Dear Arcola Families:

Arcola had a recent disciplinary occurrence involving illegal drugs in school. The incident was investigated thoroughly and addressed according to the Code of Conduct. It was determined that the incident did not present an ongoing threat to the school at large and was able to be communicated with the few families who were directly involved.

We appreciate that families have concerns related to this situation, and we encourage students to communicate with a trusted adult when confronted with difficult situations. Resources are available to assist students in need including our Student Assistance Program (SAP). SAP is a process that helps students who are experiencing problems with behavior, academics, health, and attendance. After a confidential referral to the SAP team, students are connected to existing on-campus services and/or community resources that will help the students address their issues and gain skills to better cope. You can find additional information at the following address: https://sites.google.com/methacton.org/student-assistance-program/home.

We are and will continue to be proactive in keeping our students informed about the dangers of drugs. We recently met with each team in 7th and 8th grade to promote student engagement in school and to review points related to the student Code of Conduct. Drug and alcohol units are also part of the Health curriculum and are covered in the 4th marking period. We wish to partner with you to maintain a positive school environment for our students. Please contact me if I can be of any assistance.

Respectfully,

Michael Bourdreau

Principal

The Arcola Home and School Association is seeking nominations for open board positions for the 2022-23 school year!

Arcola Home & School will be accepting nominations for next year’s board membership until April 5th, 2022, so they can be announced at the April 7th, 2022 meeting. Voting will take place at the May 11th, 7:00 pm meeting. Nominations can be submitted in writing via email to Megan Fitzgerald at megfitz@verizon.net.

Current open positions for parent/guardians of Arcola students during the 2022-2023 school year are:

• President (prepare the agenda and preside at all meetings of Board, coordinate tasks of board members, assist and vote on planning/budgeting decisions)

• Vice-President(s) (preside at all meetings of Board, assist and vote on planning/budgeting decisions)

• Recording Secretary (responsible for attending and recording minutes of meetings, and assist and vote on planning/budgeting decisions)

• Corresponding Secretary (responsible for formally corresponding with outside groups/individuals when necessary, assist and vote on planning/budgeting decisions)

• Treasurer (receive and disburse all monies, keep an accurate record of receipts and expenditures, prepare the budget for approval, assist and vote on planning/budgeting decisions).

Regular attendance at the monthly meetings is necessary as well as at Back to School night, our events and additional meetings and/or communications via phone and email among the board members to plan events, make budget decisions, etc.

Thank you!

In Mr. Pluscht’s Tech Ed class, 8th grade students are conducting an engineering challenge in which they are tasked with designing and building a bridge that can hold as much weight as possible, using as little material as possible. After a couple weeks of designing, they are currently working on building their final idea out of metal, which will then be tested for strength by hanging weights from it until it collapses.

As Women’s History Month comes to a close, it’s important to keep tabs on what’s happening with our next generation of women leaders. Unfortunately, we are in a state of emergency when it comes to our children’s and adolescent’s mental health, according to national organizations. This crisis has been particularly noticeable when it comes to teenage girls. In girls ages 12-17, depression rates increased 66% between 2007 and 2017 and 20% of girls ages 12-17 have experienced at least one episode of major depressive disorder. Obviously, girls experiencing depression and other serious mental health issues need assessment and treatment by a mental health professional. But there are things we can do to head off more serious problems by promoting our teenage girls’ overall positive mental health and help to build their resilience. Here is an article with some tips on what we can do to help:

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/girls-women-and-wellness/202112/our-national-mental-health-crisis-how-help-teen-girls

The Methacton School District will be administering the 2022 Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA) to all students in Grades 3 through 8 this spring. New this year, students will be completing the assessments online. Students will need to bring their fully charged, district-issued Chromebook and charger to school each day of testing. Please click here for more information including test dates. Please keep in mind that the results from the state tests allow us to gain valuable information related to programs, supports and resources within the district. We appreciate your support of these efforts for the benefit of our school community.

On Thursday, March 17, we request that all students in grades 3-8 bring their district issued Chromebook and charger to school. We will use this opportunity to ensure all students devices are working properly and able to access the PSSA testing site.

The Methacton Education Foundation just announced an EXCITING OPPORTUNITY! The MEF is seeking a passionate and experienced leader to join their team as Executive Director/Chief Development Officer. Apply Today!

Details: https://www.methactonfoundation.org/file_download/inline/3ee0657d-1afe-4a06-9589-7bf5cdb0ee9e

The Methacton Backpack program is up and running in each of our buildings and serves district families in need with supplemental food and non-food items. This program helps create food stability for breakfast and lunch when our students are not in school. Weekly, the program sends home a bag of breakfast, lunch, and snack items for the weekend and holiday breaks for students in Kindergarten through 12th grade. Families who qualify for free/reduced meals are eligible to participate in the Backpack Program. Please contact the school counselor if you would like to register your child for the Backpack program.

In order to continue to sustain the program please consider contributing and donating items to the program. Items can be donated directly to the school or you can place an order through Amazon and ship it directly to our school from the Amazon page.

Methacton Backpack's Amazon Wishlist

Please remember to select, “No Weekend Delivery.”

What items can I donate?

Individual Serving Food Items

· Single serving boxes of milk (shelf-stable/not refrigerated)

· Mini cereal boxes

· Canned soup (cans with “pop tops”)

· Oatmeal Packs or cups

· Applesauce and fruit cups

· Chef Boyardee, Hormel, Dint Moore Meals, etc.

· Easy Mac Cups

· Cracker packs

· Sweet snacks: Fruit snacks, pudding, granola bars, individual bags of cookies, etc.

· Salty snacks: pretzel packs, goldfish crackers, popcorn, etc.

· 100% juice boxes