• March 18 7:00 PM All Strings Night Collins Center
• March 19 Doherty 7:00 PM PAC Meeting Doherty Media Center- All Welcome
• Newsies School Play April Friday 4/4 ; Saturday 4/5 ; and Sunday 4/6: 7pm Shows on Friday & Sat ; 2pm show on Sunday.
• April 9 Early Dismissal 11:30

MCAS Dates

April 8 & 10 – ELA *Note the change in dates

May 1 – Civics (8th grade only)

May 5 & 6 – Math

May 15 & 16 – STE Science Technology Engineering (8th grade only)

Our esteemed science teacher, Ms.Tivnan, retired this week. We are deeply grateful for her dedication and the positive impact she has had on our students during her 30 years teaching at Doherty. Her contributions will certainly be missed by both staff and students.

While we will greatly miss Ms. Tivnan's presence at Doherty, we are excited for her as she steps into this well-deserved next chapter. On behalf of the Doherty community, we extend our heartfelt thanks and best wishes for a joyful and fulfilling retirement.

To our Incoming 9th Graders and Families,

Welcome to Andover High School! We're excited to welcome you to the 9th grade transition process. This is an important step in your academic journey and we are here to support you, every step of the way! We hope you find this page (see link below) helpful as you prepare for the transition to high school.

If you have any questions, feel free to reach out and I would be happy to assist you. Looking forward to a great year ahead!

- Ms. Breen

holly.breen@andoverma.us

Doherty Values Challenge

March Madness Attendance Challenge which is all about teamwork! Each homeroom will be competing for both weekly and a grand prize based on attendance.

Weekly Matchups — How to Advance:

- Each week, our Attendance Team will calculate the percentage of students in each homeroom who attended school on time (no tardies!).

- The section with the highest attendance percentage in each matchup advances to the next round.

- Students with medical notes/excuses will not be counted against the attendance.

- Eliminated teams will continue to be eligible for a weekly prize so don’t give up! Each week is a fresh start!

📅Competition Schedule:

Week 1: March 4-7

Week 2: March 10-14

Week 3: March 17-21

Week 4: March 24-28

🏆Championship Round: March 31-April 4

For the week of 3/3-3/7 the following homerooms were recognized and were able to spin the prize wheel!

6th Grade: Mrs. Maienza & Ms. Jacobo’s Homeroom, Mr. Bessette & Mrs. Kuda’s Homeroom, and Mr. Gray, Ms. Pellegrino, and Ms. McNamee’s Homeroom

7th Grade: Ms. Tyrell & Mrs. Carlton’s Homeroom

8th Grade: Ms. Patterson & Mrs. Cusack’s Homeroom

Our March Madness bracket and our new weekly winners will be announced on Monday morning.

It has been a busy and exciting week here in 8th grade. On Thursday, we had counselors from Andover High School visit to help students with course selection. The counselors provided very helpful and clear information (thank you AHS!); our 8th grade teachers were incredibly supportive, as always, and the students did a great job. Parents and caregivers there is still an important step for you to complete at home, Course Verification (see below).

Course Verification Instructions (Steps 4 and 5) are outlined very clearly in this Smore from AHS: Course Verification Instructions. The deadline for parents/caregivers to verify courses is Monday, March 17th. Please keep your eye out for emails from AHS 9th Grade Coordinator Holly Breen.

We are also preparing for our Career Fair! This event will take place for 8th grade students from all three middle schools on April 15th from 12 PM to 2 PM at Andover High School. Thank you to all the parents and caregivers who have already signed up to volunteer. Parents/caregivers of any grade can sign up to get involved! If you are interested in volunteering, we would love to have you; please sign up here: Volunteer Sign-Up.

Molly Creamer

School Counselor

As we continue the K-8 redistricting process, we are pleased to invite the community to highlight areas of interest (i.e., neighborhoods, streets), with an interactive, online mapping tool - ARCGIS.

This resource will allow the community to review an updated scenario based on the collaboration with the School Committee at its January 9th meeting and community engagement. The updated scenario was presented to the community at a Let’s Talk! session on redistricting held January 16, 2025.

The community can provide visual feedback and written comments to DillingerRAD, the consultant supporting APS with this process. For more information on how to utilize the tool, please check here. Access to this link or the QR code below will close on Friday, January 24, 2025.

In Spring 2025, the School Committee will review the proposed redistricting options and vote on the preferred redistricting plan. The approved redistricting plan will be implemented in the 2026-27 school year. This allows the district sufficient time to operationally plan for the new school zones.

We appreciate your feedback.

• Tuesday, April 29, 2025 - The school budget will be presented as part of the total town budget for a vote at the annual town meeting.

Communication with our families is essential to the success and wellness of our students. To assist our families and help them connect with the appropriate staff who is best suited to answer questions, we have updated our “Who We Are” page on our website. The information will guide families to resources on how to reach staff with concerns and how to stay connected to news and events across the district.

What is RULER?

RULER is an evidence-based approach to social and emotional learning (SEL) developed at the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence.

Purpose of Morning Check In:

• Create a unified low-stakes rollout for all three APS Middle Schools
• Begin a student focus on the emotion matters mindset and discussion
• Build student relationships and community

RULER VIDEO and Website

YEARBOOK

Simply scan this QR code and follow the prompts. Yearbooks will be delivered to homerooms the last week of school

You may also call 866-287-3096 or go to www.YearbookOrderCenter.com and use order number 13395

The Doherty Middle School Yearbook Club is thrilled to include a special collage page celebrating our 8th graders' unique passions—whether it’s sports, hobbies, music, or quality time with a favorite pet.

We invite you to submit ONE clear, high-quality photo of your student enjoying their activity from their middle school years. The deadline for submissions is April 1st, 2025. Simply use the provided QR code to upload your photo (select “Upload Portrait” and choose “Pre-K” for the grade to help us sort the photos).

Yearbooks are $40 and available for all grades. Reserve yours today at www.YearbookOrderCenter.com (order #13395) or call 866-287-3096.

For questions or scholarship inquiries, please contact faculty advisor, Ms. Bakshi at leela.bakshi@andoverma.us. Let’s make sure every 8th grader is celebrated in this year’s book!

To be completed if your student will participate in after school Extracurricular clubs. Click here for the form. The form is also available on our website.

Completed form can be dropped off at the Main Office.

List of Clubs and Activities can be found on our website under INFORMATION and RESOURCES