Our 2021-2022 school year is well underway. Our theme for the year "Inhale, Exhale, Set Sail" asks both students and faculty to continue taking deep breaths, as we are still dealing with the stresses and difficulties of living through this pandemic; and shift our focus to the future...a continued forward process for our students in their academics, extracurriculars and as individuals. Already, classrooms are buzzing, athletes are seeing school-wide and personal successes on the fields/courses, and musicians are showcasing amazing talent both in their classrooms and at community events such as the Spirit of Somerset. We are proud of our Raiders and all they have accomplished, even in these few short weeks.

This year, we are focusing on our new pre-K through grade 12 Vision of the Graduate. This is an initiative the stems from the previously stated Core Values and Beliefs (CVB). In the CVB, the focus was on what students were accomplishing while in the classroom. The new Vision of the Graduate expects that all activities, pre-K through twelve, focus on preparing students for their post-secondary college, career, work place and personal lives. Our SBRHS Vision of the Graduate states that, upon graduation, Somerset Berkley Regional High School RAIDERs are:

Resilient: Raiders will use healthy coping skills to persevere through challenges, adapt to changes, and manage time effectively.

Academic: Raiders will be critical thinkers and problem solvers displaying academic, financial, and technological literacy.

Independent: Raiders will be confident, motivated, and will self-advocate.

Digital Citizens: Raiders will be technologically proficient and display ethical digital awareness.

Empathetic: Raiders will display empathy, kindness, and inclusiveness.

Respectful: Raiders will be effective communicators who demonstrate global and cultural awareness.

The origin of this vision began in January, 2020 when a group of parents, community members, students, teachers and administrators suggested a list of skills and competencies that they thought SBRHS graduates should possess upon leaving high school. At a March, 2020 faculty meeting, the entire SBRHS staff was also asked to develop a list. The same was asked of the School Advisory Council, of parents in a district wide survey, and of students. The lists were compiled and these RAIDER skills were themes that arose across all stakeholders.

Throughout this year, and moving forward, you will hear the Vision of the Graduate reflected in all aspects of Somerset Berkley Regional High School. Our "Students of the Month" will now be referred to as "Visionaries of the Month" and will honor students who are modeling our vision's skills and competencies on a daily basis. We are excited with our focus and ready to continue looking forward to amazing successes throughout SBRHS!!

In an attempt to limit the backup of traffic on Luther Avenue, County Street and other places, the following change to student drop off and pick up has gone into effect.

The Luther Avenue Entrance to Blue Raider Boulevard will be closed from 7:00-8:00 a.m. for student drop off. To drop a student off on campus, please enter from the County Street/Grandview Avenue entrance or from Clifford Holland Road (refer to the following image). Please drive all the way down Blue Raider Boulevard and drop students off as close to the main office entrance as possible.

The southbound lane (closest to the building of Blue Raider Boulevard) will remain closed to all traffic. The only exception will be SBRHS special education vans.

When picking up your child in the afternoon, it is also highly recommended that you enter on the campus using the County Street/Grandview Avenue or Clifford Holland Road entrance and stop in the northbound travel lane of Blue Raider Boulevard for your child to exit the building.

Luther Avenue is posted no parking or standing and this will be enforced by the Somerset Police Department.

If there are any questions regarding this route update, please contact SRO Vicente-Roberts at sro@sbregional.org.

The deadline for payment of the Chromebook Extended Maintenance Fee is October 15, 2021. This is not a mandatory fee, however, if any damage (not including vandalism) occurs to the Chromebook over the four years of high school, the fee covers the repairs. For more information, please refer to the Acceptable Use Policy. To purchase this plan, please go to:

https://www.myschoolbucks.com/ver2/stores/catalog/getproduct?productKey=ZZJ8EO1GU40PT3M&OPTZZJ8EO1GU40PT3M=ZZJ8EOFV5M0P71P

On Friday afternoons from 1:35-2:05 p.m., students participate in Blue Raider Block (BRB). The focus of BRB for the first half of the year will be academic progress. This past Friday, there was a school-wide presentation, hosted by our Instructional Technology Specialist, Mrs. Jennifer Ashley, focused on "Information Overload." Students were able to get tips and tricks on how to organize their email, Google Classroom and technology lives. I even picked up a few tricks that she will be using! To view this presentation, please visit our website.

