April 25th E-blast

From: Mary C. Gormley
To: Students, Parents/Guardians and Staff
Re: E-blast Update
Date:  April 25, 2014

FROM THE DESK OF THE SUPERINTENDENT

As I have said many times, we are blessed to have an organization like Milton Foundation for Education in this town. Although they do incredible work year-round, including their Competitive Grants and Sam’s Fund, the past month has been their most intense period. Earlier this month, the MFE hosted hundreds of Milton Public School supporters at their annual Celebration for Education. This year’s theme was “Power Up,” and it was one of the most successful events ever.  We are very grateful for the countless hours the MFE volunteers spent to make this evening such an incredible experience. For those of you who were unable to attend, you will be amazed by this video, which was played at the Celebration event. Please click this video link:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ElFjnOoBu4

 For those who would like to contribute to the “Fund A Need” campaign, please click here: https://miltonfoundation.ejoinme.org/MyEvents/PowerUp2014/FundANeedDonation/tabid/532888/Default.aspx 

I would like to give a huge thank you and congratulations to this year’s MFE’s Celebration Chairs: Sheila Leddy, Courtney Affanato and Rachel Schewe.

On the heels of Celebration, the MFE is now gearing up for the annual Teacher of the Year event. Winners were “surprised” in their classrooms last week and those teachers will be honored at a ceremony on Monday, April 28th. This will be the 14th Annual Outstanding Teacher of the Year Award Ceremony and it will be held in the Charles C. Winchester Auditorium. A reception will be held at 6pm in the lobby, followed by the Award Ceremony at 7pm. Don’t miss this wonderful evening celebrating seven of Milton Public School’s amazing teachers. Once again, the Charles C. Winchester Auditorium will be filled with family, friends, students and faculty. We’ll hear from our honored teachers and celebrate with their students, current and past. It’s one evening you won’t want to miss!

Congratulations to this year’s winners: 2014 Outstanding Teacher Winners: Julie Ostrowski – Collicot 3rd Grade, Marie Brown – Cunningham 1st Grade, Carol Kenney – Glover Special Education, Caitlin O’Brien – Tucker 1st Grade, Mary Shapiro – Pierce 8th Grade Math and Scott Devlin – Milton High School Guidance Counselor. The 2014 Dr. Mary Grassa O’Neill Leadership Award went to Assistant Superintendent John Phelan.

SCHOOL COMMITTEE UPDATE

There has been one School Committee meeting since my last E-blast, held on April 2nd. There will be a brief reorganizational meeting on April 30th at the cable studio at Pierce Middle School at 7 pm on April 30th

CURRICULUM NEWS

I would like to congratulate the Tucker Elementary School’s Future Problem Solving Team for their success at the recent State Bowl at Babson College.  This Junior Division team, coached by Tucker teacher Thuy Nguyen, is made up of students Olivia Ketler, Claire Walko, Blake Strong and Oskar Peloquin.  Three additional students, Dominique Thomas, Philip Lee and William Milliken, competed as individuals and also helped the team with their skit. The team won 1st place in the Junior Division for the Action Plan Skit presentation.

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The following item was submitted by Ada Rosmarin, consultant for the Milton Public Schools’ Full Day Kindergarten program:

The Milton Public Schools is participating, along with other school districts across Massachusetts, in the new Massachusetts Kindergarten Entry Assessment (MKEA).  The goals of MKEA are:

  • To assess young children in developmentally appropriate ways and use the information to individualize the teaching process
  • To measure development and learning across all developmental domains

In the 2013-14 school year, we have been piloting an assessment called the Work Sampling System, by Pearson Assessment, in the Cunningham School Kindergarten and the Collicot School Integrated Preschool program.

This spring, the Kindergarten team is preparing for a 2014-15 district-wide roll-out of MKEA assessments in all four elementary schools.  The new assessment will be aligned with new Kindergarten report cards, as well.  Due to some changes in requirements from the state level, we will be using a different assessment tool called Teaching Strategies GOLD

Both Work Sampling System and Teaching Strategies GOLD are observational assessments that focus on areas of child development and curriculum such as: social-emotional, language, literacy, cognitive, mathematics, and more.   Teachers will observe and document children’s learning at school during day-to-day activities.  Lessons learned from this year’s pilot sites are informing our plans for what should be a great district-wide roll-out next year.  Stay tuned!

