RUSSELL SCHOOL FAMILY NEWSLETTER

Thank you to all of our families for their patience this week. We know that the first few weeks of school are crazy as we get to know all of our new families and students. We sincerely thank youeveryone for working with us as we work to ensure the safety of all of our students.

Sept. 29 - School Site Council

Oct. 6 - Equity Round Table

Oct 7 - October Pep Rally

Oct. 10 - No school

Oct. 14 - Parent Site Council

Oct. 19 - Picture Day

Oct. 20 - Fall Fundraiser 5:00pm - NEW DATE

Oct. 26 - Coffee Hour

Oct. 27 - School Site Council

Oct 28 - Harvest Fest

We have partnered this year with the Boys and Girls club to support our recess. In order to maintain this partnership, the Club is asking that each Russell student have a completed application form. This form is NOT for the after-school program, it is exclusively for the school day recess program at the Russell.

The Russell school and BPS are moving to being a completely digital. We will be using three primary platforms for communication.

• SMORE: smore emails will be sent weekly on Sundays (exception Holiday weekends, communication will shift to Monday). These emails will contain all the critical information for the upcoming weeks.
• TalkingPoints: Two-way communication between families and school will be through TalkingPoints. See details below on how to access the application and the benefits of the application.
• PermissionClick: This platform will be used to collect digital permission slips and critical paperwork.

Additional information can be accessed on our web page and facebook!

The BPS Department Of Behavioral Health Services publishes a monthly newsletter. Check out the back to school family/parent Newsletter.

Dear Families,

We hope you and your family are having a safe and fun summer. As we look forward to reopening our doors for the school year, we want to share some updates with you on the school year registration process.

We are excited to announce a NEW online registration model for all programming. This change was made as a result of your feedback. For families who need assistance with the process, we will have laptops available at both front desks and staff who are ready to help.

Step 1

All members (new and returning) will need to complete a 2022-2023 BGCD Membership Application.

Completing the Membership Application does NOT register your child for the after school program (2:30-5:45pm). Completion of this form allows for you to register your child for any of the hundreds of programs that we offer, including the afterschool program.

Upon completion of the 2022-2023 BGCD Membership Form, you will receive follow up emails with information regarding registration for the Afterschool Program (Ages 7-12), as well as announcements regarding Enrichment Programming and Special Events when they become available.

Please click here to complete the 2022-2023 BGCD Membership Application: 2022-2023 Membership Application

Step 2

Similar to last year, families who wish to participate in the After-School Program (Monday-Friday, 2:30-5:45pm) will need to complete an additional registration form AND attend one of the mandatory orientation sessions (Dates will be sent out after registering). The After-School Program has a limited number of openings for each age group between the ages of 7-12 Years old.

*Please note, any child ages 13-18 is welcome to attend BGCD, as long as they have an updated 2022-2023 BGCD Membership.

*All children ages 5 & 6 need to register for the Licensed School Age Program (see below)

Important Info

• Afterschool Program Membership Registration for Children ages 7yrs-12 yrs old. A registration form for the 2:30-5:45 program will be sent out after you complete the 2022-2023 BGCD Membership Application
• If your child does not get into a spot in the after school program, they will still be able to register for evening enrichment programs (art classes, sports leagues, swim lessons, etc.) which will be emailed out to families on September 12th, 2022.
• The EEC licensed program serves children ages 5yrs-7 yrs old (limited capacity). To apply for the afterschool program for 5&6 Year Olds, please complete this form: 2022-2023 After School Program Application (5&6 Year Olds)

Thank you,

Brendan

--

Brendan M. McDonald

Vice President of Programming

Boys & Girls Clubs of Dorchester

1135 Dorchester Avenue

Dorchester, MA 02125

Phone: (617) 288-7120, ext. 2110

Fax: (617) 288-0711

During the last week of August 2022, 2022-2023 transportation assignments will be sent out by mail and email. If you have any questions about what type of transportation your student will receive this school year, you can refer to the Eligibility page on our website, available by clicking here. Any time a student's transportation assignment is updated throughout the school year, we will send out an updated assignment via mail and email.

Alternative Transportation Requests, MBTA Waiver Requests, and Bus Stop Change Request forms can be submitted through our support portal by clicking here.

