Superintendent's Update

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• Amharic: የትርጉም አማራጮችን ለማግኘት እዚህ ጠቅ ያድርጉ

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On most Fridays during the school year, the Office of the Superintendent will send an update to the community highlighting some of the excellent work being done by our educators and school leaders. The update will also include important announcements from the district’s central office. These newsletters will be posted on the PSB website (www.brookline.k12.ma.us/supt-updates).

Led by teachers Amy Woogmaster and Liz Balzano, Girls on the Run inspires Pierce students to develop competence and confidence through a fun, experience-based curriculum centered around running. An important part of the Pierce community since 2018, GOTR has also helped students to develop important life skills. School staff volunteer as coaches, and the team trains to compete in a statewide 5K race each spring.

We are grateful that two members of the Pierce GOTR community - 5th grade student Coralee and 9th grade student Riley (Pierce alum, who pre-taped a message) - shared their experiences with the School Committee on Thursday, February 2. Both Coralee and Riley spoke about the kinship and bonds they created with their peers through GOTR, and recounted the growth and fun they experienced through the program. Thank you to Coralee, Riley, Ms. Woogmaster, and Ms. Balzano for their support and leadership! You can view the spotlight in its entirety here.

Our staff has published a progress report for Kindergarten to 5th grade families documenting their student’s growth and development of Essential Learning Expectations (ELEs) for the first academic year cycle. For families with students in grades 6-12, educators will publish a report card for Term 2 (6th-8th grade) or Quarter 2 (9th-12th grade).

All families will receive a notification by email once your student(s) report has been published on the Aspen Parent Portal. Families may also log in to Aspen and access these reports digitally in the “Published Reports” section. If you have trouble logging in to the portal, please contact datateam@psbma.org. K-8th grade reports will be published by 5:00 p.m. today, February 3, while 9-12th grade reports will be published by next Wednesday, February 8. PSB students in special education will also receive their Special Education progress reports within these reporting periods as well.

Creating a design on the diagonal, students carved a geometric pattern into a square of linoleum. Students then rolled ink onto the linoleum plate and printed it rotating the design around the corner axis. By printing multiple times and rotating the plate each time students were able to create a more complex radial pattern of geometric designs. The complex, colorful, interlocking geometric shapes of Islamic tilework echo and abstract the geometric beauty and complexity of nature. At Mrs. Kaufman's class, students at Baker are learning how these complex designs are constructed one quadrant at a time.

You can view more artwork from Baker School at their Visual Arts website.

We are grateful for the tremendous impact these educators have in supporting academic, social, and emotional development - and in eliminating barriers to address students needs in collaboration with families and other PSB staff.

We encourage you and your students to take a moment next week and say “thank you!” Even the smallest of gestures, whether it's giving them a high five as you pass by their office or just sending them a nice email, all make a difference! You can also express gratitude through decorations, cards, and other tokens of appreciation. You can visit the American School Counseling Association (ASCA) website to learn more about this event.

Every PSB school has a Site Council, made up of parents/guardians, staff, and the principal, who develop and review these multi-year plans during Site Council meetings throughout the school year.

Each school will update the school committee on its current SIPs. BEEP, Ruffin Ridley, and Runkle School principals presented their updates at the January 5 school committee meeting; BHS, Heath, and Lawrence presented their updates at the January 19 school committee meeting; Baker and Driscoll presented their updates at the February 2 school committee meeting. We will share these presentations with you for the remaining schools as they occur. You can also find your school’s latest SIP on your school’s website.

As in previous years, the theme of this essay is to answer the question: “What it means to be Asian American.” Winning entries are selected based on comprehensiveness, originality, and relevance to the theme in the category. This year’s contest is especially poignant as BAAFN will honor and celebrate contest winners in conjunction with the Town of Brookline's inaugural Asian American/Pacific Islander Heritage Day celebration on Saturday, May 20.

Submissions are due by Tuesday, February 28. You can visit the BAAFN website (https://baafn.weebly.com/2023-essay-contest-rules.html) to read the essays of previous winners and learn how to submit your essay.

Join BA&CE for games and outdoor activities for the entire day, or choose a half-day program that works with your schedule. Register online today at https://brooklineadulted.org/smart-programs/, or by calling BA&CE at (617)-730-2700, extension 0.

Next week, we celebrate the return of the All-Town Chorus Concert featuring an original arrangement of This Little Light of Mine in a piece called Let It Shine! written specifically for our PSB choruses by composer, singer and educator Joi Harper. Ms. Harper’s compositions have been performed around the United States and in Nairobi, Kenya. Let It Shine! was commissioned by Brookline Friends of Performing Arts (FoPA) for all of our PSB 6th through 8th grade choruses and our three Brookline High School choruses.

