Beginning the week of February 6, Mrs. Belhumeur will be leaving on maternity leave for the rest of the school year. I am happy to announce that Jake Sledziewski will be the Music and Band Teacher during this period of time. Mr. Sledziewski has a variety of experiences teaching music. He is a talented musician and teacher. As a recent graduate of UMASS Amherst, he was able to experience and teach students at all levels, from elementary to high school. Mr. Sledziewski is energetic, makes great connections with students, and is excited to maintain the excellent music program the Luther Burbank School is known for. He has spent time shadowing Mrs. Belhumeur over the past two weeks. This has helped him learn the schedule and meet all the students.

While we will miss Mrs. Belhumeur during her absence, we are also excited for her and her husband as they begin their own family. We are also excited to have Mr. Sledziewski to work with our students and share his teaching talents with us.

In addition to Mrs. Belhumeur leaving, Mrs. Cauley will be taking maternity leave beginning on February 27. We are lucky to have Mrs. Janet Robbins filling in for her for the remainder of the school year. Mrs. Robbins is very familiar with the Luther Burbank School as she just completed teaching 8th grade science where she filled in for Mrs. Alyward from September to December of this year. Mrs. Robbins has over 10 years of teaching experience. During that time, she taught mathematics and science in middle school settings. Over the past few weeks Mrs. Robbins has spent time getting to know the students and routines in the 6th grade math classroom. We wish Mrs. Cauley and her growing family all the best!

Sincerely,

Sean O'Shea

February 7: PTO Meeting, 6:30

February 9: “Are You Smarter Than an 8th Grader?”, Trivia Night for DC Trip, 7:00

February 16: LBMS School Council, 3:00

February 16: Future Freshman Night, 6:30-8:00 (snow date Feb 27), NRHS

February 17: Ballin’ @ Burbank, 12:30-2:00

February 20-February 24: February Break

February 27: Classes Resume

March 2: Early Release, PTC

March 2: Parent Teacher Conferences, 12:30-3:00 & 6:00-8:00

March 10: Early Release, PTC

March 10: Parent Teacher Conferences, 12:30-3:00

March 16: LBMS School Council, 3:00

March 17: No School, Full Day PD

Link to 2022-23 NRSD School Calendar

Parent Teacher conferences will be held the the afternoon and evening of March 2 and the afternoon of March 10. Our conferences will once again be held virtually using the Zoom platform. Meeting links will be shared with families prior to the start of conferences.

Families preferring an in person conference are asked to first sign up through the Pick-A-Time system and then contact Judy Ursuliak in the office so that we know to expect you.

Conferences may be scheduled through our online appointment booking system, Pick-A-Time, beginning Thursday, February 9, 2023 at 7:00 p.m.

It may be a helpful reminder that middle school conferences are not booked with homeroom teachers. Conferences should be booked with your child’s academic teachers, related arts teachers, and, if applicable, related service providers.

As always, please do not hesitate to contact Judy Ursuliak at jursuliak@nrsd.net if you have any questions.

To schedule a conference please click here: https://www.pickatime.com/client?ven=11601234

On Saturday, February 4th, a select group of Luther Burbank musicians traveled to Grafton, MA to represent Lancaster at the Massachusetts Jr. Central District Festival auditions. In preparation for auditions, each student prepared an assigned selection of solo repertoire, scales or intervals, and were also asked to sight-read a music example on the spot. Auditions are very competitive, attracting close to 1000 7th-9th graders from across the Central District of Massachusetts. Following auditions, the top scoring musicians will be selected to join elite ensembles - a Concert Band, Symphony Orchestra, Chorus, and Jazz Ensemble - with predetermined vocal and instrumental needs.

This year, Luther Burbank's auditioning students are: Benjamin Shepard (tuba, gr. 8), Emma Hudak (alto voice, gr. 8), Owen Potter (trumpet, gr. 7), Beatrice Armstrong (flute, gr. 7), Liberty Zmijak (trombone, gr. 8), Zoe Hubbard (flute, gr. 8), Audrey Frelick (mallet percussion, gr. 8), Matthew Gleason (clarinet, gr. 7), Halen Reinert (percussion, gr. 7), & Sophia Alves (mallet percussion, gr. 7)

Congratulations to all on your hard work, dedication, and musicianship. It takes courage and practice to present oneself in an audition. We wish these students the very best of luck, and look forward to hearing the results for the 2023 Jr. District Festival.

The law in Massachusetts requires stopping for a bus that has flashing lights and an extended stop sign, whether you are driving from behind or toward the bus. You can only resume driving when the lights top flashing or the sign folds back in.

The 2022/2023 Yearbook is now on sale and is accepting orders. All orders must be placed online through the CoffeePond website. See the attached flyer.

• The cost of the book this year is $32 if ordered before 3/1/23
• $34 if ordered after 3/1/23 and before 4/8/23
• $36 if ordered after 4/8/23 and before 4/15/23

The deadline for ordering the yearbook is 4/15/2023.

Don't miss out. See the attached information to order your yearbook online.