Oak Middle School
Sunday, February 5, 2023
Dear Oak Middle School Families,
I hope everyone stayed warm this weekend! At one point my car thermometer read -9 degrees this weekend - Brrr!
Please watch the cheerleaders routine above - it was amazing! Unfortunately, due to the freezing temperatures one of their two end of season tournaments was cancelled. However, their positive attitude, hard-work, and dedication was on full display Friday night! Congrats girls!
Just a reminder that this Tuesday, February 7, is an early release day. There will be lunch available. Students who would like a "grab and go" lunch should tell their homeroom teachers on Monday (tomorrow). Dismissal time is 11:35 am.
We are still hoping to solicit parent volunteers for Strategic Planning and upcoming hiring committees. We will be starting to interview and hire for available positions and an important part of the process is parent input. Unfortunately, we do not have a lot of Oak voices currently signed up so we would love more participation.
Please reach out with any questions or concerns as our goal is to work together to make sure each and every child has a wonderful year at OMS.
In partnership,
Hallie Burak
Principal
508-841-1210
Anne Koertge
Assistant Principal Grade 7
508-841-1205
Scott Yonker
Assistant Principal Grade 8
508-841-1213
CROSSING GUARD NEEDED!
Interested candidates please send email Lindsey Stasiowski, HR Manager, at lstasiowski@shrewsbury.k12.ma.us.
Parent Search Committee Volunteers
Parents, we are looking for diverse members of our community to participate in search committees for open roles for the 2023-2024 school year. If you are interested and willing to serve, please go to this link to add your name, email, and phone number, and include any schools where you might be willing to serve as a parent representative to a search committee. If you volunteer, you may be contacted by me or another member of our District Leadership Team to ask for your participation.
The Strategic Plan
We are looking for Oak Parent Voices to participate with Focused Schools to help craft the district's next Strategic Plan. This plan will guide our work over the next five years. As we look to the future, we want to hear from you! For this reason we have scheduled a series of focus group meetings with students and staff over the next few weeks.
Focus groups are designed to give voice to a wider pool of stakeholders as the district determines priorities. These one-hour interview sessions will be held either in person or via Zoom and facilitated by a consultant from Focused Schools, the external team supporting Shrewsbury Public Schools, as we develop the latest iteration of our Strategic Plan.
Again the goal is to elicit your thinking to inform our planning. Please consider this important opportunity!
ATTENTION 8th Grade Families
SHS Course Registration for all Current 8th Graders
News from the Oak Food Pantry
The CSLC is excited to announce that Shaw's Supermarket has chosen the Oak Middle School as the next organization to benefit from their GIVE BACK WHERE IT COUNTS program. The Shaw’s GIVE BACK WHERE IT COUNTS Reusable Bag Program, which launched in March 2019, is a reusable bag program that facilitates community support with the goal to make a difference in the communities where shoppers live and work. Our food pantry will receive a $1 donation every time the $3.00 GIVE BACK WHERE IT COUNTS Reusable Bag is purchased at this location during February, unless otherwise directed by the customer through the Giving Tag attached to the bag. Please consider purchasing a bag to support our program.
Grab & Go Lunch Available on Early Release Days
The Food Service Dept. will now offer breakfast and a “Grab & Go” lunch bag on all scheduled student half days this school year (with the first being Tuesday, December 6th).
For the “Grab & Go” lunch bag, students will be asked to pre-order by indicating “yes” or “no” on the Monday before each half day so the cafeteria staff have an accurate estimate of lunch bags to prepare. Pre-orders will be taken at each school and sent to the cafeteria.
On each scheduled half day [see 2022-2023 school calendar here], students will be afforded time before dismissal to go to the cafeteria to pick up a “grab and go” lunch bag by inputting their cafeteria PIN number.
K-6 students who are in the Extended School Care Program on these early release days will still have a special lunch offered by the ESC staff. However, they may also pick up a “grab and go” lunch bag before dismissal if they so choose.
