THE NAVIGATOR
April 1, 2022
Newsletter
Ai3 Presents School Facilities Condition Study
Cohasset Middle-High School Physical Building Assessment Shows the Condition of the Middle and High School as "Potentially Critical"
Deer Hill Elementary School Physical Building Assessment Shows the Condition of Deer Hill School as "Not Yet Critical"
Joseph Osgood Elementary School Physical Building Assessment Shows the Condition of Joseph Osgood School as just needing some "Recommended Upgrades"
The Educational Program Assessment at Cohasset Middle School and Cohasset High School Shows the Structures Available for Education to be in "Critical" Need of Improvement
Overall Recommendation for Cohasset Middle School and Cohasset High School is for "Comprehensive Renovation and Addition or New Construction as Defined by the Massachusetts School Building Authority and its Core Program"
The Entire 3/30/2022 Cohasset School Committee Meeting and the Budget Hearing that preceded it can be found below. Budget Hearing begins at 27 minutes and Existing School Conditions Presentation begins at 1:18:45
Please See the following School Committee approved Cohasset Public Schools Budget Presentation, which will be presented to the town for potential approval. Thank you to our Director of Finance and Operations, Susan Owen, and to everyone from the schools and the town who collaborated on the development of the budget.
Information from Director of Finance and Operations, Susan Owen
Finance and Operations News:
We continue to update our school website. Please visit the Human Resource page located within the Finance and Operations Department. There you will find lots of exciting information for staff including training videos for Aspen, Aesop as well as updated employee forms. If you have any ideas of what you would like to see on the HR page, please email jballard@cohassetk12.org
Transportation News:
We are pleased to announce that 2 of our new bus drivers have completed their training and will be scheduling their road test with the Registry of Motor Vehicles.
Registry of Motor Vehicles is currently experiencing longer than normal wait times…
Coming soon…..
We have been working with Transfinder, our bus routing software company, implementing a new add on for parents, Stopfinder.
Stopfinder is the all-in-one parent engagement app designed by parents for parents to keep you in the know. Receive bus location and messages, updates, and alerts in real-time. No other parent app provides this much information in real-time to parents and school transportation departments. Think of the peace of mind when parents and guardians know where their child’s bus is and when their student arrives at school or when dropped off at the bus stop.
All this power in the palm of your hand.
The Stopfinder app is secure and protected. But the app requires your local district to be utilizing Transfinder’s Routefinder software. Stopfinder with Routefinder software will provide your district accurate real-time updates of routes and bus substitutions.
More information to follow in the coming weeks.
NEW FINANCE AND OPERATIONS TAB ON DISTIRCT WEBSITE
We are thrilled to announce that Cohasset Finance and Operations Department will be launching a new tab on our district website.
Our goal is to make our website easy to navigate for Cohasset families as well as staff. Some of the great new features of this site will include:
For Cohasset Families:
· Transportation information
· Bus routes
· Fees and Payments
For Cohasset Employees:
· Benefit information
· Updated Employee Forms
· Aspen Training Videos
· Aesop Training
· Employee Forward
For all questions about PO’s, ordering, vendor payments, and tuition reimbursement, etc., please reach out to:
Karen Crowell
Accounting Specialist,
kcrowell@cohassetk12.org or extension 2307
For all questions about salary, payroll, retirement, extra duty pay, deductions, etc., please reach out to:
Jeri Ballard
Bookkeeper
jballard@cohassetk12.org or extension 2306.
School Committee Determines That 2022 - 2023 School Year Will Begin After Labor Day For Students...September 6, 2022
The Cohasset School Committee also decided, by vote, that, moving forward, a pre or post Labor Day school start for students will be determined by how early Labor Day falls within the school year. We are looking at the following draft language, and we will confirm this information to the school community, after consultation with the Cohasset Teachers Association (CTA) and finalized approval by the Cohasset School Committee:
“For the 2022-2023 school year, teachers will begin their work year on the Wednesday and Thursday before Labor Day with the Friday before Labor Day as a no school day for students and staff. The first day of school for students for 2022-2023 school year will be September 6th. In subsequent years, if Labor Day falls on September 3rd or earlier, the teachers' work year will start on the Wednesday and Thursday before Labor Day with the Friday before Labor Day as a no school day for students and staff and the first day of school for students taking place on the Tuesday following Labor Day. If Labor Day falls on September 4th or later, the teachers' work year will start on the Monday and Tuesday before Labor Day with the first two days of school for students taking place on Wednesday and Thursday before Labor Day and the Friday before Labor Day as a no school day for students and staff. Teachers work year will terminate no later than June 30. Input from the Association will be considered in developing the School Calendar.”