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Many of our students won recognition in this year’s Lincoln Essay & Drawing Contest, sponsored by the Forbes House Museum.

For the Lincoln Drawing contest, the following Milton Public School students were recognized: Kindergarten: First Place: Reagan Vaughan, Collicot School; Second Place: Madeline Stephen, Collicot School. Grade One: First Place: Orlaith Killion, Collicot School; Second Place: Lillian Heaton, Cunningham School; Honorable Mention: Nicole Dowdall, Cunningham School. Grade Two: First Place: Jack Haney, Glover School; Second Place: Olivia Williams, Glover School; Honorable Mentions: David Mitchell, Glover School and Kameela Blackmon, Cunningham School. Grade Three: First Place: Mia Gilmore, Glover School; Second Place: Benjamin Catudal, Glover School; Third Place: Adriana Ruiz, Cunningham School; Honorable Mention: Isabella Mostofi, Glover School. Grade Four: First Place: Christina Frederique, Cunningham School; Third Place: Lucia Dwyer, Cunningham School; Honorable Mentions: Michael Roberson, Tucker School and Ana Sophia Leissner, Cunningham School

For the Lincoln Essay Contest, the following Milton Public School students were recognized:  

 Grade Five: First Place: Abigail Files, Glover School. Grade Six: First Place: Emma Driscoll, Pierce Middle School. Grade Eight: Second Place: Sachin Meier, Pierce Middle School

Winning students were honored at a ceremony held at St. Agatha School last month. This year, the Forbes House Museum received more than 1,000 essays and more than 400 drawings, for a total of 1,425 contest submissions.

The essays and drawings were judged by a 25 member review committee comprised of members of the Forbes House Museum Board of Trustees and Lincoln Committee, along with educators and Civil War experts from Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island.

The topic for the 2014 Lincoln Essay & Drawing Contest focused on the Gettysburg Address. Students in Kindergarten through grade 4 were required to draw a picture of President Lincoln delivering the Gettysburg Address. Students in grades 5 through 8 were required to write an essay based on notable quotes in the Address.

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As I mentioned in a previous E-blast, we have formed a Search Committee to begin the process of hiring an Assistant Superintendent for Personnel and Curriculum. I would like to inform the community that we have conducted interviews and we will be re-opening the search and re-posting the position. We will be utilizing the same Search Committee for this second search.  I would like to thank the following people for their work on this committee: School Committee Representative Kristan Bagley Jones, School Committee Representative Leroy Walker, Assistant Superintendent Dr. Glenn Pavlicek, Principal James Jette, Unit B Representative Courtney Walsh, Unit A Representative Nancy Trifone, Unit A Representative Jason Coady, Parent Representative Christine Tobin, Parent Representative Lauren Barone, Citizens for a Diverse Milton Representative Steven Pascal, Milton Foundation for Education Representative Patti Elliott and Milton Special Education Parent Advisory Council Representative Christine Howley.  We will keep you updated on the search’s progress in the coming weeks.

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I am pleased to announce that Pierce Middle School teacher Owen McElhinney recently learned that he has been chosen to attend the George Washington Teachers’ Institute in Virginia this summer. Mr. McElhinney is one of only seven teachers in the state, chosen from public, private and parochial schools, to have been chosen for this honor. The George Washington Institute is a one-week study program at George Washington’s home, Mount Vernon.

Mr. McElhinney, an eighth-grade history teacher, will attend an intensive immersion study of George Washington and early American history. The curriculum includes discussions led by renowned Washington scholars and workshops which explore Washington’s life and interests at Mount Vernon.

Along with the other honorees, Mr. McElhinney will have full access to Mount Vernon’s extensive library collection. They will meet with Mount Vernon’s historians, curators, and educators during their time at the Institute. After his return, Mr. McElhinney will provide professional development to his peers at Pierce Middle School on topics relating to early American History and George Washington.

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  I would like to recognize Ivy Anthony, a Tucker parent who has been working to get more structure to an outdoor classroom at the Tucker Elementary School, beginning with Kindergarten. She recently organized a few parents to build new garden boxes at Tucker. A community member donated the beautiful cedar planks. They turned out beautifully and I am excited to see the students interacting with them in the weeks to come.  

