Superintendent Sheehan releases updates for week of October 27, 2022

This week’s highlights include MFE Monster Dash – This Sunday!, School Committee Superintendent Communication, Late Start Day  – Tomorrow, 10/28, MHS Theatre – Tea with Belle and Friends, Intellispark Screener Information, School Committee Public Forum 11/9, and more.

From The Desk Of The Superintendent

At last night’s School Committee meeting, the committee voted unanimously to accept the resignation of Superintendent James Jette, effective November 4, 2022. A letter from the School Committee (linked here) was sent to all MPS staff, parents, and guardians on October 26.  I join the School Committee in thanking Mr. Jette for his 26 years of dedicated service to the Milton Public Schools and wish him the very best in the future. The School Committee has announced that they will begin immediately to design a search process to recruit and hire the next Superintendent. I appreciate the opportunity to continue as Acting Superintendent through January 2023.

The weather looks great for Sunday’s Monster Dash! Join the Milton Foundation for Education for the Kids Fun Run, Costume Contest, and 5K.

• 8:30 a.m. – Sensory kids run – Registration opens & DJ starts
• 9:00 a.m. Kids fun run
• 9:30 a.m. Costume Contest
• 10:00 a.m. – 5 K Race

Costumes are encouraged at this fantastic community event, held in loving memory of Tucker student Sam Chichello. The MFE created Sam’s Fund to raise money in support of science enrichment in all six of Milton’s public schools. All details and registration info can be found here.

Tomorrow, Friday, October 28 is a late start day in the Milton Public Schools. MPS teachers will engage in Professional Development during the morning. Your child’s school day will begin 2 hours later on these days, buses will run two hours later, Before School Programs will be open only for currently enrolled ESAP participants, and lunch and afterschool activities will continue as usual.

During the late start, elementary staff will focus on Data Analysis, Pierce staff PD will target Safe & Supportive Schools with a Calm Classroom e-learning course and MHS staff will engage in PD around Equity in Learning.

MHS Theatre has a special treat for fans of Beauty and the Beast – Tea with Belle and Friends on November 12 from 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. This is a special opportunity to enjoy “tea”, a story and a craft with Belle and her friends from the castle.  We’ll meet in Belle’s favorite place – the library at MHS. Tickets are not required for this event, but donations to support the MHS Theatre program are encouraged! Sign up for your spot for Tea at this link and don’t forget to get your Beauty and the Beast (Nov 10, 12, 13) tickets here.

As a reminder, there is no school on Tuesday, November 1 for a teacher Professional Development day. Please read below for information about important upcoming MPS dates and events, information on the upcoming Intellispark screener for students, the School Committee Forum on Personalized Learning, SEPAC updates, highlights from STEM week and more.

MPS Need To Know

Important Dates

• Oct 28 Late Start Day/Morning Teacher PD
• Oct 30 MFE Monster Dash
• Nov 1 Teacher PD Day No School
• Nov 2 School Committee
• Nov 5 Milton Holiday Shop
• Nov 9 School Committee Forum on Personalized Learning
• Nov 10 Beauty and the Beast at MHS
• Nov 11 Veterans Day No School
• Nov 12 Beauty and the Beast at MHS
• Nov 13 Beauty and the Beast at MHS

MPS Calendars: 2022-23 One Page School Year Calendar and Link to MPS Monthly Calendar.

Milton’s 2022 Town Wide Seasonal Flu Clinic is on Nov 1 and 2 (4:00 p.m. -6:15 p.m.) at the Council on Aging. Register online for Nov 1 here and Nov 2 here. 

Parents and Guardians of students in Grades 8-11, please save the date for the MHS School Counseling Department’s annual Post Secondary Planning Night on Thursday, December 1st, from 6:15 p.m.  – 8:30 p.m. More details to come!

Sel Screener Information

On Tuesday of this week, all MPS parents and guardians should have received an email (linked here) from Asst. Superintendent Dr. Garth McKinney, outlining details of the upcoming Intellispark screener.

