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

At the next School Committee Meeting (changed from 3/16 to 3/14 due to conflict with All-Town Concert), the Cohasset School Committee will be discussing and voting on a possible pre-Labor Day start to next school year (2022 - 2023). With significant storms pushing our end of school date later in June, a pre-labor day start will allow flexibility so that our last day of school is not pushed to the end of June. A full calendar will be presented during the School Committee Meeting. The Committee will also be discussing and voting on the prospect of a pre-Labor Day start for the 2022 - 2023, 2023 - 2024, and 2024 - 2025 school years. As always, community participation at this meeting is paramount and encouraged. The meeting will take place in the CHS and CMS Learning Commons (Library).

Come support our music program by watching students in grades 4-12 perform in two amazing all-town shows! On Tuesday, March 15, chorus students will perform, and on Wednesday, March 16, band students will perform. We are excited to showcase our amazing students and music program. Both events begin at 7:00PM and will take place in the CHS and CMS Auditorium.

"Earlier this month, students in grade 6 finished their reading of the autobiography The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind. The novel tells the story of William Kamkwamba, who faced severe drought and famine. William was forced to drop out of school at age 14 because his family could not afford the school fees. William’s determination to help his family and his village inspired him to learn how to build a windmill out of scraps he found in the junkyard.

After learning about the struggles that so many in Malawi face, the grade six students have decided to raise money to help prevent issues surrounding lack of food, resources, health care, and access to education. Our students have chosen to support William’s nonprofit, Building Windmills, which is currently collecting donations to help build an innovation center. This center aims to mentor students and provide young innovators with solutions to prevent issues such as drought and famine.

Our campaign will take place Wednesday, March 3 through Monday, March 21. Students in grade 6 are inviting the CMS community to help us in collecting loose change to “change the world.” A small amount can go a long way if we work together. If you are interested in donating your spare change, a table will be set up at the middle school entrance.

Thank you for your help in supporting our fundraising!" - Principal Mills from the CMS Newsletter

Community Health Information:

As of March 10, 2022, the Department of Public Health (DPH) reports that the town of Cohasset’s positive COVID-19 test rate over the past 14 days is 3.08% with 325 tests reported. The town of Cohasset has 9 positive cases reported over the past two weeks. Currently, 95% of eligible Cohasset residents are fully vaccinated with 13% of eligible residents partially vaccinated. Here is the complete report issued on March 10, 2022.

Here is the Confirmed Positive COVID Cases Weekly Update Spreadsheet. This spreadsheet is also found on the district website under COVID-19 Information.

Vaccination Attestation:

Please remember that as your child becomes fully vaccinated to please contact your child’s school nurse.

Proof of your child’s vaccination, submitted to your child’s school nurse, can be provided in one of the following ways:

• A signed self-attestation completed by a parent / legal guardian of the child indicating the brand of vaccine; or
• Documentation provided to the individual by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health or a health care provider. Documentation may include but is not limited to a COVID-19 vaccination record card or a copy or digital picture of the vaccination record card, or a print-out from the Massachusetts Immunization Information System (MIIS).

Thank you for your understanding and for your assistance.

PLEASE NOTE: We have now officially transitioned our practices from Test and Stay to At Home Testing. In conjunction with DESE requirements for being a part of the At Home Testing Program, we are no longer contact tracing within the schools.

Symptomatic Testing: The same consent previously signed for Test and Stay covers Symptomatic Testing, which will be able to be implemented by our nursing staff, now that we are implementing At Home Testing.

Parents and guardians who wish to have their children participate in the Cohasset School District Covid-19 testing, thus being eligible for Symptomatic Testing, must click on the link provided (if you did not do so previously for test and stay) and complete the consent forms.

In January, METCO Headquarters received funding from the City of Boston to hire students who could work up to ten hours in their respective METCO districts in the following capacities.

