From SHirsch at somervillema.gov Tue Jan 5 14:30:09 2010 From: SHirsch at somervillema.gov (Stephanie Hirsch) Date: Tue Jan 5 10:50:03 2010 Subject: [Parentsresistat] Parenting Workshop - sponsored by "Making Connections" a program of the Committee on Suicide Prevention and Mental Health References: <05E737CD9BF1C7479D7F1A4A881272EB3DBFF0@exchange.somerville.ma.us> Message-ID: <05E737CD9BF1C7479D7F1A4A881272EB3EA587@exchange.somerville.ma.us> Here is a bit more information on the parenting workshop on Jan. 12th... *************** Please join us for a light dinner and discussion on "Building Resiliency in Children" Tuesday January 12th 5:30 - 7:00 pm at 50 Evergreen Ave. (City Hall Annex, 1st floor Conference room), Somerville, Ma. In this workshop we will discuss how parents and other care givers can support resiliency in children by supporting psychological growth and helping children develop problem-solving skills and other tools for meeting challenges and returning to emotional health and well-being. We will consider temperament and parenting styles as factors that affect competency and adaptability and other important characteristics of resiliency. Presenter: JoAnn Thrasher, LICSW is Director of Child, Adolescent and Family Clinical Services at Somerville Mental Health Association. She is a clinical social worker who has provided consultation and counseling services for more than twenty-five years to families with children from birth through adolescence and young adulthood. This program is sponsored by the Somerville Committee on Suicide Prevention and Mental Health. Registration is required to register please contact Patty Contente 617-625-6600 ext. 4325 or pcontente@somervillema.gov Patty Contente, LICSW Clinical Youth Specialist City of Somerville Health Department 50 Evergreen Ave. Somerville, MA 02145 617-625-6600 ext. 4325 857-221-0942 TRN Cell pcontente@somervillema.gov Office Hours : Monday 9:30-5:30, Tuesdays 8:30 - 1:30 Thursdays 9:30 - 3:30 -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://lists.somerville.ma.us/pipermail/parentsresistat/attachments/20100105/c733948c/attachment.html From SHirsch at somervillema.gov Wed Jan 13 15:01:21 2010 From: SHirsch at somervillema.gov (Stephanie Hirsch) Date: Wed Jan 13 11:17:44 2010 Subject: [Parentsresistat] Announcement on MSBA Approval of Funding for East Somerville Community School Message-ID: <05E737CD9BF1C7479D7F1A4A881272EB2E6642@exchange.somerville.ma.us> Hello all - I'm passing along this announcement from today on the approval of some of the funding for reconstruction of the ESCS. Many of you have been following this situation closely over the past two years, and this recent agreement is a major step towards beginning reconstruction. ******************* SOMERVILLE, MSBA REACH AGREEMENT ON REBUILDING EAST SOMERVILLE COMMUNITY SCHOOL Accord Clears Way for Detailed Design and Reconstruction of K-8 School Damaged in 2007Fire BOSTON, SOMERVILLE - The Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) and the City of Somerville today announced an agreement on a scope of work to renovate the East Somerville Community School (ESCS), a K thru 8 facility badly damaged by fire on December 9, 2007. On the basis of close cooperation and negotiations between state and local officials, in which the school rebuilding project became the basis for the MSBA's new emergency response protocols, the Authority has recommended to its Board of Directors that Somerville be moved into the schematic design phase of its capital pipeline. In this phase, detailed designs will be produced for the renovation of the 118,500-sq. ft. building - of which over 90,000 sq. ft. will be paid for by the MSBA. "I am pleased that we were able to work together to find the most educationally sound and fiscally responsible way to get students back into the East Somerville Community School," said State Treasurer Tim Cahill, Chairman of the MSBA. "We have studied all the options and explored all the possibilities, and this is the most cost effective plan to provide a top-notch educational environment for the children of Somerville," said MSBA Executive Director Katherine Craven. "This has been a long and complex negotiation, but we're very pleased and grateful that the MSBA has worked so closely with us to develop an equitable solution that will help us get renovations under way. This school building not only plays a crucial role in our city's education system, but in the larger community life of East Somerville," said Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone. "All of us in East Somerville have waited a long time for this news, and we're looking forward to regaining the use of a renovated ESCS as soon as we can," said Ward 1 Alderman William Roche. "This announcement is exciting and gratifying." "Over two years after the fire, the students, faculty and parents of the East Somerville Community School have managed to remain a close-knit family, even though they have been divided into four separate buildings," said Ward 1 Somerville School Committee Member Maureen Bastardi. "We are delighted that the school will be fully renovated and