This Newsletter updates on all matters connected to Cohasset Public Schools. This letter is sent as part of a District initiative focusing on communication.

Greetings Cohasset Families.

We are deeply saddened by the tragic school shooting in Nashville, and our thoughts go out to the victims and their loved ones. I have spoken with Chief Quigley from the Cohasset Police Department, and we will continue to have a regular police presence within and outside our schools, as we move into the final quarter of the school year. Cohasset Schools and Cohasset Police meet often throughout the year to review safety procedures and protocols, and we are fortunate to have Officer Taylor with us as a School Resource Officer.

As students may be exposed to media coverage of this tragedy, guidance counselors at all levels will be available to meet with any student who needs to talk. I have included a useful article outlining ways to talk to children regarding traumatic events.

Sincerely,

Patrick Sullivan, Ed.D.

Superintendent

Cohasset Public Schools

We are excited to announce our first annual multi-cultural event in Cohasset: Mosaic. This event will celebrate the different backgrounds and cultures that come together to make Cohasset the wonderful community that it is!

In order for this to be an interesting, engaging, and fun event, we are calling upon our families to volunteer to create stations that showcase their family’s heritage. Stations could feature food, art, music, clothing - anything that you feel celebrates your culture, while serving to educate our students at the same time! This will be a district-wide event that will take place within CHS.

We will have a performance by the Origination Dance Company of Boston, as well as students from our schools. If you are interested, please contact, Aleisa Gittens-Carle, the METCO Director at agittens-carle@cohassetk12.org or Jenna Gibbons, CMS English teacher, at jgibbons@cohassetk12.org. We would like to have a member of the staff, or a parent representative from each school.

To volunteer, simply click the e-flyer below. Thank you for supporting this wonderful new event; we hope to see you there!

The District Professional Development Committee met on March 22 to review the current needs of the staff. The committee is made up of faculty and district and building leadership. They are working together to create a survey to solicit information from staff.

Cohasset High School

ELA Grade 10 March 28 & 29, 2023

Math Grade 10 May 16 & 17, 2023

Physics Grade 9 June 6 & 7, 2023

Cohasset Middle School

ELA Grades 6-8 April 3 & 4, 2023

Math Grades 6-8 May 9 & 10, 2023

Science Grade 8 May 18 & 19, 2023

Deer Hill Elementary School

ELA Grade 3 April 5 & 6, 2023

ELA Grades 4 & 5 April 10 & 11, 2023

Science Grade 5 May 8 & 9, 2023

Math Grade 3 May 16 & 17, 2023

Math Grade 4 & 5 May 18 & 19, 2023

Students in grades 3-8 and 10 participate in MCAS in ELA and Math and students in grades 5, 8 and 9 participate in MCAS in Science. If you would like to learn more about MCAS and access resources related to MCAS please use the links below:

Deer Hill MCAS Tutorials

CMS MCAS Tutorials

Dr. Scollins, Mrs. Cerwonka, and Dr. Sullivan presented the District MCAS Action Plan as a follow-up to the November 2 MCAS Data Review Presentation. Thank you to everyone who is working so hard to address the scores and to ensure that our students are receiving the most effective interventions and actions. Please see below for the Action Plan presentation.

Please see the professional development calendar below for more information about the professional development that is planned for the year.

Are you an experienced RN licensed in the state of MA, current on CPR and AED training? Cohasset Public Schools is looking to expand its call list of nurses who can substitute if needed. If interested and would like more information, please contact Kelli Gildea at kgildea@cohassetk12.org.

Kindergarten Registration for the 2023-2024 School Year for children who will be 5 years old on or before September 1, 2023. Kindergarten registration packets are available online at the Cohasset Public Schools website www.cohassetk12.org under the Osgood News section or may be picked up at the Joseph Osgood School. For more information, please call Joseph Osgood School at 781-383-6117.

Whether you are a new or returning family, we are excited to begin this journey with you and look forward to welcoming you to our Cohasset Public Schools family.

Please see the graphic below, which was established through the collaborative work of the Cohasset High School Community as part of their accreditation process with NEASC. This work also helped to set our District theme for the year, "Find Your Compass."

We are excited for the new track. Here are some pictures showing the finished product!

It is anticipated that the turf project will be completed shortly! We are excited to show you the final results!

Here are some pictures showing the progress.

Massachusetts General Law Chapter 76 requires that each school notify parents and guardians if their student has five (5) or more unexcused school absences. Parents and guardians will receive a letter when their child has 5, 10, and/or 15+ days of unexcused absences. The letter will also include the number of unexcused tardies and unexcused early dismissals.

Absences will be excused under the following circumstances:

• After a medical appointment documented with a note from the medical office

• Illness or quarantine with a note from the appropriate medical office

• Observance of a religious holiday

• Bereavement or serious illness in family

• Court appearance

• A child may also be excused for other exceptional reasons with approval of the Principal or designee in accordance with the school committee policy and the regulations set in Chapter 76

Daily attendance is essential to a student's success. Missing a significant number of days of school has a detrimental effect on academic and social development. Therefore, each school will work with individual families to support student attendance.

Please see the METCO webpage on our District website for important information regarding our METCO program.

Please see below for a link to download the District and School Calendars

From Commissioner of Education Riley’s memo to Superintendents sent on August 15, 2022:

“The Commonwealth is not recommending universal mask requirements, surveillance testing of asymptomatic individuals, contact tracing, or test-to-stay testing in schools. Districts and schools are reminded that there is no longer any statewide masking mandate in schools (other than school health offices) and there is no testing requirement for schools.” We will continue to respect the right of individuals to wear masks at any time during the school day.