• Administrative support
• Newsletter/ social media/ marketing support
• Parent outreach
• Supporting already existing after school programming for younger students
• Tutoring another student

Aniyah Pierce, a sophomore at Cohasset High School applied for the program and was chosen along with nine other students across the 33 METCO districts. Along with five hours of professional development through METCO Headquarters, Aniyah will pen essays from, “The student perspective” to share through the district newsletter and assist in coordinating a presentation on the Cohasset METCO Program. Join with me in congratulating Aniyah on this amazing accomplishment.

This essay identifies an area of growth we are working to improve in Cohasset Public Schools. Congratulations, Aniyah!

"Black History Month needs to be a time to reflect and address depictions of black characters in curriculums everywhere. In school, we mostly read about white characters who have ordinary lives with simple problems. When we read about Black characters it is always about racism, discrimination, or misfortune with complex concepts. For example, we read books like “To Kill a Mockingbird”, “Of Mice and Men” , “Othello”, and the list goes on. With all these books they have one thing in common; they all deal with the concept of racism and its hardships. In these books we see the use of derogatory language like the n-word. The language in these books are insensitive. When we read these books most people do not think anything of it because we are spreading “awareness” and incorporating different groups of people into our school’s curriculum. We need positive representation of black characters. We need to read about black people that do not have to talk about racism or trauma they have faced due to the color of their skin. We need to read black literature that is not about the “black struggle”. We need to read about inspiring black characters. We need to read about black characters who make other black children in classrooms feel confident and not ashamed to be black. We need to read about black characters who do not have to define their blackness by racism and adversity. In 2022, we need to be more open-minded in our curriculum that is influencing the next generation. We need to read about black characters who have ordinary lives with simple problems."

Sincerely,

Aniyah Pierce

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.

I was proud to meet today with other Superintendents and METCO Directors, including our own METCO Director, Aleisa Gittens-Carle, at Gillette Stadium. Topics included examining the growth of METCO Districts, recruiting and retaining a diverse staff, and ensuring we are progressing towards creating "Communities of Belonging."

Cohasset Public Schools is a proud METCO District. Please see the METCO Web-page for additional diversity resources.

February 2022

Dear Cohasset Community Members:

We write to introduce ourselves as the members of the recently reconstituted Cohasset School Facilities Committee (the “SFC”). The SFC was formed pursuant to §3-56 of the town bylaws to investigate and study the condition and adequacy of the Cohasset Public School facilities and to advance the goals of the Cohasset School Committee relative to the addition, renovation, and/or construction of school facilities in the district. The full committee charge was drafted and approved by the Select Board and School Committee and can be viewed on the SFC website. The SFC is comprised of nine members in total, and applications were solicited and considered from September 2020 – August 2021. Three committee members were appointed by the School Committee, three by the Select Board, and three by the town moderator, pursuant to the town bylaws. We have backgrounds in education, project management, engineering, construction, public finance, and law. The SFC first convened on August 19, 2021, and currently meets once a month, typically (but not always) the last Tuesday of each month at 7PM. Meeting information is posted on the town website, and the meetings are open to members of the public.

Since we first convened in August, we have organized the committee, electing Jason Earls as the Chairperson, Dr. Paul Schubert as Vice Chairperson, and Nan Roth as the Clerk. In addition, we have preliminarily evaluated the current state of our school facilities and have started to compare those initial findings with current standards and facilities in surrounding and nearby school districts. To further evaluate the conditions and opportunities for improvement at our schools, the SFC recently evaluated bids from several qualified consultants, and selected Ai3 Architects, a leading educational design firm, to conduct an existing conditions study for all three of our school buildings. This study, which is currently being conducted by Ai3, will identify specific opportunities for improvement and/or deficiencies within our school facilities and is the first step towards the development of a long-term plan to ensure that our school facilities meet the needs of our students, teachers, and community in accordance with the goals identified by the Select Board and School Committee. The SFC is particularly focused on the Middle/High School, which was built in 1950 and renovated in 2003, and is in need of many significant updates. Based on the findings of the existing conditions study, we expect to submit a Statement of Interest (“SOI”) regarding the Middle/High School to the Massachusetts School Building Authority (“MSBA”). The MSBA is a quasi-independent government authority that funds capital improvement projects in the Commonwealth’s public schools and works with local communities to create affordable, sustainable, and energy efficient schools across Massachusetts. The SOI is a document that identifies deficiencies in a district’s school facilities; it is the first (very preliminary) step in working with the MBSA to seek funding for school improvements. The MBSA only accepts SOIs for a limited time period each year, so our goal is to prepare an analysis of our school’s current conditions before the end of April 2022, when this year’s submission period closes.

