Roland Hayes School

Our North Star

“When children and teachers feel engaged, safe, and supported we have room to grow and learn through collaboration and risk-taking with our peers.”

Previous "Community Notes" can be found here: https://www.brookline.k12.ma.us/domain/718

The "Community Notes" is sent every other week. Thanks for reading!

Learn more about Roland Hayes here, from our own Young Scholars!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2MyhdW04fd4

The end of the school, year fast approaches! Some things to know:

• Class placement announcements ("...when will I hear about my student's class assignment next year?") will be announced in mid-August for grades K-5. Middle School schedules and cohorts will be released later in the summer once the schedule is complete. I will send notices alerting families to the forthcoming messages.
• Staffing shifts will also be announced this summer – new staff, any internal shifts in roles, and more.
• School supply lists will also go out mid-August, released to coincide with class placement announcements.

Stay tuned for more messaging this summer as we prepare for the new school year.

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One Last Note of Sincere Appreciation

Thank you, families, for being such incredible partners in your children’s education this year. Your support, collaboration, and trust make a world of difference in our school community. Whether volunteering your time, cheering from the sidelines, or working closely with teachers, your presence is felt and deeply appreciated. We are so grateful to walk this journey with you.

I want to shout out out PTO leadership - Lisa, Chris, and Theodora - for bringing such vigor and joy to the school this year. Along with a armada of committed volunteers, it feels like the passion for community is stronger than ever.

Thank you!

On Monday, 4th grade student Kalin will serve as my "Principal In Training." I interviewed him for his "State of the State" address to you all.

What do you like best about school?

I like to learn abut different subjects; there are always new things to learn each week. I like PE and Art class best, and enjoy Music and Library, too.

What can we improve here at Hayes?

Honestly, nothing. It is perfect just the way it is.

How is the social life here at Hayes?

The Hayes social life is very fun. Recess is a time when I can do different things that I usually enjoy with lots of friends that are fun to be around.

What Conservatory class do you take?

I play the clarinet this year, but I am switching to chorus next year. I am looking forward to being in chorus because my brother and many friends are in it.

Tell us about your life outside of school.

I love to play video games, ride my scooter around, and draw. I also play baseball.

What do you think principals do all day?

Work! Check in on classrooms and make sure everything is running well.

Thanks, Kalin!

Thank you! Should I go back to class now?

Yes

Check out these amazing summer reading resources for kids:

https://sites.google.com/psbma.org/heath-library/home/research-resources/summer-reading

Here you will find summer reading lists for kids of all ages, reading challenges, activities, make-you-own bookmarks, and more!

Each year the PTO grants me money so that I can curate mini-bookstore, gifting each staff member a current best-seller they can take with them to read over summer break. This years titles included works like Abundance by Ezra Klein, Spent by Alison Bechdel, There's Always This Year by Hanif Abdurraqib, The Director by Daniel Kehlmann, and many more!

Reading is a great way to relax, make meaning of the world around you, and reckon with lives and experiences much different than your own. Whether you are reading for your own pleasure, reading with your kids, or both, please enjoy!

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And here is some fantastic data on how our library impacted students this year:

Many of you took the recent Safe Route to School survey - thanks!

Here, you can review the results:

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1vNdr00hvLldy2L7fluC_ZcJtII8cfp-Q?usp=drive_link

A few key takeaways include:

• Slight trend away from walking and biking to school overall in 2025 compared to 2022
• Slight shift in safe routes taken by students living within .5 miles of the school in 2025

Thanks for your feedback! Your efforts will help make our school a safer place for all.

Field Day 2025! Thursday Sept 25th (Rain date Friday Sept 26th). An amazing day when students Pre-K-8 and staff come together to celebrate our amazing school! A day filled with laughter, movement, joy, teambuilding, and community. We are looking to start collecting items for the fall. We would like the items to come in before the end of the year (versus over the summer when the items might get lost).

If you purchase an item please label it "Field Day" and drop it off at the drop off table (located when you walk in the main entrance of the school). If the link to the item is no longer available something similar works great! Thank you for your help! It is so appreciated!

Field Day Sign Up Genius

Parents/Guardians of all students withdrawing from the Public Schools of Brookline (PSB) must complete an online withdrawal form and report where the student will be next enrolled.

• Instructions to complete the form are available at www.brookline.k12.ma.us/withdrawal.
• You must complete one form for each student.
• By completing and signing this form you acknowledge that your student will be withdrawn from PSB.
• You must complete the withdrawal form in order for PSB to complete a transcript request.

Your student's temporary record, which is all material other than your official transcript, will be destroyed no later than five years after you withdraw from the school system.

