CPS Superintendent's Update

Dear CPS Community,

Although it was a short week, there are still some exciting highlights to share. While our students were not in school on Tuesday, our faculty was participating in professional development. We were very fortunate to have our keynote speaker from opening day, Dr. Adolph Brown, join us for a follow-up session to share more inspiration and strategies around teaching all students in our district. Dr. Brown’s shared learnings about our personal beliefs, expectations, and anchors that affect how we work with students are something we can apply to any situation. His message is uplifting and helps staff focus on their daily interactions with students. It was truly a joy to have him back in the district again with us this past week.

You will note many upcoming events around the holiday season in correspondence from the schools and district newsletter. You will see collection efforts to help those in need with clothing and food drives, as well as fun events such as craft fairs, plays, and concerts. Our students and faculty work hard to balance both philanthropic and celebratorily events by working collaboratively to organize and promote how school and community members can contribute to and enjoy attending events. Your contributions and participation are welcomed and appreciated. Two upcoming events include CHS Theatre Guild’s presentation of Legally Blonde running next week November 17th – 19th. Ticket information is included in this week’s newsletter. Also, the McCarthy Middle School Project 300 food drive is in full swing. Project 300 is entering its 47th year, and each year, the collection efforts surpass the next. All donations from Project 300 are made available to families in need through the Salvation Army. I welcome you to attend the CHS play next week and if you are in the area, drop off some non-perishable food items at the McCarthy Middle School.

As mentioned in my newsletter last week, November has a bumpy school calendar with many early releases and no school days. Next week is no different. Although it is a full week of school with no breaks or holidays, there is an early release day for elementary and middle school students only on Thursday, November 17th. Elementary and middle school teachers will be holding conferences. Information about conferences will come from the individual schools. Elementary and middle school students will be heading home midday Thursday at their regular early release times, while CHS students will remain at the high school for a full day of school. Please be sure to plan accordingly.

As a reminder, there is no school tomorrow, Friday, November 11th in observance of Veteran’s Day. I would like to personally thank all our veterans for their service to our country and for fighting for our freedoms. A Veteran’s Day event will be held at Veteran’s Memorial Park located on North Road between the McCarthy Middle School and CPS Central Administration Offices on Friday, November 11th beginning at 11:00 a.m. All are welcome to attend.

I wish you a wonderful long weekend, and please enjoy this week’s highlights below. I will be back with another update next week.

Yours truly,

Jay Lang, Ed.D.

Superintendent of Schools

• View complete athletics schedules here.

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

• School Committee, 11/15. 6:00 p.m.

• College Financial Literacy Webinar, 11/16, 6:30 p.m.

• Early Release Elementary and Middle School ONLY, 11/17

• CHIPS Curriculum Night, 11/17, 5:30 p.m.

• Legally Blonde Musical, 11/17 - 11/19, 7:00 p.m.

• McCarthy and Parker Middle Schools Picture Retakes, 11/18, All Day

• Parker Middle School 5th and 6th Grade Social, 11/18, 2:40 p.m.

Extended Day students at the Center Elementary School created cards Veteran's Day cards to honor family members at the school and their very own custodian, Mr. Woodman! Mr. Woodman was very touched when students presented him with the cards. The students were all so amazing and so appreciative of our veterans. The staff in the extended day program are very proud of their students.

Rishik Kundu, a 7th grader at McCarthy Middle school, participated in the Regional Finals for the International Academic Competition's Geography Bee last weekend. He earned a 2nd place win and will participate in the National Competition in June. The International Academic Competitions (IAC) organizes competitions in 40+ countries, including the National Science Bee, National History Bee, and the US Division of the International Geography Bee. Each Bee has an Online Qualifying Exam, Regional Finals tournaments in the 2022-2023 academic year, and a National Championships which will next be held in Washington, DC, and Arlington, VA in June 2023. For more information on the competitions please check out https://www.iacompetitions.com/. Congratulations Rishik on your 2nd place finish and best of luck to you as you move on to the finals in June!

Chelmsford High School music educator Matthew Sexauer has nominated four CHS students to attend the renowned Western International Band Clinic. Senior clarinetist Rachel O’Brien and senior flutist Sarah Buliszak will each attend the WBIC which runs Friday, Nov. 18 through Monday, Nov. 21, and is held at the Doubletree Hotel in Seattle. Juniors Kyle Pinto, a trombonist, and Keira Miller, who also plays clarinet, are unable to attend as they are performing in the orchestra pit for the 2022 fall musical Legally Blonde, scheduled for the same weekend. To read more about this nomination, please visit our website.

Fifteen senior student-athletes at Chelmsford High School signed National Letters of Intent Wednesday morning at the CHS Gymnasium. Congratulations to all our CHS seniors. Please see the gallery of pictures of this signing day on our website.

View all post-season details of our Fall 2022 sports teams

It's time to register for our 2022-23 winter sports. In order to participate in CHS Athletics everyone must register and pay at the following link: www.myschoolbucks.com.

It is important to register on time since players who have not registered will not be able to participate on Day 1. To see a list of the available winter sports, please visit our website.

Register Now | Registration Directions

The Chelmsford High School Theatre Guild will perform Legally Blonde Thursday, Nov. 17, Friday, Nov. 18 and Saturday, Nov. 19 at 7 p.m.

Purchase Tickets

• Tickets available for purchase at the door
• Doors open at 6:15

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.

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