STUDENT DRESS CODE

Minnechaug strives to provide an environment focused on instruction and learning. Appropriate student dress has a positive impact on student learning, student behavior and the overall educational environment. All students are required to be dressed in a manner that does not interfere with the health, safety and welfare of themselves or other students. Dress that distracts/disrupts the educational process and mission of the school is prohibited.

The following are examples of the standards that will be observed at Minnechaug and while representing Minnechaug:

• Attire covering the top of the body must have at least two inch wide straps and be long enough to cover any exposed skin on the torso.
• Pants must rest high enough on the hips so as not to expose underwear or skin.
• Legs should not be exposed above fingertip length when a student stands with arms fully extended downward.
• Clothing promoting alcohol, tobacco products, weapons or drugs is prohibited.
• Clothing with obscene or vulgar statements or pictures is prohibited.
• Underwear worn as outerwear, including semi-transparent clothing is prohibited.
• Large, long and/or heavy chains, spikes or any other hardware worn as jewelry or accessories, including wallet keepers and dog collars, are prohibited.
• Sunglasses are prohibited.
• Head apparel, such as hats, hoods and bandanas, is prohibited. (Except for religious or medical purposes.)

• Clothing should not drag on the floor and should be safe for use on stairwells and appropriate for the activities in which the student is involved.
• Footwear is required and must be safe for use on stairwells and appropriate for the activities in which the student is involved.

In addition to the listing above, clothing and attire found to be disruptive or distracting to the educational process or which has affected the safety of students will be determined a violation of the dress code by the school administration. If a student’s attire is in violation of this code, the student will be required to change attire and may be sent home to do so. Refusal to change attire will subject a student to immediate suspension. Further violations will result in additional disciplinary action.

August/September 2019

SENIORS: GET READY FOR THOSE COLLEGE APPLICATIONS!

Seniors have three tasks that should have already been completed!

1. Complete The Junior Profile on Naviance.

2. Three student evaluations should have been handed out to three teachers for completion.

3. Have parents complete the Parent Bragsheet on Naviance.

These documents must be in your senior file before letters of recommendation can be written by school counselors. You can ask Mrs. Lavoie, the guidance secretary, to check your file.

NAVIANCE: Naviance continues to be an important tool for students and parents to prepare for the college application and career readiness process. Everyone should spend some time getting to know the program or to get reacquainted with Naviance. Freshman will get an introduction to Naviance during their PE class as part of the Developmental Guidance curriculum. Seniors will be submitting college applications and other necessary documents for the college admissions process via Naviance. Sophomores and Juniors should continue to update their information and to utilize the available application of Naviance to help prepare for one of life’s biggest decisions; “what am I going to do after high school?”

SAT/ACT –If seniors have not taken the ACT or SAT exam yet or want to take it again, you must register on-line for your test date and testing location. The CEEB code for Minnechaug is 22398 and the test center is 22-896.

Many representatives from colleges will be visiting MRHS this fall. Representatives from the military branches will also be visiting MRHS. Listen to morning announcements and check in the Counseling Center for dates. You must sign up in advance to meet with the representatives.

MRHS will be hosting a College Fair for our juniors and seniors on Monday, October 21, 2019. Representatives from over 90 colleges will be here. There will be more details to follow!

PSAT/NMSQT- PRELIMINARY SAT/NATIONAL MERIT SCHOLARSHIP QUALIFYING TEST

The PSAT/NMSQT is offered only once during the school year. It will be given on Saturday, October 19, 2019 here at Minnechaug. This test is offered to sophomores and juniors. Registration forms will be available in Guidance on Monday, September 16. Registration forms and payment must be received in Guidance by Thursday, October 10. Cost will be $25.00 (checks payable to HWRSD). Space is not guaranteed after October 10. Juniors taking the exam will be eligible for the National Merit Scholarship program.

COUNSELOR ASSIGNMENTS

Your counselors will be scheduling meetings with students throughout the school year. You are encouraged to stop in the Counseling Center or send an email to make an appointment with your counselor any time.

