“We understand that Masco is a community center for the Tri Towns, and as such, continued community involvement is key in keeping and improving upon the quality school district that all of us have come to expect, that our children deserve, and know that ultimately we grow stronger as a community due to this partnership.”

— Annual Report of the Masconomet Regional School District, Introduction

School Committee Highlights:

• The second draft of the Masconomet FY21 Budget Recommendation was presented by Superintendent Mike Harvey, Assistant Superintendent Jeff Sands, and Assistant Superintendent Patti Bullard
• This FY21 Budget Presentation outlines the changes that were made since the last meeting for Level Service PLUS an Investment in Critical Priorities
• Patti Bullard presented the Student Services portion of the budget recommendation
• Budget Calendar is available here and Public meetings are posted here; Note that there are two public hearings on March 4 and March 11.

• Middle School Principal Report - Jim Dillon highlighted many examples of experiential and deep learning in classes, clubs and extracurricular activities, including:
• Ryan King spoke to 8th grade science classes about his use of sonar in deep ocean diving for shipwrecks, connecting this to ocean mapping and plate tectonics
• 7th graders attended a seminar on social media (linked here) by Susan Reynolds, cofounder of LookUp; Link here to learn about the LookUp Challenge
• Environmental Club gave a convincing presentation to Student Council, gaining permission to raise money for Australian wildfires
• STEM club received awards in a “future cities” competition on solving the issue of clean water 
• In Health class, students are emailing back and forth with two Peace Corps volunteers in Gambia and Zambia 
• Portfolio projects done in the 8Red team will soon be done by all 8th grade teams

• School Committee Annual Report was approved and will be included in towns' annual reports.  
• Congratulations to HS students Jessica Ding, Cam Pagnani, Eliza Reimold, Emma Spofford, and  Matthew Walsh, who were selected to perform at Symphony Hall in Boston during the Convention of the Massachusetts Music Educators Association.
• Many thanks to MEF for funding a field trip to the MFA for senior French class students.

Click here to read the full Summary Notes* from the 02/05/2020 meeting.  *These are not meeting minutes and not intended to be a transcription of the meeting.

Community programs:

• A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM - High School performance of this Shakespearean play this weekend,  February 7 - 8 at 7:00 pm and February 9 at 2:00 pm in Masconomet Auditorium; Tickets $10, sold at door; News article here!
• JAZZ CONCERT February 13 at 7:00 pm, Masco Auditorium; Jazz 1 (HS),  Jazz 2.0 (MS), Tri Town Rock Band, Jazz Choir (HS) 
• BUILDING GREAT HOMEWORK ROUTINES, Wednesday, 2/12 at 7pm in Masco MS Library, presentation by Kat Marsh, M.Ed. of Commonwealth Learning Center for her presentation on building great homework routines; Hosted by the Tri-Town SEPAC; RSVP is requested but not required

NEXT SC Meeting: February 26, 2020 at 7pm in HS Presentation Room.  

Meeting agendas, minutes, documents, and videos are posted on-line at: https://www.masconomet.org/domain/41 

If you have questions, please contact our committee chair, Tasha Cooper, at tcooper@masconomet.org

 “The overarching goal of this budget is to meet the needs of the district while being mindful of the impact on member towns.” 

—Jeff Sands, Assistant Superintendent of Finance and Operations  

Image: Honors Engineering Students collaborate to build and program interactive Arduinos in their project “Nightmare Before Midterms” (Arduinos equipment was gifted by MEF)

School Committee Highlights:

• Budget Season is underway:
  • The Superintendent’s Blog offers an excellent summary of this. 
• The first draft of the Masconomet FY21 Budget Recommendation was presented to the School Committee by Superintendent Mike Harvey and Assistant Superintendent Jeff Sands.  
• The attached FY21 Budget Power Point Presentation provided an overview of recommendations for Level Service PLUS an Investment in Critical Priorities. 
• Details of the FY21 Budget Book will be reviewed in detail by major expense categories over the coming weeks; This budget calendar is available here, and all public meetings are posted here with locations and times. 
• Note that there are two public hearings on March 4 and March 11 for community feedback on the proposed budget.    