It is anticipated that the full 2022 - 2023 School Year Calendar will be presented at the April 13 School Committee Meeting for vote and approval. Thank you to everyone who engaged in the important discussion during Monday's meeting.
Images from the Week
Eighth Graders Meet With CHS Guidance For Their Transition Into CHS
The Doors of Deer Hill...Decorated to Celebrate the Final Days of the Read-A-Thon
More Read-A-Thon Fun!
The Very Popular "Mr. Dykas Dance Party" is Back! Thank you, Mr. Dykas, Teachers, Families, and Students!
Please click on the video below to see a brief sample of the family fun action.
Cohasset Community Health Update
Community Health Information:
As of March 31, 2022, the Department of Public Health (DPH) reports that the town of Cohasset’s positive COVID-19 test rate over the past 14 days is 6.91% with 391 tests reported. The town of Cohasset has 26 positive cases reported over the past two weeks. Currently, 95% of eligible Cohasset residents are fully vaccinated with 13% of eligible residents partially vaccinated. Here is the complete report issued on March 31, 2022.
Here is the Confirmed Positive COVID Cases Weekly Update Spreadsheet. This spreadsheet is also found on the district website under COVID-19 Information.
Vaccination Attestation:
Please remember that as your child becomes fully vaccinated to please contact your child’s school nurse.
Proof of your child’s vaccination, submitted to your child’s school nurse, can be provided in one of the following ways:
- A signed self-attestation completed by a parent / legal guardian of the child indicating the brand of vaccine; or
- Documentation provided to the individual by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health or a health care provider. Documentation may include but is not limited to a COVID-19 vaccination record card or a copy or digital picture of the vaccination record card, or a print-out from the Massachusetts Immunization Information System (MIIS).
Thank you for your understanding and for your assistance.
PLEASE NOTE: We have now officially transitioned our practices from Test and Stay to At Home Testing. In conjunction with DESE requirements for being a part of the At Home Testing Program, we are no longer contact tracing within the schools.
Symptomatic Testing: The same consent previously signed for Test and Stay covers Symptomatic Testing, which will be able to be implemented by our nursing staff, now that we are implementing At Home Testing.
Parents and guardians who wish to have their children participate in the Cohasset School District Covid-19 testing, thus being eligible for Symptomatic Testing, must click on the link provided (if you did not do so previously for test and stay) and complete the consent forms.
Cohasset Public Schools Vision of Equity
CPS Equity Vision Statement
BE THE CHANGE
Please visit our website for resources regarding the promotion of diversity.
Cohasset Public Schools is a proud METCO District. Please see the METCO Web-page for additional diversity resources.
Cohasset Road Race By The Sea
Cohasset Public Schools Calendar for 2021 - 2022
From The CHS Newsletter...Visual Representation of "The Vision of a CHS Graduate
Cohasset PSO Happenings
Cohasset Public Schools Launches Strategic Plan for 2021- 2024
2021 - 2022 School Improvement Plans
Sports Information
Thank you to everyone who attended Wednesday evening's Sports Information Night. It was wonderful to have this event in-person. A special thank you goes out to Athletic Director Rotondi and all of our wonderful coaches.
Hull-Cohasset Softball Doing Some Clean-Up of Fields...Great Work!
RISE Program
Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment: Assistant Superintendent Leslie Scollins, Ed.D.
Professional Development
Elementary Literacy
The Student Opportunity Act
The Student Opportunity Act (SOA) implements the recommendations of the 2015 Foundation Budget Review Commission and includes other provisions to benefit our public schools.
