Happy Friday everyone and I hope you all have a wonderful and safe February break!

This is a follow up with more information on student absenteeism. The Commissioner of Education recently stated that nearly 1 of every 4 students in Massachusetts in considered chronically absent from school. Here is more information from DESE: https://www.doe.mass.edu/sfs/attendance/

Massachusetts defines chronically absent as missing at least 10 percent of days enrolled (for instance, 18 days absent if enrolled for a typical school year of 180 days), regardless of the reason for the absence. Being chronically absent can have a significant impact on a student's academic progress and their ability to access the variety of academic and non-academic supports that schools provide.

Families we need your help. We know that students get sick and have days that they are not able to attend school (funerals, college visits etc) but if students are just not feeling great please work to encourage them to attend school. Every day a student misses is a day missed of learning and for social and emotional development. They are also breaking the school routine which sometimes can create negative habits. If you have questions or concerns or need assistance please reach out to the building administrator, main office or a trusted staff member. We want to make sure we are partnering with you to help you in whatever way possible.

Great job by our band students performing the National Anthem at a recent Providence Bruins hockey game with Mr. LeMarier. Thank you everyone for doing a great job representing WB!

Thursday, February 15th was School Resource Officer Appreciation Day. In West Bridgewater we want to thank SRO Tim Pope for all his hard work and dedication every day! He does an outstanding job working with our students and staff. We are so fortunate to have him in WB! Thank you!

Information regarding Preschool for the 2024-2025 School year is now available. Please click the link below for more information.

February 5, 2024

The objective of the Policy Subcommittee is to regularly review policies of the West Bridgewater School Committee to determine if they are current, consider the interests of stakeholders, and are in line with guidance from the Massachusetts Association of School Committees. At the most recent school committee meeting on February 5, 2024, the following policies were reviewed and revised as indicated:

• BHE: Use Of Electronic Messaging By School Committee Members

• EHAA: District Security Relating To Technology

• EHB: Data And Records Retention

• GBEE: Personnel Use Of Technology

• IJND: Access To Digital Resources

• IJNDB: Use of Technology in Instruction

• IJNDC: Internet Publication

• JICJ: Student Use Of Technology In School

• JLCE: Automated External Defibrillator (Aed) Policy And Procedure *Rescinded*

• KDC: Community Use Of Digital Resources

• EFC: Universal Free School Meals

• EFD: School Nutrition Program Charge Policy

Additionally, the following policies were opened and are scheduled for review at the next school committee meeting on March 4, 2024:

• EBAB: Pest Management Policy

• EC: Buildings And Grounds Management

• ECA: Buildings And Grounds Security

• ECAC: Vandalism

• ECAF: Security Cameras In Schools

• EDC: Authorized Use Of School-Owned Materials

• EFAB: Life Threatening Allergic Reactions

• EFE: Civil Rights Complaint Policy For Child Nutrition Programs

• KDCB: District Website And Social Media

For any questions or to provide feedback, please contact the policy subcommittee at kmilton@wbridgewater.com and rdragonetti@wbridgewater.com. A complete listing of policies can be found in the WB Policy Index at https://www.wbridgewaterschools.org under the School Committee tab.

Congratulations to our National History Day Students

Ellis Island: group exhibit by Charlotte Farrell-Fren, Hannah Dragonetti, and Abbigail Rudolph!

The Railroad: group documentary by Tristan Hambly, Arran Hambly, and Christopher Jones!

NHD information

Congratulations to all the students and thank you to Mr. Despier!

ST Math is an online, unique approach that provides students with learning through challenging puzzles and non-routine problem solving. With ST Math, students build deep conceptual understanding while having fun! Our Kindergarten students have been working extremely hard to complete their weekly goal for completing puzzles and were surprised by a JiJi(ST Math Mascot) visit this week for meeting those goals.

