The Week Ahead 11/3

Come join us for our Parent Conferences and Showcase Night

Sign up at the link below to schedule a time to meet with all of your student's teachers. While there, you will be able to meet with other faculty, the counselors, administration, explore the different pathways offered at the high school, buy some Bartlett Gear, and visit other tables that showcase what our school and community is all about!

When: Thursday, November 6th

Time: 6pm - 8pm

Location: Cafeteria/Gym

Looking for some new Bartlett Gear? BHS has partnered with Josten's to create a new way to order. Check out the Mascot Shop and get some new Bartlett clothing!

Save the Date!

Saturday, December 13th

Breakfast: 8am-11am

Craft Fair: 8am-1pm

Unfortunately there was no winner this week!

Are you interested in participating? Can you guess the correct answers about the staff? If you have an answer, be the first to email Ms. Smalarz , bsmalarz@webster-schools.org, with the correct answer to win a prize!

Here is the link to this year's handbook. Please make sure to review this book with your student(s).

Days: Every Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday (not offered on Tuesdays or half days)
Time - 2:15pm-2:45pm
Location - BHS Cafeteria

There is no Saturday School this week! Phone calls and emails will go out next week with notifications regarding students that are expected to be at Saturday School on November 15th!

The program serves several purposes throughout the year. Students may access Saturday sessions for extra academic assistance. The program may also be assigned as a consequence by administration if in school behavior warrants it. At times it may being given as an alternative to suspension.

It is highly recommended that students who are failing one or more courses attend Saturday School for some extra help. Please make sure to remind your student that Saturday School is available to them, and that they would benefit by attending. Please make sure to keep up to date with PowerSchool so that you always know how they are doing.

Students can start attending this upcoming Saturday to begin making up the time for their attendance deductions. Please encourage your student to do this early so that they do not run out of time. They have until Saturday, January 24th to make up this time! Parent letters will go home with the report cards this week for any student that lost points due to attendance.

If students ask you, Saturday School will be held at the Webster Middle School. It will run from 8am-12pm, and students must stay the entire time. Breakfast and a snack will be provided to those that attend. Students will need to bring their work with them, as teachers will not be able to provide it to individual students while at the middle school. They should also come with a fully charged chromebook and charger as there will be no loaners available. There will be no cell phones allowed out while there from 8am-12pm. There is no bus provided to or from Saturday School.

Saturday School will be held at the Webster Middle School. It will run from 8am-12pm, and students must stay the entire time. Breakfast and a snack will be provided to those that attend. Students will need to bring their work with them, as teachers will not be able to provide it to individual students while at the middle school. They should also come with a fully charged chromebook and charger, as there will not be any loaners available. There will be no cell phones allowed out from 8am-12pm. There is no bus provided to or from Saturday School.

If you have any questions, please reach out to guidance or administration.

The Basement in C Section is considered to be an Unauthorized Area at all times, unless you are directly with a staff member. If a student is found in the basement, a consequence of a Saturday School will be assigned immediately.

If you play a sport and need to access the basement to drop off athletic equipment, the only available time to do so is before school starts from 7:10am - 7:20am. If you do not make it between that time, you will be responsible for carrying your own equipment with you throughout the school day.

If a student is going to be absent, tardy, or dismissed on any given school day, the parent/guardian must call the main office at 508-943-8552 to report it. When calling, please state:

• Your student’s name

• Reason for absence/tardiness

• Phone number where you can be reached during the day in case a return call is necessary

A note documenting the reason for the absence, tardy, or dismissal must be sent into the main office within two (2) days of the conclusion of the absence or tardiness. However, please note that a phone call and/or note only verifies the student's absence; it does not excuse the absence. When an absence, tardiness, or dismissal can be anticipated, advance notice is requested.

Absent

From School

• If a parent/guardian has notified the school of their student’s absence, the student will be coded as “Absent” in PowerSchool

• Students who are absent from school on any given day are not permitted to participate in any school or extracurricular activities on that day.

• On the 5th+ absence from class, the teacher will engage in two-way communication with the parent/guardian to develop a plan to make-up academic deficits resulting from absences

• All missed assignments due to absences (not truancies) will be graded as a “0” (with the icons “missing” and “absent” both highlighted in Powerschool) until the assignment has been completed and submitted

• Students are required to make-up all missed assignments due to any absence (not truancy)

Truant

• Students who are absent from school without a documented reason (ex. doctor note, call from parent/guardian) will be considered truant

• Missed assignments due to truancy will receive a grade of zero (0) without the ability to make it up

Tardy

• Tardiness will be excused only if you have a note of acceptable explanation, such as a dentist or doctor appointment. Extenuating circumstances will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. Tardiness to school is counted as time lost within the provisions of the Attendance Policy.

