Harwood Middle School Update, December 21, 2018

Harwood Middle School Update
DECEMBER 21, 2018 

CONNECTING AS A SCHOOL COMMUNITY
FIRST STUDENT-LED MIDDLE SCHOOL ASSEMBLY!

Under the direction our student-led assembly crew, HUMS students held
their first Student-Led assembly this past Thursday.

Along with the Assembly Crew who has planned and will host the assembly,
an Assembly Band has been gathered
under the direction of Curtis Siegmann and Jacki McCarty,
modeled after the High School Assembly Band which is f
featured in bi-monthly high school assemblies.

Thursday's assembly included an introduction to the assembly format by the hosts,
a feature highlighting the HUMS Student Council and Student Newspaper Staff members
(who will be releasing their first issue of the Harwood Hard Copy this week),
a performance by the MS Assembly Band and a
TA Donut Eating Challenge in which TA representatives will compete for the TA Assembly
Challenge Title (trophy included).
In the future, the Assembly Crew hopes to include a variety of student acts showcasingHUMS talent. The feedback has been very positive!

MS ASSEMBLY CREW:  

Abby Holter, Amalia Iskandarova, Pacie McGrath

MS ASSEMBLY BAND:

Jonah Halter, Curtis Siegmann, Beckett Kahn, Tyler Gaidys, Duane Pierson

Tim Wilson, Kyla Allon, Jacki McCarty, Anlu Thamm, Piper Boudreau, Arianna Clark

Macie Whalen, Jaden Purdy-Greig, Chris Herring

Curious about Food? 
HUMS culinary students video chat with food scientist Maegan Olsen. Maegan answered questions about her work researching and developing new products at Cabot Cheese as well as the learning path she took to become a food scientist. 

Eva Sollberger, a videographer who has created well over five hundred short films about Vermonters, spoke to our curious 7th graders this week about her passion for telling peoples' stories, her challenges, her process, and even her favorite equipment. This was a great way to celebrate the end of work on our ethnographic research in Language Arts and Social Studies classes.

SUBJECT: HUUSD School Board Meeting Update - Dec 19, 2018

__________________________________________

Dear members of our six town community,

Below please find the votes and key agenda items from the HUUSD board meeting on December 19, 2018.

1. Approved the following items as part of the consent agenda for December 19, 2018:  Approve past meeting minutes; Accept board warrants totaling $244,698.85.

2. Approved updating the budget based on additional information received from our administrative team.

3. Approved amending the condition of our early retirement incentive from requiring 20 years of district teaching for retirement to requiring 15 years of teaching for retirement.

4. Approved directing the superintendent and administrative team to return to the original project budget after a discussion around 3 cent cut option fully explored.

5.  Passed a resolution acknowledging the board’s strong desire to focus on our district’s asset management and all allocation in the next 12 months to more proactively engage in budget planning for next year.  

6. Approved the creation of “Board Buddies” for student council representatives. (Welcome, students!)

7. Approved distributing “Join the HUUSD board" FAQs for distribution.

8. Approved revised communications structure and process.

9. Approved Community Engagement/Creative Discourse report, including 1) accepting the report, 2) approving distribution, and 3) sending policy through a process for fast-tracked adoption.

Our next HUUSD board meeting is scheduled for 6:00 pm on Wednesday, January 9th at the HUHS library.  

Please note this meeting follows our recently adopted HUUSD board agenda format, with the first hour spent with committees meeting individually from 6:00 - 7:00 pm.  The full board will come back together at 7:00 pm.

Please visit wwsu.org for board packets, agendas, and minutes - and to find the link to watch board meetings. The direct link to watch this and past meetings is: https://mrvtv.com/category/school-board-meetings/

Thank you for your continued support and engagement.