• High School Report:
• Congratulations to our first place poet Maggie Chiffer who will go on to represent Masco at the Poetry Out Loud state competition in Boston
• Graphic Design students are working with Tri-Town Council to visually represent data collected in the Youth Risk Behavior Survey
• Masconomet mathletes tied for second place in a division one cluster of the Massachusetts Mathematics League
• More H.S. Highlights can be found in the HS Principal’s Blog and High School Principals Report 
• The 2020-2021 school calendar was approved with one change to the proposed calendar. View the final calendar here
• Many thanks to MEF for four grants totalling $16,950 in support of DECA, Psychology Club, Spanish Class Trip, and MS ChromeBook Carts.  Thanks also to WBMT for a donation of $1,343 from a WBMT Masco graduate (class of 1984)

Click here to read the full Summary Notes* from the 01/22/2020 meeting.  *These are not meeting minutes and not intended to be a transcription of the meeting.

Community programs:

• MIDDLE SCHOOL PRINCIPAL SEARCH - Meet the Finalists - Mr. Conant on Tues. Jan.28th & Dr. McManus on Tues. Feb 4th; both at 6:30 pm in Middle School Library.  Read about the two finalists here. Site visits will conclude with this Open Forum for each Finalist to meet with parents and interested members of the community. Participants in these sessions will be asked to provide written feedback on the candidates.
• OPEN GYM at Masco Field House - Sat., Jan. 25th 7-9 pm. Middle School and High School students: Pick-up basketball, floor hockey, volleyball, bean bag toss, cantab, board games and more. Bring a water bottle and Masco ID. Supervised by Masco Phys Ed staff and TTC Volunteers. Other Open Gym Nights: 2/1, 2/29, 3/7, 3/28. Preregister here.
• COMMUNITY CONVERSATION “Are the Children Well?” - Wed., Jan. 29th, 7-9 pm. All Middle School, HIgh School youth, parents, caregivers and any caring adults are invited to this forum to discuss the results of the 2018 YRBS (Youth Risk Behavior Survey) administered to Masco students. Preregister here.
• PARENTAL RIGHTS and RESPONSIBILITIES - Wed. Jan. 29th, 7-9 pm. Presentation on the Special Education Process, Parental Rights, and IEP’s/504 Plans; Sponsored by TriTown SEPAC. Details here.
• UNDERSTANDING TEEN DEPRESSION - Wed., Feb. 4th, 7-9pm. Free workshop for  parents and caring adults featuring a clinical presentation followed by Q&A.  Learn to recognize signs of depression and how to get teens the care they need to get well. Sponsored by the Tri-Town Council. Preregister here

NEXT SC Meeting: February 5, 2020 at 7pm in HS Presentation Room.  

Meeting agendas, minutes, documents, and videos are posted on-line at: https://www.masconomet.org/domain/41 

 If you have questions, please contact our committee chair, Tasha Cooper, at tcooper@masconomet.org

“Habits of good character” are a cornerstone of Masconomet Middle School; These are:  integrity, compassion, empathy, generosity, kindness, caring, honesty, responsibility, self discipline, perseverance, courage, appreciation, and loyalty.”

School Committee Highlights:

• Middle School Report:
• Mr. Dillon expressed pride in the positive energy and creativity among the middle school staff; 
• Many thanks to MEF for their support of the schools - Mr.Dillon summed up MEF with this: “fantastic work, huge asset, great people.”
• There are plans to introduce a new elective option for “exploratories,” which run opposite Gym, and would include three trimesters with (1) coding, (2)intro to public speaking, and (3) media communication.
• More M.S. Highlights can be found in the Principal’s Blog and Middle School Principal's Report

• The Masconomet FY21 Budget Recommendation will be presented on January 22, 2020 at regular school committee meeting in the Ralph Osgood Presentation Room. The budget calendar is available here, and all public meetings are posted here with locations and times. 
• Turf Up Masco gifted $4100, which will fund a full market analysis as planned with Stantec.

Click here to read the full Summary Notes* from the 01/08/2020 meeting.  *These are not meeting minutes and not intended to be a transcription of the meeting.

Community programs:

• We invite you to participate in this brief survey for the Middle School Principal Search.
• Flatbread’s Georgetown fundraiser for Junior Class, Jan 14 from 5-9pm

• TriTown Council program:  Screen Time: A Healthy Balance - Presented by Cory Mashburn, M.Ed. - Jan 15, 7:00 PM – 9:00 PM in the Topsfield Town Library meeting room. TTC has several more events coming up in January - full info and registration here

NEXT SC Meeting: January 22, 2020 at 7pm in HS Presentation Room.  

