RSU 21 Community News 01-30-2026

Dear RSU 21 Community,

This week, we recognize National School Counseling Week, a time to celebrate and thank the dedicated school counselors who support our students every day. The National School Counselor's Association declared this year's theme to be: School Counselors Amplify Student Success. Let me be the first to say, they are absolutely correct!

Our school counselors play an essential role in the life of our schools. They support students’ academic success, social and emotional well-being, and future planning, while also serving as trusted listeners, advocates, and guides. Whether helping a student navigate a challenge, plan for post-secondary opportunities, or simply offering encouragement at the right moment, their work makes a lasting difference.

I am deeply grateful for the professionalism, compassion, and commitment our counselors bring to our schools. They work collaboratively with families, teachers, and administrators to ensure that every student feels supported and has access to the resources they need to thrive. Much of their work happens quietly and behind the scenes, but its impact is felt across our entire school community.

On behalf of the district, thank you to our school counselors for the care, guidance, and dedication you provide to our students and families. We are fortunate to have you as part of our team.

Best,

Martin Grimm

Bus stop safety is a top priority. Every morning and afternoon, the time students spend waiting for, boarding, riding, and exiting the bus requires care and attention. Students receive regular training from transportation safety trainers and bus drivers on safe bus stop behavior and proper road-crossing procedures. Review the procedure here: Bus Stop Road-Crossing Procedure

Morning Expectations:

• Wait at the location listed in the BusRight app, arriving about five minutes early.

• Wear reflective backpacks, hats, or jackets for visibility—especially on dark winter mornings.

• Do not approach the bus until it has fully stopped and the door is open.

• If crossing the street to the bus, wait for the driver’s signal before crossing.

Afternoon Expectations:

• Walk directly away from the bus toward home or drop-off; do not walk along the side or rear of the bus.

• Do not check mailboxes immediately after exiting—this is dangerous.

If a student drops an item near the bus, never try to retrieve it on your own. Alert the bus driver and follow instructions.

Red Light Violations:
We are often asked if we take action when drivers ignore bus red lights and stop signs. All buses are equipped with cameras, and we work closely with local police departments to address motorists who illegally pass stopped buses. As we modernize our fleet, we continue to update our camera systems to capture even clearer, usable evidence for enforcement.

By reviewing these expectations with your students, families help reinforce the training provided by transportation safety trainers and bus drivers. Together, we can keep every bus stop safe and ensure students arrive at school and home safely every day.

In our newest segment, The RSU 21 Community News will be highlighting anyone in our community (employee, student, or volunteer) that YOU think has done or consistently does something spectacular. To make a submission, please fill out this very brief form.

This week's superstar is coming from Middle School of the Kennebunks:

Anthony Ghidoni is a substitute teacher at Middle School of the Kennebunks. Showing up early each day, Anthony insists on standing in the lobby to greet students as they arrive. Anthony loves making strong connections with both staff and students. He has a great sense of humor that he uses with students that almost always brings a smile to their faces. He is one of our many important substitute teachers in RSU 21.

Kennebunk Elementary School: At KES we are in our 2nd year of offering monthly "Morning Mixers." This developmentally adjusted iteration of Advisor/Advisee allow students to make connections with two or three adults other than their own classroom teacher. We offer this opportunity one Friday morning each month and they are a big hit with the children and with the adults. One of the adaptations we made to suit our young learners, is having them stay in their own classroom. Instead of attempting to move almost 400 students around the building at the same time, the adults do the moving. Children's classroom teachers leave to go participate with a different class, and two-three other KES employees flood into each room. The 25 minute Morning Mixer generally includes Responsive Classroom style Morning Circle, a greeting, sharing great books, making connections with new adults and having fun.

Mildred L. Day: At MLD, our school mascot is Millie the Monarch! Today’s community meeting was hosted by our third-grade students and featured their research on U.S. states as Millie “traveled” across the country. The Where’s Millie? presentation highlighted the students’ hard work and brought joy to our entire school community. Way to go, Grade 3!

Kennebunkport Consolidated School: This week, we hosted our first ever Glow Run / Dance. The students had so much fun dancing and running with the atmosphere of black lights, glow bracelets, and disco balls. We appreciate all who participated in our fundraising to support our new Best Buddies program activities.

Sea Road School: A huge thank you to our SRS families! We loved seeing more than 300 people at the opening of our Art Show at the Brick Store Museum. It meant so much to have our community come together to celebrate our students, their creativity, and the amazing work happening in our Art program. If you weren’t able to stop by this weekend, the show will be up through February 1, and it is absolutely worth the trip!

