Walpole METCO Program

As we embark on this 2020/2021 school year of hybrid learning, full remote learning and many other creative ways of engaging our students, we would like to offer our annual newsletter. This has been a very different year with virtual teacher conferences, virtual parent meetings and virtual lunch groups! It is hard to believe that it is already December and our Winter break is here. Please enjoy our December METCO Program newsletter and please find time to relax and enjoy the Holiday season.

Stay well and safe and See you all in 2021!

Jesenia Castro, Director

Walpole & Foxborough METCO Program

For the third year in a row, Governor Charlie Baker signed off on an increase in the METCO budget, bringing the total grant amount from the state to $25.6 million. We greatly appreciate Governor Baker and the representatives that recognize all the hard work the METCO community does to support our students in education!

On Friday, December 9, over 230 people logged in to celebrate METCO's school year 2019-2020 and listen to the different voices and stories that make up the METCO program. From a listening to a panel of storytellers, to a music performance by a METCO alumnus, the community got together to share and commemorate all that METCO has done over the last 54 years since its founding. Even a surprise guest, Sean Ellis (criminal justice activist and subject of Trial 4 on Netflix) made an appearance to say a few words about how METCO impacted his life!

To view the whole program, click the video below:

With continued efforts to making our schools more welcoming and inclusive to the growing diverse population in the Walpole community, the leadership at WPS have committed to a year-long diversity training led by Dr. Kalise Wornum, Ed.D. This 2-hour, training occurs once a month and takes a hands-on approach to addressing the issues of inequity by examining one's own self and biases. Participants include 26 staff across the school district.

To continue the dialogue on diversity & equity, Jesenia Castro and Lokelani Cummings-Watanabe (METCO Academic Advisor for WHS, BMS

& JMS) started up a Courageous Conversations group at Walpole High School. This group meets once a month with staff and serves as a space to have honest conversations relating to race, discrimination and inequity within our school community and practices educators can do to confront them. Some of the topics we have explored are: implicit bias, identity development and family engagement.

Hoping all the families are doing the best they can in these unprecedented circumstances. Stay well and safe!

We were welcomed by this beautiful sign to start our 2020/2021 school year at Elm Street School. Teachers/staff started on August 31st to plan and prepare for this unique school year, we welcomed students on September 14th.

We have three remote learners and four students who are in the hybrid model in both cohort A and B. All students have adapted to routines very well. Students have been doing a great job wearing masks and following safety protocols in school.

Both our remote learners and hybrid students continue to impress us as they attend Google Meets, follow their work schedule on the Hyperdoc, join “specials'' like Art, Gym, Music and Guidance lessons. We thank you for your continued support. Teaching is in full swing as we near the December break. Thank you to parents who met their child’s teachers for conferences.

We are also very happy to announce that Battle of the Books will continue this year, the actual “battle” is planned for January. All students will participate, the expectation is that they read a minimum of three books. Of course they can always read more. Students can write short summaries of the books so they remember the details. Cohort A and B students have access to books in school, some books are also available on Epic. If your child needs a particular book/any materials, please reach out.

Happy Holidays to all and here’s to new beginnings in 2021!

Please enjoy photos of our Elm Eagles…….

It is so nice to keep in touch!

This school year opened in September as no other ever has. We welcomed 4 new students into our program at Boyden School which in the past did not have METCO kids. We are thrilled with this expansion. Whether in school or remote, learning has continued. Kids are reading such great books, deepening understanding of math concepts, and creating and exploring new subjects. Students are using technology as a vital tool for learning. While we aren’t together, we found ways to still connect across the elementary schools having lunch groups to catch up with each other.

Here are some of our students hard at work everyday remotely. We are so proud of all of our students and families who have committed to education and show resilience during this unprecedented time.

This school year by no surprise is VERY different from what we all have ever experienced before. Both of our middle schools have 2 cohorts that students are broken up into and each has 2 days in school and 2 days learning from home. We also have students who are full-remote learners and had to adapt to Edgenuity and its self-paced learning. Despite the significant changes, our students are doing AMAZING! Whether it's attending their class through Google Classrooms, attending Zoom meetings or progressing through their courses on Edgenuity, the resilience and motivation to continue to do great work does not go unnoticed. Check out some of the things our students have been up to!

