Cunningham Connection

Dear Cunningham Families,

I hope everyone had a great weekend. On Wednesday, we had a great Glow Run for all students at Cunningham. Thank you for your support during the fundraiser! It was a huge success and all students will benefit from your continued support.

Teacher of the Year: It is time to nominate Cunningham Staff for the Milton Foundation for Education Teacher of the Year. More information is below.

Room Update: Great news on the progress of the rooms and offices that were damaged during the flood. The work is on schedule and we hope to have access to the rooms by May 1st. Please excuse the look of the hallways. We are putting furniture that was ordered for the rooms in the hallways.

Dr. Peter Burrows: Our incoming Superintendent Dr. Burrows officially starts on July 1, but he will be at Cunningham this Friday, March 24. We will have a Meet and Greet from 8:30 am - 9:00 am at Cunningham. I will send a reminder with more information about the location but it will be in person at Cunningham School.

Looking forward to a great week!

All the Best,

Dr. Jon Redden, Principal

jredden@miltonps.org

• Important Dates
• MFE Teacher of the Year Nominations
• Rock Your Socks - March 21!
• Intellispark Spring Screener
• 1st Grade Program Choice
• 5th Grade Growth and Development Presentation
  
• Upcoming SEPAC Meetings
  
• Save the Date - MFE Celebration
  
• Cunningham Birthday Books
• Cunningham Forms
  

Mar 20 Grade 5 Growth and Dev. Presentation

Mar 21 World Down Syndrome Day

Mar 22 - April 21 Ramadan Food Drive

Mar 24 Dr. Burrows Meet and Greet @ 8:30 am

The 2022-23 One Page School Year Calendar is linked here. The Cunningham Calendar is linked on our website.

The School Committee has approved a draft of the 23-24 SY calendar. This calendar is intended as a guide ONLY. It may be necessary to change this schedule to better serve instructional purposes.

It’s the time of year when the Milton Foundation for Education recognizes the extraordinary contributions made by MPS educators! The MFE is asking for nominations for Teacher of the Year in each school. Please take a moment to nominate an exceptional teacher here. All details can be found at this link.

Next Tuesday, March 21, we will celebrate World Down Syndrome Day in MPS. All MPS students and staff are encouraged to “Rock Your Socks” to show support and appreciation for people with Down Syndrome. March 21 (3/21) is symbolic because people with Down syndrome have 3 copies of their 21st chromosome. Wear your brightly colored, mismatched socks (a conversation starter and reminder that while things may be different, they are still wonderful) on 3/21 and celebrate people with Down syndrome and the many contributions they make to society.

In the coming weeks, we are administering our spring round of Intellispark screeners. If you opted your child out in the fall, your child will not participate this spring. You can read the fall Intellispark communication here. The grades 6-12 screener is linked here and the grades K-5 screener is linked here. Elementary students will take the screener with their homeroom teachers.

We hope all students will participate in the universal SEL screener as part of the SEL curriculum in the district. If any family feels their student would be better served without taking part in it, please contact your child’s principal with your child’s name, grade, and homeroom teacher to opt out.

Thank you to all who attended First Grade Information Night this week. Parents and guardians of current MPS kindergarten students learned about our two first grade programs: The English Innovation Pathway (with STEM & Spanish) and French Immersion. The PDF of the presentation can be found here, and a recording of the presentation will be posted on the Milton Access TV Youtube page linked here. A link to make your program choice can be found by clicking here. Please email me (jredden@miltonps.org) if you have any questions.

5th Grade parents and guardians are invited to our district wide 5th Grade Growth and Development Program on Monday, March 20 at 7pm in the MHS Auditorium. This annual presentation is a wonderful opportunity for parents/guardians to preview the videos (The Puberty Workshop and Curriculum, Human Relations Media, Inc.) that will be shown to 5th grade students this spring. After the videos, there will be time for Q&A regarding the program. This is a powerful opportunity to gain knowledge and build skills to help engage your child in conversations about puberty. This program will be presented to your student at school on March 31.

Participate: We will soon be saying goodbye to the leaders of our Pupil and Personnel Services, Mark Harrison (March 31) and Susan Maselli (June 30) This is a significant leadership transition for our community, and it is happening in conjunction with central leadership transition. Please stay tuned and engaged – this is an important time for us!

SEPAC Board Member Darcy Maksou (Cunningham Rep) served on the search for Asst. Director of Pupil Personnel Services. Two SEPAC board members, Tracy Menoza (Collicot Rep) and Jennie Mulqueen (Co-Chair and MHS Rep) will serve on the search committee for the new Administrator for Pupil and Personnel Services.