Respectfully,

The HUUSD Board, Christine Sullivan (Waitsfield)  *Chair, Caitlin Hollister (Waterbury) *Vice Chair, Alycia Biondo (Warren), Jill Ellis (Fayston), Gabe Gilman (Moretown), Linda Hazard (Moretown), Garett MacCurtain (Duxbury)   , Maureen McCracken (Waterbury)Theresa Membrino (Fayston), Melissa Phillips (Waterbury), Torrey Smith (Duxbury) , Alexandra Thomsen (Waterbury), Rosemarie White (Warren), Rob Williams (Waitsfield)

Dear Community Member, 

On Wednesday, April 3rd from 8:00am-12:00pm Crossett Brook and Harwood Union Middle Schools will be hosting our biennial career fair at Crossett Brook Middle School. The career fair will target middle school students who are just beginning to think about how their education relates to real life opportunities. We are gathering interested state and local business and industry leaders, service providers, artists, scientists, politicians, athletes, farmers, journalists, and others to present information about their fields and places of work. 

We would love to have you attend and share information about your particular career! Middle school students can sometimes feel disconnected from their education because they do not understand how it supports their future. We would like them to learn that the process of moving into the world of work begins now with their dreams, recreation, involvement, and volunteering. The more we can engage our youth in the community around them, the more successful we will be at transitioning them into prosperous contributing members of our society. 

This is where your support is crucial! If you are passionate about your career and love what you do, then you are the right presenter for us! If you or your business are interested in participating in the career fair, please complete the form linked here. If you are not the person within your place of business who could coordinate participation, please forward this letter on to the individual who could best fill this role. We will contact you as we draw closer to the event to confirm your participation and update you on specific details. If you know of others who would be interested in participating in our fair, please feel free to pass along this information and the link above.  Thank you in advance for considering this event. With your participation, we hope it will be a great success! 

Regards, Jennifer Hempey & Jen Dreimiller School Counselors, Crossett Brook and Harwood Union Middle Schools.  

Jennie Hempey Jen Dreimiller jhempey@wwsu.org jdreimiller@wwsu.org 802-244-6100 ext 2443 802-882-1144

Have a great December school vacation!  

Flying into 2019, HUMS pilots are ready for the new year!  

Harwood Middle School Update, December 14, 2018

Harwood Middle School Update, December 14, 2018 

HUMS students had an opportunity to speak with
Senator Leahy this past Wednesday,  Students were Curious about
his life story, why he became a Senator and what his hopes and dreams
are for the United States.  Way to go HUMS!   

7th Grade Ethnographers are collecting their interviews this week for the final project.
Curious as to what Ethnography is?  Ask your 7th grader..... 

"The Quiet Force" Documentary Showing Former HUMS Student  Hilary Byrne, has recently been celebrated for her documentary "The Quiet Force" Hilary's step-sister Anlu Thamm is an HUMS 8th grade student and initially shared the film trailer (and it's opening in Jackson Hole) during a Harwood Hardcopy student newspaper meeting.  The documentary seemed like an important one to show as it ties into our recent immigration unit and is timely; the film is also made by HUMS alumni.   The film shows how vital the South American Immigrant population is to the ski areas out west (Mammoth, Jackson Hole & Alta), and gives information about current immigration policy and the need for some policy revision.  Right now they are in the process of showing it at film festivals so it is pretty special that were able to enjoy a premiere viewing   Many thanks to Hilary, Anlu and Jack Byrne for making this special event happen.    After the viewing of the film HUMS students had the opportunity to process and critique the documentary in their Language Arts classes.  Students also compiled a list of questions they had about the film and film production (as well as Hilary's time as an HUMS student!) which Hilary will respond to and will be shared with students next week..