Meeting agendas, minutes, documents, and videos are posted on-line at: https://www.masconomet.org/domain/41 

 If you have questions, please contact our committee chair, Tasha Cooper, at tcooper@masconomet.org

Image: Junior-class flier for January 14th fundraiser at Georgetown Flatbread

“Great things are going on here, but few outside the district know about them.”  - Dr. Michael Harvey, Superintendent

Photo from Senior Citizen Luncheon & Holiday Concert

School Committee Highlights:

• Dr. Harvey presented his Superintendent’s Entry Plan Findings, stating that “While there is currently a wealth of excellent programming in the District, there is a lack of a ‘single story’ to weave these programs together and provide guidance on future endeavors designed to improve the instructional core.”  

This report identified current conditions in preparation for building a strategic plan, with major findings in four categories:

• Community Resources
• Governance and Leadership
• Faculty and Staff
• Student Learning

View the slide presentation here, and full report here. 

Dr. Harvey also emailed his report to our Masco community, saying that: 

“It is clear that the members of this community have a passion for Masconomet and are invested in seeing it be successful. I am honored to now be a part of this community, and am excited about working with you to imagine and implement the future of the Masconomet Regional School District.”

• Peter Delani gave a Principal Report, and highlighted the work our students have been doing with the Ronald McDonald House in Cambridge; Watch a short video of students caroling at the RMH here.  A great way to see highschool highlights is the principals’ blog! 

• MANY THANKS to MEF for generous donations totalling $14,912.50 this month for:
• Field Trip to the Peabody Essex Museum’s Yin Yu Tang exhibit for Chinese students and exchange students
• “Talking Tiles” Audio Recorders for the Foreign Language Department
• Two Chromebook Carts for the Middle School 
• Congratulations to the Cheerleaders for qualifying to compete in the National Meet in Dallas, TX at the end of January!

Click here to read the full Summary Notes* from the 12/18/20 meeting.  *These are not meeting minutes and not intended to be a transcription of the meeting.

Community programs:

• The Senior Citizen Holiday Concert Luncheon was attended by over 80 guests from the TriTown.  Thank you to Salem Five Bank in Middleton for sponsoring the lunch prepared by Masco’s dining services, and thank you to the HS Band and Chorale for a beautiful performance! (Video will be posted here soon!)

• We invite you to participate in this brief survey for the Middle School Principal Search.  This information will help those involved in the selection process.

• TriTown Council has several events coming up in January - full info and registration here

NEXT SC Meeting: January 8, 2020 at 7pm in HS Presentation Room.  

Meeting agendas, minutes, documents, and videos are posted on-line at: https://www.masconomet.org/domain/41 

 If you have questions, please contact our committee chair, Tasha Cooper, at tcooper@masconomet.org

We wish you all a wonderful holiday break!

From Citizenship Workshop in Middle School: 

Discussion Question: “If doing what is right has a cost, should you go along with what is wrong?”

Student Response: “No - It may be that doing what is right has a cost, but doing what is wrong would have a bigger cost. You could lose something even more important to you” - shared by MS Principal, Mr. Dillon

Photo from Eighth Grade trip to Washington DC. 

School Committee Highlights:

• Dr. Harvey discussed the Shelter In Place that took place on Monday 11/25, stating that “our response was not what we would have liked it to have been.”  He shared steps to learn from this, assess, repair, and plan better for next time. He will send a message about this to families after convening with members of the District’s Safety Team this week.  
• MS Principal Jim Dillon shared Middle School Principal Report 
• Eighth graders’ multi-day Civics field-trip to Philadelphia & Washington DC or Boston & Salem was great success. 
• Seventh graders were visited by broadcast journalist Steve Hartman, who is best known for his “On the Road” segments on CBS Evening News - View Masco’s seventh grade in WBZ news segment about this visit here  
• Athletics Director John Delaines shared that new Boosters policy has gone very well. Booster Report 
• Dr. Harvey shared the Middle School Principal Search Timeline, which will run Dec. 2 through Feb. 24.

• HS Student Council representative Tara Gallagher shared that the HS Pep Rally was a highlight last week. 
• A District Capital Investment Task Force meeting will take place on Dec. 9th at 7pm.
• For exciting school highlights please visit the HS blog and the MS blog 
• Click here to read full Summary Notes* from the 12/04/19 meeting. *These are not meeting minutes and not intended to be a transcription of the meeting.  