The SFC is mindful of the fact that any major project concerning the schools is a community decision that will take years to properly evaluate, prepare for, and undertake. We are at the very beginning stages of evaluating the opportunities for improvement in our school facilities, and as the process develops further, there will be many more updates like this one, open communication, public meetings and information sessions, before, ultimately, any vote at a town meeting that would be required for any major decisions such as a renovation or construction. We welcome and value your input. It will be critical for the entire community to be well-informed and have an opportunity to be a part of the discussion and important decisions.

Ultimately, our goal is to ensure that the Town of Cohasset has a premier school district that is reflective of the unique needs, priorities, and values of our entire community. We are excited by the prospects of this undertaking and look forward to community-wide discourse and participation as we move forward.

Respectfully,

Your School Facilities Committee:

Mr. Jason Earls, Chairperson

jearls@cohassetk12.org

Dr. Paul Schubert, Vice Chairperson

pschubert@cohassetma.org

Nan Roth, Clerk

nroth@cohassetma.org

Kathleen Burns, Member

kburns@cohassetma.org

Paul Kearney, Member

pkearney@cohassetk12.org

Jennifer Lesky, Member

jlesky@cohassetk12.org

Craig MacLellan, Member

cmaclellan@cohassetk12.org

Martin Nee, Member

mnee@cohassetma.org

Douglas Schultz, Member

dschultz@cohassetma.org

Just a reminder that for those of you who opted your child(ren) into the state’s new “At Home Testing Program,” your child(ren) will continue to receive test kits every two (2) weeks in a labeled bag. In that test kit will be two (2) individual tests that should be used over a two-week period. There will be specific instructions in the bag with the kits that will provide instructions for using the tests. Click here for a full “written “how to” in various languages. Click here for a video of an individual self-testing.

We are asking families to test their child(ren) on Sunday of each week, including over February break. Families should only report positives to their school nurse. Contact information for each school nurse will also be in the bag.

We will be reordering test kits every other week. Parents / Guardians who have yet to sign up their child for the testing program, but who would like them to be involved in future deliveries should contact their child’s school nurse.

PLEASE NOTE: We have now officially transitioned our practices from Test and Stay to At Home Testing. In conjunction with DESE requirements for being a part of the At Home Testing Program, we are no longer contact tracing within the schools.

Symptomatic Testing: The same consent previously signed for Test and Stay covers Symptomatic Testing, which will be able to be implemented by our nursing staff, now that we are implementing At Home Testing.

Parents and guardians who wish to have their children participate in the Cohasset School District Covid-19 testing, thus being eligible for Symptomatic Testing, must click on the link provided (if you did not do so previously for test and stay) and complete the consent forms.

Cohasset Vaccine Clinic, ages 18+

The Cohasset Health Department will be hosting a Covid vaccination clinic at Willcutt Commons, 91 Sohier Street, on Saturday March 12, 2022 from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm. Moderna vaccine will be available for anyone age 18 or over. First dose, second dose or booster shots will be available. Please register using the link below:

https://home.color.com/vaccine/register/cohasset?calendar=8bed00ed-ea7b-49c5-98a5-c1f066d4e156

Walk ins are also welcome!

All students are required to attend school for 180 days. As of today, the new last day of school (half day) for the 2021 -2022 school year is Thursday, June 30, 2022. Please see below for an updated school calendar.