The Apparel Store is open. I am working on sharing some of the promo codes that were sent in the email below. Feel free to share!

https://sideline.bsnsports.com/schools/massachusetts/westbridgewater/west-bridgewater-high-school

During the month of January preschoolers explored winter weather and animals that live in cold climates, particularly penguins in the south pole and polar bears in the north pole. Through several books, weather observations and discussions, and science experiments they learned that we can melt ice faster using salt. They also learned that while people need clothing to protect us from the cold, some animals, like penguins and polar bears, use blubber.

Preschoolers worked to help Problem Panda rescue the ring he dropped in water which froze overnight. They used salt, warm water, and tools to melt and break the ice and get their rings out!

Our preschoolers also learned about animals that live where it is cold and how blubber protects them from the cold. We tested how our hands felt in icy water, both bare and with a blubber glove on. The blubber glove protected our hands from feeling so cold!

Preschool learned about the Post Office and had a post office themed dramatic play area. They also read the book "Ten on a Sled" and then used engineering and design strategies to build a sled that will hold 10 counting bears without falling out.

Patriot's Pen Winners from the Howard School are Kiera Murphy won 1st place (tied with Anthony Dimaggio), she is the official District 12 winner for Patriot's Pen. Kara Lamlein got 2nd and Sarah Perry got 3rd. Congratulations to all and thank you Mrs. Mills!

Congratulations to Howard School student Kiera Murphy who was recently invited to the VFWs Voice of Democracy and Patriot's Pen Banquet. Kiera finished top 10 in Massachusetts. Great job!

I wanted to provide our families, staff and community with an update on where we are with the elementary school building project. As always if you have any questions please let me know.

Last week (February 7th) we posted our 142-page Request for Services (RFS) for the Owners Project Manager. We will be accepting information until February 21st. To date, we have had 27 companies request the RFS. Our School Building Selection Subcommittee will be reviewing all submissions after the 21st to create a short list of candidates to interview on March 6th. We intend to present our finalist to the MSBA at their OPM Review Panel meeting on April 8th. Once we have the OPM on board we will repeat a similar process for the designer/architect for the feasibility study. Once the OPM and designer are finalized then they along with the SBC will begin the feasibility study work. As you can see a lot goes into this process.

Thank you to the administration and staff at the Rose L MacDonald School, Spring Street School, and Howard School. On February 14th we had our Informational Meeting and Site Visit for prospective Owner Project Managers (OPMs) and architects for the project. As part of the MSBA process, we have this meeting and site visit open to anyone interested in the project. We had over 20 visitors and met initially in the RLM gym to provide them with information on the project and answer questions. We then toured the RLM, SSS, and Howard School.

As we get further into the project we will be working with our elementary staff to get their thoughts, feedback, and ideas to move forward. For the MSHS project we worked closely with the staff to make sure the building reflected the needs of our students and staff. We will also be hosting community nights to provide information and to solicit feedback. Our School Building Committee (SBC) will meet again on March 12th. We have an outstanding SBC who is dedicated to working collaboratively to get the best project for our community.

Again it is our goal to keep you and the community updated as much as possible as we go through this process. As always if you have any questions please reach out mbodwell@wbridgewater.com .

Registration is now open. Come join the fun!

Summer Surround Care will be available from June 24 through August 15 2024 at the Middle Senior High School. The program will run Monday through Thursday. Daily and weekly rates are available to best fit your schedule The program is open to students who are entering grades 1-6.

Activities will include: Arts & Crafts, Indoor and Outdoor Free Play, Music, Games, Waterplay & Sports. We will take walking trips to local places such as Friendship Park and Town Park. Registration and more information at: Summer Surround Care

West Bridgewater Public Library welcomes students after school. Aside from our large collection of books, magazines, and movies we have a wide variety of things to do. We have a Nintendo Switch for students to play, countless books, and lots of board games. Ask if you're interested in putting together a puzzle and we'll grab one for you from our back room. There is Pokemon Club bi weekly for ages 8 - 12, Movie Matinees every Wednesday after school, pop-up activities like Make a Friendship Bracelet, Break out Bags (Like a portable Escape Room!), and we'd love to add in more programming for kids who are interested in after school activities. We also have a 3D Printer (that's currently out of commission), and it's a huge draw for students. The library staff is friendly and welcoming to all students and patrons. We love learning more about students we see every day. The library is a trusted entity, and we strive to continue to be a kind and warm place to land after school. It's clear that many students are very comfortable here, and we thank every student who passes through our doors, and parents who trust their children to spend their after school time in our building. During the summer we host Summer Reading Programs with activities and prizes for attendants.