PAC/SPECIAL ED NEWS

The first game for the Challenger Division will be played this Sunday, April 27th at 4:45pm at Shields Park on Eliot Street. The Challenger Division of Little League enables boys and girls with physical and mental challenges, ages 5-18, or up to age 22 (if still enrolled in high school), to enjoy the game of baseball along with the millions of other children who participate in this sport worldwide.  For more information about the Challenger League, click here:

https://leagueathletics.com/Registration/Restrictions.asp?RegID=71836&n=81797&org=miltonnationalll.com

NEWS AROUND TOWN

Save the date!  The 2014 Green Homes Fair will be held on Saturday, April 26th at Cunningham Hall, Milton MA from Noon to 4PM.  Sign up for our newsletter to keep informed on all our future events!  The Milton Green Home Fair is a bi-annual event (held in April) sponsored by Sustainable Milton. Milton Green Homes Fair is an enjoyable, educational and informative event for the whole family.   We have fun activities planned for the children and valuable information and presentations from a wide variety of local vendors.

Our aim is to provide residents and businesses with a range of products and services that reduce a consumer’s environmental impact, from proprietors who have a local presence or Web-based business to decrease travel emissions and support the local economy and include sustainability as part of their DNA. 

For more information about Sustainable Milton, click here: http://www.sustainablemilton.org/2014/04/sustainable-miltons-green-homes-fair/

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The following item was sent by the Milton Historical Society.

The Milton Historical Society’s Annual Gala Dinner will be held on Wednesday, May 21st  featuring Eleanor Roosevelt. Dr. Gary Hylander, Professor of History at Stonehill College, brings his enthusiastic, interactive approach to history with an engaging presentation of Eleanor Roosevelt.  Join us at the Neighborhood Club of Quincy, 27 Glendale Road, Quincy on May 21st. Social hour starts at 6 PM with dinner at 7 PM to be followed by Dr. Gary Hylander. Reservations Required.  $40.00 members / $45.00 non-members

Please make checks payable to Milton Historical Society and mail to The Milton Historical Society, Suffolk Resolves House, 1370 Canton Avenue, Milton MA 02186.

For more information or to make a reservation, contact Milton Historical Society at

askus@miltonhistoricalsociety.org  or call 617-696-4115.

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Forbes House Museum cordially invites you to celebrate historic preservation at The Downton Abbey Ball, to be held at the home of Francesca and Mat Sibble, 144 Randolph Avenue, Milton on S aturday Evening,  May 17th from 6-8pm. Featuring champagne, cocktails, canapés, music and amusements. Tickets are $75.00 per person. Please RSVP by May 9th. To purchase tickets, please send a check to the FHM, 215 Adams Street, Milton MA 02186,or call with a credit card to the Museum at 617.696.1815. Period Edwardian attire, creative black tie, wigs, tails and dancing shoes are encouraged!

BETH ISRAEL DEACONESS HOSPITAL – MILTON

We are pleased to announce a new partnership with Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital Milton. I would like to thank Peter J. Healy, President and Chief Executive Officer and Bob McCrystal, Director of Communications, for reaching out to the Milton Public Schools. We will be working closely with the administration of BID-Milton to provide opportunities for students and staff in the spirit of community partnership. Together with Milton High School Principal James Jette, we will be developing relationships with the hospital in the areas of Health & Wellness, Athletics, Community Service and Education. We will also be including pertinent information from the hospital in our newsletters.

BID-Milton will be offering a seminar entitled “Injuries & Contact Sports” next month. From hamstring pulls to hard tackles, contact sports often go hand-in-hand with many types of injuries. Orthopedic surgeon Ben Thompson, MD, will discuss the dangers of concussion; shoulder, knee, and ankle injuries; treatment options; long-term recovery and strategies for reducing risk. This event is a must for young athletes and their parents, coaches and trainers.

  • DATE: Thursday, May 22
  • TIME: 6:30 PM
  • PLACE: Nangeroni Education Center
  • COST: FREE, pre-registration required. Call 617-696-8810 to register.