HUUSD School Board Meeting Update - Nov 28, 2018

Dear members of our six town community,
      Below please find the votes and key agenda items from the HUUSD board meeting on November 28.
    1. Approved the following items as part of the consent agenda for November 28, 2018:  Approve past meeting Minutes; Accept Board warrants totaling $438,229.33; Accept Board Leadership Report; Accept Director of Finance report; Adopted Policy E1 Fiscal Management; Approve HUHS Field Trip; Approve Annual Financial Management Questionnaire; Approve First Amendment to Solar Services Energy Agreement for net metering credits allocated to Thatcher Brook Primary School.
   2. After discussion, approved an amended work plan that includes the formation of committees to do project-specific work related to the board’s goals, with first committee meetings to commence on December 12.
   3. Agreed to add a future agenda item (date TBD) for the board to discuss what role, if any, the board has with respect to the school profile and transcript; and to allocate some meeting time on Dec 12 to discuss agenda development and procedure.
       A considerable amount of time in the meeting was spent reviewing and discussing the first draft of the district budget as presented by the Director of Finance. The first draft was a “level service” scenario. Key metrics included: 3.59% increase in total expenditures, 2% decrease in number of equalized pupils, 5% increase in spending per equalized pupil. There were multiple questions and comments around what was going to happen at the state level, and around the fact that we will not get the specific numbers that we need from the state to calculate tax rates until January.
       Our next HUUSD board meeting is scheduled for 6:00 pm on Wednesday, December 12 at the HUHS library.  Please note this meeting will be the first to follow a new agenda format, with the first hour spent with committees meeting individually. The full board will come back together at 7:00 pm.
      For more information, please visit wwsu.org for board agendas and minutes and to find the link to watch board meetings. The direct link to watch this and past meetings is: https://mrvtv.com/category/school-board-meetings/
      Thank you for your continued support and engagement.
Respectfully,    The HUUSD Board:   Christine Sullivan (Waitsfield)  *Chair, Caitlin Hollister (Waterbury)  *Vice Chair, Alycia Biondo (Warren), Jill Ellis (Fayston), Gabe Gilman (Moretown). Linda Hazard (Moretown), Garett MacCurtain (Duxbury), Maureen McCracken (Waterbury),Theresa Membrino (Fayston), Melissa Phillips (Waterbury), Torrey Smith (Duxbury), Alexandra Thomsen  (Waterbury), Rosemarie White (Warren), Rob Williams (Waitsfield)

Community Announcements

Please note that the opportunities/events listed below are not specifically endorsed or screened by school staff. As always, families should use their own standards and review processes to determine appropriate activities.
 

Holiday Taste of the Valley Event Featuring Student Cooking Country Christmas has a new event for everyone to participate in. Teams of young cooks and bakers will be sampling their foods and treats at local shops from 12 -2 pm on Saturday 12/8.

There are 7 teams competing. In order to vote for your favorite “taste” you need to sample from at least 5 of the tables (2 from the Bridge Street area and 3 from the Mad River Green Shops). Each station will have voting papers available and stamps to indicate that you’ve sampled the “taste”. Votes can be dropped off at Whippletree Designs (where the People’s Choice Trophy will be on display) till 5 pm.

Locations for the tastes are: The Artisan’s Gallery, Mad River Valley Visitor Center, Mad River Taste Place, Product Think Tank, Opulent Design, The Collection, and Peanut and Mouse.

Ashley Woods and Mary Laulis will be judging all tastes so we can recognize what was done well by each team and those results will be shared in the Valley Reporter the week following the event. The People’s Choice Award will also be shared at that time. All recipes will be available on www.MadRiverValley.com.

Gifts of Kindness (donation box will be picked up 12/7/18)   Harwood Union Rotary Interact club is holding the Gifts of Kindness clothing and toy drive for our 15th year. This drive seeks to collect new and very gently used toys and clothing for families in Washington County experiencing homelessness. We plan to collect items between the dates of November 28th and December 7th. Interact works with the Good Samaritan House, the only homeless shelter in Central Vermont, and CIRCLE in Barre, who provide shelter for families experiencing domestic violence. Our goal is to brighten the holiday season for people in need. There is a box for donations in the school lobby.

