Mr. Baldassarre's Blog

Class of 2012 John and Abigail Adams Award Winners Announced

2011-11-28T12:12:00.001-05:00

Sent to all local media.
At 1:00 PM on November 3, 2011 twenty-eight students in grade twelve at Ralph C. Mahar Regional High School were called to a meeting in the Charlotte Ryan Theater. There, they were met by Ralph C. Mahar Regional School District Superintendent, Michael Baldassarre; Principal, Ismael Tabales; and Guidance Counselor Caitlin McKenna. These students were informed that they had been named recipients of the John and Abigail Adams Scholarships for their performance on their Grade 10 MCAS Examinations during the 2009 – 2010 School Year.

There are a number of criteria that a student must meet to be eligible for this honor. First, a student must score in the Advanced category in either the Mathematics or the English language arts section of the grade 10 MCAS test and score in the Proficient or Advanced category on the second subject (Mathematics or English language arts); and must have a combined MCAS score on these assessments that ranks in the top 25% in their school district. Superintendent Baldassarre informed the students named below telling them, “I hope that you see how cooperation, hard work, and preparation bring about circumstances such as these. When you are willing to put in the effort as you have, your success is as predictable as sun in the summer and snow in the winter. ”

Students who are named recipients of the John and Abigail Adams Scholarship are entitled to four years of free tuition upon their acceptance to participating Massachusetts public institutions of higher education, such as a University of Massachusetts campus or a community college beginning with the fall 2011 semester. Sadly, this scholarship does not cover the cost of college fees, which can be up to four times more costly than tuition, room and board, textbooks, and other expenses.

Ralph C. Mahar Regional High School 2012 John and Abigail Adams Scholarship Winners:

Benoit Carley
Christopher Capuzzo
Leigh Closser
Linnea Duley
Raymond Fisher
Garrett Gale
Travon Godette
Paige Gonzalez
Zachary Gordon
Andrew Hough
Steven Koonz
Nicolaus Kowalczyk
Jesse LaCroix
Nathaniel Martin
Russell McBurnie
Jacob Mongeau
Kyle Olsen
Danielle Recos
Gregory Richard
Eric Sawin
William Simmons
Danielle Spear
Susan Stewart
Michael Sullivan
Leah Truesdell
Holly Wilson
Emma Woodcock
Casey Zeman

Why People Resist Change: Fear

2011-09-26T16:34:00.001-04:00

Not long ago I solved a cryptogram which was a quote from a man that I never heard of. It read, “Only fools and dead men don’t change their minds. Fools won’t. Dead men can’t.” My drive to work each day is about thirty minutes, and when not on the phone I take the time to think as deeply as I can about the issues of the day. On my way in this morning, this quote reemerged in my brain as I thought about the resistance to change that we are experiencing as we move closer and closer to the towns voting regionalization up or down.

There are cadres of people who have been against merging our schools for a very long time. The merging of the districts in a Grades 7 – 12 regional school took place 56 years ago and conversations about bringing in the elementary schools have been going on ever since. Unfortunately some people have taken such a stance against our efforts to change that they have refused to listen and refused to think deeply about the possibilities. Still, we have gained momentum and as the times to vote approach and we have been hit with a barrage of questions and concerns that I jokingly refer to as “scuds.”

You might recall in Operation Desert Storm the United States Military was quite successful in shooting down Scud Missiles fired by Iraqi forces via the Patriot Missile System. These missiles were renowned for both their destructive power yet joked about for their lack of precision. United States media outlets led the American public to believe that these missiles were the equivalent of a child trying to hit a piñata. Blindfold on, stick in hand, swing away and hope you make contact.

Since 2009 information has become increasingly available about how much money has been saved in the consolidation of our offices. Then more information was made available about where new funds will become available. I think it is sad and unfortunate that the only thing we talk about is the money because what we are really trying to do this to make the school system better. Fewer people though seem to care about that. There are about two dozen people in our communities who have taken an active stance against merging our districts, and guess what…..they have no children in the schools.

Over the last couple of years I have read a great deal about change in preparation to complete my doctoral degree at UMASS. There is no shortage of quotes about the difficulties associated with change. Famous quotes date back to the 1500’s when Niccolo Machiavelli is stated to have said, "There is nothing more difficult to take in hand, more perilous to conduct, or more uncertain in its success, than to take the lead in the introduction of a new order of things."

As the regional planning committee has continued to hammer away at fact after fact in support of regionalization, opponents to regionalization have become more vocal with their opinions in hopes of slowing and/or putting a stop to the potential change. But facts have a funny way of messing up opinions, so the opposition has had to call upon a new game plan. The new game plan is rooted in asking questions that haven’t been, or cannot be answered. So much of our energy and time lately has been spent answering questions. In many cases though, those who are asking the questions really don’t care what the answer is. They just hope to find something that is not answered to use as a reason not to regionalize.

