The Buzz

MRPS has invested some our professional development time, particularly for administrators, in learning about the ways we organize and empower groups of educators to work together to lead their schools and teams. This year at RVS, we are focusing on building a strong Guiding Coalition. This group of five staff members attended training over the summer, meets weekly on our own, and occasionally meet with a consultant who helps us monitor and assess our goals. I appreciate their dedication and willingness to put in this extra work to help our little school achieve BIG things! In the first half of this year, our Guiding Coalition worked together to set and achieve a significant goal around literacy proficiency at RVS. We have clarified the mission of RVS - and how it relates to our larger district mission - and have worked to write a vision that helps us understand what we must become to accomplish this work. This week, we will work with our consultant to take a close look at our current practices: how do we operate, what do we believe, and what do we need to change to make big steps toward our goals for RVS?

I was especially inspired to see the creation of a 1, 3, and 5 year brainstorm on the part of our staff. Of course, there are some obvious ones out there - our staff would love to go through a full school year without a question of closure, and academic achievement for students gets top billing as the most important item on our list. But, it is also outstanding to have seen so much progress in the first half of our year, and to know that we will get to a point where we can reach toward achieving some of these other goals on our list. Here's a few that stood out to me:

• The creation of a maker space in our building
• A strong outdoor education program, including our gardening efforts, that could be a model for other small schools
• More focus on experiential and project-based learning
• Low teacher and staff turnover
• Collaboration with other rural schools and teachers

We would love to hear more from our community about your hopes and dreams for RVS! If you have ideas to share, please feel free to email them to Shannon, or catch any of us in conversation around the school.

Thanks for your ongoing support!

RVS Guiding Coalition

Rachel Popoli

Karie Decasas

Katie Swick

Carla Occaso

Shannon Miller

• On January 29th, we will have an early release day at 12:00. Bridges will be offered on this date for students typically registered on Mondays.
• Report cards will be sent home with students the week of January 29th.
• Winter break is coming up from 2/26 - 3/4.

We are excited to welcome Meredith Holch to RVS on the morning of February 6th to engage our students in the classic practice of storytelling through the use of a crankie machine. Thanks to the Roxbury Free Library for helping us bring this program to RVS!

• High Mowing Seeds Fundraiser - We're doing it again! Flyers should be sent home with your child this week - should you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask!
• Hockey Rink: It's starting to feel like winter! The rink will hopefully be being set up in the next few weeks. If you're interested in helping set up the frame, spread the liner and watch the fire trucks fill the rink - reach out to Ryan Zajac ( ryanzajac@hotmail.com) for more information.
• As always - feel free to contact us at roxburypto@gmail.com if you have ideas, questions or thoughts you'd like to share.

Please check out these important updates from the district that include information about and calls for caregiver participation in the:

• 2024-2025 school budget: Learn more about this year's budget pressures and attend the next school board meeting happening Wednesday, 1/17/24 at Roxbury Village School or virtually via Zoom.

• District Caregiver Council: Learn more about the Council and consider joining. The next meeting is happening Thursday, 1/18/24
  

The HOPE Coalition has been in contact to share with the Roxbury community that they are providing support in the form of relief supplies, clothing, fresh produce and shelf-stable foods, all at no cost. They are located at 297 Vine Street in Berlin and are open on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 1-4PM. Folks seeking more info can visit www.hopecoalition.net.

All regularly scheduled meetings begin at 6:30pm. Board Members will either be participating virtually or in-person. This meeting will be held at RVS. Public comment is welcome at all meetings at the time period designated in the meeting agenda and/or as established by the chairperson. The agenda and Zoom link can be found here.

Email: shannonm@mpsvt.org
Website: https://www.mrpsvt.org/rvs
Location: 1559 Roxbury Road, Roxbury, VT, USA
Phone: 802.262.1506

Instagram: @rvshoneybees