The Panther Press
Official Newsletter of Whitman-Hanson Regional High School
Welcome!
November 22, 2020 - Volume 3 - ISSUE 11
Welcome to the Whitman-Hanson Regional High School Newsletter! It is designed to keep everyone (parents, students, staff, and community members) informed of the many events that are happening in and around the school. It contains links, pictures, and videos so that you have a more interactive experience and the ability to learn more about various topics.
Communication is incredibly important to understanding so we ask that you share our news as much as possible. We also welcome feedback! It is the only way to continuously improve. So, please interact, get involved, and let us know what you think by contacting us and sharing our news!
Important Dates to Plan
November 25-27 – No School Thanksgiving Break
December 2 - Virtual Parent-Teacher Conferences by Appointment Only via Meet the Teacher 12PM-2PM & 6PM-8PM)
December 9 - District Professional Development (afternoon)
December 12 - Winter Sports Begin
December 23-January 3 - Holiday Break
January 4 - Report back to school from break
DONATIONS NEEDED!
You can access the Senior Bio form as well as submit photos from your private photographer via WWW.WHPANTHERS.WIX.COM/YEARBOOK!
If you have any questions email Casey.Marcus@whrsd.org or Maher.Christina@whrsd.org
YEARBOOK Parent Recognition Ads on Sale Now!
Parents, Friends and Relatives of the WH Class of 2021!
It is time to purchase your ad to celebrate your senior’s achievements! Your purchase of a Recognition ad to be printed in the yearbook helps to keep the cost of the yearbook down for everyone. Please see the attached fly for easy directions to create your ad from the comfort of your own home whenever you have time, 24/7.
Thank you in advance for your support,
The Yearbook Staff
WHRHS Yearbook Advisers
Chris Maher Christina.Maher@whrsd.org
Marcus Casey Marcus.Casey@whrsd.org
Go to https://whpanthers.wixsite.com/yearbook for info and links to all of your Whitman-Hanson yearbook needs.
DOLLARS FOR SCHOLARS TO HOST TREE DECORATING EVENT
Whitman & Hanson Dollars for Scholars will be hosting a Tree decorating event in the Whitman Town Park this holiday season. Decorate for Scholars will allow individuals, families, organizations and businesses to sponsor a tree for a $100. DFS will provide the trees, lights and sponsor signage. Sponsors will be decorating those trees at scheduled times.
DUVAL’S PHARMACY SUPPORTING DFS WITH FLU SHOT PROMOTION
Duval’s Pharmacy is collaborating with Whitman & Hanson Dollars for Scholars to raise scholarship funds by offering a $5 donation to DFS for every flu shot given. With most insurance coverage there is no fee for the shot. Flu shots are available every day with no prescription needed. Walk-ins are welcome. They also offer a number of other vaccines as well including Pneumonia and Shingles.
Duval’s Pharmacy is located at 571 Washington Street in Whitman. They have been sponsoring scholarships through Dollars for Scholars since 1963. Dollars for Scholars is an all-volunteer nonprofit which raises and awards scholarships to graduating high school seniors from Whitman and Hanson or who attend Whitman-Hanson Regional High School.
Dr. Christopher Jones
Control Your Response
We often make the mistake of thinking we can control more than possible which leads to increased levels of stress and anxiety. In that struggle for control, we often attempt to claim (or reclaim) control of various circumstances and situations.
What if instead we focused on identifying the nature of the situation for what it is and then responding in a way that allows us to influence the outcome. This distinction may seem slight and therefore not meaningful, but once we accept that we don't control how things start we can get to something much more important; determining how to influence how they evolve and end.
I offer a little more in the video below. It is the second in the Create Your Pyramid series.
Thanks for taking the time to watch.
Our Story...
Take a look and feel free to comment...this is our story...and everyone is part of it.
Mrs. Ruth Carrigan - Counseling
Parent Conferences - Parent Conferences will be held virtually on December 2 in the afternoon and early evening. If you’d like to speak to your child’s school counselor, please contact him/her via email (email addresses below) to set up a virtual appointment.
Early College Planning Workshop - If you missed our Early College Planning Workshop, you can find the recording here. This is a great resource for grade 9 and 10 students and parents.
Attention AP Students/Parents - AP Exam Registration/Payment forms were shared with students taking AP classes last week. The forms should be uploaded in the Google Classroom of each AP course.. We will be collecting AP exam fees through the March 1 deadline. If you need a copy of the form, please contact the school counseling office.
School Day SAT for Juniors - March 24, 2021 - Juniors, if you plan to take a spring SAT, Whitman-Hanson has decided to offer a School Day SAT on Wednesday March 24 open to only Whitman-Hanson students. SAT fees apply. Follow this School Day SAT Sign Up link for more information. Registration deadline is 1/29/21, and space is limited. WH will not be open as a Saturday SAT Test Center for the remainder of the 2020/2021 school year.
Great Resources - Check out the November issue of South Shore Health/Youth Health Connection Newsletter - Dare to Care - Enhancing Emotional and Physical Well Being.