The Regional Planning committee has welcomed the questions however. Each and every one has provided an opportunity to provide clarity and deeper understanding of the issue. If you are a regular reader of this blog, you know what I mean when I write about Ground Truth. In preparation for the votes to regionalize I will be posting reasons that certain groups of people will stand against regionalization. In general there are five reasons why people resist change:

1. People in general reject new and different things
2. People are not interested in change because it interferes with goals that they want to pursue
3. People do not understand the messages and consequences that will change their individual situations
4. People do not trust the person or people who are communicating the change
5. The most important reason: Fear

Readers will find that the biggest fear among those who oppose regionalization is rooted in their individual losses of power and control. The next series of blog posts will highlight shifts in power and control that will result from regionalization. Those who read the blog will then have a deeper understanding of why certain groups of people will stand in opposition to this change. This will also provide clarity for voters so that when the time comes they can make the most informed vote as possible.

Benefitting From Debate

2011-09-23T15:57:00.001-04:00

This morning I caught a three minute video in which former Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush along with Speaker John Boehner made a plea for citizens to make donations to complete the memorial being constructed in Shanksville, PA to honor those who were killed there in the attacks of September 11th. In the clip President Clinton stated, “What gets things done is cooperation. Conflict may be good politics, but cooperation changes lives.” When the next collection of leadership quotes through the ages is printed, President Clinton’s words will be read again and again.

In my most recent blog I responded to a letter that appeared in the Athol Daily News. When I wrote my response to the letter there was not a doubt in my mind that I was absolutely and willingly entering into a public debate (conflict). While the word “debate” may carry negative connotations, there is so much value in it. Buddhist teachings identify debate as a means to develop awareness, improve concentration, reform opinions, and provide clarity to situations while at the same time bringing others to do the same. As a result of debate, I have at times been left to feel even stronger about my personal convictions and have also been called upon to say, “Ooooh…I didn’t think of that!”

Truth be told, debate makes people smarter, more equipped, and actually helps us to develop personality. These are some of the many reasons for debate clubs in elementary and middle, and high schools around the world. But the most important reason is that through debate, we learn. In debate you can identify others to be well thought, well-intended, or unfortunately the opposite. Even worse though, try having a debate with an emotionally unbalanced person and you can find yourself in a world of problems.

So last night I had the opportunity to meet with Mr. Haskins in person. After an exchange of a couple of passages from the bible, and a brief discussion about the fiscal implications of regionalization, we shook hands. I explained to Mr. Haskins that I learned long ago that public statements are subject public responses, and private conversations are well…private. I explained my fear that a person who does not know all of the facts about the transformation that regionalization will bring to our town and schools could vote based on the public opinions of others. Ultimately, it is one thing to say, “Please come vote” and another thing to say, “My group does not support this issue, please come vote.”

Mr. Haskins explained to me that he really hasn’t made up his mind about regionalization yet. He stated that he needs to know more about the financial implications of this project. In his letter he did use the words “At this time….” These words show open mindedness and is really saying, “Hey, we want some more information!!!” This request is more than reasonable, and it will be answered in the Eileen Perkins Media Center at Mahar on October 13, 2011.

We hope to see you there.

Response to Letter in Athol Daily News from Orange Taxpayers Association

2011-09-21T18:01:00.003-04:00

I received an E mail from an Orange Elementary Teacher who copied and pasted a letter that appeared in the Athol Daily News from Orange Taxpayers Association (OTA) Member, Brian M. Haskins. I never actually saw the letter in the paper, for if I had this response would have been drafted much sooner. In his letter, Mr. Haskins indicated that the OTA could not support regionalization at this time.

The first part of my response is simply a series of questions. The first being, what is the Orange Taxpayers Association? From what I have seen at public meetings it is a group of about a dozen or so people who are active participants in school committee meetings, finance committee meetings, and meetings of the Board of Selectmen. I have never asked them what it is that they stand for, what their mission statement is and/or if they have a vision statement. I could not find a website with their name on it, as I was curious as to what were their core values. I did surmise that they have something to do with trying to keep taxes low for citizens, but after reading Mr. Haskins letter I figured I must be wrong.

You see, I did some math today. It is a hard FACT that if the Orange Elementary Schools had regionalized with the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School District in 2006, over the last five years $1,374,063.00 would have been available for the Orange Elementary Schools as a source of revenue. This would have come to the schools with no strings attached! With this much more to work with, I can say with great certainty that the roof at Dexter Park would not be in the poor condition that it is in. The $100,000.00 repair would have been covered and left $1,274,063.00 to spare.

The remaining $1.2 MILLION DOLLARS could very well have been used for art, music, physical education, books, computers, professional development, curricular materials, and/or other building repairs. In an Orange Elementary School District that is not regionalized these bills will have to be picked up by the taxpayers. So, I have to ask…Mr. Haskins:

Does the OTA stand for raising taxes or reducing them????

If you say reducing them, why would you reject the hundreds of thousands of dollars in state aid that will come to Orange via Massachusetts Regional Transportation Reimbursement each and every year????

Perhaps you know of some other way to return teachers to classrooms, repair buildings, and bring up to date technology to our schools???

An Answer to a Question: Protecting Class Size in Petersham

2011-09-19T16:31:00.004-04:00

At the conclusion of our Regionalization Planning Meeting on Wednesday, September 14, 2011 Petersham School Committee Representative, Chuck Berube asked me and excellent question about the potential effects of regionalization on class size at the Petersham Center Elementary School. Mr. Berube stated that some of the constituency of Petersham expressed a concern that if regionalization were to take place that the newly formed Ralph C. Mahar School Committee could increase class size at the Petersham Center School.

