at the UML Saab Center from 9 a.m.-1 p.m.

Rock ‘n Golf, which presented a golf bag with a built-in speaker for music, received the award for Best Presentation while Tempus, which is developing an organizational app, was cited for Best Slide Deck. To read more about the Difference Maker Challenge and participants, please visit our website.

The CPS Technology Department and the ATEF Arts and Technology Education Fund (ATEF) have funded our Grade 8 Technology Engineering students with a robot testing area at Parker Middle School. Students build robots with VEX Robotics equipment and program them with VEXcode V5 software. Students test and troubleshoot their work in the robot testing area.

A combined effort of the CHS Class of 2023, Scout Troop 81, and Student Council are collaborating with the Project 300 food drive from McCarthy Middle School to Chelmsford High School from November 7th-16th. Project 300, just from McCarthy alone, is believed to be the largest school food drive in the state of Massachusetts. Now, we are bringing this event to the high school, aiming to provide more support to those in need amid the difficult economic conditions that face our community. This collaboration will be held as a competition between Plus Blocks to collect the most nonperishable food items (examples include canned goods, pasta, soup, etc.). The top 3 Plus Blocks will be awarded prizes. The Plus Block that brings in the most items will have a breakfast catered to them during a given Plus Block sponsored by the Class of 2023.

In terms of logistics, a Google Form will be sent out each day to Plus Block teachers, who will be asked to record the number of food items their Plus Block collected that day. Representatives from the Class of 2023 or the Student Council will be coming around during Plus Block to collect the food items after they are recorded. We will be keeping track of the numbers each day and updating the status of the competition on daily announcements. At the end of the competition, the food collected will be donated to the Merrimack Valley Food Bank before Thanksgiving.

Thank you for your support and assistance,

CHS Class of 2023, Troop 81, and Student Council

Don't miss some of Chelmsford's most talented Alumni, performing for one night only at this special Homecoming event. These performers are world-renowned but homegrown. Come celebrate their talents at this family-friendly variety show and fundraiser—cash bar and concessions available at the event.

Performances by: Shayan Sobhian, Sophia Bellone, Julia Segal, Abby Segal, Allison Dorsey, Emma DeWitt, Janelle Draper, Susan Davies, Sabrina Lambros, Chase Boles, Timmy Chase, Kate Burgess, Kris Pisarik, Erica Lundin, Lexy Lattimore, and more!!

Chelmsford Public Schools has partnered with Paper to provide unlimited access to trained tutors so every student can ask questions, work through problems, and grow their confidence—at no cost to families.

Paper is an online, on-demand 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 for their writing, there will always be experts available online to assist students one-on-one in all subject areas and in more than four languages. See Paper FAQs to learn more.

Please use the following link to access the K-12 CPS Family and Student Handbook and CHS Handbook Addendum for the 2022/23 School Year.

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.

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

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
Twitter: @ChelmsfordPS