• Students are considered tardy if they are not in their 1st block classroom by 7:25am (Please note: Being in the school building by that time is not the same as being in class by that time)

• Tardy students are required to report to check in with the main office upon arrival

• Tardy students will be required to dispose of any purchased coffee/morning beverages upon arrival. If a student refuses to dispose of their beverage immediately, they will be issued a Saturday School

• Students that are chronically tardy to school (more than 3 times in a quarter) will be subject to progressive disciplinary action

• Promptness to class is as important as promptness to your job when you go to work. Good school citizens are never tardy to class because that interferes with their own education and disrupts the whole class. You have five minutes to pass between classes, and during that time you can reach any place in the school from any other place.

• If you are with a staff member or doing an errand that cannot be done at some other time, and if this results in your being late to class, please be sure that you get a pass from the staff member in charge before leaving that staff member. It is YOUR responsibility to get a pass whenever you are going to be late to class.

• Students who are not inside of the classroom when the bell rings are considered “tardy” to class.

Dismissal

• There are times when illness or personal family business of a serious nature occurs and you need to miss part of the school day. At that time, you may request an early dismissal. To obtain an early dismissal, bring a written request from your parent/guardian to the main office as soon as you arrive at school. All notes should include the first and last name of the student, phone numbers where the parent/guardian signing the note can be reached, time to be excused, reason for the request, and first and last name of the parent/guardian signing the note. Eighteen year olds must also have a pre-approved note from a parent/guardian. BHS reserves the right to verify all parent/guardian notes prior to approving student dismissals.

• Students will be called to the main office when being dismissed

• All students, who are dismissed for any reason, must sign the dismissal log before leaving school

• ALL individuals dismissing students will be expected to come into the building and present a valid picture ID before any student will be released from the school

• Students must be in school for 4 hours from the start of the school day to be considered present for the day. Students attending school for less than four hours will be considered “absent” from school that day.

• Students dismissed from school are ineligible to participate in athletics or extra-curricular activities on that day or the ensuing weekend should it occur on the day before a weekend.

• For eligibility purposes, with respect to athletics or extra-curricular activities, students dismissed for medical, dental, legal appointments, etc., must have the appointment verification documentation turned in to the office or to the coach or activity advisor upon their return to be eligible to participate (parental/guardian notes will not suffice)

• Any student clinically dismissed by the nurse due to illness may not return to school and is ineligible to participate in athletics or school activities

• If/when a student returns to school from a dismissal, they must sign back in on the dismissal log in the main office and produce their documentation for the time out of the building

• No student, except in emergencies, will be signed out after 1:30 pm

We will be resetting the tardies to school for Quarter 2. When a student reaches the numbers below, the corresponding consequence will be assigned:

#3 - one call from the office

#4 - administrator detention (phone call will be made)

#5 - Saturday School (one call and email will be given)

#6 and above - Saturday School and 7 days of Social Probation for each tardy (one call and email will be given) *social probation means that the student will not be able to attend anything after the 2pm bell at school, to include athletics and/or clubs during that time.

*if tardiness to school does not improve, and administrator will be reaching out to set up individual meetings to discuss further plans/consequences.

The Army came to visit our students in the cafeteria this past week. While there, students had the opportunity to take part in a couple of physical challeges!

Letters will be sent home with the reports cards for any student that lost points due to absences from school. Students will then have the opportunity to make up this loss throughout the quarter by attending Saturday Schools. Attending Saturday School is the only way that these points can be made up. Up to 4 absences can be made up in one Saturday School session. The language from the handbook is below:

5 - 9 unexcused absences from a class

• At the end of a quarter - will lose 10 points from their grade in that class for that quarter

• Grade/Credit Recovery Process

• Process 1 - Students can recover those lost points in the following quarter, if and only if, they have no more than 2 unexcused absences from that class during that quarter

• Process 2 - Students can work to recover lost points in the following quarter by attending Saturday School sessions to recover the points lost. Students opting for these Saturday School Sessions must designate which course they are attending for. (Once Saturday School Sessions have ended, After School Sessions will be made available to make up this time)

• For the 4th Quarter only - students can work on recovering lost points as soon as they reach their 5th unexcused absence by attending Saturday School Sessions

• The number of sessions will be determined by the number of absences.