SENIORS CLASS OF 2019 --------------------- JUNIORS CLASS OF 2020

A - D Mrs. Gentile -----------------------------------A - D Mrs. Gentile

E - H Mrs. Donovan --------------------------------E - H Mrs. Donovan

I - N Mr. Marino ------------------------------------- I - N Mr. Marino

O - S Mrs. Raffaele -------------------------------O - S Mrs. Raffaele

T - Z Mr. Poulin -------------------------------------T - Z Mr. Poulin

CTEC Mrs. Considine ---------------------------CTEC Mrs. Considine

SOPHMORES CLASS OF 2021-------------------------- FRESHMAN CLASS OF 2020

A - DN Mrs. Gentile -------------------------------------------A - C Mrs. Gentile

DO - H Mrs. Donovan ----------------------------------------D - H Mrs. Donovan

I - N Mr. Marino -------------------------------------------------I - M Mr. Marino

O - S Mrs. Raffaele -------------------------------------------N - S Mrs. Raffaele

T - Z Mr. Poulin -------------------------------------------------T - Z Mr. Poulin

CTEC Mrs. Considine

September

Tuesday, September 10, 2019 Senior College Readiness Assembly with Counselors

Sunday, September 15, 2019 National College Fair at Western New England University, 1:00 p.m.-3:00 p.m. WNEU will host an Admissions/Financial Aid presentation at 12:00

Tuesday, September 24, 2019 Senior College Readiness Workshop 6:30 p.m.-8:00 p.m. for seniors and parents in the Auditorium.

October

Tuesday, October 1, 2019 College Financial Aid Night 6:30 p.m.- 8:00 p.m. in the Auditorium

Wednesday, October 9, 2019 College Essay Writing Presentation for seniors at 6:30 p.m.- 8:00 p.m.

Saturday, October 19, 2019, PSAT Exam 7:15 a.m.-12:00 p.m. for sophomores and juniors. Registration forms available in the Counseling Center Monday, September 16.

Monday, October 21, 2019, College Fair for juniors and seniors 12:30 p.m.-2:05 p.m. in the gymnasium

Please help us prepare for the new school year by sending in the forms required by the school district and the State of Massachusetts:

• Emergency/Non-Prescription Medication Form is required for every student, and must be completed by a parent or guardian each school year. Please fill out and sign BOTH sides. Thanks!

• Tenth Grade Physical Forms are required by the State – a record of a physical performed between 6/15/2019 and 9/1/2020 is acceptable, so you have ample time to have your child’s physical completed when covered by insurance. This form is available on the school website or your child may pick one up in the Health Office. All doctor’s offices also have physical forms.

• Prescription Medication Forms and Asthma, Allergy, or Seizure Action Plans were mailed in June, as needed, to individual students. Please be sure to complete these forms and mail them back to Minnechaug’s Health Office before school starts. If you need a new one, please let us know and we will mail another to you. A PARENT/GUARDIAN SIGNATURE IS REQUIRED ON EACH DOCTOR’S ORDER FORM. We prefer you use our forms – there is a space for your signature. If you use a form from your doctor’s office, please sign each doctor’s order. Thank you!

• Diabetes Plans must be completed by the physician and returned each year for all students with diabetes. The form used by your child’s physician is acceptable.

All of these forms expire at the end of the school year and must be completed each year. We are aware of redundancy in certain forms you fill out for school. However, we are very concerned for the privacy of your child’s health information and do not share these forms with other school personnel. So even though you fill out other school forms with contact information, please be certain to also fill out the gold-colored Emergency/Non-Prescription Medication Form for each student and return it to the Health Office. If any of your child’s health or contact information changes during the year, please provide us with updates. We certainly appreciate your effort and hope you understand we use this information to help keep our students safe and healthy during the school day.

Please call Janet Shea, RN or Shannon Frederick, RN at 279-3815 with any concerns or updates once the school year begins.

Welcome back, and we hope your children have a wonderful year!