Currently in Petersham it is very rare to have a class with more than sixteen (16) students. This is because there is a school committee policy that school choice students will not be accepted into any particular grade if class size will be driven to be higher than sixteen students. Now, it is possible that in some year there are more than 16 students from Petersham in a particular grade. If this happens, then a class may be higher than 16 students. But, to date this has rarely been the case.

Without a doubt the lower the number of students in a class, the more individual attention each student receives. Educational research shows that small class sizes have a deep correlation with higher student performance. In general this is an irrefutable fact in education. The smaller the class the more attention each student gets from his or her teacher. And this is why Mr. Berube’s question is such an important one. Why would anyone in Petersham want to merge their school with another district if it were to mean diminished learning opportunities for the children of Petersham Center School?

Below, please find a list of protections that will exist for the Petersham Center School with regard to educational quality, class size, and school finance:

Petersham School Choice Policy

As I stated above, class size in Petersham is regulated by school committee policy. This policy limits the number of students that can be accepted in to Petersham Center School from other communities. In order for this number to change the school committee would have to pass a policy to this effect.

The Authority of the Superintendent of Schools

In some school districts, class size is listed in the collective bargaining agreement for the teachers. Since the Petersham Teacher’s Contract has no such language at this time, the decision that pertains to the number of students in each class is made by the Superintendent of Schools, and in consultation with the building principal. The contract for the Superintendent of Schools reads:

“The Superintendent shall administer curriculum and instruction and decide all matters having to do with selection, appointment, assignment, transfer, promotion, organization, reorganization, reduction, or termination of personnel employed or to be employed by the school districts consistent with state law and contract obligations.”

More important than the aforementioned statement is language in the Superintendent’s Contract specifically written to ensure that a school committee cannot remove the authority of the Superintendent to make educational decisions:

“The Committees shall not, without the Superintendent’s written consent adopt any policy, by-law, or regulation which impairs or reduces the duties and authority specified above; and provided; further, that all additional duties and responsibilities prescribed by the Committees are consistent with those normally associated with the position of Superintendents of School in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.”

Budget Approval Process in the Newly Proposed Region

Here you see a picture that provides a graphic illustration of the budget approval process in the newly proposed region.

1. First and foremost, the Petersham Elementary subcommittee (2 members) would both have to approve the Petersham Center budget to be presented to the full Mahar Pre-K – 12 School Committee.

2. The Mahar Pre-K – 12 School Committee approves the entire Pre-K – 12 budget. The two members from Petersham sit on this committee. In order for the budget to pass in an eleven member committee 8 of the 11 members must approve. Two of these members are from Petersham. If some amendment to the Petersham budget were to be presented to the Mahar Pre-K – 12 Committee, it would be very difficult for it to pass without the approval of the Petersham representatives.

3. If a budget were to be passed by the Mahar Pre-K – 12 School Committee that was not approved by the Petersham Elementary Subcommittee, the Town of Petersham would be provided with the option of not approving the full Mahar Pre-K – 12 budget on town floor at its Annual Town Meeting. Three out of four towns must agree in order to pass a budget in a regional school. I have been here since 2007, and have yet to see all four towns agree on a budget. As a matter of fact, Petersham’s continual support of the Mahar budget has been greatly appreciated by our school community.

Option to Gift Funds to Peterhsam Center School

In the newly proposed regional agreement, the Town of Petersham (or Orange) has the option of gifting funds to its elementary school(s). This mechanism allows for additional programs to be added to the elementary school of one town without impacting the entire Pre-K – 12 budget.

Finally...

Five layers of protection were named above for individual towns to support their schools. If a time ever came in which the interests of the Town of Petersham and the Petersham Center School were not being respected by the full Pre-K – 12 school committee, Principal, Superintendent of Schools, and/or the Budget Subcommittee, Petersham residents could vote at a town meeting to make a new decision. You see just as a vote of the Town can get into a regional agreement, a vote of the Town can be to pull out of a regional agreement.

Ground Truth vs. Official Truth: A Response to a Facebook Post

2011-09-02T15:22:00.004-04:00

As mentioned in an earlier blog post, social networking sites can be wonderful sources of information. This is true when the information posted is factual, empirically based, and is written with the intent of promoting some type of public good. In many cases however, posts on sites such as Facebook can be written by individuals who misinterpret facts, only serving to proliferate their own misunderstandings.

Recently I was made aware of some military terminology that is fitting for this situation. In war there are two types of truth. The Official Truth is what people are willing to say publicly about things, and the Ground Truth is terminology that accurately reflects real life events. The two statements below provide an educational example of Official Truth vs. Ground Truth.

Official Truth: Our students MCAS scores are higher than many students statewide who are from similar socioeconomic backgrounds. This statement may be viewed as propaganda.

Ground Truth: Our students are consistently not meeting accountability standards set forth by the state. They are failing the MCAS in alarming numbers. This statement is a cold hard fact.

This blog post is written in response to a recent post on Facebook by a member of the Orange Taxpayers Association. In an effort to provide readers with Ground Truth, I will dissect the post one statement at a time. I have found this level of honesty about our situation is appreciated by many faculty and parents in our school community.

