Site Visit Sign Up Link
As we discussed at the district professional development day, the Barr Foundation and other grants will be allocated for staff professional development through exceptional site visits to other schools that have high quality instruction for us to observe.
When planning trips, the district (through Barr and other grants) will fund your accommodations including food, travel to and from the location, as well as single occupancy hotel accommodations.
In return, we ask that you fully commit to the process which may include participating in pre and post trip meetings, student shadowing, and reflections, be present for the trip in order to get lots of great ideas from the schools that are allowing us to "peek under their hood", and be ready to implement new ideas and present to your colleagues about your learning from these experiences.
Here is a link to sign up for the site visits. If you signed up at the end of the year last year, you don't need to sign up again. However, you can fill out the form again if you wish.
Gateway Education Foundation Learning Fund Application available!
As presented on the district PD day, the Gateway Education Foundation has its application for the fall round of mini-grants available now!
What is it? Free money for enrichment activities!
How do you get it? An easy application!
What’s the catch? There isn’t one–you just have to submit photos and an impact statement (a couple of sentences)
Each school has a liaison if you have questions.
Here is the link: Fall Funds for Learning Application
Yellow Backpack Check *Quick Edit
Every classroom should have a yellow backpack to grab in the event of an emergency.
All bags should include:
Safety folder with district safety information
First aid reference guide
First aid kit
Warming blanket
Safety Vest (that must be worn during emergencies)
Here is a list of items you should add to your bag at the start of each school year:
Copies of class lists
Copies of emergency information for students (name, address, primary contact)***
Emergency contact info for teacher/staff in room
Pen and blank paper
Optional: small games to occupy students, tissues, gum/mints
***If accessing student emergency contact info is too laborious because you have a high number of students, we'll also have a copy from the office in our go bags. It may be a little bit for us to connect in the event of an emergency, but that's okay.
If you are missing your backpack or items from it, please contact your school's main office.
Cyber Security Check
Unfortunately, there have been many attempts at phishing and scamming in the cyber world, even at Gateway. As Chris Parker, Director of Technology, pointed out to us at the district PD day, we will be getting the fobs to support the multi-factor authentication that is coming soon, which will help us ensure that we aren't hacked. Also, please see the following quick tips regarding cyber security. The full cyber security presentation can be found here.
Trust your gut! If it feels wrong, delete it, report it and block it.
Most SPAM/Phishing emails are trying to trick you into giving up personal data
Fake vs Real emails will look about the same. Learn to spot the differences
The safest passwords are 12-18 characters long and use letters, numbers and symbols
If you think you have been hacked, change your passwords (all of them) immediately
Do not use similar passwords on accounts (i.e. Gators123, Gators456)
ALWAYS use multifactor authentication when given the option
Reminder: Staff Laptop Insurance
We will be offering a staff laptops repair deductible again this year for $50 per device for teacher/faculty MacBook Air and HP laptops. As in the past, this deductible will cover accidental damages as well as manufacturer defects. Staff who decline to contribute towards to deductible will be responsible for all costs associated with repairs to their devices. Staff who would like to opt in should write a check made out to GRSD by October 4 and give to Technology Director Chris Parker.
Para chromebook insurance will be free of charge.
A message from the School Based Health Center
Flu is a contagious respiratory illness caused by influenza viruses that infect the nose, throat,
and sometimes the lungs. It can cause mild to severe illness, and at times can lead to death.
The best way to prevent flu is by getting a flu vaccine each year. Flu vaccine is available at the
School Based Health Center. High dose vaccine for those 65 and older is also available upon
request. Call or stop in today to get your immunization or for more information. School ext. 2134
or (413) 667-0142.
Although flu season lasts for months, experts say it’s best to get a flu vaccine by the end of
October.
Faculty Handbook
Please take a little time to review the faculty handbook for the 24-25 school year.
There are updates to the following:
- times to reflect the contractual updates
- COVID protocols
- new homework policy per the school committee
- sub caller directions
- multi-factor authentication technology expectations
- replacement ID updates
- language about political conversations
Please let me or your principal know if you have any questions!