Advocate: Know your school rep: Find Your School Rep Here

Educate: Attend the next SEPAC sponsored Federation for Children with Special Needs workshop: Evaluation and Eligibility Monday, March 27th 6:30pm, followed by Parent Speak. This workshop is on Zoom and will be presented in the Tucker School Library, followed by a Parent Speak meeting from 7:30-8:30pm.

In partnership with Milton Muslim Neighbors and Milton Interfaith Clergy Association, MPS supports the Ramadan Food Drive.

From Thursday, March 22 to Friday, April 21, bring your donation of dry goods and hygiene items to any of our schools. Join your Muslim neighbor in this effort, as Ramadan is a very special time of year for Muslims to do good deeds. All details can be found here.

There is an opportunity for families to attend a FREE classical music performance at Faneuil Hall in March and April. The Bach, Beethoven and Brahms Society Orchestra plays classical music at historic Faneuil Hall, under the direction of internationally acclaimed conductor, Steven Lipsitt. It is their mission to introduce young families to this music in an intimate setting. This offer is first come first served and is only available for a limited time.Tickets are for unreserved side seating. Please use promo code ‘music’ at checkout for the free tickets. All details on this terrific opportunity can be found here.

The Forbes House Museum 2023 Lincoln Essay and Drawing Contest is open. Mary Bowditch Forbes’s extensive Lincoln Collection is the inspiration behind the museum’s annual essay and drawing contest, which offers students different prompts each year through which to reflect on the life and times of President Lincoln. This year the drawing contest is open to students in grades 5-8 and the essay contest is open to students in grades 6-8.

The deadline is April 14, with the awards ceremony on May 13. Essay winners will be asked to read their entries, and the drawing winners will have their work displayed in the museum. The contest is generously sponsored by BR Alexander & Co. If your child would like to participate, all details can be found here.

The MFE supports all six MPS schools in ways big and small, day in and day out, throughout the school year. MFE grants range from $500 worth of books to $25,000 worth of technology and everything in between! The MFE has funded larger projects like the Wildcat Wellness Center and MPS broadband expansion and smaller initiatives that support classrooms or grades. You can see the spring 2022 grant list here. They have been an incredible partner to MPS over the last two decades and we are grateful to the parents and guardians who volunteer their time in support of the MFE and our schools.

How can you support the good work that the MFE does for our schools? Join the fun on May 6 at this year’s Celebration for Education! Celebration is a guaranteed good time and will take place at The Beat, 135 Morrissey Blvd. on May 6 at 5 pm. May 6 is Derby Day, so come for the early start, watch the Kentucky Derby, enjoy good food and drink and the company of hundreds of your MPS neighbors. Tickets and squares will be on sale in the coming weeks, so save the date and mark your calendar for Celebration for Education 2023!

Birthday Books are a fun and memorable way for Cunningham kids to celebrate their birthday (or half birthday for summer kids) at school! During your child’s birthday month, they will pick a book from a wide, librarian-curated selection. A commemorative book plate with your child’s name and birthday will be added to the book and it will be donated to the school library. After being given a certificate thanking them for their donation, your child will be the first student to check that book out of the library. For years to come every student who reads that book will know it was a Birthday Book from your child! Please click here to learn more about Cunningham's Birthday Books program!

Please make sure you continue to use the forms on the Cunningham Website if students will have a change in dismissal or will be absent or tardy. This process is for all preschool - 5th grade families as both Mrs. Butler (Preschool) and Mrs. McGettrick (K-5) will receive the alert.

• Interim Superintendent Garth McKinney, gmckinney@miltonps.org
  
• Asst. Superintendent of Business, Glenn Pavlicek – 617 -696-5041, gpavlicek@miltonps.org
• Special Education Director, Susan Maselli – 617-696-5040 ext 5572, smaselli@miltonps.org
• Transportation Coordinator – 617-696-5040 ext 5510, bus@miltonps.org
• Milton Community Schools Director, Martha Sandoval – 617-696-5040 ext 5544, mcs@miltonps.org
• Interim Food Service Director, Natalia Perez, 617-696-4470 ext 5514, nperez@miltonps.org
• Director of Nursing, Kim Coughlin – 617-696-4470 ext 5517, kacoughlin@miltonps.org
• Athletic Director, Ryan Madden – 617-696-4470 ext 5515, rmadden@miltonps.org
• Student Registrar, Sarina Burke – 617 696-5040 ext 5516, registration@miltonps.org
• Family Outreach Liaison, Marti O’Keefe McKenna – 617-980-7343, mmckenna@miltonps.org