This Friday, Mrs. Ashley will once again be back to train students on how to use Enriching Students to sign up for BRB moving forward. On October 1, with guidance from their teachers, students will be signing up for a BRB for a four week time span. This is an opportunity for a student who is struggling with a particular class to gain extra help in class. It is also an opportunity for a student who is excelling in class, to choose to attend a class they are looking for enrichment in, or a class where they simply need to complete assignments/homework before the week's end. There are also opportunities for students to make up work, should they be absent from a class. Students will not be allowed to choose an enrichment class if they are failing courses, as they will be referred for academic support by their teachers. In addition, freshmen and sophomores will have time during BRB to participate in college and career readiness as well as SEL and school based support services.

BRB will last for four weeks and then students will be afforded the opportunity to choose a new area of support, or, remain where they are for the next four weeks. We urge students to make good choices as they prepare to sign up for their BRB on October 1st.

For anyone who missed the September picture day, or if a student is looking for a picture retake, Chestnut Hill Studios will return to SBRHS on Friday, October 29th for picture retake day. Order forms are available in the main office.

In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, we are celebrating "Pink Out Day" on October 7, 2021. Please wear your best pink outfit on this day, and of course, send us pictures! We love Tweeting Out pictures of students and faculty showing their Raider Pride!!

For any students who may need extra help in their coursework, we offer FREE academic tutoring after school in our library. It is called Academic Support and runs from 2:15-3:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday. Students do not need to sign up nor stay the entire time. This is a place to come for extra help, review before an assessment, or simply get homework completed. Attendance is taken for tracking purposes. There is also a late bus that leaves from the school at 3:35 p.m. and brings students to the Berkley Commons for Berkley students or to their street in Somerset. Please be advised the bus may be a few minutes late, based on bus routes prior to 3:35 p.m., but students should arrive outside of the student dining center no later than 3:35 p.m.

Academic Support is offered in the following subjects and will begin the week of September 13th:

Mondays: Science with Ms. Tinkham (tinkhamd@sbregional.org)

Tuesdays: Math with Mrs. Rebello and Mrs. Eldridge (rebelloc@sbregional.org or eldridgek@sbregional.org)

Wednesdays: Social Studies with Mr. Dionne (dionnem@sbregional.org)

Thursdays: ELA with Mr. Fallon (fallonm@sbregional.org)

The Guidance Department is excited to host our first “Common Application Day” for all Seniors in the class of 2022 on Wednesday, September 29, 2021. This week our Guidance Department will begin visiting all English classes and make presentations to all Seniors on the college application process.

Our goal at SBRHS is to make the admissions process more accessible for ALL students. We want all our Seniors to feel supported regardless of where they are on their path to future educational attainment.

The Common Application platform streamlines the college application process for students. In addition, students that need support and assistance with college applications (required by a two year institution) or Military and Vocational Education, will explore these opportunities and gain more insight in order to make informed post-secondary decisions.

On September 29th, the Guidance Department will dedicate the day in order to support ALL Seniors in the class of 2022 to this end. Seniors will attend a support seminar with their Guidance Counselor to begin the Common Application Process. Regular college applications and/or Military and Vocational pathways will also be addressed.

The follow-up to the Common Applications Day will be for all Counselors to meet individually with all our Seniors to continue to advise, support and complete the application process to ensure positive outcomes for all Seniors in the class of 2022.