Parents and Guardians: The Student Activities Office will be collecting a Student Activity fee of $40 for any student who is involved in clubs and activities. This fee is an annual fee, and students may participate in as many clubs and activities throughout the year once the fee is paid. There is a trial period when students, especially all new students, can attend the clubs and activities without paying the fee in order to see if they are interested. Some clubs charge an additional fee for T-shirts and membership dues, which will be addition to the Student Activity Fee; the advisors of these clubs will inform the students during their first scheduled meeting. The Student Activities fees are due by Friday, September 27th in the Student Activities Office. Checks must be made payable to HWRSD. If writing a check, please be sure that your child’s name and year of graduation are in the memo line. The office also accepts cash and online payments. There was a letter sent out in the middle of August explaining further updates and explanations on how to pay this fee online. Please call (413) 596-9011 ext. 3828 with any questions.

National Honor Society applications will be available at a later time September in Student Activities. Students should listen to announcements or contact Mrs. Bischof or Mrs. Fimognari for the application deadline.

Yearbook pictures and ID photos will be taken all day on Thursday, September 5th. All underclassmen must have their pictures taken during this time even if they do not plan on purchasing a photo package.

Student Council will hold its first meeting during A-Block in the auditorium on Wednesday, September 4th.

The Student Council will be holding a dress-up/dress down day on Friday, September 6th with all donations benefiting Camp Sunshine. Donations may be made in the reception office and during the morning before school at the community entrance.

Mark your calendars: The fall Open House is Thursday, September 12th beginning at 7 PM in the Minnechaug Auditorium.

Do you know that Minnechaug has over 50 activities in which your child can participate? Do you know that each year we add clubs to our program due to student interest? Do you want your child to develop stronger social skills, and increase his/her GPA and testing scores? Do you want your child to have success in his/her future college and career path? The Student Activities office will be holding a night for freshman, sophomore, and new students which celebrates The Falcon Way on Friday, September 13th at 6:00 PM in the community entrance. This night also our Welcome Freshman Social which begins at 5:30 PM. Students who attend this program will receive free admission to the home football game that same evening. We hope you will attend this program which will highlight the importance of student participation in co-curricular activities.

The Class of 2023 nomination papers are due by Thursday, September 26th at 3 PM. There will be no exceptions. Campaigning may not begin until the nomination papers are accepted by the Student Activities Office. Papers can be picked up in the Student Activities Office beginning on the first day of school, but signatures must be collected before a nomination paper will be accepted. Please contact Ms. Drawec in the Student Activities office with any questions about running for student government. There is a mandatory candidates’ meeting in the auditorium on Tuesday, September 24th at 2:15 PM in the auditorium. All students who are planning on running for 2022 class council must attend this meeting. Class elections will be held Thursday, October 10th during advisory.

The Class of 2022 will have its major fundraiser/class ring kick-off assembly on Wednesday, September 25th at 7:40 AM. Students will be selling Taste of Western Massachusetts coupon books for only $25. The Herff Jones Ring Company will also be speaking about the class rings available to students.

Fall season is approaching! The Student Council will be holding a scarecrow-making fundraiser on September 28 and 29 from 10 AM-2 PM at Rice’s on Main Street in Wilbraham. The cost to make a scarecrow is $15 and this includes all materials needed to make a life-sized scarecrow to display in your yard for the fall season.

Herff Jones Ring Company will hold a Parent’s Night on Monday, October 7th from 5-7 PM in the community lobby. Herff Jones also will be at all three lunches on October 10th and October 15th to collect ring orders.

JOIN the Emeralds 2020 Staff

Did you know that Minnechaug has a literary and fine art magazine created by students that is published once a year? Did you know that Emeralds is award-winning for the quality of writing, art and design?

Artists, Writers, Creatives -- see Ms. Sacon in B105 and join the fun!

Parents – You can support Emeralds by making a donation or becoming a patron or purchasing last year’s magazine for $10. Contact D. Sacon, Emeralds advisor, or buy one in the main office from the school secretary. Make checks payable to HWRSD.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

EMERALDS 2019 ORDER FORM

c/o D. Sacon

Minnechaug

621 Main Street

Wilbraham, MA 01095

Name: ___________________________________________________

Address: __________________________________________________

Number of magazines ordered: ___________

Magazine cost= $10

Make Checks payable to HWRSD.

Total: ___________

If you will pick up your magazine in the main office, please circle YES