Fencing Instruction    For adults and Students grade 5 and up. Students have priority and reduced cost. All non-students and adults are welcomed as well! Beginners and experienced Fencers. No experience is necessary.
When: 6:30-8:00 PM with open Fencing and individual instruction 8:00-9:00 PM. Mondays and Wednesdays Dec 10 - Jan 21, 6:30 PM-8:00 PM (no class Dec 24, 26, 31)
Where: Moretown Elementary School Gym
Why: Learn basic Fencing or refine your current skills.
Cost: $50 for Students grades 5-12. $125 for all others

Harwood Middle School Update, December 7, 2018

8th Grade Bakers hard at work..  or working hard at tasting the batter...  

 8th Grade Mathematician working on creating replicas of The Wheel of Theodorus, a spiral design created with right triangles that build upon the previous hypotenuse that students had to calculate. 

This year, 6 HUMS 7th graders are embarking on a journey no HUMS student has done before!  Two, 3-person teams were selected to be teen teachers for the 2019 TRY for the Environment Program, through the Vermont 4-H organization. 

TRY stands for Teens Reaching Youth and is an environmental leadership opportunity for students in grades 7‐12. It is an environmental education program taught by teens and designed to increase environmental literacy and responsibility in younger youth. TRY for the Environment includes five program areas to connect young people to real‐world environmental problems allowing them to be key change agents contributing to real‐world solutions.

On Tuesday, the students attended an all day training to learn how to deliver 6 lessons to elementary aged students on the topic of water and water conservation. Throughout the remainder of the year, these teams will deliver the 6 lessons to 2 partner elementary classrooms. 

7th Grade Artist working on a Winter Project 

7th Grade Mathematician works on a Scale Factor Poster this past week.    

In the Fall there was a request by student government to increase access time to the cafeteria in the morning. Over the break, we were able to reprogram the bell system and the revised schedule went into effect on November 26, 2018.  

This means that the first bell will ring at 8:12 am and Block 1 will begin at 8:17 am. This should allow access to the cafeteria for any student choosing to get breakfast or snacks before classes begin.  

This change does not affect the end of the day dismissal time, which will remain at 2:47pm.

HUUSD School Board Meeting Update - Nov 28, 2018

Dear members of our six town community,
      Below please find the votes and key agenda items from the HUUSD board meeting on November 28.
    1. Approved the following items as part of the consent agenda for November 28, 2018:  Approve past meeting Minutes; Accept Board warrants totaling $438,229.33; Accept Board Leadership Report; Accept Director of Finance report; Adopted Policy E1 Fiscal Management; Approve HUHS Field Trip; Approve Annual Financial Management Questionnaire; Approve First Amendment to Solar Services Energy Agreement for net metering credits allocated to Thatcher Brook Primary School.
   2. After discussion, approved an amended work plan that includes the formation of committees to do project-specific work related to the board’s goals, with first committee meetings to commence on December 12.
   3. Agreed to add a future agenda item (date TBD) for the board to discuss what role, if any, the board has with respect to the school profile and transcript; and to allocate some meeting time on Dec 12 to discuss agenda development and procedure.
       A considerable amount of time in the meeting was spent reviewing and discussing the first draft of the district budget as presented by the Director of Finance. The first draft was a “level service” scenario. Key metrics included: 3.59% increase in total expenditures, 2% decrease in number of equalized pupils, 5% increase in spending per equalized pupil. There were multiple questions and comments around what was going to happen at the state level, and around the fact that we will not get the specific numbers that we need from the state to calculate tax rates until January.
       Our next HUUSD board meeting is scheduled for 6:00 pm on Wednesday, December 12 at the HUHS library.  Please note this meeting will be the first to follow a new agenda format, with the first hour spent with committees meeting individually. The full board will come back together at 7:00 pm.
      For more information, please visit wwsu.org for board agendas and minutes and to find the link to watch board meetings. The direct link to watch this and past meetings is: https://mrvtv.com/category/school-board-meetings/
      Thank you for your continued support and engagement.
Respectfully,    The HUUSD Board:   Christine Sullivan (Waitsfield)  *Chair, Caitlin Hollister (Waterbury)  *Vice Chair, Alycia Biondo (Warren), Jill Ellis (Fayston), Gabe Gilman (Moretown). Linda Hazard (Moretown), Garett MacCurtain (Duxbury), Maureen McCracken (Waterbury),Theresa Membrino (Fayston), Melissa Phillips (Waterbury), Torrey Smith (Duxbury), Alexandra Thomsen  (Waterbury), Rosemarie White (Warren), Rob Williams (Waitsfield)