I wanted to share a few safety concerns with you related to school arrivals and afternoon pick-up. We need your help to make sure our students and staff stay safe. This information was sent to all families via email on February 7th.

Spring Street School Parking Lot for MSHS - The SSS lot is for Spring Street School staff, Spring Street School parents, and bus traffic. ALL other vehicles should be using the MSHS entrance on Howard Street near the police and fire station (for arriving and leaving) Parents should not be driving into the Spring Street School lot as it creates a safety concern for our staff, parents, and buses. In the morning parents walk across the lot to bring their Kindergarten students to Surround Care and staff walk to the building. In the afternoon drivers of MSHS students are parking in the SSS gravel lot, driveway, and parking spaces. Students are walking to the cars while buses are exiting the school. Those who are using the SSS lot are using it for convenience. Convenience should never be a priority over safety. We understand that the traffic pattern at the MSHS is not ideal but it has been there since 2015. If you have concerns over timing it would be a suggestion to leave your house earlier so timing is not a concern.

Middle/Senior High School Parking Lot - Vehicles should not be going into the student/staff parking area at the MSHS (between the turf field and school). This is an area where our youngest and most inexperienced drivers park and to have additional cars parking in the driveway creates additional safety concerns for all. Please follow the established guidelines. We have had accidents as well as near misses by adults who should not be driving through this area.

Distracted Driving at all Schools - It has been reported to me that at all schools staff has witnessed distracted drivers. With young students around it is imperative that the adults are not distracted as sometimes students will make sudden movements in the parking areas and driving areas and we need to make sure they are safe.

Town Library Parking - We have been contacted by the West Bridgewater Town Library with their concerns over the cars that are using the parking area as a pick-up location for their children. The library parking area is for patrons of the library not for parent pick up. We ask that individuals who are driving follow the established guidelines and drive around to the designated pick-up areas. Not only do the students walking to the library create a safety concern but there have been reported accidents in the library parking lot with cars backing into each other. There are also reports of cars parking illegally. By parking in the library lot, you are making it more difficult for those who want to visit the library.

As always we prioritize the safety of our students, staff, and all who come onto school property. Thank you to the majority of our drivers who continue to do the right thing and follow the guidelines every day. I understand that drop-off and pick-up can move slowly at times. Again if that is a concern please make the appropriate time adjustments to your schedule. Just because it is more convenient for you and your schedule should not take priority over safety. The guidelines for our procedures are for ALL drivers and we would appreciate those who are not following the rules to consider the safety of our students and staff and begin to do what is expected. We do not want to wait for an incident or a tragedy to happen.

If you have any questions or would like to discuss this further feel free to contact me at anytime at 508-894-1230 or mbodwell@wbridgewater.com.

The Superintendent Morning Meeting (formerly known as Coffee Hour) with Mr. Bodwell was held at the Spring Street School on Friday, February 16th at 9:15 am The next meeting will be on Friday, March 15th at 9:15 location TBA All are invited to attend and we hope to see you there!!

The School Department is pleased to announce that we have implemented a new online building use request platform, called EventHQ. This platform allows users to visit our online portal to reserve a space for school or community event. With this platform we will no longer use paper forms, and will streamline the reservation and approval process for everyone involved. Organizations can reserve the fields, classrooms, public spaces and more all through this online platform.

Check out the February WB Principals newsletters!