“Effective August 15, 2022, all students and staff in childcare, school in grades K-12, or participating in out-of-school time (OST) and recreational camp settings should follow the updated isolation and exposure guidance issued by DPH, in alignment with recently issued guidance from CDC. No asymptomatic person should be excluded from school as a result of exposure, regardless of vaccination status or exposure setting.”

An additional link on isolation and exposure guidance can be found here:

https://www.mass.gov/info-details/covid-19-isolation-and-exposure-guidance-for-the-general-public

We will continue to engage students and staff in the meaningful discussions necessary to promote change. We are committed to promoting anti-racism and cultural responsive teaching and learning.

CPS is pleased to continue its partnership with the Cohasset Recreation Department by providing before and after school care for our elementary students. We have an amazing staff that provides wonderful opportunities for our students through the RISE program. Please see this link for more information.

Thank you to Director of Student Services, Barbara Cerwonka, and to all the educators who helped work on the revision of our District Curriculum Accommodation Plan (DCAP), which is now posted on the District webpage. As articulated in the DCAP, "Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 71, Section 38Q1/2 states that a school district shall adopt and implement a curriculum accommodation plan to assist principals in ensuring that all efforts have been made to meet the students' needs in regular education. The plan shall be designed to assist the regular classroom teacher in analyzing and accommodating diverse learning styles of all children in the regular education programming, including, but not limited to, direct and systematic instruction in reading and provisions of services to address the needs of children whose behavior may interfere with learning, or who do not qualify for special education services under chapter 71B. The curriculum accommodation plan shall include provisions encouraging teacher mentoring and collaboration and parental involvement."

Multi-Tiered System of Supports

To Parents/Guardians of Cohasset Public Schools :

The Cohasset Public Schools believes in providing the highest quality of education for our students. This letter is to provide you with information about a three-tiered instructional approach we use to meet this goal, referred to as Multi Tiered System of Supports (MTSS).

For MTSS, all students will participate in the core curriculum, with three levels (tiers) of interventions for students who demonstrate at-risk skills in general academics or behavior/social emotional areas. Each tier provides additional support beyond the core curriculum and instruction. All students receive formal and informal checks to measure their progress to determine if they are performing at an expected level. Behavioral and social emotional impacts are also monitored on a regular basis through the year.

● Tier One- As the largest tier, and the foundation for the entire framework, Tier 1 encompasses the entire school with core instruction and basic interventions. This structure helps to build positive relationships between staff and students. It includes proactive classroom strategies aimed at creating a supportive learning atmosphere. Teachers will use different strategies as universal supports within the core curriculum and instruction to address all student educational needs. These supports include but are not limited to items identified within the District Accommodation Plan (DCAP) and/or the School Accommodation Plans.

● Tier Two- Based on progress data, students who require more support than Tier One will be provided targeted interventions matched to their needs within the general classroom by the classroom teacher and/or support staff in the classroom. The Multi Tiered System of Support (MTSS) Team will track the student’s progress, and parents/guardians will receive ongoing progress data.

● Tier Three- Students who continue to require measures beyond Tier Two will receive more intensive individualized interventions at this level. Parents/guardians will be notified of these supports and receive ongoing progress data. After Tier Three implementation, students who continue to display limited progress may then be considered for further evaluation and services.

Our School is excited to take part in this process to improve educational outcomes for all students. As always, do not hesitate to contact your child’s teacher or myself if you have questions or concerns.

Respectfully,

___________________________

Barbara Cerwonka, M.Ed.

Director of Student Services

There are many stressors to our day-to-day lives; however, there are many resources available. The District Website has a page dedicated to Social Emotional Learning and Wellness. Please remember that our schools are a resource, and that our counselors, school psychologists, and social workers can support you and your child.

Thank you to all of our counselors for their caring and selfless work throughout the District!

Osgood: Dave Vinton dvinton@cohassetk12.org (adjustment counselor)

Deer Hill: Robyn Costa rcosta@cohassetk12.org (adjustment counselor)

Deer Hill and Osgood: Maeve Dullea mdullea@cohassetk12.org (adjustment counselor)

Deer Hill and Osgood: Alyson Doyle adoyle@cohassetk12.org (school psychologist)

CMS: Emily Manewal emanewal@cohassetk12.org (adjustment Counselor)

Allison Pearce apearce@cohassetk12.org (school psychologist)

CHS: Laura Struzziery lstruzziery@cohassetk12.org (lead counselor)

Leanne McCarthy lmccarthy@cohassetk12.org (high school adjustment counselor)

Kevin McGowan kmcgowan@cohassetk12.org (high school counselor)

Allison Battista abattista@cohassetk12.org (high school counselor)

Catlin Stromberg cstromberg@cohassetk12.org (school psychologist)

Robert Collins rcollins@cohassetk12.org (middle and high school social worker)

Please do not hesitate to reach out to us if we can do anything to help your student or your family during this difficult time. Most important is the physical and mental health of everyone, and we will stay focused on making that a priority. Please take good care.

Email: psullivan@cohassetk12.org
Website: https://www.cohassetk12.org/
Phone: 781 383 6111
Twitter: @SuperCohasset

You can also follow the entire leadership team on Twitter to see real-time updates.

Assistant Superintendent: @CPSAssistantSup

Joseph Osgood School: @JOsgoodppal

Deer Hill School: @DeerHillSchool

Cohasset Middle School: @comsprincipal

Cohasset High School: @CoHSPrincipal

We utilize both Aspen and Blackboard communications to inform families of important events, cancellations, and happenings.