NHS Principal News

Last week we held our first school rally of the year. Tom Rich and Logan MacKnight, President and Vice-President of our Student Council, served as the emcees, while our student section fan leaders; Blaire Fox, Luke MacIsaac, and Henry Waddell, energized the student body. Our band and cheerleaders added to the spirit of the

event, while our sports captains and performing arts student leaders spoke about their programs and highlighted the involvement of our underclassmen. Finally, our choral trio of Nora Baker, Lilly Curtis, and Bay Schumacher continued to impress us all with their impressive harmony, and I can't close without noting our faculty remains undefeated in the tug-of-war. Thanks you to Mr. Pace for his coordinatiion of the rally.

Please see below for some reminders and updates in the following areas:

• PSAT: More Than a Test
• PSAT Day Details
• School Council
• Course Spotlight - Math
• Way to Go!
• Pay It Forward Grp - Collection Drive
• Trip to Japan - 2028

Have a great night and Go Clippers!

The PSAT provides students and families with valuable information about academic strengths, areas for growth, and skills that can transfer to future academic and career experiences. Whether or not a student is planning to attend college, the assessment can be a useful tool to help students and families better understand their strengths and begin conversations about future interests and opportunities. The PSAT score report also provides information that can help students and families consider advanced courses and other academic opportunities a student may want to pursue while in high school.

Since we began providing the PSAT to all of our sophomores and juniors, we have seen several encouraging trends in student outcomes. Over that same period, the percentage of our juniors and seniors successfully completing Advanced Coursework, as measured by the state, has increased by more than 10 percentage points, from 63.9% to 76.8%. Additionally, over the past three years, the combined math and reading scores of our students have increased from 977 to 1017.

Last, the PSAT also provides our teachers with school-wide data that can help inform curricular decisions, much like the way we use MCAS results. By looking at these data over time, we can better understand areas of strength and identify opportunities to strengthen instruction and support student learning.

Grade 10 and 11Grades 10 & 11: All sophomores and juniors will take the PSAT. Students should report to their testing rooms by 8:15 AM. Breakfast will be served in the cafeteria beginning at 7:45 AM.

We encourage families to remind their sophomore or junior to get a good night’s sleep on Wednesday so they are well-rested and ready for Thursday’s assessment.

Grade 9

All freshmen will participate in project-based learning activities with the Guidance and Wellness departments, as well as a motivational session with speaker Kevin Mecchella focused on decision-making and personal growth.

Grade 12

To accommodate PSAT testing and freshman activities, the school day for seniors will begin at 11:15 AM. Grade 12 ELA teachers are currently scheduling opportunities for seniors to come in between 8:15 and 11:00 AM to receive feedback and support on college essays, job cover letters, and resumes.

The School Council is responsible for providing input into the high school’s improvement plan, budget and student handbook. The council consists of the building principals, parents, teachers, community members, and students.

This year, Jeanne Coffey and Erin Seaton will serve as the parent representatives while Rich Pace and Aaron Smith will serve as faculty members. The team will also be joined by students: Violet Aldrich, Luna Mutabdzija, Neve Mullen, Tom Rich, and Cady Seaton.

As a reminder, you can find the agendas and meeting summaries here.

The increase in noise coming from our math classrooms has definitely been noticeable this school year. Using the Building Thinking Classrooms model, teachers have incorporated opportunities during class where students productively struggle with complex problems connected to the content they are studying.

Through this collaborative structure, students become more fluent in the language of mathematics, giving them opportunities to articulate mathematical arguments while also attending to the precision of the process they use to solve problems. Students are not simply learning how to get the right answer; they are learning how to explain their thinking, listen to the thinking of others, and make sense of different approaches to solving a problem.

Last night, Newburyport High School held its inaugural induction ceremony for the National Science Honor Society. The ceremony was completely student-led, with 24 students inducted as the first members of this new organization.

The National Science Honor Society recognizes and promotes outstanding achievement and coursework in the sciences while encouraging students to pursue their interests in scientific research and exploration. Special thanks to officers: Will Downs, Worth Green, Logan MacKnight, Lucas Palen, Tom Rich, Sean Urbanczyk and their advisor Ms. Taggart for their leadership and coordination of the inaugural induction ceremony.

This past weekend, our high school band was invited to participate in UMass Band Day. Each year, high school bands from across the region travel to Amherst for a day of rehearsal and performance with the UMass Minuteman Marching Band. Our students had the opportunity to rehearse on the field with other high school musicians before joining the Minuteman Marching Band for a massive halftime performance in front of the crowd at McGuirk Alumni Stadium.

It was a wonderful opportunity for our students to experience what it is like to perform as part of a collegiate marching band and to be part of a truly memorable musical experience.

Jack O’Real continues to make history on the golf course! Last week, Jack became the first golfer in school history to surpass 1,500 total points, setting a new school record and adding another remarkable achievement to an already impressive season. Way to go, Jack. Also, kudos to the entire golf team! In their most recent match, the team broke its own school record for total points, making it an impressive week all around for Clipper golf.

While on the topic of sports. Check out these records. The Clippers are definitley off to a hot start this fall season. Its looking like many of teams are looking forward to extending their seasons. 43 wins out of 51 contests, that's a winning percentage of 84.3%.

Boys Golf 10-0

Volleyball 10-1

Girls Soccer: 6-1-1

Boys soccer: 6-0-2

Field hockey: 6-1

Boys X-Country: 2-0

Girls X-Courntry: 2-0

Football 2-2

Stay informed about happening from across the Newburyport Public Schools. Download the NPS APP.

Download the Arbiter Sports App to keep up to date with all upcoming sports games and events.

Arbiter Sports