The PSAT/NMSQT will be offered to Juniors and will be held here at SBRHS on Wednesday, October 13th, during the school day. The test is optional and information and registration forms will be emailed to Juniors and their families. There is no cost to take the test, and it serves as excellent practice for the SAT as well as qualifies students for potential scholarships. We highly encourage all Juniors to participate in this testing. You will be hearing from our guidance office regarding sign up procedures in upcoming weeks. For more information or questions, please email Mrs. McCarthy at mccarthyt@sbregional.org.

The PSAT 10 will be offered to Sophomores and will be held in the Spring (March 2022). Information and registration for the PSAT 10 will be available after Christmas break. We highly encourage all Sophomores to participate in this testing.

Somerset Berkley Regional High School has been named a Unified Champion School. This award honors our staff and students for demonstrating their commitment to meaningful inclusion through unified sports, inclusive youth leadership and whole school engagement. For more information or to get involved with our Unified Sports, Drums Alive, or Best Buddies program, please contact Mr. Francis (Unified Sports) (francisj@sbregional.org), Ms. Hipolito (Unified, Drums Alive or Best Buddies) (hipolitot@sbregional.org) or Mrs. Vanada (Best Buddies) (vanadak@sbregional.org).

Congratulations to Mia Russ for being named a 2022 National Merit Scholarship Semifinalist. She is one of 16,000 nation-wide semifinalists and now has the opportunity to continue in the competition for approximately 7,500 National Merit Scholarships worth nearly $30 million that will be offered next spring. Mia qualified for this achievement by taking the 2020 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT)(see above), which served as an initial screen of program entrants. The nationwide pool of Semifinalists, representing less than one percent of US high school seniors, includes the highest-scoring entrants in each state. The number of Semifinalists in each state is proportional to the state’s percentage of the national total of graduating seniors. SBRHS congratulates Mia on this impressive accomplishment and is proud to call her a Raider!

We would like to wish Mrs. Anne Bolduc a happy retirement after 20 years as a guidance counselor at SBRHS. She is now a "full-time Nana" to her lucky grandchild (soon to be grandchildren). Mrs. Lauren Meader (meaderl@sbregional.org) has taken over her caseload and has been working with us since this summer. Should anyone need to contact Mrs. Bolduc, or have any questions, please see Mrs. Meader and she can assist you.

The 48th Annual Musictown Festival will be back this year in October! Starting first with the Musictown Ball on Thursday October 7th, then Concert Night on Tuesday October 12th, and finally the Musictown Parade on Sunday October 17th. More information about this year's festival celebrating music in our schools and community can be found on our website: https://www.friendsofmusic1972.org/musictown-festival

We encourage all K-12 music department families to become members of the Somerset Friends of Music. Signing up to become a member is very easy and membership annual dues are only $10 for an individual and $15 for a family. By joining as a member of Friends of Music, you will receive information on the the happenings within the music department, and networking, volunteer and scholarship opportunities. Our organization not only supports, but also advocates for, the music students and staff in our schools. We encourage you to join the music community! Details on being a member of the SFOM can be found on our website: https://www.friendsofmusic1972.org/membership

September 29, 2021: 1/2 Day (11:30 p.m. dismissal) Lunch will not be served but will be available in a "grab and go" bag for any student that would like to bring lunch home.

October 11, 2021: No School (Columbus Day)

October 13, 2021: PSATs for Class of 2022 Test is free, during school time, and open to all Juniors. Signups will take place in the upcoming weeks. Stay tuned for more information from guidance.

October 14, 2021: Parent Teacher Conferences-- Conferences will be 11:40 a.m.-2:10 p.m. and 5:00-7:30 p.m. They will be run virtually through zoom. More information will be forthcoming.

October 14 & 15, 2021: 1/2 Day (11:30 p.m. dismissal) Lunch will not be served but will be available in a "grab and go" bag for any student that would like to bring lunch home.

October 27, 2021: 1/2 Day (11:30 p.m. dismissal) Lunch will not be served but will be available in a "grab and go" bag for any student that would like to bring lunch home.

November 5, 2021: End of Term 1