"The CHS robotics team, Cohbots, competed Sunday, Feb 13th and placed 8th out of 19 groups just shy of qualifying for the tournament playoffs. The team ended a very successful year and looks forward to improving robot hardware and possibly expand to multiple robots in the future." - Principal Scott from CHS Newsletter

Thank you to Mr. Erlandsen, Mr. Kelliher, Mrs. St. Peter, and to everyone who supports this important program.

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.

We are thrilled to announce that Cohasset Finance and Operations Department will be launching a new tab on our district website.

Our goal is to make our website easy to navigate for Cohasset families as well as staff. Some of the great new features of this site will include:

For Cohasset Families:

· Transportation information

· Bus routes

· Fees and Payments

For Cohasset Employees:

· Benefit information

· Updated Employee Forms

· Aspen Training Videos

· Aesop Training

· Employee Forward

In other news:

We would like to welcome our newest member, Karen Crowell, Accounting Specialist.

For all questions about PO’s, ordering, vendor payments, and tuition reimbursement, etc., please reach out to:

Karen Crowell

Accounting Specialist,

kcrowell@cohassetk12.org or extension 2307

For all questions about salary, payroll, retirement, extra duty pay, deductions, etc., please reach out to:

Jeri Ballard

Bookkeeper

jballard@cohassetk12.org or extension 2306.

The CPS Strategic Plan goals include the creation of data teams to create a cohesive approach to collecting, analyzing, and reporting out assessment data. The purpose of creating data teams is to improve teaching and learning through the creation of structured data teams and a data discussion process at the district and building level. Although there is much discussion around assessment data by teachers and administrators, we are working on creating a consistency across the district. Please see the time line below.

• Meet with Leadership to discuss 2021 MCAS data 9-29-2021

• Meet with Department Chairs ELA, Math, Science to discuss 2021 MCAS datan 10-5-2021

• Department Chairs ELA, Math 10-28-2021, Science meet with departments to review MCAS data

• Meet with Physics Department to discuss 2022 MCAS changes 10-21-2021

• Principals meet with grade level and content areas to discuss October 2021

• Create Assessment team to review current K-8 benchmark assessments and resulting data, create 2022-2023 k-8 benchmark assessment plan 11-12-2021, 1-26-2022

• MTSS data collection and discussion Child Study

• Leadership data discussion training Winter 2022

• District Data Team Spring/Summer 2022

• Building Data Teams Fall 2022

Thursday, March 17 afternoon CPS staff will participate in Building-Based professional development. Friday, March 18 is a full day of professional development. The day will begin with keynote speaker, Raymond Porch who is the Director of Equity and Inclusion for the Burlington Public Schools. He will facilitate a workshop on "Culturally and Linguistically Sustaining Practices". During the afternoon building principals will be leading their staff in Ghost Walk which is a type of Learning Walk (LW) that is done when there are no students in the building. Staff will walk around the classrooms and building using the lens equity and inclusion using the Districts LW Look For's about the environment. The goal is to survey our spaces to identify ways to ensure that all spaces are inclusive and make students, staff and families feel welcome.

A few updates from the Director of Student Services:

• Our parent surveys connected to IEPs continue to come in. We appreciate your feedback, both the positive comments and the areas in which we need to improve. Keep them coming!

• We had an independent evaluation of our social emotional programming for students. We received commendations on our growth since 2018, our use of specific tools to measure student status and need, our developing MTSS system, our guidance and counselor staffing, and our addition of a social worker. Ongoing development will continue in differentiating instruction and accommodations.

• Julie Evans from DESE conducted on site building tours for our Tiered Focused Monitoring. All districts participate in this process every three years. It is a six year cycle, with Years 1-3 considered Group A and Years 4-6 considered Group B. We are currently in Year 5 this year. A report will come out in 60 days.

• As part of the process, we updated the Student Family Handbook. Please refer to pages 44-48 in the handbook on our website.