MSHS https://www.smore.com/neav7g

Howard School https://www.smore.com/q23rpj

Rose L MacDonald School https://www.smore.com/25ya9-rose-l-macdonald-school

Spring Street School https://www.smore.com/mj42d-spring-street-school

PCC Summer Program at Stonehill College - Check out the attached flyers for more information and the Informational Nights on January 10th and 29th at 7pm at Stonehill. Open to students in grades 7-10 https://pccasp.org/schools

We are always looking for qualified persons to fill substitute teaching positions. If you are interested, please visit https://www.wbridgewaterschools.org/page/substitute-teaching for more information or contact one of the building principals for more information.

Our School Nurses:

• MSHS/LEAD NURSE

• Julie Diedrichsen 508-894-1220 x1305 or jdiedrichsen@wbridgewater.com

• HOWARD SCHOOL

• Peggy Linskey 508-894-1250 x3115 or mlinskey@wbridgewater.com

• ROSE L. MACDONALD SCHOOL

• Lynn Moniz 508-894-1240 x4102 or lmoniz@wbridgewater.com

• SPRING STREET SCHOOL

• Sara Mando 508-894-1230 x2122 or smando@wbridgewater.com

For more information about sick child guidelines, health related policies and state mandates, please visit the Health Services website at https://www.wbridgewaterschools.org/page/health-services

Inclusion Matters partners with families with children with special needs, including children with IEPs and 504 Plans.

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Inclusion Matters was begun by a group of parents in response to the school district's need for a SEPAC. As an official 501(c)3, Inclusion Matters now offers workshops for caregivers and families, IEP and 504 consulting, an annual conference (on hold due to the pandemic), and family events for families with and without special needs in communities across the South Shore of Massachusetts.

The Application window for the 2024-2025 School Choice Program is now open.

West Bridgewater is a School Choice district. We invite applications to all grades (K-12) but the specific grades that are open to accept school choice students have not yet been determined.

All Applications must be electronically submitted by 12:00 noon on February 29, 2024

Please click the link below to visit the School Choice Information page and access the online application.

https://www.wbridgewaterschools.org/page/school-choice-program

Check out our Winter Sports scores, highlights and posts below! As always make sure to check out our coaches Twitter as well as @WBMSHSAthletics for updates on the schedule and highlights from games and matches.

Spring Sports is right around the corner! The link to sign up for Spring Sports is below. The registration is open and ready for athletes to sign up now!

Please see our ATC, Emma to make sure you have an up to date physical on file.

https://students.arbitersports.com/west-bridgewater-middle-senior-hs-activities-and-fees/west-bridgewater-2023-2024-west-bridgewater-athletics-registration

**Game Schedule**:

Please check out the WB game schedule on Arbiter Live! Link is below.

https://arbiterlive.com/Teams?entityId=25160

Avoid waiting in line! Please check out our online ticketing through Go Fan!

https://gofan.co/app/school/MA14770

Check out the Power Rankings for our Winter Teams!

Updated Winter 2024 Power Rankings are now available, based on scores entered into Arbiter as of 4 a.m. on 2/16.

Boys Basketball

Girls Basketball

Boys Hockey

Girls Hockey

https://miaa.net/power-rankings/

Winter Sports

Unified Basketball

Come out and support our Unified Basketball Team as they kick off the season. The team will have their first game of the season at Pembroke on March 12.

Indoor Track and Field

WB Boys and girls winter track had two meets in one day on Saturday February 10th.

This was the last winter track meet for 4 of our seniors. Derek Cashman, Derek Fredericson, Sam Salter and Christian Frederickson. These student athletes have been dedicated, stand-up track athletes, leaders and role models. Best of luck boys, you will be missed!

The Winter track SSC league meet was held at Greater New Bedford Voke-Tech. Highlights include a 6th place/medal for Viviana Morales Wakin in the 2 mile, 4th place/medal for Emma Pope in the 1000M, and 6th place overall for Sean Hancock in the high jump. The boys 4 x 400M relay team of Derek Cashman, Derek Frederickson, Christian Frederickson and Andrew Perry placed 6th overall, earning them ribbons.