As a reminder, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts along with the federal government have fully subsidized the school lunch program for the 2022-2023 school year by providing a fixed amount reimbursement for each student meal served and documented by the district.
Team Information
Save the Dates
2/7/23 - Early Release 11:35am Dismissal
2/13/23 at 6:30 PM at SHS - Informational Parent Meeting on Course Selection Process
Monday, February 20th- Friday February 24th: February Vacation
3/7/23 - Early Release 11:35am Dismissal
Cell Phone Policy
Just a reminder that students are not allowed to use their cell phones during the school day. If a child ever needs to contact a parent/guardian they should come to the main office. We ask that parents/guardians not “text” or call students directly during the school day. Please call 508-841-1200 to have a message relayed to your child.
FEBRUARY PTO MEETING
The February PTO meeting will be TOMORROW, February 6th, @ 7PM in the Oak Media Center.
Join us as we look ahead to:
Our Power of Purpose fundraiser in March
A 7th Grade dance in March
An 8th Grade dance in May
Plans for Teacher Appreciation Week
**The PTO is looking for members to join and help fill roles, including fundraising coordinator and communications, as we have current members leaving at the end of the school year.
The SMS PTO serves both Sherwood and Oak and we welcome parents from grades 5-8!
📷📸📷📸Photos of the Week📷📸📷📸
Good luck to Laura in her violin competition! We loved the concert!
8 Teal Advisory - Mindfulness with Mr. Jordan Grinstein
🎭🎨🖌️🎵Sports and Activities🏀⚽🏅🏈
We Are Hiring
Daily Substitutes
Paraprofessional Support Staff
Shrewsbury Public Schools are seeking to hire paraprofessional support staff. We are very pleased that we are 99% fully staffed for teacher and other professional educator roles as we start the school year. Like in many employment sectors in the current economy, we are also working hard to fill certain open positions. If you or someone you know is interested in making a positive difference in the life of a child, please consider joining us as a paraprofessional in our schools. We are in need of: child-specific aides who work to support individual students with special learning needs; applied behavior analysis technicians who typically work to support individual students on the autism spectrum; and special education instructional assistants. Experience working with children is a plus but not required, and we will provide training. There are positions open at all grade spans, both full-time with benefits and part-time, and the hours are great for parents with children in school. For more information and to apply, please go to https://schools.shrewsburyma.gov/hr/currentopenings. Please forward this information along, including to local college students seeking part-time work and those considering a career change to education. If you have questions, please email Lindsey Stasiowski, Human Resources Manager, at lstasiowski@shrewsbury.k12.ma.us or call her at (508) 841-8483. Thank you!
If you see something, say something!
The Locker
The Locker is a donation based program housed at Oak that helps families in the district that could use support with clothing and personal care items. We are happy to help you in the most discreet way possible, information will be kept confidential. It would be helpful to have as much information you can provide in what you are looking for and what will be most useful to your family.
We recognize that each student has their own preferences in what they would like to wear as far as styles and colors. If your child would be interested in helping us select items, we can arrange for them to come to the neatly organized closet and choose their own items.
Items can be sent home with your student if they are comfortable or pick up can be arranged through the health office.
Please complete this form if you would like help:
Questions? We are here to help!
Mrs. Hallie Burak
Ms. Anne Koertge
Mr. Scott Yonker
Helpful Links
The Late Bus is Back!
We are thrilled to announce that we will continue to offer FREE late bus services for students at Shrewsbury High School, Oak Middle School, and Sherwood Middle School starting Monday, September 19th, 2022. Late buses will run on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. The buses will depart from SHS at 3:30pm and from the middle schools at 4:00pm.
This is a limited service with fixed bus stops. It is not intended to provide service to all neighborhoods due to financial limitations.
Please click the following link for all the details:
https://schools.shrewsburyma.gov/transportation/late-bus
Registration is open and the late bus service will start next Monday, the 19th.