we'll be counting the minutes until the ESCS family is reunited." "I am proud of the job our faculty and administrators have done to maintain the ESCS identity, and the quality of its educational services, over the past two years," said Somerville School Superintendent Tony Pierantozzi, "and I am very happy to see their efforts rewarded by this thoughtful and thorough agreement with the MSBA. I want to thank all parties for their persistence and spirit of cooperation." The MSBA is collaborating with municipalities to equitably invest $2.5 billion in schools across the Commonwealth by finding the right-sized, most fiscally responsible and educationally appropriate solutions to create safe and sound learning environments. The MSBA has reformed the Commonwealth's formerly rampant and unsustainable program, which had accumulated $11 billion in debt. In 2007, as a result of programmatic reforms and sound fiscal management, the MSBA was able to reopen a sustainable, reformed grant program. In its five year history, the MSBA has made approximately $6.5 billion in reimbursements to cities, towns and regional school districts for school construction projects. These timely payments have saved municipalities over $2.9 billion in avoided local interest costs and have provided much needed cash flow to municipalities in these difficult economic times. - END - Contact: Contact: Massachusetts School Building Authority City of Somerville Emily Mahlman 617-720-4466 Tom Champion 617-625-6600, ext. 2620 Jaclyn Rossetti 617-625-6600, ext. 2614 From SHirsch at somervillema.gov Thu Jan 14 11:35:53 2010 From: SHirsch at somervillema.gov (Stephanie Hirsch) Date: Thu Jan 14 07:52:17 2010 Subject: [Parentsresistat] CBS Video of Argenziano and Somerville Message-ID: <05E737CD9BF1C7479D7F1A4A881272EB2E6656@exchange.somerville.ma.us> Hi Somerville parents and caregivers - As some of you prepare to attend open houses next week, take a look at this great story on Shape Up Somerville, which focuses on Somerville schools' achievements and shows great clips of life at our wonderful Argenziano School! http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=6050936n&tag=contentMain;contentB ody Stephanie RESISTAT INTERACTIVE TOOLS: Unsubscribe from ResiStat mailing lists: http://lists.somerville.ma.us/mailman/listinfo Subscribe to lists and view archives from mailing lists: http://www.somervilleresistat.org/Mailing_Lists.html View or submit a SomerBlog Question or Comment: http://www.somervilleresistat.org/Blog.html View or submit a Community Calendar item: http://www.somervilleresistat.org/Home_Page.html -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://lists.somerville.ma.us/pipermail/parentsresistat/attachments/20100114/a8834df4/attachment.html From SHirsch at somervillema.gov Mon Jan 18 15:15:12 2010 From: SHirsch at somervillema.gov (Stephanie Hirsch) Date: Mon Jan 18 11:31:33 2010 Subject: [Parentsresistat] School Open Houses and School Information from Parents References: <1CB16EE8.D1AE.4FDE.80AD.4BF940220AAF@aol.com> Message-ID: <05E737CD9BF1C7479D7F1A4A881272EB3EA61A@exchange.somerville.ma.us> Hello everyone - Just a reminder that next week is Somerville schools open house week. I hope everyone can get out to take a look at the many great options in Somerville. All are welcome at the open houses, including neighbors and people still just considering having children. At the top of this e-mail is information from parents who have organized parent-information nights or other ways for prospective parents to learn more about their schools. If anyone has some brief information they'd like sent about other schools, please forward it to me and I'll send it along. At the bottom of this e-mail are dates and other information relating to school registration compiled by School Committee Rep Paul Bockelman. ************************************** INFORMATION ON SCHOOLS FROM PARENTS: BROWN SCHOOL: The Brown School will have an informational coffee on Monday, January 25th from 6:00 - 8:00 p.m. at the Brown School. For more information about the Brown School contact, Alex Feldman at alex@alexthejester.com or Paula Woolley at pwoolley@earthlink.net. ARGENZIANO SCHOOL (From Argenziano parent Ruth Ronen): The Argenziano School held a discussion for parents last week, however, please contact Ruth if you could not make the meeting and would like to get connected with parents. The Argenziano School is in Union Square and reflects the neighborhood's rich cultural and ethnic mix, making kids of all backgrounds feel welcome. At the open house, parents shared that they value the strong sense of community within the school, combined with a nurturing, challenging academic experience. The facility is brand new, with features that include a naturally-lit art studio, state-of-the-art music, science, and computer rooms, and a gardening space for school gardens. Many families walk to school and parents said that they value being part of a community of learners, with relationships that extend beyond school walls and into the surrounding neighborhood. The school serves grades kindergarten through eighth grade. Email Ruth Ronen