Ms. Piro's statements are in black
Mr. Baldassarre's statements are in red
Ms. Piro: I have asked Mr. Baldassarre how much in extra expenses it will cost the town if we regionalize.

Mr. Baldassarre: This statement is true. To clarify, I have posted the entire electronic correspondence from Ms. Piro with my response to her at the bottom of this post. You can read every question that Ms. Piro asked of me, and every response that I provided.

Ms. Piro: If we regionalize- all the elementary teachers pay will go up to meet the pay already received at the Mahar level, if the pay raises outweigh the bus savings, then financially it will hurt the town.

Mr. Baldassarre: The statement made by Ms. Piro here is not ground truth. Our consultants are currently conducting a financial analysis of the exact increases in salary for teachers if they are negotiated that way. In order for the salary schedules to be made final three teacher contracts must be merged and three non teaching contracts must be merged. All six of these mergers will involve intense negotiations with the new school committee.

A Mahar teacher with a Masters Degree in his/her first year of teaching is paid $305.00 less per year than a teacher with a Masters Degree at Orange Elementary.

A Mahar teacher with a Bachelor’s Degree in his/her 14th year of teaching will be paid $1,015.00 less than an Orange Elementary Teacher in his her 14th year of teaching if he/she has a Bachelors Degree and 18 additional credit hours.

You see, our pay scales are different. They are available for any reader to see. And I recommend perusing these documents before publishing statements about them. The bottom line, ground truth is that the salaries have to be negotiated. The union and the school committee have the right to collectively bargain.

Ms Piro: I also asked if we are implementing the suggestions from the DOE report of 2011, the suggestions in this report which I posted here a couple weeks ago, had very serious issues with the curriculum in certain areas, critical thinking skills and conversations for the students, continuity of curriculum from Fisher to Dexter to Butterfield, and the end result being poor MCAS scores, these are not money problems, but management problems, have we fixed these issues yet?

Mr. Baldassarre: The above is not true. As you will see in the correspondence posted to the blog from me to Ms. Piro, no such question has ever been asked of me. Unfortunately, those opposed to regionalization have failed to express any concerns of the quality of our educational programs via e-mail or in open sessions. This should alert those who are interested in improving education for our students.

Ms. Piro: Not enough information on the questions I am asking to warrant the regionalization at this time.

Mr. Baldassarre: We will have an informational session on October 13, 2011 here at Mahar at 7:00 PM. This is an open meeting. I have posted information on this blog and there is central office consolidation website on the mahar webpage (http://www.rcmahar.org/central-office-consolidation-website/). There readers can find a video in which we engaged a public question and answer session about this topic.

Ms. Piro: If we fund our elementary and make the changes the DOE has suggested, then our students will get a better education and we will still own our school system, I think these needs to be done first before we jump into a new system that so far, is only offering a savings to the town for one year.

Mr. Baldassarre: The elementary schools have been funded up to 20% less than the average of districts across the state in 2010, 2011, and now in 2012. The students in Orange are not being given the opportunity to compete with students from more than 300 districts in Massachusetts because of the funding issues. What Ms. Piro says is true however. If the elementary schools were given a little more than $1,000,000.00 more each year the children would be subject to a higher quality education. Of course another way to solve this issue would be to increase district capacity. This can be achieved through regionalization.

Ms. Piro: Bus costs fluctuate; pay raises only keep going up. We cannot afford to make the wrong decision.

Mr. Baldassarre: Bus costs do fluctuate. Fortunately for those in regional school districts like Mahar, our transportation costs are reimbursed by the state. This year Mahar received $309,502.00. Orange received $0.00. The state pays a portion of regional transportation. In Orange, transportation is paid for by the taxpayers.

Electonic Correspondence Below: Sent to from Mr. Baldassarre to Ms. Piro
Copied and Pasted to this Site September 2, 2011

Ms. Piro's statements are in black
Mr. Baldassarre's statements are in red

From: Michael Baldassarre
Sent: Monday, August 15, 2011 6:04 PM
To: 'nqac@verizon.net'
Subject: RE: Regionalization

Ms. Piro: Hi Mike - Brenda Piro here- I couldn't make the last meeting but will make the next - It was posted for Sept 1 st, it was also posted albeit FB that the BOS are in support of this- is that true?

Mr. Baldassarre: Hello Brenda and thank you for your correspondence. The next regionalization planning meeting is in fact on September 1, 2011 at 6:30 PM in the Media Center at Mahar. I have not been given any indication that the Board of Selectmen are against our regional effort. If this were the case, I would have to ask for reasons. You see, we have already consolidated central offices, special education administration, maintenance, technology, and cafeteria services. The final piece, an approved agreement means up to $300,000.00 in additional aid every year. Why would one turn down such funding???

Ms. Piro: I am familiar with the 2 assessments, one question I have is a comparison of what the assessment would be for elementary 2011/12 vs what they asked for at town meeting.

If we were a region- what assessment would be used?

Mr. Baldassarre: I am not clear on your question about the “two assessments.” There is really only one assessment – the statutory method that has ever been used. In this case, 3 of 4 towns must agree to pass a budget. The alternative assessment cannot be characterized by using terminology that defines it as a single assessment. This assessment methodology can be different every year. It can be changed at the discretion of the school committee. All four towns must agree in order for any alternative assessment to be passed.