The Mass Qualifier/last chance to qualify meet was held at the Reggie Lewis Center. Ella Dunbury placed 1st overall in the 2 mile today with a new school record of 11:22. Ella is now ranked 15th in the state and 60th in the country in the 2 mile, with her eyes on even better this week. Kenly Laime ran the 300M coming in 9th out of 93 with a new PR time of 37.88! Kenly also placed 6th overall in high jump with a jump of 5'6. Ella, Kenly and Aly Basset move onto D5 states this Wednesday and we wish them the best of luck!!!

Ella Dunbury, Kenly Laime and Aly Basset all competed in the Division 5 States meet at the Reggie Lewis Center against top athletes in our division. Aly earned third place with a time of 8.84S in the 55M Hurdles. Kenly placed third in the high jump with a season's best jump of 6’ and threw 40’ in shot put. Ella placed 2nd in the 2 mile. Now we wait and watch results for the other divisional meets to see who moves on to All states. Great job and good luck to Ella, Kenly and Aly!!!

Gymnastics:

The Cranberry League Championships were held Saturday 2/10 at Spectrum Gymnastics. The Co-op team of Bridgewater-Raynham and West Bridgewater won their 8th straight League Championship scoring a 144.7. The Co-op team of Brockton/ East Bridgewater/ Cardinal Spellman was second with a 142.8 and the Co-op team of Falmouth/Mashpee/Barnstable was third with a 136.55.

Below are the top 3 results for the all around ( all around athletes not eligible for individual events)

All Around

Lily Moreira- BR/WB- 36.95

Ciara Thomas Brockton/EB-36.85

Lindsay Woodbury-BR/WB-35.75

Below are the top 3 results for events ( all around athletes not eligible)

Vault

Natalia Flores-BR/WB- 9.25

Caitlin Ward F/M/B-9.2

Ella McCarthy-Brockton/EB-9.1

Uneven Bars

Gigi Figureia-Pires-Brockton/EB-9.0

Brianna Buckley-BR/WB-8.75

Elizabeth Mochen-Co/No-8.7

Balance Beam

Ella McCarthy-Brockton/EB- 9.4

Cecilia Meoli-BR/WB-9.15

Brianna Buckley-BR/WB-8.95

Floor Exercise

Ella McCarthy-Brockton/EB-9.0 (tie)

Frankie Fernandes-BR/WB-9.0(tie)

Cecilia Meoli-BR/WB-8.95

Top Scores of the meet ( All Around & Event gymnasts)

Vault- Lindsay Woodbury-BR/WB-9.55

Bars- Lily Moreira-BR/WB-9.4

Beam-Ella McCarthy-Brockton/EB-9.4

Floor- Lily Moreira-BR/WB-9.4

BR/WB and Brockton/EB will qualify to MIAA South Sectional Championship on 2/24 at Algonquin Regional High School at 10am

Boys Basketball

The Boys Varsity basketball team lost to East Bridgewater last night 31 to 51. The boys celebrated their seniors for senior night last night with great family, staff, and student support. The seniors on the team are Collin Baker, Luke Destrampe, Noah Schneeweis, Breandan Woods, Aidan Maher, Thomas Stapleton, and Jamie Sheedy. Luke Destrampe and Breadan Woods did a fantastic job being physical on defense and pushing the ball up the court after securing the rebound. Noah Schneeweis and Jamie Sheedy hustled all over the court. Aidan Maher, Thomas Stapleton, and Collin Baker all played tough. The boys look to bounce back on Friday with a win at Greater New Bedford.

The Boys JV Basketball team won a close one yesterday to East Bridgewater, 56-52. Lamar Valentina, Henry St Risme, and Tyler Bullock were all over the glass, racking up a bunch of crucial rebounds. Hayden Razza, Quincee Huggins, and chipped in with some great finds, setting up their teammates with some great assists. Sam Popette, Tommy Polidori, Colin O’Neil, and Charlie Mallet played tenacious defense, causing many turnovers and securing a bunch of steals. The boys will next play on Friday when they travel to Greater New Bedford. Great job Wildcats!

-The Freshman Boys Basketball team beat East Bridgewater by a score of Final score of 49 to 29. The team played phenomenal defense and rebounded well to keep EB off the scoreboard. The team will play again on Friday at Greater New Bedford. Congrats WB!