Over the past couple of weeks, we have been searching for students at both JMS and BMS to participate in this year's Tenacity Challenge. It is an "annual academic competition for teams of 7th and 8th grade Black and Latino students from urban and suburban middle schools across Massachusetts." Students will have the option of competing with their team members in 1-3 events:

• The Math Quiz Bowl Challenge
• Global Voices Literary Analysis
• Leadership Action Project.

The Middle School Tenacity Challenge competition will take place on Saturday May 15th, 2021 at John Glenn Middle School (Bedford, MA) and is anticipated to be in-person with accommodations for students who are choosing to participate remotely. We are hoping to get at least 1 team (6-7 students) to represent Walpole in this challenge!

To get a sense of what the challenge is like, watch the video below or visit their website at https://www.tenacitychallenge.com/ms-tenacity

If you are still interested in being part of this amazing opportunity, please contact Ms. W (lcummingswatanabe@walpole.k12.ma.us) by Saturday, January 8, 2021.

With a virtual world of learning, it is tough to see your peers. Some may be in a different cohort or in the full-remote learning model. METCO R&R provides a space to catch up with your friends! Students from JMS have made a strong appearance and enjoyed catching up with each other!

METCO R&R continues to be held every Wednesday from 12:00-12:30pm!

Things definitely look a lot different this year. Since September, our students who are in the hybrid model have adjusted to the "new" normal: face masks during class, social distancing in the hallways, using a QR code to sign in and out of class, one-way hallways and stairways, lunch in their classes just to name a few. For our full-remote students, it has been a significantly new experience on Edgenuity and learning on your own. Through this pandemic, our students in the METCO program at Walpole have persevered! Our underclassmen continue to excel academically and our seniors continue to push through their last year and also apply for college and other post-high options. Take a look at some of our students from cohort A in the building!

*Pictured below: Students in the library as they wait for the afternoon bus.

Despite the challenges and obstacles we've faced this year as a community, our students continue to excel. Congratulations to Sara M. who has been accepted to 4 colleges:

• Curry College
• Eastern Nazarene College
• Dean College
• Bridgewater State University

In addition, she has been awarded multiple scholarships, including one from Curry College totaling $100,000 for 4 years. Keep up the great work!

• FAFSA Night: Join METCO Advisor Lokelani Cummings-Watanabe as we have a 1-hour workshop to understand the FAFSA and how to fill it out. This event will take place on Wednesday, January 6, 2021 from 5:30-6:30pm. Here is the link for the Zoom meeting: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85615661481?pwd=bEo0UjhSVEhRdzh5MThtKzlCeFV0QT09 Meeting ID: 856 1566 1481 Passcode: 5qB6fK

• End of Term 2: Heads up! We are roughly at the halfway point in Term 2. The last day of Term 2 is on Friday, January 29, 2021.

Applications for the Walpole Scholarship Foundation are now available for students to begin completing! Last year, the foundation awarded $200,000 to 105 Walpole students (roughly $2,000 per student!). I encourage you to start ASAP as the application takes a while to get together. A completed application includes:

1. The WSF online application and essay
2. Official SAT/ACT Report
3. 2021-2022 FAFSA Student Aid Report (SAR)
4. Official Certified High School Transcript
5. Letter of Recommendation from Guidance Counselor or Teacher

All application materials must be submitted no later than Monday, February 1, 2021 by 12pm.

For more information please click the links below:

Jesenia Castro, MSW

METCO Director

Walpole Public Schools &

Foxborough Public Schools

mailto:jcastro@walpole.k12.ma.us

Uma Valluri

METCO Tutor

Elm Street Elementary School

uvalluri@walpole.k12.ma.us

Noreen Ennis

METCO Tutor

Old Post Road Elementary School

Boyden Elementary School

nennis@walpole.k12.ma.us

Lokelani Cummings-Watanabe, Ed.M.

METCO Academic Advisor

Bird Middle School

Johnson Middle School

Walpole High School

lcummingswatanabe@walpole.k12.ma.us

This winter we send a warm farewell to Maureen Francis. She has been with us as a METCO Bus Monitor for 3 years and built great relationships with our students and families. We thank her for all her hard work and dedication to METCO and wish her the best on her future endeavors. You will be missed dearly!

Keep an eye out for the next edition in February 2021!

Don't forget to check out our website for the latest information: https://sites.google.com/walpole.k12.ma.us/wps-metco/home