TMHS Principal's Newsletter
November 2019
From the Principal's Desk - Kristen S. Vogel
Approximately fifty percent of our seniors apply either early decision or early action to colleges and universities. As our seniors begin the decision process on where they will attend college, it is important that, as parents, we be reminded that this is their decision to be made. Recently, I was talking with a friend about his son's decision about which college to attend. My friend Tim said he really liked Ithaca College for his son; it reminded him of Burlington, Vermont where he had attended college. However, Tim noticed that his son was not engaged when they went to accepted student day at Ithaca. Yet when they attended accepted student day at Emerson College, his son was asking questions and was really enthusiastic. It was in that moment that Tim realized that this process was not about him but about where his son felt comfortable and engaged. His son is a freshman at Emerson and is doing well academically and socially. It is hard for us to let go as parents; we have been making decisions concerning our children's education since they were 2 1/2 years old. They are now young adults who need to be the decision makers about their education. It is important to remember that we are raising adults not babies. Julie Lythcott-Haims, who is a former freshman Dean of Students at Stanford University offers great advice on raising high school students in her TED talk. She reminds us that our children are not "bonsai trees" who can be pruned and nurtured into what we want them to be. Our job is to provide structure, love, and support to high school graduation and then they will decide their college, major, and career- what they want to be. I hope you will take 12 minutes to listen to her interview. She will make you laugh and think about the importance of letting our children decide what they will do after graduation.
https://www.npr.org/2018/04/06/600090114/julie-lythcott-haims-whats-the-harm-in-overparenting
AP Psychology students are engaging in a sensation lab.
Fine and Performing Arts Department
ART
Current external art exhibitions:
During the month of November, Ms. LaPierre’s Painting 1 students have had beautiful autumn leaf paintings on display at the Town Hall Annex and the Tewksbury Public Library. We encourage you to pop in and see the great student art. Coming soon: winter art displays!
The TMHS F&P Art classes literacy tree made in conjunction with Mr. Zimmerman and the TMHS Larrabee Library will be on display the month of December at the Tewksbury Public Library for the 2019 Festival of Trees. This year’s tree was based upon “Snowballs”, a children’s winter book written and illustrated by Lois Ehlert. Thank you to our talented contributing artists on a job well done! Special thanks to Janitsa Parisi ’20, Marysa Gomes ’23, Kaitlyn Oates ’21, Hannah Grace ‘21, and Madison Pierce ’21.
Field trip:
The Art Department on Thursday, November 7th had a bus full of adventurous art students in attendance for a field trip to the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art in scenic North Adams, MA. The group saw work from such contemporary artists as: Sol LeWitt, James Turrell, Natasha Bowdoin, Louise Bourgeois, etc. MASS MoCA exhibits art by both well-known and emerging artists, focusing on large-scale, immersive installations that would be impossible to realize in a conventional museum. The museum is a converted factory building complex that is one of the largest centers for contemporary visual art and performing art in the United States. Casey Stevenson ’20, commented on the trip, “It is such a unique museum and I would definitely go again.” Fellow field trip enthusiast, Caitlin Legvold ‘20 shared, “I loved the light show and it was a really cool experience!” Special thanks to Ms. Arnold for organizing and Mr. Moffat for helping to chaperone!
MUSIC
The TMHS Marching Unit competed at NESBA championships in Lawrence on November 3rd. Congratulations to the unit on a strong 2nd place win! The season will be wrapping up at the annual Thanksgiving football game. See you there!
Affinity Winter Color Guard held a clinic on November 17th in the TMHS gymnasium. The group is gearing up for another great season!
The band and chorus have been busy preparing for their winter concert which will be held on December 12th at 7:00pm in the Dr. Christine L. McGrath Performing Arts Center. Please join us for a relaxing evening of festive seasonal music.
DRAMA
The TMHS Theater Company’s fall production of Alice in Wonderland was a smashing success! Congratulations to an amazing cast and crew! The show was held on November 14th, 15th, and 16th in the Dr. Christine L. McGrath Performing Arts Center. Cheshire Cat, Zach Graczyk ‘20 stated, “It was one of the best shows I’ve been in at TMHS. Being able to put it on with my closest friends was an awesome experience.” You can find tickets to their shows, Support the Arts merchandise, as well as additional ways to support the company through their Patron of the Arts program at their website: www.tmhstc.org. Thank you for supporting the Tewksbury Theater Company!
November Hats Off Award
Congratulations to Michael Fowler '20 and Victoria Schille '20 for the Tewksbury Rotary Club November 2019 Hats Off Award. These two outstanding seniors were honored at a Rotary Club Luncheon on Thursday, November 21st at Tewksbury Country Club.
The award recognizes those students who have distinguished themselves academically, have contributed to the co-curricular program at the High School, and have been actively involved in the community.
Tewksbury Public Library's Teen Calendar of Events
Aspen Parent Portal and Report Cards
Last year we went to electronic report cards. You will receive an email directly from Aspen when your student's report card is viewable in Aspen. Please be sure that this email is not going to spam: Aspen-sysadmin@myfollett.com.
Friendly Reminder
Please do not bring a coffee to your student while school is in session. We will not call a student out of class to come and get a coffee nor will we let them get the coffee before their lunch break. This is a disruption to the learning in the classrooms. Thank you for your support.
National Honor Society Website
Calendar of Events
December
3 Family Balfour Ring Presentation 5:00pm in Cafeteria
4 Balfour Ring Orders at Lunches
5 Half Day - Teachers Workshop
6 Midterm
12 Winter Music Concert 7:00pm
16 Progress Reports in Aspen
16 School Council Meeting 3:15pm
19 Hats Off Luncheon 12:15pm TCC
24-31 No School - December Recess
January
1 No School - New Year's Day
2 School Reopens
15 School Committee Meeting
16 Hats Off Luncheon 12:15pm TCC
17 Half Day - Teacher's Workshop
17 Grades Close
20 No School - Martin Luther King Day
27 School Council Meeting 3:15pm
28 Advisory Meets
31 Report Cards in Aspen
31 Junior Parent Breakfast 7:45am
31 Junior Assembly 9:00am
Tewksbury Memorial High School
Website: https://www.tewksbury.k12.ma.us/high/
Location: 320 Pleasant Street, Tewksbury, MA, United States
Phone: 978-640-7825
Twitter: @tmhstweets