• In the case that a course has ended (i.e. Semester 1 courses), Students can work to recover lost points by attending Saturday School sessions during Quarter 3 to recover lost points from Quarter 2

• Any student who accumulates 10 or more absences will result in an automatic attendance failure for the quarter and receive a grade of a 40 (District Minimum Grade).

• Grade/Credit Recovery Process

• Students can work to recover lost points in the following quarter by attending Saturday School sessions to recover the points lost. Students opting for these Saturday School Sessions must designate which course they are attending for. (Once Saturday School Sessions have ended, After School Sessions will be made available to make up this time)

• For the 4th Quarter only - students can work on recovering lost points as soon as they reach their 5th unexcused absence by attending Saturday School Sessions

• Must attend enough Saturday School Sessions to bring absences below 10, at which point the 10 point deduction will be enforced as noted above.

• The number of sessions will be determined by the number of absences.

• In the case that a course has ended (i.e. Semester 1 courses), Students can work to recover lost points by attending Saturday School sessions during Quarter 3 to recover lost points from Quarter 2

Attention Juniors and Seniors:

Guidance is working with Worcester State University to offer another opportunity to take a college course after school. If you are interested, make sure to fill out the google form below and give input for which course you would like to take. We will only offer 1. You can select as many courses as you would be interested in. We would need at least 10 students to run the course. Please remember the course will meet after school from 2:15 - 3:30 and attendance is required. Please keep in mind if you have other obligations that may interfere with this. If you take and pass this class you will receive high school credit as well as 3 college credits that can transfer to any college you apply to.

As first quarter has come to a close, please refrain from requesting schedule changes. There will be another add/drop period at the beginning of the 2nd semester for new courses.

This is just a reminder that appropriate, soft-soled sneakers are the only shoes that can be worn during gym class. No other shoes are allowed on the floors in the gym. If your student is in need of sneakers, please reach out to their counselor or administrator.

Spanish classes participated in activities for El Día de los Muertos, the Day of the Dead, this week. This primarily Mexican holiday is celebrated on November 1st and 2nd each year to honor the lives of family members who have passed away. Students created paper flowers, decorated sugar skull cookies, and discussed traditions.

We are pleased to inform you of Bartlett High School’s participation in the Massachusetts State Seal of Biliteracy for the 2025-2026 School Year. The Seal of Biliteracy is an honor offered to any student who demonstrates proficiency in English and any other language, whether they speak or sign the language other than English at home or learned it at school or in the community.

The State Seal of Biliteracy aims to:

1. Encourage students to study and master languages;

2. Certify attainment of biliteracy skills;

3. Recognize the value of language diversity;

4. Provide employers with a method of identifying people with language and biliteracy skills;

5. Provide universities with a method to recognize and give credit to applicants for attainment of high-level skills in languages;

6. Prepare students with skills that will benefit them in the labor market and the global society; and

7. Strengthen intergroup communication and honor the multiple cultures and languages in a community.

In order to earn the Massachusetts State Seal of Biliteracy, students must:

1. Demonstrate a high level of proficiency in English by earning a score of 472 or higher on the Grade 10 ELA MCAS,

2. Demonstrate a high level of proficiency in a world language by attaining a minimum score equivalent to Intermediate-High on an assessment approved by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, and

3. Satisfy all other graduation requirements.

The Seal of Biliteracy with Distinction is available to students who:

1. Earn a score of 501 or higher on the Grade 10 ELA MCAS

2. Demonstrate a proficiency level of Advanced Low or higher on a Department-approved assessment, and

3. Satisfy all other graduation requirements.

The ELA MCAS Retests will take place on Nov 5 & 6, 2025 and again on March 3 & 4, 2026; Grade 10 ELA tests will take place on March 24 & 25, 2026. We will be administering Proficiency Assessments of Approved Language Other than English as soon as we know which assessments our students are interested in taking. More information to come…

We look forward to honoring the language expertise and diversity in our district through this initiative. If you have any further questions, please contact Seal of Biliteracy Coordinator, Dr. Patricia Mackay, pmackay@webster-schools.org 508-943-0104, x. 40030.

On Thursday, October 30th, Bartlett held its annual NHS Induction. Congratulations to the 11 new inductees and the 3 returning members!