Community programs:

• TriTown Council upcoming program, Dec. 9th at 6pm: “Parent Conversations with Masco Support Staff and TTC” - More Info and RSVP here. 
• TriTown Council Open Gym nights have begun for winter season, with the first one on Dec. 7th. 
• Holiday Music performances (list from MMPA):
• December 7, Topsfield Tree Lighting - 4:30 pm - Chorale/Chamber/Ladies
• December 7, Topsfield Holiday Walk - 6 pm - HS Brass Quintet
• December 10, Masconomet Healthcare Center/Little Brook Village Field Trip - Chorale/Chamber
• December 10, HS Winter Band Concert
• December 11, MS Winter Band Concert
• December 13, Rotary Luncheon - Middleton - Chorale/Chamber​
• December 17, HS Winter Chorus Concert - All Singers (12/19 Snow Date)​
• December 19, Senior Citizen Luncheon - 12 pm - 1:30 pm - HS Groups 
• HOLIDAY SHARING:  If you are interested in helping a family or community member, the school is able to collect gift cards on behalf of Tri-Town based organizations for those in need.  Contributions can be sent to any of our school offices and should be in an envelope labeled “Holiday Sharing.”

NEXT SC Meeting: December 18, 2019 at 7pm in HS Presentation Room.  Superintendent’s Entry Plan report will be shared at this meeting.

Meeting agendas, minutes, documents, and videos are posted on-line at: https://www.masconomet.org/domain/41 

 If you have questions, please contact our committee chair, Tasha Cooper, at tcooper@masconomet.org.

"It is our honor to be able to write each student's story in our letters of recommendation. Watching each student grow and evolve into a young adult over the course of the four years is very special. By telling their story, we have an opportunity to give admissions counselors a glimpse into the lives of our students…their strengths, interests, life accomplishments to date, personal character, academic achievement, extracurricular commitments, and service to others."

-Dr. Irene Duros, Director of School Counseling 

School Committee Highlights:

• Class of 2019 Report and Masco School Profile 2019-2020 was presented by Dr. Irene Duros, Director of School Counseling on 11/20
• The following was also shared or discussed during the 11/20 meeting:
• High School Principal’s Report (photo above is an example of a Masco Pride Friday morning welcome performance in the HS library lobby)
• District Enrollment Report 
• Strategy for District Capital Investment
• Click here to read full Summary Notes* from the 11.20.19 meeting *These are not meeting minutes and not intended to be a transcription of the meeting. 
  
  
• Superintendent Mike Harvey’s post “The Future is Already Here” (click here for link) includes a one-question survey that closes on December 2nd - We encourage your participation
• Four SC members attended two days of the MASC (Massachusetts Association of School Committees) conference in Hyannis and attended sessions on topics ranging from Social Emotional Learning, to chairing school committees, to large building projects, to using social media, and more.
  
  
• Food Drive at Middle School is currently collecting donations - November 12-27
• Eighth graders are currently on their multi-day field-trip to Philadelphia & Washington DC or Boston & Salem as part of their Civics program 
• Seventh graders will be visited by broadcast journalist Steve Hartman, who is best known for his “On the Road” segments on CBS Evening News (https://www.cbsnews.com/evening-news/on-the-road/), which highlights news stories about the positive impact of everyday people. His visit is connected to the grade 7 ELA “Power of One” project and the school’s focus on citizenship. 
• For more exciting school highlights please visit the HS blog and the MS blog 

Community programs:

• TriTown Council upcoming program “Social Media and Mental Health - Optimizing the Connection”  on Dec 03, 7:00 PM – 9:00 PM RSVP here
• View TriTown Council’s recent program from 11/13/19: “Positive Parenting in a Digital World” here
• HOLIDAY SHARING:  If you are interested in helping a family or community member, the school is able to collect gift cards on behalf of Tri-Town based organizations for those in need.  Contributions can be sent to any of our school offices and should be in an envelope labeled HOLIDAY SHARING

NEXT SC Meeting: December 4, 2019 at 7pm in HS Presentation Room. Meeting agendas, minutes, documents, and videos are posted on-line at: https://www.masconomet.org/domain/41  

 If you have questions, please contact our committee chair, Tasha Cooper, at tcooper@masconomet.org.

"Our SIP [School Improvement Plan] is a snapshot into what we feel are the necessary steps to move Masco in the direction consistent with Vision 2025 — specifically with the Vision’s acknowledgement that: student learning is highly interdisciplinary and students are connecting learning to the real world and real-world problem solving; all classrooms and curricula are Learner-centered and adults will strive to recognize each student’s desire to find their place in the school and larger community."

— Introduction, HS School Improvement Plan

Highlights from the November 6th School Committee (SC) Meeting:

• School Improvement Plans for both High School and Middle School were presented
• Driving question for HS objectives:  Where are our "unimagined spaces" (1) intellectually, (2) emotionally, (3) physically?
• New Focus Goal Area introduced for MS, involving use of technology to achieve vision, with potential to introduce electives in coding and web-design. 
• Faculty Professional Development again put small groups of HS and MS staff from across disciplines together to create their "big picture" vision for future Masco graduates.  Mr. Dillon reported that this collaborative process has felt new and inspiring for the faculty.