If we become a larger region the rules for assessing the towns would be the same. 3 out of 4 for statutory, and 4 out of 4 for any alternative to that.

Ms. Piro: they asked for 5385037 and got 5083060- in the new regional scenario- what would that figure be?:

Mr. Baldassarre: These numbers are incorrect. The budget was again reduced to 5.037 million dollars. It appears very likely that Net School Spending will not be met in fiscal year 2012 – which is a real travesty. This will mean that NSS has not been met in three consecutive years. On average schools in the commonwealth are funded at 13% above NSS. Orange Elementary’s funding being below NSS means that our students receive close to 20% less than students across the state. But to answer your question, we would not know the outcome of the assessment until the towns voted. It is up to the school committee and the people of the towns. To illustrate this, I have attached a document that defines the proposed process.

Ms. Piro: I realize this is simplified as people are told there will be additional revenues coming in if we regionalize - but this is the question taxpayers are concerned of - a simple breakdown of funds that will rise if we consolidate would be helpful. I think if the answers are " shot from the belt" rather than the over complicated - take the long road around so as to create confusion- (not that you do it ) citizens wil understand, many citizens just want the financial breakdown- not the structure that gets us to the finances.

Mr. Baldassarre: It is true that this topic is complicated, and we are doing our best to ensure that everyone has the most accurate and empirical information. In a nutshell, here is what we stand to gain by regionalizing:

1. $50.00 in one-time bonus aid per student. With approximately 1800 students this equates to $90,000.00

2. 56% in regional transportation reimbursement. This means approximately $200,000.00 for Orange every single year. This can go up, and has been as high as 85% in recent years.

Ms. Piro: This town has a long history of frugal savers- thats how our coffers 10 years ago had 7 million in them, they have listened to our governance tell them that do this- this is good, and watched as the 7 million was spent in less than a decade.

Mr. Baldassarre: Right now, things do not look so optimistic. It is not my position to comment on town matters. As an ambassador for the schools however, state takeover of the elementary system should be on the radar of the town’s leadership. The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education has implemented a serious system for school accountability under the No Child Left Behind Act. It should not be taken lightly.

Ms. Piro: So..... you need to understand this past with our town. Citizens are extremely upset, with good cause. We have seen the management of our town not go to the good of the community. We pay people here the same pay to do a job that others do with much greater populations and responsibilities. We have always been a poor town- we are the 9th poorest in 353 communities in Mass. We have the 21st higest tax rate, our children are not doing well in school, and we act( financially) like we have cadillac services,of which many would beg to differ.

Mr. Baldassarre: It is my sincerest hope that I will have be able to provide you along with our parents and teachers with an understanding of all that has taken place over the past few years. I do not do this by stating my opinions however. I will be rooting any and all statements in facts that are made available via audits and document analysis.

Ms. Piro: also- it was stated that Orange would have to accept the budget or it wouldnt go through- I find that hard to believe- could you clarify?

Orange would have 5 members- other towns 7 ? Is this true?

Mr. Baldassarre:
Orange – 5
Petersham – 2
New Salem – 2
Wendell – 2

It takes a 2/3 vote of the school committee to pass a budget. This means that 8 of 11 must agree to pass a budget. If Orange representatives choose to, they will be able to stop a budget from moving forward since they will have 5 members.

Ms. Piro: what would the sub committes function be, and thier powers- if any?

Mr. Baldassarre: Subcommittees advise the full committee.

Ms. Piro: Information told to citizens at Fincom was the audit hadn't been done since 2010- FB parent at school meeting said 2003- clarify?

Mr. Baldassarre: The end of year report is required pursuant to 603 CMR 10.10 to be audited every year. Orange Elementary has not had its end of year report audited since 2002. I have attached a letter from DESE ordering that an audit of Fiscal Year 2010 be completed. Once information is available I will issue a report.

Ms. Piro: Thank you for your time- It would be nice to sit and ask questions, If you have time for a 1/2 hr meeting I would surely appreciate it- Talk Soon

Mr. Baldassarre: I’d love to get together. Just let me know what works for you.

Michael Baldassarre, Superintendent of Schools
Ralph C. Mahar Regional School District
Orange Elementary Schools
Petersham Center School
507 South Main Street
PO Box 680
Orange, MA 01364
Office: 978-544-2920
Fax: 978-544-8383
Website: www.rcmahar.org

$chool Choice - Part IV of IV

2011-08-30T10:10:00.003-04:00

All of the funds that are taken in by a district for school choice go into a “School Choice Revolving Account.” As you may have read in the School Choice Parts I – III blog posts, the total school choice amount for Petersham, Orange, and Mahar in the 2010 – 2011 academic year was more than in the neighborhood of $1,636,000.00.

At Mahar, school choice funds may only be expended by a majority vote of the school committee. While these funds can be used to fulfill any need of the district, at Mahar they have almost solely been used to reduce the assessments to the towns in each fiscal year. What this means as that the school committee has continually voted to utilize this money as a source of revenue in each operating budget.