As part of the SOA, districts are required to submit three-year, evidence-based plans aimed at closing persistent disparities in achievement among student subgroups. The District submitted the SOA Plan in January 2021 and then sent the amended plan in March 2022. Please see the presentation below.
Assessment Kindergarten through Grade 8
The i-Ready Diagnostic Family Report (K-8) and the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Literacy Skills (DIBELS) Family Report (K-5) were sent home when the 2nd Trimester progress reports were released on March 25. These two reports are just part of the overall progress of your child. Progress is based on multiple measures such as other benchmark assessments, quizzes, unit assessments, class work, and teacher observations and notes. Your building principal can discuss the i-Ready implementation and your child’s teacher will be able to share more information about your child’s progress with you during Teacher Conferences.
As a reminder, this is our first year of implementing the i-Ready Diagnostic therefore we are all still learning about the diagnostic and how best to use the data. We ask for your patience as we learn to implement the diagnostic and understand the data provided.
The i-Ready Diagnostic and DIBELS will be administered again in the late spring. The final Family Reports will be sent home at the end of the year.
Please see the links below for more information about i-Ready Diagnostic.
Video: Understanding i-Ready Diagnostic Data for Families
Understanding Your Student’s i-Ready Diagnostic Results
For more information about DIBELS please see the link below and the attached Parent Guide to DIBELS Assessment.
I would like to thank the District Assessment Team for their hard work and diligence in determining how to share student benchmark assessments with families in a way that makes sense. The Assessment Team is made up of elementary and middle school staff which include reading specialists, math specialists, building and district leaders. The team is continuing its work to review current practices and build consistent assessment practices.
Office of Student Services
UPDATES
A few updates from the Director of Student Services:
Our parent surveys connected to IEPs continue to come in. We appreciate your feedback, both the positive comments and the areas in which we need to improve. Keep them coming!
We had an independent evaluation of our social emotional programming for students. We received commendations on our growth since 2018, our use of specific tools to measure student status and need, our developing MTSS system, our guidance and counselor staffing, and our addition of a social worker. Ongoing development will continue in differentiating instruction and accommodations.
Julie Evans from DESE conducted on site building tours for our Tiered Focused Monitoring. All districts participate in this process every three years. It is a six year cycle, with Years 1-3 considered Group A and Years 4-6 considered Group B. We are currently in Year 5 this year. A report will come out in 60 days.
As part of the process, we updated the Student Family Handbook. Please refer to pages 44-48 in the handbook on our website.
Be Sure to View the Information on the Student Services Web Page
Tiered Focused Monitoring Review of the Cohasset Public Schools
During the week of February 28, 2022 the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education’s Office of Public School Monitoring (PSM) will conduct a Tiered Focused Monitoring Review of Cohasset Public Schools. The Office of Public School Monitoring reviews each district and charter school every three years to monitor compliance with federal and state special education and civil rights regulations. Areas of review related to special education include student assessments, determination of eligibility, the Individualized Education Program (IEP), Team process, and IEP development and implementation. Areas of review related to civil rights include bullying, student discipline, physical restraint, and equal access to school programs for all students.
Parent outreach is an important part of the review process. Prior to the review, the chairperson from the Office of Public School Monitoring will send an online survey to all parents of students with disabilities receiving services. The survey focuses on key areas of their child’s special education program. Survey results will contribute to the activities of the onsite review and the development of the final report.
During the onsite review, the Office of Public School Monitoring will interview the chairperson(s) of the district’s Special Education Parent Advisory Council (SEPAC). Other onsite activities may include interviews of district staff and administrators, reviews of student records, and onsite observations. After the conclusion of the review, the public will be able to access the report at http://www.doe.mass.edu/psm/tfm/reports.
Parents and other individuals may call Julie Evans, Public School Monitoring Chairperson, at (781) 338- 3754 to request additional information, or contact the district coordinators Dr. Leslie Scollins at (781) 383-4210 or Mrs. Barbara Cerwonka at (781) 383-6104.
