Mark Your Calendar
- Tuesday, November 18 | School Committee Meeting (Beginning at 6PM)
- Wednesday, November 26 | 4-Hour School Day (All Grades)
- Thursday, November 27 - Friday, November 28 | Thanksgiving Break (No School & CPS Offices Closed)
Good evening CPS Community,
As we approach Thanksgiving Break, our teams here at CPS have been busy supporting our students and families both inside and outside the classroom.
We are tremendously grateful for our partnership with the City of Cambridge, Cambridge Economic Opportunity Committee, and our CPS staff that allowed for a one-time distribution of grocery gift cards to students impacted by the lapse in SNAP assistance. Families can access additional food resources as outlined in this edition.
As detailed in Superintendent Murphy’s Update to the Community, CPS families at the elementary level can look forward to changes to elementary report cards which will align standards based grading and promote clear understanding of student progress over time. Upper school families will gain access to in-person caregiver academies designed to help families best support their students throughout grades 6 - 8.
Finally, thank you to all who attended the Community Conversation held in partnership with our partners at My Brothers Keeper Cambridge. The recording of the Community Conversation event is now available for those unable to attend.
As a reminder, Wednesday, November 26 will be a 4-hour school day, which will be followed by no school Thursday, November 27 and Friday, November 28 due to Thanksgiving Break.
Sincerely,
The CPS Team
In this Issue:
- Food Resources in Cambridge
- Upper School Caregiver Academies
- Changes to Elementary Report Cards
- Kindergarten Lottery Information Session
- Webinar Recording - Supporting Students with Planning, Organization, and Regulation
- Need Help with Heating Bills? Apply for Home Energy Assistance
- Strategic Spotlight: Rindge School of Technical Arts Program
- Upcoming Events
- District & Community Resources
- The Bright Spot
Need to Know News
Food Resources in Cambrigde
All families are welcome to stop by our free, school-based food markets. They offer fresh fruits, vegetables, and pantry items. Please bring your own bags.
Graham and Parks School
1:30 - 3PM
November 13 | December 4
|
Fletcher Maynard Academy
2 - 3:45PM
November 12 | December 10
|
Peabody School/ Rindge Avenue Upper School
3:25 - 5:15PM
November 20 | December 18
|
Community Charter School of Cambridge
2:30 - 3:30PM
October 29 | November 25 | December 17
|
As a reminder, all students have access to FREE breakfast and lunch every school day. View the daily menus here. Additional information on how to find food in Cambridge is available here.
Upper School Caregiver Academies
CPS is launching a new Upper School Caregiver Academy! Upper School Caregiver Academies are a series of in-person workshops focused on providing families with strategies, tools, and resources to best support their students’ upper school journey. The focus of this year’s workshops were identified through the suggestions shared with us by the Cambridge Families of Color Coalition, by Upper School parents and caregivers, and educators and specialists
In these workshops, caregivers will receive coaching, resources, and strategies to help you and your middle school student. We will host sessions throughout the school year, with each session devoted to a specific topic.
Stay tuned for more information from your upper school.
Changes to Elementary Report Cards
As part of our commitment to improving how to keep families informed of their student’s progress, we will transition to a standards-based grading system across all elementary schools starting this December.
Standards-based grading systems will ensure:
- Consistency: all elementary families will receive report cards three times per year.
- Clarity: clearly reflect what students know and can do using aligned standards in core subject such as English Language Arts, Math, Social Studies, and Science.*
- Equity: promote equity in assessment to best support student growth.
*Special subject areas, i.e. art, music, P.E., etc. will continue to be handled in a school by school manner with the hope of establishing greater alignment in those areas by next school year.
Kindergarten Lottery Information Session
The Kindergarten Lottery for the 2026-2027 school year will open on January 5 and close on January 30 at 4PM. All registrations must be fully completed, including all language testing to determine eligibility for Program Language Bonus points. To learn more, visit our website.
Information Session:
Webinar Recording - Supporting Students with Planning, Organization, and Regulation
Last month we partnered with Educational Therapist and Learning Consultant, Alexis A. Reid, M.A., for a webinar focused on supporting executive functioning in students with advanced learning needs.
The session provided valuable tools and tips for families to help students of all ages with planning, organization, and self-regulation. Supporting these skills allows students to manage their schoolwork and daily lives more effectively.
Need Help with Heating Bills? Apply for Home Energy Assistance
Colder weather means higher heating bills. The Cambridge Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP) is accepting applications for the 2025-2026 season. The program helps residents pay their winter heating bills between November 1 and April 30. Learn more and apply.
Please note: the federal government shutdown will cause delays in application processing and payments this year, but we encourage you to apply to the program as soon as possible. If you experience a no-heat emergency, please call 617.665.6234. The program can help eligible applicants within 24 hours.