Student Council will be holding it's annual Food Drive, Nov. 3rd - 21st. Non-perishable items will be collected to benefit the Webster-Dudley Food Share.

*** NEW THIS YEAR *** there will be an option for "curbside drop off" on Friday, November 7th and 14th between 7:10 - 7:25 am for those families who would like to donate items.

Student Council will be selling "Feather a Teacher" feathers beginning Nov 17th - 24th. Feathers will be sold for $1 each during both lunch blocks. Lets see who will be wearing dressing up as a turkey this year!

Please join us as we host our first Bartlett Craft Fair. All money raised with table rentals will go to the senior class to help offset the cost of all senior week activities.

The fair will be held on Saturday, December 13th from 8am until 1pm. Whether you join us as a vendor or a visitor to the event, make sure to come and check it out! Please share the flyer to help get the word out! More details to follow soon, to include a vendor list!

Students will be able to test their luck and win some prizes on November 18, 19, 20, and 21! Bingo will be held during the school day on each day, one grade level each day! Times to be determined.

Each ticket costs 10 Bartlett Bucks — so make sure to follow the PBIS system and give them out those Bartlett Bucks! If you need more, please let Ms. Donnelly know!

Tickets will be on sale starting November 3rd through November 14th during lunch!

Coming in December! Breakfast with Santa and the Grinch! Saturday, December 13th at 8am-11am at Bartlett High School! $5.00 for ages 3 and up. More information to come!

Looking for a way to spend those Bartlett Bucks?

Welcome to the PBIS School Store! It will be open all year long. Please see the items available to purchase with your Bartlett Bucks!

Orders placed by Wednesday at 2:00pm will be delivered by Friday of that week. Items placed Thursday and Friday will be delivered the following week. (Some items may be delayed based on stock availability - you will be notified by email of any items that we are unable to deliver by Friday)

You will need to pay for the items with Bartlett Bucks when they are delivered. If you do not have enough Bartlett Bucks on you at the time of delivery you will not receive the item.

Congratulations to the cheerleaders for placing Third in the CMAC Cheerleading Championship on Saturday, November 1st. The team was only .08 points away from Second Place!

Thinking about playing a sport this winter? Now's the time to sign up! Make sure to complete the form below as soon as possible if you are interested in any of the following:

• Boys or Girls Basketball
• Boys or Girls Indoor Track
• Cheerleading

Reminder: football home game tickets will be available for purchase in the main office.

• Tickets purchased with Bartlett Bucks must be bought in advance at the main office — Bartlett Bucks will no longer be accepted at the gate!

• Tickets purchased at the gate will be cash only!

All teams MUST enter and exit through the back of the gym after school, this includes all coaches and athletes. There should be absolutely no entry in or out of the C section hallway that is labeled as "Gym" on the outside door. Parents, please pick up your athletes at the back entrance to the gym after practices or games, not at the entrance closest to the BHS basketball courts.

The share bin is located to the left of the condiment table (facing the cafeteria kitchen). If students are still hungry they can take what they want from the bin, and they are always welcome to grab extra fruit as well! If you want to leave items in the bin, please do so!

Thursday, November 18th from 4pm - 6pm

Please join the Webster Middle School, as they partner with the Seven Hills Foundation and Mawla's Kids, to bring to the town of Webster a community celebration for students and families! The event will be held in the WMS gym, and there will be art, games, raffles, music, and more! Make sure to stop by!

There will also be a donation station to share kindness and give back to the community. The flyer listing what is being collected is below!

Interested in attending the next district SEPAC Meeting about the importance of The Bureau of Special Education Appeals (BSEA) and their job within special education? The meeting will be on November 12, 2025 at 6:00pm via Zoom. Please see the attached images for more information.

MAPFRE and MA DOT high school PSA Contest:

Students are invited to participate in the 4th Annual Massachusetts High School Road Safety PSA Contest. It’s a chance for your students to showcase their writing and creative skills to influence road safety.

Motor vehicle crashes are among the leading causes of death and serious injury for teens. To tackle the issue, Fundación MAPFRE and the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) are once again calling on students to write a script that will reach their peers and curb dangerous driving.

The contest is open to all Massachusetts high school students. There is no limit to how many teams from each school can enter the contest. The winning team will work with a Boston ad agency and road safety experts to produce the public service announcement (PSA) that will be aired online and on TV stations statewide. The winning school will also receive $3,000.

The PSA contest is now open for submissions. Visit the contest site for more information. The deadline to submit is December 19.