Principal's Newsletter

From the Desk of Russ Booth

November 19th, 2023

Good evening MHS families,

It has been an exciting few weeks for MHS extra-curricular activities. Our High School Quiz Show team has qualified yet again for the WGBH High School Quiz Show tournament. Dates are being set and we will be sure to update everyone on their progress and show times over the course of the season.

Our High School Marching Band and Colorguard recently ended their season with a 2nd place finish in their division at the New England Scholastic Band Association marching band finals. The band earned a gold medal with a total score of 92.96, and also won best music, best visual, and best percussion! They also competed at MetLife stadium during the same weekend, and a picture of their performance is posted below.

Our Girls Soccer team also competed for a state championship this past weekend as well. While the team did not win, it was a historic year, with the team making it farther than any previous MHS soccer team. It was an incredible season and the girls did an incredible job competing over the course of the last few weeks to make the finals and they have a lot to be proud of! Congrats again to the girls on an amazing season!

We have a short week leading up to Thanksgiving with no school on Wednesday. The annual Thanksgiving Day football game will take place at Alumni Field this year starting at 10am, and this year we will be honoring our nations veterans during the game. We hope you can make it to the game as the team looks to finish the season strong and win a league title by beating Foxboro.

It has been a great fall season of activity at MHS and we are proud of all the great things our students have accomplished. We hope every family has a great Thanksgiving Holiday and enjoys time with family and loved ones!

Thanksgiving Holiday

There will be no school on Wednesday, November 22nd. The school office will be open from 7-10:45am on Wednesday but will be closed Thursday for Thanksgiving, along with Friday November 24th. We will reopen on Monday, November 27th.

MHS Marching Band competes at MetLife Stadium!

Girls Soccer competes for the Division 2 State Championship!

Class Ring Sale

Balfour is offering a three week Class Ring Sale, from November 10th to December 1st, 2023.

To access the catalog and sale pricing for our school, please visit

www.balfour.com/massachusetts/mansfield/mansfield-high-school. For assistance with your ring size, please see the attached “Ring Sizer” from Balfour. Feel free to contact the local Balfour Sales Office at (401) 467-7018 with any questions that you may have, or for assistance.

AFL-COP Scholarship Program - Class of 2024

The Annual AFL-CIO Scholarship Program is in its 65th year. Through the

scholarship program, the Massachusetts AFL-CIO is honored to continue a long

tradition of helping students continue their education as they work toward creating

bright futures.

The Massachusetts AFL-CIO scholarship program awardees receive between $500

and $16,000 towards their education. Over 40 unions, central labor councils, area

businesses and charitable trusts from across Massachusetts participate in awarding

scholarships that total nearly half a million dollars. Unions in Massachusetts have

given close to $10 million in scholarships since 2000. About 1,500 students take the

exam annually to compete for a scholarship. Students with a union affiliation are

eligible for both the Massachusetts AFL-CIO awards and those awards listed under

their specific local union/central labor council. Massachusetts students who do not

have union affiliation are eligible for the Massachusetts AFL-CIO scholarships only.

2023-2024 Scholarships

● The scholarship application is available online at www.massaflcio.org/scholarships

All applications must be submitted online; you do not register for the exam at MHS.

● Scholarship Applications are due Friday, December 22, 2023; late applications will

not be accepted.

● The study guide is available online and is updated annually with new information.

They have updated their website to make it more interactive for students to review

material. The study guide can be found at Scholarship Study Guide

● This year's Labor History Exam will be given electronically in school on Thursday,

February 8, 2024 first thing in the morning. More information to follow.

Various Vaping Resources

Vaping in high school continues to be a concern across the country. At MHS we have hired 2 hall monitors, instituted a digital pass system, and developed a vape education program in order to continue to try and support a safe and healthy environment for all our students.

In an effort to combat the ongoing challenge of vaping within our school (and others), please take a look at and utilize the various resources provided below to learn more about vaping in order to start/continue the conversation with your child. Making progress in this area is a group effort, and we want to provide support for families at home with these resources.

General Info:

What parents need to know

Quick Facts about vaping

Vaping and the impact of Covid

Vaping can't harm teens?

Information on Quitting:

How to quit

This is quitting

Nicotine withdrawal and how to cope

MHS Bus Route Information

Inclement Weather Information

Link to District policy and procedure for inclement weather