BID-Milton is also announcing the opening of their Center for Specialty Care.  To meet the need for specialized healthcare services in the greater Milton community, the hospital recently opened the Center for Specialty Care. The Center, located on the ground floor of the hospital across from the Cafeteria, offers outpatient appointments with several specialist physicians, many of whom are members of Harvard Medical Faculty Practice at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.  These specialists are also now performing surgeries at BID-Milton, enabling patients to receive care from renowned physicians in their community without having to drive into Boston. Specialty services offered in the Center include spine and neurosurgery, thoracic surgery, colorectal surgery and podiatry. The Center is also home to BID-Milton’s Orthopaedic Center and nationally accredited Weight Loss Surgery Program. For more information about BID-Milton’s Center for Specialty Care, call 617-313-1445.

MILTON PUBLIC LIBRARY

The following item was sent to us by the Friends of the Milton Public Library:

Dear Milton Teachers:  From Tuesday, May 13-Saturday, May 31, the Friends of the Milton Public Library invite you to visit the Friends Book Shop to select a free bag of children’s books for your classroom.  We hope this effort will encourage Milton’s children to enjoy a summer of fun reading. Our shop has a great supply of books for children of all ages, so please stop by from May 13-31, tell the volunteer you are a Milton teacher, and select your free bag of books.  The Book Shop is located on the lower level of the Library, and is open on Tuesdays and Saturdays from 10am-2pm, on Wednesdays from 6:30pm-8:30pm, and on Fridays from 10am-12pm.  For more information about this program or the book shop, please contact cdspiros@comcast.net.

The following item was send by the Children’s Room:

Springtime fun for families continues throughout the season in the Children’s Room at Milton Public Library!  In addition to our regular storytimes on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, we have several exciting programs for the young people in your life happening during the week of May 4 – 10:

Wednesday, May 7, 2014 from 4:00 – 5:00 pm

French Reading Support with Mr. Leite, Grades 1-2

In this program, beloved Tucker French teacher Mr. Leite will lead students in a French reading tutorial.  This class is for first and second grade students in the French program in the Milton Public Schools who need help with reading, and is limited to ten students.  While this is a series, registration for each individual class is required.

Friday, May 9, 2014 from 10:00 am – 12:00 noon

Free Play Friday, Ages 0-5

Drop by and enjoy puzzles and games in the Story Hour room. The room will be open for two hours in the morning for you to enjoy with your little ones.

Saturday, May 10, 2014 from 11:00 am – 12:00 noon

Reading Dogs, Grades K-5

Kids currently in grades K-5 who need to practice reading aloud are invited to come meet and read to some lovable therapy dogs who are great listeners.  Each child will have the opportunity to read at least one book to one of our canine volunteers.  Bring a favorite book with you, or choose from our shelf.  Registration is required.

Saturday, May 10, 2014 from 2:00 – 3:00 pm

Mel O’Drama, Ages 5-9

Kids aged 5-9 are invited to join local drama teacher Melanie Grace Gillespie for a theatrical and creative hour of Mel O’Drama!  Students will enjoy such fun activities as warmups, improv games, voice projection, scene work, and movement.  Registration is required.

Don’t forget to check the library web calendar for a listing of the many programs we offer year-round.  Information about and registration for all of our programs can always be found on our online calendar at www.miltonlibrary.org, or by calling the Children’s Room at 617-898-4957 during business hours. Please contact the Children’s Room if you have questions about any of our programs or services.

The following items were sent by the Teen Librarian:

On Thursday, May 8 at 6 p.m., join the Teen Department at the Milton Public Library and Animal World Experience with The Hunger Games Basic Survival Course. Calling all tributes (any teens in grades 6 to 12). We welcome you to the 74th Annual Hunger Games!  The time has come to say goodbye to loved ones and journey to the capitol to begin your training. Learn some basic survival skills such as how to create life-saving shelter anywhere, discover how to locate and purify water, practice Katniss’s famous twitch-up snare, try your hand at Peeta’s camouflage techniques and much more. Happy Hunger Games!  And may the odds ever be in your favor!

Admission to the workshop is free. This program is sponsored by the Friends of the Milton Public Library. For more information on this and other teen events at the Milton Public Library, please contact Amy Rosa, Young Adult Librarian, at (617)-698-5757 or aboivin@ocln.org.

