It's officially time to start counting down to all the incredible end-of-year events and celebrations! There are so many great ways to engage with your schools, so be sure to stay tuned to your school newsletters, websites, and calendar of events to see what's coming up.

NEXT week is Teacher Appreciation Week (May 2-6)! While we deeply appreciate our educators EVERY day, this special week honors all the incredible ways in which our educators make a difference in our schools and our students' lives. If you have a friend, neighbor, or colleague who is an educator or have been directly impacted (or your child/ren have been impacted) by an amazing educator in your life--tell them! Write a note / send an email and tell them they make a difference. We are so proud of our educators who go above and beyond every day to educate and care for our students! THANK YOU!

* Upcoming Vaccine Clinics

* Annual Town Meeting Dates

* Summer Explorers Program is BACK!

* Mohawk Trail Athletic Association Meeting - May 2

* Events & Happenings

* In the News

* Community Corner

* School Spotlights

On Monday, April 25, Mohawk Trail Regional School students were welcomed back to school with some sweet tunes by our staff! What a great way to start the day! 💙💛🎶🎵🎶🎵 Happy Spring!

Please join us for a districtwide celebration of learning on Thursday, May 19 at MTRS from 4-6 p.m.

Learn about our Trailblazer model and how MTRS students blaze their trails with us!

Elementary Literacy event in the library sponsored by the Mary Lyon Foundation -- free books, make your own comic, and dress like a superhero/fave character photo op spot!

Throughout the building you'll see student work displays; go on a district-wide art walk; get a preview of the MTRS musical and spring concert; have a chance to play and bring home math games for the whole family; and so much more!

AND... thanks to the incredible generosity of the Mary Lyon Foundation and Foxtown Diner, dinner will be provided (FREE!) for all attendees!

Families - please join us as we celebrate our students and their work AND have some fun! This event is for *all* ages!

If you need to receive your COVID-19 vaccine or booster OR flu vaccine, vaccine clinics will once again be held right here in Franklin County! Check out the latest locations (a big THANK YOU to FRCOG for all their hard work in coordinating these important events):

If you have any trouble accessing the links in the PDF above, you can also visit the vaccine information site directly here: https://frcog.org/program-services/cooperative-public-health-services/vaccines

It's almost annual town meeting time! Be sure to check our website next week for copies of our annual town meeting flyers. Budget materials can be found at www.mtrsd.org/Business-Services (click on the button for FY23 Budget Materials).

Annual Town Meeting Dates

Ashfield - May 7 at 10 a.m.

Buckland - May 7 at 10 a.m.

Charlemont - May 24 at 7:30 p.m.

Colrain - June 14 at 5:30 p.m.

Hawley - May 9 at 7 p.m.

Heath - May 7 at 9 a.m.

Plainfield - May 7 at 1 p.m.

Shelburne - June 11 at 10 a.m.

The Explorers Program is BACK and reimagined this year!

Join us for a summer of fun and learning adventures as our Explorers blaze their educational trails to success through our programming.

Students will participate in a half-day of academics and half-day of

recreational activities. Click on the links below to view the program flyers and be sure to head over to our website, www.mtrsd.org/explorers-program for additional details!

Elementary Explorers Program: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ZEiGupTJWW4GXFqyJBQrqWgHMufK4tzj/view?usp=sharing

Middle School Explorers Program:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1YIU4e3ivwXxTic0Qo9S9PFQYSy3i65VU/view?usp=sharing

Don't forget to add these to your calendar and join us!

May 2 - Mohawk Trail Athletic Association Meeting

May 6 - Colrain Central Family Literacy Night & Student Art Show

May 15 - MTRS student council tag sale & Mohawk Trail Athletic Association Spring Fling

May 19 - Trailblazer District Wide Celebration of Learning

May 20-22 - MTRS musical, Bits of Broadway

May 26 - MTRS Spring Concert at BSE

May 27 - MTRS Prom

May 30 - Memorial Day

June 2 - MTRS Awards Night

June 4 - MTRS Graduation

June 20 - Juneteenth

Be sure to check your school's calendar for additional events and details.

JOIN US on Monday, May 2 from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. for the next Mohawk Trail Athletic Association Meeting (both in-person and virtual meeting options!).

May Agenda includes:

• May 15 Spring Fling Event
• Reuben Bassett Fundraiser
• Coach Requests
• Open Floor

Meeting will be held in the Superintendent's Conference Room and via Google Meet:

Join us on Friday, May 6 at Colrain Central School as we host our Family Literacy Night & Student Art Show.

Art Show, 5-6 p.m.

Literacy Night, 6-7:30 p.m.

We're looking for gently used book donations for children and adults to be used in our free book swap! Have something to donate? Contact Principal Amy Looman at alooman@mtrsd.org.

LAST DAY for VENDOR SIGN-UPS!

Mohawk Trail Regional School Student Council TAG SALE

Sunday, May 15 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The MTRS field hockey field (26 Ashfield Road, Shelburne Falls).

Help us FILL THE FIELD and sign-up to be a vendor today!

VENDOR INFORMATION:

$20 per space (spaces approx. 10' x 15')

$10 table rental (limited amount, first come first serve)

*Bringing your own pop-up/EZ up tent is encouraged*

((Note: You keep all the proceeds from your site sales!))

SIGN-UP DEADLINE : Friday, APRIL 29

To sign-up, email: MTRSstuco@mtrsd.org and include subject line: "May Tag Sale"

**Vendors: To sign up, please CLICK HERE and complete the form to reserve your space.**

To save the date and/or spread the word on social - visit the Facebook Event listing here: www.facebook.com/events/710332093667231

Graphic by STUCO member and communications intern Sophia Goodnow

REMINDER - Sixth grade & current MTRS caregivers - Step-Up Day at MTRS is right around the corner! Be sure to stay tuned for more details as we head into May. You can find our save the date event on Facebook HERE.

And - if you're not following the official MTRS Facebook page - you can find us at www.facebook.com/mohawktrailregional and @mohawktrailregional on Instagram!

"We visited the Shelburne Transfer Station and received a guided tour from Joe Giard (Shelburne Transfer Station Attendant) and Amy Donovan (Franklin County Solid Waste Management District). Students asked questions about the many intricacies of recycling including why certain things are recyclable while others aren't, why residents have to pay to dispose of trash but not for recycling, and where all the waste goes. In the photo (below), students are looking at the paper compactor (right) and the mixed recycling container (left). Joe is on the deck holding an empty milk carton (which is recyclable) and Amy is on the ground next to the compactor. This is a part of a service learning project where students are learning about recycling, composting, and pollution. In this unit, we will be conducting research, collecting/analyzing data, conducting outreach to our school community, and practicing argumentative writing."--David Conlon, Grade 6 Teacher at BSE

Superintendent of Schools

Mohawk Trail/Hawlemont Regional School Districts

sstanton@mtrsd.org

Twitter: @mtrsdsuper