Speakfully Incident Reporting System
We are continuing to use Speakfully as our incident reporting system. Speakfully serves as an additional avenue for families, students, and staff to submit an incident report.
Questions? Contact [email protected]
Strategic Spotlight: Rindge School of Technical Arts
The Rindge School of Technical Arts program at Cambridge Rindge and Latin Schools offers students the opportunity to continue their high school education while taking on the challenge of exploring new career pathways. The RSTA program offers 12 career and technical education pathways. Whether your student is planning to continue their education at a university, technical institute, community college, enlist in the military, or enter the workforce immediately after high school, RSTA students graduate prepared for what comes next.
RSTA offers hands-on learning with access to state-of-the-art equipment and facilities tailored to their exploratory field, as well as the opportunity to earn industry-recognized credentials, certifications, and licenses. Students participating in RSTA program graduates are well positioned for post secondary success with the experience, certification, and even college credits needed to be a competitive candidate for continued education or employment.
Students interested in RSTA programming should enroll in the Technical Arts Exploratory for grade 9 and work with their counselor to select a program pathway.
Objective 2: Provide Accessible College & Career Pathways
In the District
Webinar: Title I Family Information Session
Monday, November 17 | 6 - 7PM
(Virtual via Zoom)
Learn about Title I and resources available to Title I schools to improve your student’s academic success at this webinar.
Title I Schools: Cambridge Street, Darby Vassall, Fletcher Maynard, King Open, Putnam Avenue, and the High School Extension Program.
College Athletics Information Night
Tuesday, November 18 | 7PM
War Memorial Door 14 (459 Broadway)
Students interested in playing college athletics are encouraged to attend this information night to learn more from former CRLS athletes, MIT Volleyball Coach, and Guidance Counselor/ Coach Jordan Roldan.
Virtual Haitian Affinity Group
Wednesday, November 19 | 6:30 - 8PM
Zoom
Families are invited to attend the Haitian Affinity Group meeting to discuss building relationships between student, family, and school. Register here to receive the Zoom link.
Virtual Multilingual Learner Families of Color Listen and Learn
Thursday, November 20 | 6:30PM
Zoom (link to be provided through registration)
Share your experience and ideas on how to support multilingual learners with the CPS Director of Multilingual Education at this Listen and Learn session. Hosted by Cambridge Families of Color and the Village.
Alice By Heart
Friday, December 5 | 7PM
Saturday, December 6 | 7PM
Sunday, December 7 | 2PM
Fitzgerald Theater (459 Broadway)
CRLS presents the Alice by Heart as this year’s fall musical. For tickets and information, click here.
Kindergarten Lottery Virtual Information Sessions
Kindergarten Lottery for 26-27 opens this January. Learn more about the application, including testing during the upcoming information sessions.
Wednesday, November 12 | 6 - 7PM
(Virtual via Zoom)
Saturday, December 6 | 10:30 - 11:30 AM
(Virtual via Zoom)
District Calendar
Visit our digital calendar for upcoming events here.
In the Community
Webinar: Student Assessments & Evaluations: When to Seek Them, What to Know, How to Make Sense of Them
Wednesday, November 12 | 12PM
Join Cartwheel and national expert on ADHD and learning disorders, Dr. Ellen Braaten, to learn when families should consider an evaluation, what the process involves, and how to understand the results so families can advocate for their children.
Register for the webinar here.
District & Community Resources
Special Guest Meteorologist at Ms. Martin’s Classroom - Weather Unit
Third graders in Ms. Martin’s classroom at Cambridgeport School are becoming ‘experts’ on severe storms. As part of the weather unit, students had fun reading about tornadoes, blizzards, droughts, hurricanes and more. Students read with a partner about their topic, answered text dependent questions, and then reported their new knowledge to the rest of the class. To further their connection with the weather unit, WCVB’s meteorologist David Williams made a special visit to talk about how weather is reported daily, why he became a meteorologist, and more about severe weather.
Celebrating New Equipment for Student Athletes with Cambridge Basketball Labs
Last week, the Cambridge Basketball Lab held a ribbon cutting event to celebrate new equipment that shoots basketballs out to assist in student athletes in their training. The Cambridge Basketball Lab operates four nights a week in a CPS-donated gym space, offering high-quality basketball workouts and mentorship led by local Coach-Mentors. As youth sports programs face funding challenges and families seek safe, enriching after-school options, Cambridge Basketball Lab has delivered thousands of hours of free training and guidance to local youth, building confidence and community through sport. CPS Superintendent David Murphy and Interim Chief Operating Officer Damon Smith attended to celebrate the addition of the new equipment.