at ruth@lepp.com if you have questions about the school. CHOICE PROGRAM AT THE HEALEY SCHOOL (From Healey parent Linda Viens): The Choice Program at the Healey School will have an Information Night on Thursday, January 21st from 7:00 p.m. until 9:00 p.m. The Choice Program is a Kindergarten through 6th Grade program of the Somerville Public School System housed at the Healey School. The program encourages all students to achieve high academic standards. In the program, students are encouraged to ask questions and to investigate and solve problems. Students stay together with the same teacher for two years and work in small groups. There are mixed grade groupings in grades 3-6. The Choice Program encourages team teaching, collaboration between teachers, and parental involvement in children's education. Child care, refreshments, and translation services will be provided at the information night. Contact Linda Viens at viens.linda@gmail.com for more information. UNIDOS AT EAST SOMERVILLE COMMUNITY SCHOOL (From Unidos parent Melissa Glenn Haber): Come learn about Unidos, Somerville's two-way bilingual program, where children learn a second language through immersion! From kindergarten on, Unidos students learn science and social studies in Spanish through games, songs, and stories, leading to the goal of both cultural and language fluency by 8th grade. (By the upper grades, our English-dominant students test as reading Spanish on grade level or higher.) Since the ESCS fire, the Unidos kindergarten is located at the Capuano, the 1-4 at the Edgerly school and the 5-8 at the Cummings, but we have just received word that the state will be funding the rebuilding of the school on the old ESCS site. Parents will be giving tours during this week's open houses, and we will be hosting a coffee in the next few weeks, but if anyone is interested in talking with a parent, feel free to email me, Melissa Glenn Haber, at glenhaber@rcn.com. (I have 2 third graders and a sixth grader in the program, and I was on the school improvement council for many years.) ************************************** INFORMATION ON OPEN HOUSES AND OTHER DATES (organized by School Committee Rep Paul Bockelman) Hi Everyone! Thinking about which school is right for your child? Or just interested in learning more about Somerville's public schools?? This week, all Somerville elementary schools are open for tours on?Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday (January 20-22) from 8:30 a.m. until 1:30 p.m.?No appointment is necessary; just stop by the schools that interest you. In my view, this is probably the single best way to get a feel for a school. You can see the buildings, talk to parents and administrators, and can sometimes sit in on classes.? In Somerville, residents can send their child to any school in the city. Most people send their children to their neighborhood schools, but many send their children to other schools because of special programs that are offered, transportation convenience, or just because they like them. The decision is yours. A good way to start your day of touring is to go to the Parent Information Center at 42 Prescott Street (near City Hall). There, you can get a cup of coffee, talk to staff and other parents getting ready to tour, and get a map and information on the city's schools. The staff is multi-lingual. While the focus is on parents/ guardians who will have children starting kindergarten in the Fall, the open houses are open to anyone interested in finding out more about Somerville's schools. We've had people with very young children participate in the tours. It's never too early.? My kids have gone through the schools and are now in high school. (The High School has its own open house on February 2nd and 3rd.) Talk to our teachers, see our facilities, and watch the work being done; I think you will be impressed! As always, I and other members of the School Committee are available to talk about our schools. Paul Bockelman Ward Six School Committee 617-623-8863 Key Dates: Elementary School Open Houses January 20-22 from 8:30 AM - 1:30 PM Kindergarten Registration Paperwork Assistance Clinics January 23 from 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM at the PIC (42 Prescott Street) January 25-26 from 9:00 AM - 2:00 PM at the Capuano Center (150 Glen Street) January 27 from 9:00 AM - 2:00 PM at the West Somerville Neighborhood School (177 Powderhouse Boulevard) January 28 from 2:00 PM - 7:00 PM at the Healey School (5 Meacham Street) February 2 at the PIC (42 Prescott Street) Assistance is also available daily at the PIC from 8:00 AM - 4:00 PM (42 Prescott Street) beginning January 29 Completion of first batch of Kindergarten placements April 8, 2010 Important September 2010 Early Childhood Integrated Progam (ECIP) Dates Information session for parents/guardians interested in the "typically developing peers" slots in this program February 3 from 9:00 AM - 10:00 AM at the Capuano Center (150 Glen Street) Application period for available seats in the "typically developing peers" slots February 3 at 10:00 AM through Friday, March 12 Lottery for typically developing peers slots in the ECIP program March 18, 2010 Important September 2010 Pre-Kindergarten Registration Dates Capuano Open House March 23-25 from 9:00 AM - 11:00 AM Pre-Kindergarten Paperwork Assistance Clinics March 27 from 10:00 AM - 1:00 PM at the PIC (42 Prescott Street) April 13 from 8:00 AM - 8:00 PM at the PIC (42 Prescott Street) Assistance is also available daily at the PIC from 8:00 AM - 4:00 PM (42 Prescott Street) beginning March 29. Pre-Kindergarten Registration Deadline May 7, 2010. Pre-Kindergarten Registration Lottery?