We aim to give these universal SEL screeners to students in K-12 this school year, once in the fall and another time in the spring. Beginning next week, students in Grades 6-12 (screener info linked here) will have the opportunity to complete these screeners. Students in Grades K-5 (screener info linked here) will take the screener with their homeroom teachers.

We hope all students will participate in the universal SEL screener as part of the SEL curriculum in the district.  If any family feels their student would be better served without taking part in it, please contact your child’s principal with your child’s name, grade, and homeroom teacher to opt out. You can read Dr. McKinney’s full communication here. 

School Committee Public Forum

On Wednesday, November 9, from 7:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. , the School Committee will host the first of four public forums for the Milton community. The forum will provide a brief presentation on Personalized Learning,  a pillar of the MPS Strategic Plan. Personalized Learning is an educational approach that creates engaging learning experiences aligned with each student’s strengths, interests, and needs and ensures that students will experience a robust and academically rich school experience.

Community members will be invited to ask questions and share comments about Personalized Learning. MPS Administration, School Committee members, and Personalized Learning authority Cyndy Taymore, who is providing the district with Professional Development, will respond to questions and comments and share their perspectives on the issues.

The public forum will be held at the Council on Aging, at 10 Walnut St, just behind Town Hall. The meeting will be hybrid, with attendees able to participate in person and through Zoom and Slido. All links to attend will be posted on the main page of the MPS website linked here.

MPS Employment Opportunities

Open MPS positions are always posted on the employment page of our website.  We currently have openings for Daily Substitutes, ABA Instructional Assistants, a Long Term Sub Speech Language Pathologist, Long Term Sub BCBA and more.  Check out this link and see if there is a fit for you!

In addition, we are hiring food service substitutes. Food service substitutes earn $19.15 an hour and work part-time in a flexible schedule during the school day. Please call Natalia Perez at 617-898-1051 if interested.

MPS Good To Know 

SEPAC

Please see below from the SEPAC Board.

Advocate: The Milton Special Education Parent Advisory Council (Milton SEPAC) is a parent-run, nonprofit organization dedicated to providing information, support and advocacy to families with children with special needs and/or learning disabilities in the Milton Public Schools. Milton SEPAC represents families of approximately 800 Milton Public School students on IEPs and 504s. Meeting the needs of exceptional, neurodivergent children is a parenting journey that calls for unique community support and wisdom. No one should feel like they have to go it alone.

Educate: Before you go to your next IEP meeting, it’s more than worth it to register for a FREE Federation for Children with Special Needs workshop. They offer up to ten different workshops per year and many are online. Check out upcoming workshops in November.

Participate: At our first meeting on October 11 we had close to thirty parents in attendance. Many powerful stories and connections were shared. If you are still interested in joining our board and/or finding out how to become more involved, please reach out to your school rep. We are still in need of a secretary. An election form will be going out soon.

Fruit Center Shopping Week

Fruit Center Shopping week is November 7-11 and it’s easy to participate and raise funds for your child’s school. Thank you to the Fruit Center for their generous support of our schools!

• Download a shopping voucher for your school here. Print as many as you’d like and share them with friends, family and neighbors. There are also social media promotional graphics and QR codes that you can use to promote this event to your school community.
• Present your voucher when you make purchases at the Fruit Center Marketplace from Monday, November 7 through Sunday, November 13, 2022. Shop as often as you like and use your voucher for every shopping trip you make.
• The Fruit Center will donate 20% of your total purchase back to your school.
• All details can be found here.

2nd Annual Milton Holiday Shop

On Saturday, November 5th from 12:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. at Steel and Rye, join our school PTOs, MHS Boosters, MHS FAME and more for the 2nd Annual Holiday Shop. Shop all things Milton and MPS in one stop shopping!