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The Milton Public Library’s teen book club has selected Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi as its May pick.  “Aria and Perry, two teens from radically different societies–one highly advanced, the other primitive–hate being dependent on one another until they overcome their prejudices and fall in love, knowing they can’t stay together.” Join the book club at 7 p.m. on Monday May 5 for discussion and snacks! Sponsored by the Friends of the Library.

The teen book club is open to ages 12-18. To obtain a copy of the book or for more information, please contact Amy Rosa, Young Adult Librarian, at (617) 698-5757 or aboivin@ocln.org.

To see a complete listing of library events, please click here:

http://www.eventkeeper.com/code/events.cfm?curOrg=MILTONPL

VISUAL ARTS

This weekend at MAC: Award winning writer Suzette Standring’s writing Workshop this Sunday 4/27 at 2:00 pm.  Watercolors by T. Nicholos Phakos Exhibit continues. Milton Open Mic Returns on Wednesday April 30th at 7:00PM. Hosted by, and featuring Milton’s own Franc Graham!

ATHLETICS

Congratulations to the following Milton High student athletes who were recently named to the Patriot Ledger All Scholastic Team. To view all the athletes from Ledger-Land who  were named to the All-Scholastics, click here: http://www.patriotledger.com/article/20140421/SPORTS/140429455/12348/sports
Jonathan Carrera (wrestling), Meg Corcoran (girls basketball), Juwan Gooding (boys basketball), Myles McDermott (boys basketball), Anthony Smith (boys basketball), Hannah O’Leary (girls hockey), Sarah Park (girls hockey), Brian Nee (boys hockey) and Connor Richard (boys hockey.)

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As many of you know, we have implemented a BOKS program in our elementary schools. This is a physical activity program run by parent/guardian volunteers, in partnership with Reebok, to get  students moving in before-school programs. To read the BOKS April newsletter and find out about upcoming training sessions for potential BOKS volunteers, click here: http://hosted.verticalresponse.com/1308467/e304a1171c/545429127/33cf4eb07c/

or visit the website at http://www.bokskids.org/

For sports schedules for all MHS teams, please click here:

http://www.usatodayhss.com/school/milton-high-school-milton-ma/scores-and-schedule

Congratulations to the MHS Crew team in their recent race against Cambridge Ridge Latin School crew team. Milton’s crew team won the race the Charles River, with  all rowers showing a tremendous effort

AMBASSADOR PAGE

Students:  Congratulations to the Milton High School Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) following their participation in their first State Leadership Conference that was held earlier this month at Bentley University.  Milton High School’s FBLA members came home with two state championship trophies and a third place medal:
In the Economics category,  Jack Calijouw took First Place and Chris Riccuitti took Third Place. For the Marketing category, the team of  Colin Keally and Brandon Musto took First Place. The state champions have qualified for nationals at the National FBLA conference held this summer in Nashville, Tennessee. I’d like to give a special thank you to Milton High teacher AJ Melanson for his leadership, guidance and for providing our students with this wonderful opportunity.

Staff:   Two Milton High teachers – one who is currently teaching and one who is retired – are to be commended for their dedication to the Milton High LifeSmarts team. Nancy Mikels gave up most of her April vacation to accompany this team to the National Tournament in Orlando this week, and Paul Arenberg, who is now retired, agreed to return and help coach the team in their quest to win a National title. Thank you to both of these dedicated professionals.

Volunteers: I would like to thank the following local landscapers for their continued and unbelievable commitment to the Milton Public Schools. They have provided landscaping, labor and supplies to our buildings, campuses and grounds to keep them looking beautiful year-round. Thank you to:

  • Malloy Landscaping of Milton at Pierce Middle School
  • Coulter Landscaping of Milton at Tucker Elementary School
  • Eagle Farms of Milton for the island at the intersection of Gile Road & Canton Ave.
  • Driscoll Landscaping of Milton for the entrance to Brooks Field.

We are very grateful for these services. We are still looking for someone to take over the Glover and Collicot/Cunningham sites. If you have a connection to a local landscaper who is willing to donate their services, please contact Facilities Director Bill Ritchie at britchie@townofmilton.org and again, please help me to thank these four Milton businesses for their help.

The Milton Public School system is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to the provision of quality educational programs for all students.  The Milton Public School system does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, sex, religion, national origin, disability, genetic information, age or sexual orientation.

 

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