(if the number of registration applications exceed the number of available seats) May 10, 2010.? Letters will be mailed home after the lottery. Other Important Dates February 2 and 3, 2010 - Somerville High School open houses for families considering SHS for Grade 9 in the fall.? Tours and information sessions both days from 8:30-10:00 AM and again from 12:30-2:00 PM. April 1, 2010 - Grade 1-8 Intradistrict transfer requests for the 2010-2011 school year accepted at the PIC after this date April 14, 2010 - Lottery for available seats in the city-wide Choice and Unidos programs is registration exceeds the number of available seats June 2, 2010 - Kindergarten transition day for students and families who will start Kindergarten in Somerville in September. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://lists.somerville.ma.us/pipermail/parentsresistat/attachments/20100118/87fc366a/attachment.html From SHirsch at somervillema.gov Wed Jan 20 15:42:21 2010 From: SHirsch at somervillema.gov (Stephanie Hirsch) Date: Wed Jan 20 11:58:41 2010 Subject: [Parentsresistat] More School-Related Information: Unidos Coffee and Brown School Description Message-ID: <05E737CD9BF1C7479D7F1A4A881272EB2E66A7@exchange.somerville.ma.us> Hello all - Here's a bit more about school registration related information (Also see: www.somerville.k12.ma.us/register for information from the Superintendent's Office). If parents from other schools (Winter Hill, West Somerville, Kennedy School, and Capuano) want to share descriptions of their schools, I'd be happy to forward them along. UNIDOS COFFEE: The Unidos coffee hour (with teachers, principal, and parents) has been scheduled for January 26 at the Capuano from 5:00-6:30. For more information, contact Melissa Glen Haber at glenhaber@rcn.com. BROWN SCHOOL DESCRIPTION: (From Brown Parent Paula Woolley): The Brown School is Somerville's only grade K to 6 school and is thus the city's smallest school. Built in 1900, the school has the warmth of old-fashioned architecture and the intimacy of a small community, with an emphasis on academics and values. Our students come from all parts of the city, as well as from within walking distance. Together, our children, staff, and families make up a warm community that's a slice of Somerville. Parents and guardians are always encouraged to share their talents or experience, and their involvement in school activities is high. As part of this community of learners and caring adults, our children have grown in confidence and thrived when they've moved on to larger settings. In addition to offering parent-led tours during the Open House week, the Brown School will host an evening coffee hour on Monday, January 25th, from 6 - 8 pm in the school library (snow date Wed., Jan. 27, same time). If parents have questions, they can email Alex at alex@alexthejester.com or Paula at pwoolley@earthlink.net. Stephanie Hirsch Mayor's Office, Special Projects City of Somerville office phone: (617) 625-6600 ext. 2103 cell phone: (617) 512-4847 www.somervillema.gov -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://lists.somerville.ma.us/pipermail/parentsresistat/attachments/20100120/8aabc48d/attachment.html From SHirsch at somervillema.gov Mon Jan 25 08:02:02 2010 From: SHirsch at somervillema.gov (Stephanie Hirsch) Date: Mon Jan 25 04:18:19 2010 Subject: [Parentsresistat] News from Superintendent: Workshop Tonight, Adult Education Courses, School Improvement Presentations, & Open House at High School References: <6D15C281DE11FD41B496E70A2A8424EC04EB0992AE@sps-email2> Message-ID: <05E737CD9BF1C7479D7F1A4A881272EB3EA666@exchange.somerville.ma.us> Hello all - Forwarded below is information from Gretchen Kinder at the Superintendent's Office. Take a look at the interesting workshop occurring tonight at the Capuano. As it relates to the School Registration process, a Choice parent (Jeff Levine), asked me to forward their newly unveiled website: http://www.thechoiceprogram.org/. School registration continues, so parents, feel free to pass along any other school information you'd like forwarded to this list. ******************** >From the Superintendent... Kindergarten registration starts on Saturday, January 27th at the PIC (42 Prescott Street) A paperwork assistance clinic and information session will be hosted at the PIC beginning at 10:00 on Saturday, and throughout the week across the City. For complete details on the registration process and timeline please visit our website, www.somerville.k12.ma.us/register. Deciding what school is right for your child? The Somerville Public Schools offers