Alternative Transportation: Alternative Transportation Requests are used to request that your child is picked up and/or dropped off at an alternate address such as a before/after school program or babysitter’s home. This can be requested even if a student is not eligible for transportation between home and school.

MBTA Waiver Requests: Waiver Requests for students who don’t qualify for yellow bus transportation to ride with their siblings can also be submitted through our Support Portal.

Bus Stop Change Requests: Bus Stop Change Requests are used to request a new corner stop for your child due to distance or safety reasons. Bus stop change requests will only be reviewed for stops greater than 0.25 miles from the student's home address. Please note that corner stops may be up to 1/2 mile from the student's home address and bus stop change requests are not guaranteed.

Any Requests received by August 12, 2022 are guaranteed to be reviewed in time for the start of school. Additional requests are reviewed in the order they are received. Processing time may take up to 2-3 weeks.

All schools should have a School Parent Council (SPC) or Parent Site Council (PSC). The SPC brings all parents in the school community together to support the school and advocate for quality education.

Every parent or guardian of a BPS student is automatically a member of the School Parent Council. The SPC works closely with the School Site Council to review the school’s budget, recommend programs, sponsor events, solve problems, and raise funds for special school activities

• October 20, 2022
• November 10, 2022
• December 15, 2022
• January 12, 2023
• February 9, 2023
• March 16, 2023
• April 13, 2023
• May 11, 2023
• June 15, 2023

The role of School Site Council is to serve as the central governing body of the school under the shared decision-making model. Specifically, the role of the Council shall be:

• To review and approve the Quality School Plan within guidelines established by the Superintendent;
• To approve the budget for discretionary school materials, supplies, textbooks and equipment, including the use of school improvement award funds;
• To develop and approve plans for increasing parent involvement in the school;
• To approve waivers;
• To review and approve recommendations of the Instructional Leadership Team (ILT) that will have major effect on the school community. Such recommendations need not be forwarded to the Council unless they are endorsed by the Principal
• To review and approve recommendations from any other committee or group that is established to recommend changes that will have a major effect on the school community;
• To receive information about all outside programs or professionals who come into the school
• To review and comment on the entire school budget, including the General Fund and External Funds budgets, in a timely fashion. Upon written request, school site council members shall be provided with written or electronic copies of school budgets

The school Site Council is responsible for finding ways to implement the intent of Shared Decision-Making in ways that do not violate outstanding court orders or state and federal laws and regulations.

The School Site Council is composed of:

• Principal
• Five members of the BTU who work more than 50% of their time at the school elected by the Russell's BTU members.
• Five Parents elected by parents of children attending that school
• Each school shall also elect each year alternate parent and teacher members of the SSC to substitute for absent members of their group.
• Associate members who are non-voting and who might include additional high school students, representatives from the business or university community, or representatives of other employee groups in the school.

• September 29, 2022
• October 27, 2022
• November 17, 2022
• January 26, 2023
• February 2, 2023
• March 30, 2023
• April 27, 2023
• May 25, 2023

Equity Roundtables aim to ensure we hold conversations amongst a community of stakeholders to push one another's thinking to ensure we are doing everything we can as a school, district, and community to eliminate opportunity and achievement gaps for Boston Public School students. The mission is to help build capacity and provide the vision, innovations and supports the Russell needs to foster opportunities for marginalized students (Black, Latino, EL, students with disabilities, economically disadvantaged) to flourish and close gaps in proficiency across all areas of their education.

• October 6, 2022
• November 3, 2022
• December 1, 2022
• January 5, 2023
• February 2, 2023
• March 2, 2023
• May 4, 2023
• June 1, 2023

Coffee hours are a casual setting for Russell families to get together with the leadership team and the students support team. During coffee hours a variety of topics are discussed, and space is created to allow families to engage with each other and learn from each other.

• October 26, 2022
• November 30, 2022
• December 21, 2022
• January 25, 2023
• February 15, 2023
• March 29, 2023
• April 26, 2023
• May 31, 2023
• June 7, 2023

Please check out this guide in many languages about food resources in the city.

Food Resource Guide — Vital CxNs