Skip to main content

February 5, 2024

Good morning-

Happy School Counselor Week! This week we celebrate our colleagues who support students in exploring their abilities, strengths, interests, and talents as they relate to career awareness and development. Please take a moment this week to thank them for all they do



This is often a particularly busy week for counselors as we administer the important SOS (Signs of Suicide) program to all members of the sophomore class. 

Signs of Suicide Program: Our counseling and wellness staff will be administering the Signs of Suicide (SOS) program beginning Monday, February 5 through Wednesday, February 7 to all members of the sophomore class. Based on the screening tool students may be pulled for assessment by a counselor later in the day. Please watch for any signs of distress from students and call the counseling office if needed. The office will be closed for regular student access and students will be directed to nursing. We appreciate your flexibility and understanding of possible classroom interruptions. 

I encourage you to visit www.sossignsofsuicide.org/parent for information on warning signs for youth suicide, useful resources, and some of the key messages students will learn. 


Course selection for teachers will be open until Friday, February 9. Thank you to all of the teachers who are showcasing their elective offerings this week during X-block. As you mark your calendars for class meetings the week of February 12 please note that some meetings may go beyond the X-block time period. 

Faculty meeting- Thursday, February 8, 2024 2:50-3:50pm As part of our work with the Anti-Defamation League's peer education program this month's meeting will be a provided by the ADL. The training will focus on an overview of the curriculum the peer leaders use, how you can support anti-bias initiatives in the classroom, as well as how to best address incidents/comments may overhear in the classroom or halls. You will log in from your classroom on your own device so that you are able to participate in Zoom functions such as the chat and polls. Please be logged on at 2:50pm. The session is one hour. (I will schedule time for faculty questions and concerns at the start of the department meeting on February 29). While faculty members are required, all staff are welcome to attend!

Topic: ADL PD - Ashland High School
Time: Feb 8, 2024 02:50 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Meeting ID: 950 0030 4273

Voluntary Faculty discussions: weighted GPA and DESE HS schedule network updates
I will hold a voluntary faculty meetings to discuss weighted vs. unweighted GPA's and the work we have done with the DESE HS Scheduling network cohort on February 14 at both 7:30am and 2:50pm. 

Flag Day Ceremony 2024- Feel free to add to this shared folder. Thank you to all who participated and planned, especially the student leaders of the CARES club and cultural student union. A special thanks to Mary Nemeth, Pam Crudup, Reggie Markham, and Carey Bradley for the immense amount of planning and organizations

Leaving the faculty parking lot: Please remember during dismissal times if you see a bus with flashing lights in front of the building, in either lane, you should not pass the bus. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

August 22, 2025

Good afternoon- Thanks to everyone who helped to make New Student Orientation a success last night. It was great to see so many students and staff in the building. I am looking forward to seeing you all on Monday. We start at 8AM in the auditorium. There will be some members of the Class of 2026 painting their parking spots on Monday afternoon. Please try to park in the faculty parking lot or in the back of the building if you usually park in the student section.  New staff, please join the staff  Google Classroom . All information sent to faculty/staff will be housed here. The  class code is a5ca6a4. The custodians have been working hard to make sure each classroom has the correct number of desks (minus study halls). There may be a few classrooms off a desk or two based on student moves at the end of this week. If anyone has furniture in their rooms that is not being used, please let me know. We are short some L-shaped desks, under-desk file cabinets, and bookcases....
Post a Comment
Read more

May 12, 2025

Happy Mother's Day to all of the moms & mother figures out there- Best of luck to the special athletes competing in the 5-Town Special Olympics today!  I apologize for the late notice, but we will do a class meeting with the juniors/prom attendees on Tuesday, May 13, and the seniors on Wednesday, May 14, during x-block. Please send your second block seniors to the auditorium, as we are not able to make announcements on 5/14.  Art Saves Ashland, which includes the student art show, as well as the Spring Choral Concert, are happening back to back on Thursday, May 15, starting at 4pm.  The concert is at 7pm in the auditorium. These events showcase the amazing talent of many of our students.  Here is the Early Release schedule for Friday, May 16. You can also find it linked on the school calendar. Departments will continue work on curriculum mapping for the afternoon.  Grand March will begin at 4:30pm in the gym if you are planning to stick around to see our p...
Post a Comment
Read more

March 10, 2025

Good morning- I hope the adjustment to the clocks springing forward hasn't thrown you off too much. I love that it means more light in the afternoon/evening.  On Thursday, March 13 year 2/3 teachers from Milford and Nipmuc High Schools will be here for learning walks. I have shared a schedule with impacted teachers but it may change over the next few days. Thank you for your flexibility and willingness to welcome new educators.  I am sure you saw Jim's message that the School Committee will hear our proposal on Competency Determination for the Class of 2025 at their meeting on Wednesday, March 12. I hope to share an update at our faculty meeting on Thursday, March 13, after school in the library . The meeting will involve MCAS training. As you are aware, the state has moved to a new portal so it will be important information for everyone to hear. Training for staff that do not attend faculty meetings will be scheduled at another time. Following the training, we will be walking...
Post a Comment
Read more