Middle School of the Kennebunks: This week we recognize the MSK music programs for their outstanding performances. The cast and crew of Seussical, Jr. delighted large crowds over three nights last weekend. What an outstanding job you all did presenting the musical. Speaking of outstanding musical performances, the MSK band performed their concert last week, witnessed by hundreds of attendees. Congratulations on a truly outstanding concert MSK musicians!

Kennebunk High School: This week at KHS ends with a Coaches vs. Cancer event. Boys and girls basketball games will played at home on Friday evening and Peer Helpers will be sponsoring multiple raffles all to raise money for charity. Wear your Pink attire and come out to support this great event.

Also from KHS: Hello to the communities of Kennebunk, Kennebunkport, Arundel and beyond!

My name is Shannon LeBlanc, and along with my colleague Rebecca Moy, we are reaching out for your help. This year, the 10th grade students at Kennebunk High School are going to create a memorial dedicated to former Kennebunk High School alumni who have served in the military. Our hope is to create a student driven research project where they can connect with former students from the high school and interview them about not only their experience at K.H.S., but also their involvement in the military.

The end product will be a slideshow that will be displayed in one of the hallways of K.H.S. so current students can see alumni who have performed their civic duty by serving in the U.S. military. The goal is to have a brief biography as well as a photograph for each veteran. We would also like to potentially create a link on the RSU 21 website so that others can also see the result of this project.

What we are asking is that if you have any contact information for past K.H.S. alumni or their families that served in any branch of the military (including Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, Marines, Merchant Marines, Navy, Space Force, National Guard or Reserves), to send either Rebecca or I that information. It can be either an email or a mailing address. We are hoping to assign students to various veterans during the third quarter, so that they can connect with them and interview them for the project. Thank you for taking the time to read this and please feel free to reach out to us with any questions.

Gratefully,

Shannon S. LeBlanc: sleblanc@rsu21.net

Rebecca Moy: rmoy@rsu21.net

The Brick Store Museum is proud to host hundreds of creative artworks made by the youngest artists in our communities, featured in back-to-back art exhibitions by Mildred L. Day School (January 8 – 18), Sea Road School (January 23 – February 1) and Kennebunk Elementary School (February 5 – 22). These artworks are on display in the Museum’s ground-floor galleries, and make for a colorful, fun visit to the Museum in the middle of winter.

Admission to the Museum is free during the Elementary Art Show for the entire community to come in and enjoy. The tradition of showcasing local elementary school art began in the 1950s at the Brick Store Museum, and came back to life in the 2010s to celebrate the incredible work of both students and their teachers. To honor each student’s participation in the art shows, the Museum recognizes their artistic spirit with a new pack of crayons for each student. Community members can help support this gift to each student by visiting brickstoremuseum.org/donate.

Learn more about the exhibition and related events on the Museum’s website at www.brickstoremuseum.org; plus explore additional like half-day art classes for young learners, and program opportunities year-round.

Friends of the Kotzschmar Organ’s upcoming performance Recomposed on February 7 at 3:30pm at Merrill Auditorium is an immersive, 75-minute concert that proudly features artwork created by students from our district. Stage-to-ceiling projections will include floral-inspired artwork by KHS AP Art and Unified Art students, collaborative pieces created by Girl Scout Troop 1289 (2nd and 4th graders from RSU 21), and sculptural artwork developed with students, led by KES teachers and artists, Liz Winter and Oksana Thomas. Beyond the artwork itself, the project has created meaningful learning experiences for students, including conversations about creative collaboration, shared responsibility, time management, and the many careers that exist in the arts. Designed to be visually engaging, serene, and accessible to audiences of all ages, Recomposed offers our community an opportunity to celebrate the creativity, care, and talent of its students, teachers, and families while gathering for a bright, reflective moment during the winter season. More information can be found at foko.org and tickets can be reserved using discount code RSU21, which makes all student tickets free and adult tickets BOGO free, at https://porttix.com/whats-on/recomposed/ .

Full Calendar

GO RAMS!

District Contact Information

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Call or Text 988 or 1-888-568-1112

Kennebunk

Kris Fogg

207-604-1394

Arundel

Wendy Lank

207-985-4201 ext. 113

Kennebunkport

207-967-4401

Kennebunk Chamber of Commerce

Laura Dolce

207-967-0857