Greer Gazette: January 9, 2023

Greer Gazette: January 9, 2023
Posted on 01/09/2023


Greetings CPS Community!

I hope you had a restful winter break and that your 2023 is off to a wonderful start.

January is a busy and exciting month for us as we will be engaging with you about the budget for the next school year through a series of community sessions and a survey, which opens tomorrow. We look forward to hearing from you. Please see below for more details and to register for a community meeting.


Our Office of Academics & Schools will host a series of virtual update sessions about the Instructional Framework later this month and in early February. Please register below.


As I shared this morning, I am excited to share that following a comprehensive search, we have hired a 
new Chief Operations Officer. Mr. David Murphy will be joining Cambridge Public Schools effective January 23. Mr. Murphy has over a decade of experience in public education leadership. For the past three years, he has served as the Assistant Superintendent of Finance & Operations for Medford Public Schools. Please join me in welcoming Mr. Murphy to our district!


January is School Board Appreciation Month, a time to shine a light on our School Committee members who work tirelessly to make sure that all of our students have the best possible educational experience. We are grateful for their dedication and support to continuously improve our school community.


Finally, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Middlesex County has moved into the High COVID-19 Community Level. We, along with the Health Department, strongly recommend wearing a mask at school and in all of our buildings through next Friday, January 20. Please note that this recommendation may be extended as we continue to monitor the data.


Thank you for your continued support.


Make it Great!


Dr. Victoria L. Greer



Headlines

Junior Kindergarten/Kindergarten Lottery Now Open


The JK/K Lottery for the 2023-2024 school year is open through Tuesday, January 31, 2023.All registrations must be fully completed, including all language testing to determine eligibility for Program Language Bonus points. We are so excited to welcome new students to our school community! To learn more,click here.

ParentSquare Highlight!
January 22 will mark 5 monthssince we launched ParentSquare! ParentSquare has elevated our commitment to accessible, accurate, and timely communication with our school community. We are proud of how many families are actively using it to stay connected and informed. A sincere thank you to everyone who has registered and our schools for their continued outreach to our families.

  • We can reach at least one student contact for 99.8% of our students.

  • 65% of our parents/guardians have registered for ParentSquare.

  • 85% of our students have at least one parent/guardian registered for ParentSquare.

  • Our communications are being translated into 37 languages in ParentSquare!

Need help registering for ParentSquare? Check out this training video, use our one-page summary on how to get started, or contact your child’s school.

Instructional Framework Community Meetings
A dynamic team of students, educators, school and district leaders, community partners, and community members is leadingthe design of our Instructional Framework, which isone of our focused initiatives in the District Plan. The framework will serve as a blueprint for all students to receive high quality instruction in every classroom, every day while providing coherence, consistency, and rigor in our students’ learning experience across schools.


To learn more about our Instructional Framework, please consider attending one of our four 
virtual community update sessions:

  • Wednesday, January 25| 6 - 6:45PM & 7-7:45PM

  • Wednesday, February 1| 6 - 6:45PM & 7-7:45PM


What We’re Celebrating This Month




Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day | Monday, January 16
Dr.Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is an opportunity to celebrate and honor the accomplishments of activist, minister, and civil rights hero Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. King was the first modern private citizen to be honored with a federal holiday, but not until 1986, nearly 20 years after the proposal was introduced to Congress. Even then, states resisted recognizing the holiday and it only gained national recognition in 2000. To this day, in Alabama and Mississippi, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day coincides with Robert E. Lee Day, honoring the Confederate general.

Click here to see how the City of Cambridge is celebrating Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.


“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere” - Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.



Lunar New Year Begins | Sunday, January 22

The 
Lunar New Year is one of the most important celebrations for people of East and Southeast Asian descent. It is usually celebrated for 15 days from the first new moon of the lunar calendar until the full moon arrives. China’s Lunar New Year is known as the Spring Festival. Koreans call it Seollal, and Vietnamese refer to it as Tết Nguyên Đán. The holiday began as a time for feasting and to honor household and heavenly deities, as well as ancestors.It is a time to put the past behind and look forward to a fresh start. Happy Year of the Rabbit!


Fiscal Year 2024 Budget

Register for a Community Engagement Session!


As we continue to plan for the 2024 Fiscal Year Budget, our team is eager to hear your perspective on the development of the budget, which supports the 2023-2024 school year. You can share your input by taking ourBudget Survey, which opens tomorrow, January 10, and will close at 10AM on Monday, January 23.


We will also offer three community engagement meetings at which we will explain our priorities for the budget, how we determine our spending, and answer any questions you have. There will also be a group discussion about how our budget can best support our students.


  • Wednesday, January 18 | 6 - 7:45PM
    (Workforce building located at 308 Rindge Avenue); Childcare and dinner will be provided.

  • Saturday, January 21 | 10 - 11:45AM
    (Fletcher Maynard Academy located at 225 Windsor Street); Childcare and a light breakfast will be provided.

  • Thursday, January 26| 6 - 7:45PM (Virtual)



The Beauty of ASL
Cambridge Rindge and Latin School students Susan Alexander and Frances Fennell are sharing the beauty ofAmerican Sign Language with our community! Check out one of their recent class projects in which they explain what they did for Halloween.



Morse Students Star in TV Promo
Ms. Pizzi’s 3rd grade class at the Morse School was invited to be featured in CBS Boston’s new winter weather promo with Dr. Greer! In it, our students share their excitement for snow days and Dr. Greer shares what goes into a decision to cancel school. Click the play button below to watch, and look for us on WBZ channel 4 all winter long!



Mark Your Calendar

 

Monday, January 16 | Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
(No School & CPS Offices Closed)


Monday, February 20 - Friday, February 24 | February Break (No School & CPS Offices Closed on Monday, February 20)


Wednesday, March 15 Early Release Day (JK-8 only)


Monday, March 20 Staff Professional Learning Day
(No School)

Key Resources

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