many resources to help families decide which public school or program is right for their child. Visit www.somerville.k12.ma.us/choose to learn more about making this important decision. Open Houses are over on 1/22, but you simply call the Principal of any school to make an appointment for visit. The Unidos English/Spanish program is having an open house on Tuesday 1/26 at 5:00 for families interested in learning more about this city-wide instructional program housed at the East Somerville Community School. FREE workshop for parents/guardians in Somerville on Monday, January 25th beginning at 6:30 PM at the Capuano Early Childhood Center (150 Glen Street) Please join us in welcoming authors of Shut Up About....Your Perfect Kid, Patty Konjoian & Gina Gallagher "Shut Up About Your Perfect Kid!" goes where other books just haven't gone, offering humorous support and inspiration for parents of "imperfect" children. Narrated by two "imperfect" sisters with "special" children, the book features a collection of entertaining and heartwarming stories from parents of children with a wide range of disabilities. It will have any parent laughing out loud and viewing the positive side of raising an "imperfect" child with humorous chapters. To read more go to: http://www.shutupabout.com Opportunities for Adults to Learn Right here in Somerville you can learn to paint with watercolors, improve the efficiency of your home energy systems, make handcrafted furniture, and enhance your ability to speak Spanish or Portuguese with your neighbors. These are only some of the courses available through Adult Evening School. Most courses meet weekly for 10 weeks and cost no more than $150 (some materials fees may apply) Explore more and even register online at www.somerville.k12.ma.us/eveningschool. If you prefer to talk with someone about Adult Learning opportunities in Somerville visit Somerville High School (181 Washington Street) on Tuesday 1/26 or Thursday 1/28 between 6:00-8:00 PM to talk with Adult Evening School Principal Sophia Carafotes about what Somerville Adult Evening School can offer for you. Somerville Beginner Musician Extravaganza! Beginning string students at every elementary school and beginning band instrument students at every elementary school (this includes drums) will be performing at 7:00 PM on Thursday, January 28th at Somerville High School (81 Highland Avenue). This event is free and open to the public. How are our schools doing? School Improvement Councils at each of the Somerville public schools will present their annual School Improvement Plans to the School Committee beginning on January 27, 2010. Members of the public are invited to attend these presentations hosted at the District's Central Offices (181 Washington Street) to learn more about the progress each school is making towards their student achievement goals. The schedule is: * January 27 beginning at 6:30 PM - Somerville High School and the Healey School * January 28 beginning at 6:30 PM - Winter Hill Community School, Capuano Center, and Next Wave/Full Circle Alternative Schools * February 2 beginning at 6:30 PM - Kennedy School and East Somerville Community School * February 3 beginning at 6:30 PM - West Somerville Neighborhood School, Brown School, and Argenziano School All 2010 School Improvement Plan plans will be posted online following final approval by the School Committee. College Goal Sunday: January 31 beginning at 2:00 PM at Somerville High School (81 Highland Avenue) Getting help paying for college can be confusing and anxiety provoking for many! College Goal Sunday helps take the stress out of the financial aid process by pairing volunteers with families to complete the common financial aid application in one afternoon! Parents/guardians of students planning to go to college in September 2010 are invited to attend this event to get expert and confidential help completing this application! Open House at Somerville High School: February 2-3, 2010 "I don't really know that much about myself. Isn't that sort of the point of being a teenager? (At Somerville High School) you get to explore different things through AP classes, vocational classes and every extracurricular and elective class you can imagine. With these opportunities you start to figure out who you are." - Yolanda R., SHS Graduate, 2008 Come explore Somerville High School at the Annual Open House for Potential New Families Meet the Headmaster, get a tour of the school, talk with students Tuesday, February 2 and Wednesday, February 3 Visit us from 8:30 to 10:00 AM and again from 12:30 to 2:00 PM to learn more Learn more on the web, www.somerville.k12.ma.us/shs Visit the website of the Somerville Public Schools to learn more about events happening across the District, www.somerville.k12.ma.us/events. Have an event you want to share with the school community? Visit www.somerville.k12.ma.us/submit_event to have your event considered for inclusion in our online calendar and other promotions! -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://lists.somerville.ma.us/pipermail/parentsresistat/attachments/20100125/51760798/attachment.html