The boys middle school basketball team lost on Tuesday in a hard fought battle in Holbrook on Tuesday. Captain Brett Stout had his best game registering 14 points and 12 rebounds for our first double double in recent memory. Captain Sam Bell had his best game leading the way for his eighth grade teammates, Gavin Annese, Noah Popotte, and Andrew Amaro. Matt Navin played well on defense. Thanks for a great season boys.

Girls Basketball

The Varsity Girls Basketball team lost to Bourne on Monday February 12th. The final score was West Bridgewater 28 Bourne 50. The Lady Wildcats will celebrate their seniors against Greater New Bedford Voc on Friday February 16th! Good Luck Wildcats!!

Girls JV Basketball

The JV girls basketball team beat Bourne on Monday 38-23. Alyssa Caldiera and Reese O’Keefe led the way on offense with 9 points each while Leah Perez and Kayla Walker both scored 7 points. Evie Pappas and Kimora Alicea led the way on defense helping stop a talented center for Bourne.

Girls MS Basketball -

The Middle School girls basketball team played their annual parents vs athletes game Thursday night to wrap up their season. Great job by both groups! What a fun way to wrap up the season.

Girls Ice Hockey
The WEB girls Hockey team got back in the win column with a 7-2 win over Stoughton. Goals in the game were scored by Charlotte Pickering, Grace Ogilvie with two, Riley Bain with two, Kate Carabin, and Caitlin Kelly. The assists in the game came from Rachel Spooner, Teagan O’Connor, Bella Armando, Mackenzie Belvin. Great job WEB!

Congratulations to our WB girls ice hockey senior Riley Bain! We wish you the best of luck!

Boy’s Ice Hockey

The WEB Boys Hockey Team won last night by a score of 4-3 over South Shore Vo Tech! Christian Bates accounted for 3 of the team’s goals, and his first career Hat Trick, which also included the game winner with a minute and 45 seconds remaining in the game to break a 3-3 tie! Tyler Henderson added the other tally on a power play goal in the 1st period! Assists came from Christian Bates, Matt Whitaker, Tyler Henderson, and with his first career varsity point, Jake Greeley! Brayden Bates was again outstanding in net with 40 saves and the win! Matt Whitaker and Ryan Perrault played in their last High School game last night, and we are very proud of their effort in the game and the entire season!! WEB Boys next play on Saturday night vs Upper Cape at Bridgewater Ice Arena at 7:30pm

Congratulations to Kaleb Silva and Christian Bates as they celebrated their Senior Night when the Hockey team took on Cohasset/Hull. Good luck going forward!

Cheer Team
A huge shoutout to our Cheer team for all their support and energy during the games! Well done! The team is preparing for their Tri-Valley League Tournament which will happen on February 24th at Bellingham at 1:00! Good Luck! Finally, a huge shout out and best of luck to their Senior Reese Bunker!

Other Athletic News:
Wildcats Athletic Store:

West Bridgewater Athletics have opened an online store where you are able to personalize and order gear. Check out the link below to create and order your Wildcats Gear. Let’s Go WB!! There is a Grand Opening Offer of 20% off everything for a limited time only. The Code is SPIRIT20.

https://sideline.bsnsports.com/schools/massachusetts/westbridgewater/west-bridgewater-high-school

Are you a high school sophomore wanting to compete in College Sports? Don't delay your initial eligibility.

http://on.ncaa.com/HSTimeline

**WB-CAM:

A big thank you to the WB-CAM for live streaming our athletic events! They do an amazing job! Please follow them on Twitter to find out which athletic events are being live streamed. Let's Go Wildcats!

Twitter: @WBCAM0998

Mark Bodwell, Superintendent of Schools

Email: mbodwell@wbridgewater.com
Website: www.wbridgewaterschools.org
Location: 2 Spring Street, West Bridgewater, MA, USA
Phone: (508) 894-1230
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wbridgewaterschools
Twitter: @WBPSwildcats