At Orange Elementary this has not been the case. Funds from school choice have been continuously utilized to fill gaps that existed in previous operational budgets. This practice brought about a problematic situation at the end of the last school year. You see, when the school choice account reached a balance of $0.00 and the amount budgeted by the town for the purpose of elementary education was at $0.00, there were still unpaid bills in an amount that approached $100,000.00.

This happened because money was being spent before it ever arrived in the district’s school choice account. When the final payment from the state came in less than expected, there was an obvious deficit. This year we will be holding school choice funds with the intention of appropriating them as a source of revenue in the Fiscal Year 2013 budget. So if all goes according to plan, rather than having $5.1 million dollars in fiscal year 2013, the district will have more like $5.5 million dollars at its disposal.

This will return people to work and hopefully provide some funding for other serious needs. But….what if we were able to combine the three school districts’ school choice accounts and have one larger pot from which we draw funds? What if all of our teachers return to work and we are able to increase our school choice students by just five students per grade, Pre-K – 12? Well, we would have close to $2,000,000.00 in school choice revenue.

If the $2,000,000.00 were to be attributed to the entire budget of a Pre-K – 12 regional district, this means that 10% of the school budget would be covered by school choice. In previous blogs I informed readers that on average schools in the Commonwealth are funded at 13% more than the minimum allowed in “Net School Spending.” In the model I have just described, the towns would have only to contribute the absolute bare minimum required by law, and our schools would be funded at very close to the state average.

Let’s face the facts. The children in our region should be given the opportunity to compete with children from other regions. A child in Orange should have the same educational opportunities as students from Leominster, Shrewsbury, and Westwood. You see, when colleges accept students they accept them based on what they know and how well they demonstrate what they know. Our kids should at least have the chance to know what other students know. They will not have these opportunities in huge classes with old textbooks, broken computers, and fewer teachers.

School Choice - Part III of IV

2011-08-25T18:22:00.000-04:00

Trends in School Choice Enrollment
Ralph C. Mahar Regional School
Orange, MA

As you can see from the graph above, School Choice in the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School has changed drastically in recent years. For quite some time more students from Orange, Wendell, New Salem, and Petersham chose to attend middle and high schools in other school districts rather than attend Mahar. A few years ago, the balance of this equation tipped.

I would be delighted to go on about the programming at Mahar and Mount Wachusett Community College that draws students from all over Central Massachusetts, but that is not the purpose of this post. The graph above shows the possibilities that arise when academic programming is desirable to those from surrounding towns.

In the next school year it is quite possible that Mahar will take in over $1,000,000.00 in school choice funding, with a rapidly decreasing number of students who choose to attend other schools in the Commonwealth. Last year Mahar took in $873,210.00 in school choice funds. This equates to $5,432.00 per student.

In my part IV of this blog series, I will focus in on how the three aforementioned school choice accounts can be consolidated for the benefit of all students in our three districts, should regionalization take place.

Sheriff Donelan's Work Crew Gives Butterfield Auditorium Much Needed Upgrade

2011-08-24T19:19:00.003-04:00

In the Spring of 2011 I had the privilege of taking a tour of all of the elementary facilities with my friend and former colleague, Dr. Paul Burnim. When I stepped foot into the auditorium at the Butterfield Elementary School for the first time, I looked around in silence. My question to Dr. Burnim, “When was this school built?” soon fell from my mouth. Dr. Burnim then informed me that the school was built in 1881!

My eyes were caught by falling paint from the ceiling; wooden chairs that desperately needed attention; and chandeliers that may very well have been in the room for 130 years. While I could feel the age of the building, I could also feel its warmth. The warmth was exacerbated by the teachers who were in their classrooms interacting with students, the soon to be Mahar students passersby, and the sound of students singing, “America the Beautiful.”

There were so many things on my mind about the up and coming school year, and on the aforementioned day a new thing was added. The auditorium at the Butterfield Elementary School stands as the place where students and parents gather for celebrations of yearly success. It also stands as the auditorium that has housed each and every graduate of the Orange School System at one point or another for the past 130 years. I wondered how room deserving of so much respect could be allowed to look the way that it did.

Not long after this day, I had many conversations about the condition of the auditorium. One of these conversations did not fall upon deaf ears. Enter Sheriff Chris Donelan. I had a conversation with Sheriff Donelan about the auditorium. In that conversation it was it was Chris who reminded me that he along with many Mahar parents, grandparents, and great grandparents stood in that room at one time or another. I recall him saying, “You know, there are more memories in that room than can ever be counted.”

The next day Sheriff Donelan called me with good news. He informed me that he had a work crew from the Franklin County Jail that could come to the auditorium and give it a tune up. Without hesitation, I agreed. Having no idea what the possibilities were, I just hoped that the falling paint could be scraped from the ceiling. Today when I went to the Butterfield Auditorium to meet the Sheriff and look at the work that was completed, I was absolutely amazed.

With little experience on how much labor it takes to scrape, paint, and completely update the appearance a room of this size I am going to have to turn to an expert to understand the dollar value of this work. I have heard jobs such as these costing tens of thousands of dollars. As you can see in the pictures below, the floor, walls, ceiling, and seating all look brand new!

Soon we will celebrate our students' success in the renovated auditorium. Thank you Sheriff Donelan for your assistance and for the generosity of your work crew. Mr. Trill is in the process of planning a September event in which parents, students, and community members can see what I had the privilege of seeing today. It is my hope that you can be our guest.