During the week of February 28, 2022 the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education’s Office of Public School Monitoring (PSM) will conduct a Tiered Focused Monitoring Review of Cohasset Public Schools. The Office of Public School Monitoring reviews each district and charter school every three years to monitor compliance with federal and state special education and civil rights regulations. Areas of review related to special education include student assessments, determination of eligibility, the Individualized Education Program (IEP), Team process, and IEP development and implementation. Areas of review related to civil rights include bullying, student discipline, physical restraint, and equal access to school programs for all students.

Parent outreach is an important part of the review process. Prior to the review, the chairperson from the Office of Public School Monitoring will send an online survey to all parents of students with disabilities receiving services. The survey focuses on key areas of their child’s special education program. Survey results will contribute to the activities of the onsite review and the development of the final report.

During the onsite review, the Office of Public School Monitoring will interview the chairperson(s) of the district’s Special Education Parent Advisory Council (SEPAC). Other onsite activities may include interviews of district staff and administrators, reviews of student records, and onsite observations. After the conclusion of the review, the public will be able to access the report at http://www.doe.mass.edu/psm/tfm/reports.

Parents and other individuals may call Julie Evans, Public School Monitoring Chairperson, at (781) 338- 3754 to request additional information, or contact the district coordinators Dr. Leslie Scollins at (781) 383-4210 or Mrs. Barbara Cerwonka at (781) 383-6104.

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. 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- Teachers will use different strategies as universal supports within the core curriculum to address all student educational needs.

• 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 Tiered Support 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 interventions at this level. Parents/guardians will 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 schools are 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.

Sincerely,

Barbara Cerwonka, Director of Student Services

Office of Student Services

143 Pond Street, Cohasset, MA 02025-1999

Telephone 781-383-6104

bcerwonka@cohassetk12.org

Guiding Good Choices

Mondays, March 7-March 28, 2022

10AM-12PM (4-6PM on 21st)

Information&Registration

Ground Level Café

March 11, 2022

7-9PM

Open Coalition Meeting

March 15, 2022

11:00-12:30PM

Zoom

Meeting ID: 829 6621 5618

Hey Kiddo Author Event: Jarrett Krosoczka

March 30, 2022

6-8PM

Gates Middle School Dining Hall

Join us for a live reading of the award-winning graphic novel for young teens. "Hey, Kiddo" is a memoir of Jarrett's childhood growing up in Worcester, Massachusetts and his relationship with his mother who was living with opioid addiction. While some themes are challenging, "Hey, Kiddo" is a story of hope and resilience; and about how grandparents, teachers, and art can help a child make it.

Doors open at 6:00pm for free pizza, refreshments and art activities! Live reading begins at 6:30pm.

Families play an important role in helping to create a culture that prioritizes health and safety. Families should check their children daily for signs of COVID-19 and should keep them home from school if they are not feeling well or if they have been in close contact with a person who has been recently diagnosed with COVID-19. It is also important that families support students wearing masks in school and on the bus. We are strongest when we work together to stop the spread (Initial Fall School Re-entry Guidance, 2020).

CPS Pledge: Healthy and Responsible Behaviors Regarding COVID-19

By coming into Cohasset Public Schools, I pledge I am following:

• State expectations for social and physical distancing

• Regulations regarding the wearing of facial coverings

• Quarantine directives put forth by the Massachusetts Department of Health and the Cohasset Department of Health

• Guidance that has students and staff stay home from school / work if they are experiencing symptoms of fever, fatigue, difficulty breathing, or dry cough or if they have exhibited any symptoms relating to COVID-19

“Nine Things Every Parent with an Anxious Child Should Try”

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 (adjistment counselor)

Deer Hill: Robyn Costa rcosta@cohassetk12.org

Deer Hill and Osgood: Laurie Dolan ldolan@cohassetk12.org (adjustment counselor)

Robyn Costa rcosta@cohassetk12.org (adjustment counselor)

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

CMS: Emily Manewal emanewal@cohassetk12.org

Allison Pearce apearce@cohassetk12.org

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)

Stephanie Gertz sgertz@cohassetk12.org (ESP: BRYT Program...Middle and High School)

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