If your response is in error, and you plan for your student to attend the Public Schools of Brookline for the 2025-2026 School Year, please let me know at your earliest convenience so that we can update your student's records and their school teams can plan to place them for classes.

If you do not know your login credentials for Aspen, please contact datateam@psbma.org.

If you have forgotten your password, use the "I Forgot my Password" link on the login page. Follow the directions to reset your password. Please note that your email and the security question are both case-sensitive. If you still can't access the site, please email us at datateam@psbma.org.

If your student is withdrawing from PSB and plans to return at a future date:

• You will be required to complete the enrollment process upon the student's return to Brookline and before they can attend classes.
• For more information regarding re-enrollment, please see www.brookline.k12.ma.us/registration.

For more PTO news and events, please visit: https://www.hayespto.org/newsletters/22351

At Roland Hayes, our students do amazing things each and every day. Here you will find a showcase of student work in various forms, as a way to share a piece of our Hayes community with all of you.

Grade 8 Astronomy Museum

We are so proud of the 8th graders’ incredible work at last Friday’s Astronomy Museum. Their effort, creativity, and curiosity were on full display, and it was truly inspiring to see how thoughtfully they brought the universe to life. From interactive exhibits to beautifully crafted presentations, each student contributed something special, making this final project of the year both meaningful and memorable.

This event was not only a celebration of their learning, but also a beautiful way to mark the end of their 8th grade journey. Thank you to everyone who was able to join us—it meant so much to the students to share their hard work with a live audience.

You can find a collection of photos from the day here: https://rolandhayes.smugmug.com/2025-8th-Grade-Astronomy-Present/n-2SVcrc

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Check out our "projects" page, here:

https://sites.google.com/psbma.org/projects/home

Our website keeps a catalog of these great products, which you can find here: https://www.brookline.k12.ma.us/domain/807

• June is LGBTQ+ Pride Month!
• June 19th is Juneteenth!

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• Monday, June 16th: Grades 6-8 Student Council, 11:20am-12:00pm

• Tuesday, June 17th: GSA, 10:50-11:20am

• Wednesday, June 18th: Grade 8 Breakfast, 9:00-10:30am

• Wednesday, June 18th: Model UN, 11:20am-12:05pm

• Wednesday, June 18th: Grade 8 Graduation, 4:00-5:30pm

• Thursday, June 19th: No School: Juneteenth Holiday

• Friday, June 20th: Aspen Closes for K-5 Cycle 2 Progress Reports

• Friday, June 20th: Term 4: Deadline to complete entering 6-8 grades/reports into Aspen (11:59p.m.)

• Friday, June 20th: Term Closes for Grades 6-8 Report Cards

• Monday, June 23rd: Last Day of School (Noon Dismissal)

Field Trips:

• Monday, June 16th: Grade 8 to Six Flags, 8:00am-6:00pm

• Tuesday, June 17th: Grade 2 to Fisher Hill Reservoir Park, 9:00-11:45am

• Tuesday, June 17th: Grade 8 to Level 99, 10:00am-2:30pm

• Wednesday, June 18th: Grade 3 to Plimoth/Patuxet Museum, 8:30am-2:15pm

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Dear Parents & Guardians,

Date: Thursday, June 26, 2024 (rain date June 27th)

Thanks to Hayes parents Jon Z. and Brad V. for these amazing pics of our mascot!

Thank you all again for such a lovely year with your children. Learning is hard, friendships are hard, growing pains - literal and figurative - are hard. To bear witness to their growth has been a privilege.

~ Asa

This parcel of land that our school sits upon is a special and sacred place.

Before this place was a Town, before our school was here, before this neighborhood was called “The Settlement” or “Chestnut Hill,” and before this land was a farm, this land was held by the Massachusett, the people Indigenous to this place. The Massachusett were the caretakers of this site, living full lives, raising families, and burying their dead right here. We recognize and honor this history, and seek to create thoughtful land stewards and citizens for generations to come.

As a public school, our primary objective is to ensure access, membership, and participation of all community members in our care; with this land acknowledgment we state our willingness to work towards that vision where all feel a true and abiding sense of belonging.

Roland Hayes School

The Public Schools Of Brookline | A METCO Partnership School

Dr. Asa Sevelius, Ed.D. | Principal

Email: asa_sevelius@psbma.org

Pronouns: he/him

Mr. Kirtan Patel | Vice Principal

Email: kirtan_patel@psbma.org

Pronouns: he/him

Website: https://www.brookline.k12.ma.us/Page/17
Location: 100 Eliot Street, Chestnut Hill, MA, 02467
Phone: 617-879-4570