Community Announcements

Please note that the opportunities/events listed below are not specifically endorsed or screened by school staff. As always, families should use their own standards and review processes to determine appropriate activities.

Holiday Taste of the Valley Event Featuring Student Cooking Country Christmas has a new event for everyone to participate in. Teams of young cooks and bakers will be sampling their foods and treats at local shops from 12 -2 pm on Saturday 12/8.

There are 7 teams competing. In order to vote for your favorite “taste” you need to sample from at least 5 of the tables (2 from the Bridge Street area and 3 from the Mad River Green Shops). Each station will have voting papers available and stamps to indicate that you’ve sampled the “taste”. Votes can be dropped off at Whippletree Designs (where the People’s Choice Trophy will be on display) till 5 pm.

Locations for the tastes are: The Artisan’s Gallery, Mad River Valley Visitor Center, Mad River Taste Place, Product Think Tank, Opulent Design, The Collection, and Peanut and Mouse.

Ashley Woods and Mary Laulis will be judging all tastes so we can recognize what was done well by each team and those results will be shared in the Valley Reporter the week following the event. The People’s Choice Award will also be shared at that time. All recipes will be available on www.MadRiverValley.com.

Fencing Instruction    For adults and Students grade 5 and up. Students have priority and reduced cost. All non-students and adults are welcomed as well! Beginners and experienced Fencers. No experience is necessary.
When: 6:30-8:00 PM with open Fencing and individual instruction 8:00-9:00 PM. Mondays and Wednesdays Dec 10 - Jan 21, 6:30 PM-8:00 PM (no class Dec 24, 26, 31)
Where: Moretown Elementary School Gym
Why: Learn basic Fencing or refine your current skills.

Cost: $50 for Students grades 5-12. $125 for all others

Harwood annual Christmas tree and wreath sale is just around the corner! This sale is the major fundraiser for the class of 2021. Please consider purchasing a tree or wreath from the Sophomore class this year. The sale will be held at American Flatbread at Lareau Farm in Waitsfield. Sophomore parents/guardians...you are welcome to join with your student's TA group! All volunteers are welcome! Please contact the TA or Ellen Berrings (eberrings@wwsu.org) with any questions. Parent/guardian volunteers will receive a $5 voucher toward your tree purchase.

Dates and times:

Friday, 11/30; 4:00-7:00 PM

Saturday, 12/1; 10:00 AM-6:00 PM

Sunday, 12/2; 10:00 AM-5:00 PM

Friday, 12/7; 4:00-7:00 PM

Saturday, 12/8; 10:00 AM-6:00 PM

Sunday, 12/9; 10:00 AM-5:00 PM

Gifts of Kindness   Harwood Union Rotary Interact club is holding the Gifts of Kindness clothing and toy drive for our 15th year. This drive seeks to collect new and very gently used toys and clothing for families in Washington County experiencing homelessness. We plan to collect items between the dates of November 28th and December 7th. Interact works with the Good Samaritan House, the only homeless shelter in Central Vermont, and CIRCLE in Barre, who provide shelter for families experiencing domestic violence. Our goal is to brighten the holiday season for people in need. There is a box for donations in the school lobby.