The All-Town Chorus Concert is a special event in which students from every PSB school chorus perform pieces they have been working on this year and the concert will culminate in a finale performance with hundreds of PSB 6th through 12th graders singing together! These concerts are not to be missed! Please join us for the All-Town Chorus Concerts:

• All-Town Chorus Concert, Night 1: Wednesday, February 8, 7:00 p.m. at the Brookline High School Roberts/Dubbs Auditorium
  Featuring Baker, Driscoll, Heath, Pierce, and BHS choruses

• All-Town Chorus Concert, Night 2: Thursday, February 9, 7:00 p.m. at the Brookline High School Roberts/Dubbs Auditorium
  Featuring Lawrence, Lincoln, Ruffin Ridley, Runkle, and BHS choruses

The show features over one hundred incredibly talented and hardworking BHS students in the cast, band and crew. Remaining performances are tonight Friday, February 3 at 7:30 p.m., Saturday, February 4 at 1:30 p.m. and Saturday, February 4 at 7:30 p.m. The show has an all star student cast of singers, dancers, actors and musicians, and will bring joy into your life! Tickets are free for 8th graders and PSB staff, $5 for all other students, and $15 for adults and can be purchased online at www.brooklinefopa.org (recommended) or at the door.

Future performances at BHS include:

• Chamber Music Festival from the BHS Orchestra on Tuesday, February 7 at 7:30 p.m. in the new theatre in the BHS 22 Tappan Building.
  
  

• Monthly Open Mic Night on Friday, February 10 at 7:00 p.m. in the Band Room (room 120) at BHS to hear student musicians and bands.

• A collection of original plays by BHS BETCo (Brookline Educational Theater Company) themed around teenage relationships on Wednesday, February 15 at 7:30 p.m. in the BHS Robers/Dubbs Auditorium.

See www.brooklinefopa.org to stay up-to-date on all Performing Arts shows and events at BHS.

These shows highlight the amazing work of our student instrumentalists and their progress throughout the years as you see our beginning through advanced students. Please join us for the following concerts:

• Heath Strings & Orchestra: Monday, February 6, 6:00 p.m. in the Baker School Auditorium

• Baker Strings & orchestra: Monday, February 6, 7:15 p.m. in the Baker School Auditorium

• Lawrence Band: Wednesday, February 8, 6:30 p.m. in the Ruffin Ridley School Auditorium

• Lincoln Band: Wednesday, February 8, 7:30 p.m. in the Ruffin Ridley School Auditorium

• Pierce Band: Thursday, February 9, 6:30 p.m. in the Ruffin Ridley School Auditorium

• Baker Band: Thursday, February 9, 7:30 p.m. in the Ruffin Ridley School Auditorium

• Runkle Band: Monday, February 13, 6:30 p.m. in the Ruffin Ridley School Auditorium

• Heath Band: Monday, February 13, 7:30 p.m. in the Ruffin Ridley School Auditorium

• Driscoll Band: Tuesday, February 14, 6:30 p.m. in the Ruffin Ridley School Auditorium

• Ruffin Ridley Band: Tuesday, February 14, 7:30 p.m. in the Ruffin Ridley School Auditorium

Join other PSB school parents for an engaging, informative workshop on some of the common conversational pitfalls that happen in classrooms and other diverse groups. School adjustment counselor Daniel Arroyo (formerly with Steps to Success, now Newton Public Schools METCO Counselor) leads this free, interactive one-hour presentation that will give you insights and tools you can use right away to build awareness and address microaggressions in schools and at home.

Brought to you by Coalition for Anti-Racist Education (CARE), a group of parents from all Brookline Public Schools working with the district to promote equitable policies and strengthen our diverse community. RSVPs required - Click here to register!

The next session will be held at the Ruffin Ridley School (345 Harvard Street) on Monday, February 6 from: 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. Sign up here!

In partnership with VaxinateRX, the Brookline Health Department is also hosting a COVID-19 and Flu vaccine clinic at Town Hall (333 Washington Street) on Monday, February 13 from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. Appointments can be made here. Please bring your insurance cards (medical and prescription) and COVID-19 vaccination cards to the clinic!

• Cycle 1 Progress Reports (K-5) and Term 2 Report Cards (6-8) Published on the Aspen Parent Portal: Friday, February 3
  
  

• 30th Anniversary of the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA): Sunday, February 5
  The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) was passed to provide workers up to 12 weeks of job-protected, unpaid leave for medical or family reaons. The law is gender-neutral and aims to protect women from gender-based discrimination in the workplace. For some areas of the United States, mandated paid leave remains absent, disproportionately affecting BIPOC and low-income populations.
  
  
• Quarter 2 Report Cards (9-12) Published on the Aspen Parent Portal: Wednesday, February 8
  

Congestion at our schools during arrival and dismissal can certainly be slow and frustrating but honking seldom does much to speed things up. And it creates unnecessary noise that is disruptive and sometimes alarming to arriving students.

For the last 12 years, the Brookline Youth Awards has honored more than 780 students and 30 adults who have inspired young people and their community. The Brookline Youth Awards is an opportunity for Brookline residents to hear about the character, challenges, and dreams of its young people and adults dedicated to their success through the power and intimacy of video interviews. The Brookline Youth Awards is open to all students between 13 and 19 who live in or attend school in Brookline. This awards event recognizes that each of us is embarked on our own journey and must hurdle our unique challenges.

• Previous community updates can be found here.

(Media credits: L. Anderson, D. Arroyo, J. Buller, J. Haper, M. Kaufman, K. Kozol, G. Lawson, C. Smith, M. Ritter, A. Winston, Heath Support Team, Brookline Adult & Community Education, Brookline Asian American Family Network, Brookline Hub, FoPA)