School Choice - Part II of IV

2011-08-24T17:39:00.005-04:00

School Choice Trends in Enrollment
Orange Elementary Schools
Orange, MA

As you can see from the graph above, in 2010 -2011 the Orange Elementary Schools had 82 students from other towns. Their families chose Orange Elementary rather than their home school districts. Since Orange Elementary received $393,019.00 in Fiscal Year 2011, each choice student brought only $4,770.00 to the district. You will note that this is significantly less than the per pupil amount that was cited in my most recent blog post about school choice in the Petersham Elementary Schools.

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts has a formula by which towns and school districts are financially punished for not meeting Net School Spending Requirements. The Net School Spending Requirement is the absolute minimum amount allowed to go to public education in each town. Unfortunately for the Town of Orange and the Orange Elementary Schools the absolute minimum was not met in Fiscal Year 2010.

It is safe to say that the state allocates more than $5,000.00 per school choice student. In some cases the state may allocate more for individual students based upon their need for special education services. It has been estimated that the Town of Orange missed out on around $50,000.00 in school choice revenue in Fiscal Year 2010 because Net School Spending was not met.

The graph above shows that the number of families who chose to send their children to Orange increased rapidly from 2004 to 2010. Last year the number fell slightly, and of course it is possible that it will fall yet again this year.

School Choice - Part I of IV

2011-08-23T15:50:00.001-04:00

School Choice Trends in Enrollment
Petersham Center Elementary School
Petersham, MA

Many of our discussions about regionalization have involved the topic of School Choice. School Choice is the process by which a student from one town can legally attend a school or district that is in a completely different town. Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 76, Section 12B spells out the rules by which schools can accept students from other towns and how funding passes from one school district to the other. This law is the same for any district in the state that wishes to accept students from other towns. Although the laws are the same, School Choice plays out very differently for each of our districts.
The next series of blog posts will focus on school choice in each district, one at a time. Today, I will start with Petersham Center Elementary School. In Fiscal Year 2011 Petersham Elementary received an average of $6,563.11 per student of choice from surrounding districts. While this amount does not reflect the true cost of education for a single student – it comes as much needed support for Petersham Center Elementary.

As you can see from the graph at the top of this post, the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education showed in 2011 that 56 students in the Petersham Center School were students who actually came to Petersham from surrounding towns. So, with this Petersham Center Elementary School received a little more than $370,000.00 in Fiscal Year 2011 for these 56 students.

Without School Choice each classroom at Petersham Center Elementary School would have an average of around 8 students per class. This low number of students in each class would drive the per pupil cost of education in this small school to an unsustainable amount. If Petersham did not accept School Choice Students, classrooms would have to be combined so that students from multiple grades would bein a single classroom. Commonly referred to as The Little House on the Prairie model, this would not be to the benefit of the students who attend this school.

Having students choice in to your school is a badge of honor. It means that parents from towns other than yours view your school as a better place for their children to learn. School Committees, administrators, and teachers alike take pride in the fact that their school is a desirable place for those outside of their own communities.

The next blog post will focus in on School Choice at Orange Elementary and the third will focus on Mahar. The final blog post will focus on School Choice in a new fully regionalized Pre-K – 12 district for the Mahar, Orange, and Petersham School Districts.

What is an Excess and Deficiency Account?

2011-08-18T17:24:00.001-04:00

I received a question from one of my new colleagues from the elementary system that I felt was important for everyone to understand. I have spoken about the Excess and Deficiency (E & D) account many times in our public meetings in which regionalization has been the topic of discussion. At our Regional Planning Meeting on August 11, 2011 I said, “Should Orange, Mahar, and Petersham regionalize the elementary schools and towns would be beneficiaries of an Excess and Deficiency Account.” So the question:

What is the E & D account and how is having it beneficial for our schools and our towns?

Every regional school district must maintain an Excess and Deficiency (E & D) Account. In cities or towns this fund is referred to as Free Cash and in business it is similar to retained earnings. At the end of every fiscal year, any surplus or deficit in the district’s general fund is placed in or taken from the E & D fund.

Every year and in every regional school district this fund is certified by the Massachusetts Department of Revenue. Failure to have this account certified may result in the state withholding all or part of the region’s state aid.

The regional school committee may use all or part of the certified balance in E & D as a revenue source for its next proposed budget. This fund may also be used at the discretion of the school committee for extraordinary or unanticipated expenditures. Up to 5% of the current year’s budget can be attributed to the E & D account.

So what does all of this mean????

For starters the assessments to the towns of New Salem, Orange, Petersham, and Wendell were reduced by $489,945.00 in the 2011 – 2012 school year. This amount came directly from the Ralph C. Mahar E & D fund. If we were to regionalize, we would be able to store close to $1,000,000.00 in a larger, combined E & D account. As has been the case for many years at Mahar, these funds would be used to reduce the assessments for Orange and Petersham Elementary as well.

Second and even more important, this fund can be used in a time of crisis. The over expenditure of funds at Orange Elementary in fiscal year 2011 is a perfect example of this. If Orange were a regional school the deficit at the end of fiscal year 2011 would not have been an issue for the Town of Orange. The best way to handle this deficit would have been to pull funds from the Excess and Deficiency Account.

