The EduGator

Dear GRSD team,

Welcome to another year of school and another year of the EduGator. For those of you new to us, this publication is for all staff and the GatorBites is my other communication routine - that goes to all staff and families.

Thanks to everyone who made our opening of school successful. From our time together last week to learn, connect, and focus to this week with the arrival of so many of our students. Excitement, new sneakers, How do I do...? and all the other busy-ness of the 1st week of school is certainly upon us. Our new staff are hard at work and I know all of you are diligently helping them feel welcome to GRSD.

Each EduGator this year will include district-wide updates and news, important future dates, a curated list of free or low-cost professional development opportunities, ways to stay healthy in stressful times, and other tips as they come my way. I also LOVE to celebrate you when you shout out each other in the Gator Greats section.

Here are some updates already:

• Early Literacy tutoring - We've been selected for a DESE-funded early literacy tutoring program that offers 1st grade students who need additional support in reading a daily, online, live tutor for.a series of learning sessions. This evidence-based model has produced impressive gains for students elsewhere, so we are excited to see the impact in GRSD. We also just received word that DESE has funded the Literacy Collaborative we are part of, that enables in-person tutoring for struggling readers in the early grades as well. We'll be looking for before and after school tutors again!
• New Security Monitors - We're proud to welcome 2 new security monitors to the security booth at GRS. Ben Drenen (a 2021 GRS graduate!) works our early shift from 7:00 am-1:00 pm. Then, next week we'll add Matthew Conahan for the 12:45 pm-8:00 pm shift. Please say hi to our new monitors, and please say THANKS to Annie Pritchard who has assisted us in covering the latter part of the school day for these 1st days of school while we completed our hiring process.
• New employees; employees in new roles: Since my presentation on 8/26, we have added more new staff and staff in new places:
• Madison Hentnick will be a PreK teacher at Littleville, starting soon
• Somehow I missed sharing Kim Blanchette's shift from being a PreK instructional assistant to GRS to work in the inclusion setting.
• Quick Tech Reminder: If you are interested in accessing wifi from a personal device while in a GRSD building, here's a reminder to see one of our Technicians to complete the Bring-Your-Own-Device form; that allows them to point your device at our BYOD network. Completing this form DOES NOT MEAN we will remotely manage your personal devices, but it does mean we set you up on a safe network that is kept separate from the networks used by computers that we do manage, like your district-issued laptop and those of students. This is a layer of additional protection between personal and professional device use that keeps our systems safer.
• Be sure to look through all the opportunities and flyers below - you can get discount Gator gear, join a healthy walk to support our community, and get your prescriptions for free!

We will soon have a long weekend and then another 1/2 day of professional development, which will be chock full of more focused learning. Please look for the more specific agenda next week.

Here's to another great year - for learning and laughing together!
Melissa

September 3:, 4 pm: Girls Varsity Soccer @GRS v. Smith

September 4 and 7: Labor Day Weekend

September 8, 4 pm: Boys and Girls Cross Country @GRS v. Chinese Immersion Charter

September 8 6 pm: Girls Varsity Soccer @GRS v. Hampden Charter

September 9, 7 pm: School Committee Meeting

September 22: 1/2 day for Professional Development

September 24, 3:45 pm: Induction Session

Huge thanks to Ed Quinn & Bruce Saunders for their incredible support this summer! They helped us with the never-ending stream of CPPI packages and ensured our oversized items arrived safely in Chester. A special shout-out as well for hauling away the old climber from the Chester Preschool Playground to make space for new equipment—we appreciate your hard work in getting us ready for the new school year! - Steph Conway & Lynn Thomson

Send me your "Gator Greats!" too!

Stern Center for Language and Learning Free Opportunities

Make & Take Mondays

• When: 1st Monday of each month | 3:30–4:00 PM EST
• Starts Monday, September 14 (adjusted for Labor Day) with Interactive Alternatives to Independent Reading
• What: Quick, practical, 30-minute workshops focused on actionable, classroom-ready tools.

Webinar Wednesdays

• When: 3rd Wednesday of each month starting Sept. 23 | 3:30–4:30 PM EST
• What: Hour-long discussions exploring essential topics in the Science of Reading.
• Bonus: Earn certificates for live attendance or catch up later by watching recordings.
• Register for All Free Sessions Here

Amplify CKLA Lesson Videos

• Watch K–2 classroom videos.
• Watch 3–5 classroom videos.

Barrington Theatre Free Stage Performances

THE URMETAZOAN
Ideal for upperclassmen, ages 16+
St. Germain Theater | 36 Linden Street, Pittsfield

• Wednesday, October 14 at 10:00 AM
• Wednesday, October 21 at 10:00 AM

VANYA
Ideal for high school students
Boyd-Quinson Theater | 30 Union Street, Pittsfield

• Thursday, October 15 at 10:00 AM
• Friday, October 23 at 10:00 AM

There is no ticket cost for participating school groups. We encourage superintendents, principals, curriculum leaders, guidance teams, arts educators, English and History departments, and other faculty to consider how these performances might support student learning and enrichment.

Participating groups will also receive a student study guide in advance, and schools may request a post-show talkback with actors and members of the production team. RESERVE YOUR FREE STUDENT MATINEE

HEALTHY HEART CHALLENGE

Registration begins on August 31st and the challenge will run September 15th through October 14th. Friendly reminder: If you are the primary subscriber and earn 70 points on the AHEALTHYME platform, you will be eligible for a $100.00 gift card. If you do not have a HEALTHY ME account, please enroll here

Learn To Live

“Something Holding You Back?” This campaign speaks to a familiar experience: staying silent when you had something to say or fearing taking that necessary step forward. Learn to Live offers self-guided programs to help work through those mental blocks, and this September we're sponsoring our "Take Action Challenge" — when one enrolls or completes a lesson in their program, they'll be entered for a chance to win a $10 Amazon gift card. Link is www.learntolive.com/partners and we are HCGIT.

Free Prescriptions

Hampshire County Group Insurance Trust offers two voluntary international pharmacy programs that allow eligible non-Medicare members to obtain certain medications at ZERO COST. Medications are shipped in the original, factory-sealed manufacturer's packaging directly to the member's mailbox from certified pharmacies in Canada, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Members pay nothing — the savings each program generates for the plan cover the full cost. Increased participation in these programs directly reduces prescription drug spend for the Trust, which helps stabilize rates for the Trust. Please see below for more details.