MPS Nice To Know

STEM WEEK 

October 17-21 was STEM Week across Massachusetts, and here in Milton many of our classrooms participated. K-2nd grade students participated in fall themed challenges while students in Grades 3-5 learned about a specific field of engineering and completed a design challenge related to that field. At Pierce Middle School, students in Ms. Magill’s STEM classes researched an animal and designed a zoo enclosure specific to their animal.

Milton High School

Ms. Lee’s Advanced Art students personalized the spine and cover of their sketchbooks. Students thought about a concept or theme for the inspiration of their designs and used a variety of media. You can see a sample of the work below. To view more sketchbooks, please see this link.

Pierce Pages

8th grade Aquarius and Orion science students used their knowledge of genetics and heredity to build and breed Crazy Creatures. They were able to identify genotypes and phenotypes of the creatures and then use Punnett Squares to predict the probability of genetic outcomes of two Crazy Creatures. You can see their fun and interesting creatures below.

Athletics

We are excited to announce that we have hired MHS teacher Rick McCready as our new Unified Track and Field Head Coach for the Spring of 2023. McCready has coached with the Golf and Hockey Programs for the past several years, while also volunteering with the Unified Program last year. He looks forward to enhancing the experience of those students involved as well as engaging the community in what is a great program!

Community News & Events

Please use the links below or visit the MPS Community News & Events page for information on these terrific community events and opportunities!

Join the fun at the Milton Halloween Stroll on Saturday, October 29th, from 3:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. at the  East Milton Square Deck. Costumes are encouraged but not required. Bouncy House, music & other fun activities. All ghosts and goblins are welcome!

Mackie’s Barber Shop is pleased to announce the 6th Annual Veterans Day Cut-a-Thon on Saturday, November 12th from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. All details can be found here. 

The Library is currently conducting a survey of the community to assess how to improve access and services within our town’s neighborhoods. Please access the survey here.

National Prescription Drug Take Back Day is Saturday, Oct. 29th from 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. at the Milton Police Station, 40 Highland St.

As part of their community assessment, the Milton Coalition is asking parents/guardians of children in grades K-12 to complete this brief, anonymous survey about youth health and well-being.

The Milton Public Library’s calendar of October programs for kids can be found here. The MPL website is linked here. Plan ahead and take a look at the November calendar here. 

Come on by to the Story Hour Room for a visit with local Children’s book author Carla Marrero on Saturday, November 5 at 2:30PM! Carla will be sharing her self-published picture book, The Magical Cat, and kids ages 4-12 will also get a chance to make crafts related to her story. Register here today!

Superintendent Shoutout

Thank you to all who attended the Milton Boosters “Swing Fore Sports” Golf Tournament this month. Organizers Debra MacNeil and Susan DiSandro want to take this opportunity to thank the many golfers who braved the less than ideal weather during the annual golf fundraiser at Granite Links.

A special shout out to our very generous donors this year: American Provisions, Catering by Terrie, Costello Painting & Contracting Corp., East Milton Dental, Elliott Physical Therapy, Flagship Harbor Advisors, Granite Links Golf Course, Group 1 Automotive, Intersecting Knowledge, Jimmy Coyne Productions, Lenny & Michelle Wall, Midway Café, Rich Hynes- Milton Travel Basketball, Scott Farrell + Partners, Ted Kackley- TK Fitness, and Town Administrator Nicholas Milano.

Thank you to all who donated, participated and contributed in any way. Our athletes appreciate the incredible support!

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The Milton Public School system does not and shall not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion (creed), gender, gender expression, gender identity, transgender status, gender transitioning, age, national origin (ancestry), disability, marital status, sexual orientation, or military status, in any of its programs, activities or operations. These include, but are not limited to, admissions, equal access to programs and activities, employment, provision of and access to programs and services, as well as a selection of volunteers, vendors, and employers recruiting at the Milton Public Schools.  We are committed to providing an inclusive and welcoming environment for all members of our staff, students, volunteers, subcontractors, and vendors. The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding the non-discrimination policies: Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Human Resources Dr. Garth McKinney, (617) 696- 4808/4809.