BRYT Parent Support Programs - We know that parents and caretakers are under tremendous pressure! We also know that caretakers are creative, resilient problem-solvers. The BRYT Family Engagement Team invites you to participate in our weekly Parents Supporting Parents group where parents can get & receive support from each other. Click here for more information, or contact Mrs. Kaitlyn Robichaud, WH BRYT Coordinator. Please note that BRYT Programming will not run Thanksgiving week, but will will be back the week of November 30th
Career Connections Virtual Visits - Starting in mid-January, the school counseling office will offer Career Connections Virtual Visits featuring career panel presentations in the areas of Protective Services, Health Care, STEM, Business, Arts & Communications, and High Skilled Trades. Our first session will be held on Wednesday, January 20 at 1 PM and will focus on Protective Services. Online sign up form will be available soon.
We are continuing our Panther Pathways Virtual Visits for the 2020/2021 School Year. All visits will take place on Wednesdays. If you would like to sign up for a virtual college visit, follow the appropriate links below.
Virtual Visit/Workshop - Click Link to Sign Up
12/9 Johnson & Wales University
12/16 Salem State University
If you have any questions, please reach out to your school counselor.
Mrs. DeMello - Covering for Mrs. Garrett
Ms. Margaret Baker & Mrs. Lisa Tobin
A Very Different School Year!
This school year will be very different from any other year in the past 100 years. We are all navigating school during the Covid 19 pandemic. The nurses are here to help you through these difficult times! Here is a useful tool that will help you in deciding whether to send your child to school: the Covid 19 Signs and Symptoms Check List. Please keep your child home if he/she is exhibiting any of the symptoms on the list and if you have any questions call the school nurse for further assistance. Please be advised that the school nurses must follow the Mass. Department of Public Health Mandates in deciding if your child must go home if he/she is ill during the school day. The WHRSD has implemented a confidential Covid 19 phone line. Please feel free to leave a message at any time for advice or follow-up from our District Nurse Leader Lisa Tobin RN. The phone number for the Covid line is 781- 618-7450. There is further information available on Covid19 on our website.
Medication during the School Day
Please refer to the student handbook or the Health Services website regarding medication to be administered by the school RN during the school day. All prescription medications must be in the original prescription bottle with a written MD order and signed parental consent form. These forms may be downloaded from the website. Students are NOT allowed to carry medication with them during the school day.
Ms. Margaret Baker RN, NCSN
Mrs. Susanne Ford RN
Clinic phone: 781-618-7452
Athletics - Mr. Bob Rodgers
The fall season came to an end this week when our girls soccer team lost to Hingham in a shootout. Anna Sullivan scored both of the Panthers goals but ultimately Hingham won the penalty kick round 3 to 2. It was an outstanding effort by both teams and we couldn’t have been more proud of our girls who never gave up despite trailing in the final seconds of the game before Anna tied it up.
While on the topic of girls soccer, I would like to congratulate assistant girls soccer coach Tom Zamagni who announced his retirement after more than 26 years serving our students. Coach Z has been an influential mentor for hundreds of girls over the years and his passion and expertise will be missed. We want to thank him for all he has done and we wish him the best as he now gets to spend more time with his family and his cherished role of grandfather.
As far as winter sports is concerned, we did clear some hurdles this week as the process to open the door for some sports was finally completed. It was a long road which ended on Friday at the MIAA board of directors. In the end, the board moved wrestling to the spring and indoor track to “Fall 2” while keeping basketball, hockey, swimming and gymnastics in the winter to start on 12/14 with practices. Cheerleading will not be held this winter and we are still securing details of when and how that season will be held sometime later this school year. Each sport that will be allowed to be played will have specific modifications to ensure the highest level of safety. You can read about those modifications by visiting our website www.whathletics.com and click on the modifications tab. There is still a lot of work to be done on implementation of these modifications and the Patriot League Athletic Directors will be meeting tomorrow to work the details. We will keep everyone updated we work out the details.
Parents of winter sport athletes should make sure their child has an up to date physical (this includes a flu shot) on file with the school nurse, a concussion test and a permission slip (both the concussion test and the permission slip can be found at www.whathletics.com ).
We will be holding a virtual parent night sometime after Thanksgiving. This will include information about how parents might be able to attend events, tryout info and other important information. Coaches will be breaking off for individual sport meetings as part of this event. We will be emailing everyone who has signed up for a winter sport with the log in information.
Finally, a few weeks ago I emailed students regarding our dilemma with swimming this winter. Our Co-op partner Middleboro notified us at the end of the year that they were opening their swim team to middle school students. The MIAA does not allow schools to have both the middle school and co op waivers. Therefore our co op is no longer in effect. It was my plan to partner with a different school or go out on our own. We had made some great progress on this plan but then covid hit and everything was halted. Pools are scarce and team sizes and school mixing is not recommended. Therefore, we will have to take a one year hiatus with swimming. We will do everything in our power to bring it back next school year. The good news though is that by MIAA rule, anyone who was on the team last year may finish their career with Middleboro who is graciously allowing our students to still participate.
We hope everyone has a safe and happy Thanksgiving.
Contact Us
Email: christopher.jones@whrsd.org
Website: https://www.whrsd.org/our-schools/whrhs
Location: 600 Franklin Street, Whitman, MA, USA
Phone: (781) 618-7020
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DrCSJones
Twitter: @DrCSJones