School highlights: 

• GODSPELL will be performed this weekend (HS production, Thurs, Fri, Sat, & Sun shows) - Flier and Tickets Here
• Spanish exhange students are here!
• Congratulations to the sports teams that made it to states: Field Hockey, Football, Girls and Boys Soccer, Volleyball, and Golf!  State Tournament Brackets info here.  Congrats also to the Boys Cross Country Team for being named Cape Ann League Sportsmanship award winners!
• Food Drive at Middle School November 12-27 - donations welcome! 

Community programs:

• "Masconomet, an Introduction to our Highschool" - event for 8th-grade families will take place on Tues, Nov. 12th at 6:30pm in the auditorium.  
• TriTown Council hosted "Let's Talk About It" on 11/6/19 (TTC blog about it here)
  • NEXT TTC PROGRAM: "Positive Parenting in a Digital Age" on 11/13/19 - Link Here for more info

• TriTown SEPAC hosted "Understanding Dyslexia" on 10/28/19
  • NEXT SEPAC PROGRAM: "MCAS: Access & Achievement for Students with Disabilities" on 11/13/19

The Masco SC would like to make the community aware of two updates:

1. Tomorrow, Saturday, October 19^th, from 9am-12pm is the annual “ELECTRONICS (and more!) RECYCLING” fundraiser hosted by the Masco Music Parents in the Masconomet Parking Lot.

Click here to view the flier with the full list of acceptable items

2. Today, the Northeast Conference (NEC) high school principals voted to invite Masconomet High School to join the NEC. The full update about this was shared on the HS principal’s blog as follows:

“10/18/2019

The Northeast Conference (NEC) high school principals voted today to invite Masconomet High School to join the NEC following a presentation by Masconomet Superintendent Mike Harvey, High School Principal Pete Delani and Athletic John Daileanes.  Masconomet has been in discussions with the NEC over the past six months.  Daileanes presented to NEC Athletic Directors in September who voted to move Masco’s candidacy forward to be voted on by the NEC Principals, who today voted overwhelmingly to extend the invitation.

Throughout the process Masconomet has been in constant communication with Cape Ann League (CAL) Principals and Athletic Directors, as well as members of the Masconomet Community.  Members of both the CAL and the NEC recognize that over the years Masconomet has outgrown the Cape Ann League.  Masconomet has the CAL’s largest student enrollment of 1145 students, 391 more than the second largest school and more than double half the schools in the league.  Conversely Masco’s enrollment would be the fifth largest enrollment in a 12 team NEC.  All parties believe that Masconomet changing leagues will be mutually beneficial to Masconomet, the CAL and the NEC.

There are still steps to take in order to finalize Masconomet’s admission into the NEC over the next two months, but the hope is that the change of leagues will occur beginning in the Fall of 2020.”

Peter Delani, Principal

For more background on this, please view this presentation on “Interscholastic Athletics: MIAA League Realignment” that Masco’s Athletic Director John Daileanes and HS Principal Peter Delani had shared with the School Committee on April 24, 2019.

If you have questions, please contact our committee chair.

"The future is here — it's just not evenly distributed."

- Michael Hendrix
Global Director of Design, IDEO- Cambridge and Masco parent

Highlights from the October 16 School Committee (SC) meeting:

• Assistant Superintendent for Student Services Patricia Bullard gave a thorough presentation on Student Services
  • Click the image above to learn more about the trends in student needs, and support available for all our Masconomet students 
• High School Principal Peter Delani reported:
  • A thought-provoking presentation was made to students by Michael Hendrix, IDEO Global Director of Design
  • Peer Leaders, NHS, and Student Council involved in community service engagement, and guiding students on fundraising and other service work for the Ronald McDonald House
    • Freshman Walk is this Friday, Oct 18!
  • Spanish exchange students have arrived
  • For more details on these and other highschool highlights, visit the HS prinicipal's blog
• The School Committee voted in favor of nine resolutions and one bylaw change as presented by the Mass. Association of School Committees (MASC) in the MASC Resolution Report 2019
• The School Committee extends our gratitude for MEF grants toward Psychology Club field trip and Spanish Exchange trip, and also to the High School Hockey Booster donation toward a banner for the gym. Thank you!

If you have questions, please contact our committee chair, Tasha Cooper, at tcooper@masconomet.org.