Child Find Public Notice
Multi Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) Information
A Message from our Director of Student Services, Barbara Cerwonka
To Parents/Guardians of Cohasset Public Schools :
The Cohasset Public Schools believes in providing the highest quality of education for our students. This letter is to provide you with information about a three-tiered instructional approach we use to meet this goal, referred to as Multi Tiered System of Supports (MTSS).
For MTSS, all students will participate in the core curriculum, with three levels (tiers) of interventions for students who demonstrate at-risk skills in general academics or behavior/social emotional areas. Each tier provides additional support beyond the core curriculum. All students receive formal and informal checks to measure their progress to determine if they are performing at an expected level. Behavioral and social emotional impacts are also monitored on a regular basis through the year.
Tier One- Teachers will use different strategies as universal supports within the core curriculum to address all student educational needs.
Tier Two- Based on progress data, students who require more support than Tier One will be provided targeted interventions matched to their needs within the general classroom by the classroom teacher and/or support staff in the classroom. The Tiered Support Team will track the student’s progress, and parents/guardians will receive ongoing progress data.
Tier Three- Students who continue to require measures beyond Tier Two will receive more intensive interventions at this level. Parents/guardians will receive ongoing progress data. After Tier Three implementation, students who continue to display limited progress may then be considered for further evaluation and services.
Our schools are excited to take part in this process to improve educational outcomes for all students. As always, do not hesitate to contact your child’s teacher or myself if you have questions or concerns.
Sincerely,
Barbara Cerwonka, Director of Student Services
Office of Student Services
143 Pond Street, Cohasset, MA 02025-1999
Telephone 781-383-6104
Please see the Basic Rights in Special Education Presentation by Director of Student Services Barbara Cerwonka below
SAFE HARBORS UPDATES
Most Recent Safe Harbors Newsletter
The Important Role Families Play In Stopping the Spread of COVID-19
Families play an important role in helping to create a culture that prioritizes health and safety. Families should check their children daily for signs of COVID-19 and should keep them home from school if they are not feeling well or if they have been in close contact with a person who has been recently diagnosed with COVID-19. It is also important that families support students wearing masks in school and on the bus. We are strongest when we work together to stop the spread (Initial Fall School Re-entry Guidance, 2020).
CPS Pledge: Healthy and Responsible Behaviors Regarding COVID-19
By coming into Cohasset Public Schools, I pledge I am following:
State expectations for social and physical distancing
Regulations regarding the wearing of facial coverings
Quarantine directives put forth by the Massachusetts Department of Health and the Cohasset Department of Health
Guidance that has students and staff stay home from school / work if they are experiencing symptoms of fever, fatigue, difficulty breathing, or dry cough or if they have exhibited any symptoms relating to COVID-19
Thank you to all of our counselors for their caring and selfless work throughout the District!
Osgood: Dave Vinton dvinton@cohassetk12.org (adjistment counselor)
Deer Hill: Robyn Costa rcosta@cohassetk12.org
Deer Hill and Osgood: Laurie Dolan ldolan@cohassetk12.org (adjustment counselor)
Robyn Costa rcosta@cohassetk12.org (adjustment counselor)
Alyson Doyle adoyle@cohassetk12.org (school psychologist, Osgood and Deer Hill)
CMS: Emily Manewal emanewal@cohassetk12.org
Allison Pearce apearce@cohassetk12.org
CHS: Laura Struzziery lstruzziery@cohassetk12.org (lead counselor)
Leanne McCarthy lmccarthy@cohassetk12.org (high school adjustment counselor)
Kevin McGowan kmcgowan@cohassetk12.org (high school counselor)
Allison Battista abattista@cohassetk12.org (high school counselor)
Catlin Stromberg cstromberg@cohassetk12.org (school psychologist)
Robert Collins rcollins@cohassetk12.org (middle and high school social worker)
Stephanie Gertz sgertz@cohassetk12.org (ESP: BRYT Program...Middle and High School)
Take Care of Yourself and Take Care of Each Other
Please click on the following link to access even more information on the Cohasset Public Schools Web Site.
Please follow me on Twitter for daily updates from the Cohasset Public Schools
Email: psullivan@cohassetk12.org
Website: https://www.cohassetk12.org/
Phone: 781 383 6111
Twitter: @SuperCohasset