Questions About Regionalization: Superintendent's Response

2011-08-17T16:51:00.004-04:00

“For those who have not been able to attend meetings on regionalization, would you address that issue in a separate post? It seems like you are a big proponent of regionalization. What are the next steps to regionalization? What are the benefits to regionalizing? There must also be some drawbacks--what are they? If we regionalize how soon could we see the benefits?”
- Amy Borezo

Thank you Amy!

Regionalization meetings have typically been lightly attended since I took over for Dr. Namin in 2009. The topics of the meetings are complex as they deal mostly with education and finance laws, and local and state governmental bodies. Typical conversations at these meetings are around school finance, school committee composition, costs associated with transition, and local politics. While these meetings are full of information and discussion, they can be rather drab for those not directly involved in the conversations.

When I came to Mahar in 2007, I could not say that I was a proponent of regionalization, and I cannot say that I was against it either. At that time I was the Director of Special Education and at first, only concerned myself with the issues that were right in front of me. I looked at the Orange Elementary, Petersham Center, and Swift River Schools as I would look at any neighboring district as I moved from being a classroom aid, to teacher, to administrator. I looked forward to meeting with Dr. Burnim, Dr. Conway, Mrs. Hunter, Mr. Haigh, Dr. Martin, and Mrs. Phillips as students were transitioning from the elementary systems to the secondary system.

Truth be told, we worked together quite a bit to ensure that Mahar’s incoming seventh graders would be greeted with educational programs tailored to their individual needs. In the Spring of 2008 I recall driving down to Butterfield Elementary School to meet with parents and students who would be leaving Orange Elementary in Grade 6 and coming to Mahar for grade 7. That was the first time that the effects of being in a split region dawned on me. I was driving just a few blocks to go see students in a separate school district, and our town had two school Superintendents just blocks away. We also had two special education administrators, two central offices, and well…two of everything quite frankly. I thought about adding Petersham and Swift River to the mix and actually having four of everything.

When I was a teacher at Niagara Falls High School in Niagara Falls, NY the student population of the school was more than 3,000. There were more than a dozen schools in the Niagara Falls City Schools, and they had only one superintendent, one special education administrator, and one central office. I thought about doing four grant applications instead of one, four weekly payrolls instead of one, having four packages for data management instead of one, for directors of facilities, four technology administrators, four cafeteria managers, and…four of everything – all for about 1,800 students. When I worked in Niagara Falls there were nearly 10,000 students in the district! So slowly, with much thought and research, I did become a serious proponent of the regionalization of our schools.

I learned that while some local leaders looked to regionalize Mahar, Orange, Petersham and Swift River in a single Pre-K – 12 region, other local leaders took an active stance against it. I attended meetings, read documents, and educated myself about both sides of this argument. I found all of the places in which regional efforts have fallen down in the past. And I learned how complicated this issue really, really is.

I originally believed that we just had to merge on paper. I thought that once a regional agreement was put together everyone would just vote and that would be that. I could see quite clearly how it would be better for education and better for finances, and I figured everyone else would see that too. Then reality set in…

First, if we were to regionalize several people would be out of jobs. All of the “fours” that I mentioned above would become “ones.” There would be only one school committee, so instead of eighteen school committee members there would be only eleven. Healthcare plans, teaching contracts, and non-teaching contracts would all have to be merged. Finally, in cases where our four separate districts do business with four separate companies, there would be only one company with whom we did business for each good or service we use. Sure, there is cost savings in each of these, but with the cost savings come individual winners and unfortunate losers.

We began regionalizing by consolidating. When I became the Superintendent, Dr. Conway became the Special Education Administrator for Petersham, Orange, and Mahar. With this we have and continue to respect the wishes of the Towns of Wendell and New Salem to remain an independent Pre-K -6 school district. In 2010 Wendell and New Salem funded education 43.1% higher than the minimum required Net School Spending amount. The Swift River School received $391,919.00 more than Net School Spending. They clearly have a great thing going there.

Consolidation at a Glance

Special Education Administration: Merged 2010 – One Special Education Administrator and Special Education Office for three school districts.

Central Office: Merged July 1, 2011 – One Superintendent and one Central Office for three school districts.

Maintenance: To be voted September 2011

Technology: To be voted September 2011

Cafeteria Services: To be voted September 2011

Health Care Plans: Orange, Petersham, and Mahar on same health care plan – MIIA (Blue Cross/Blue Shield)

Next Step: Information Sessions for Voters to understand the proposed regional agreement so that it can be presented to the townspeople for their vote in the Fall of 2011. First session to be held October 13, 2011 at Mahar at 7:00 PM.

There are a number of benefits to regionalizing that would take effect on July 1, 2012 with the affirmative vote of the Towns of New Salem, Orange, Petersham, and Wendell. I will separate these into two categories; financial and educational.

Financial Benefits

Regional Transportation Reimbursement: The Commonwealth of Massachusetts reimburses regional school districts for the transportation of its students. This year the rate of reimbursement was 57.59%. For every $100,000.00 a school district spent on transportation in 2011, $57,590.00 will be given to the regional school as a source of revenue in fical year 2012. In fiscal year 2012 the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School is projected to spend $572,560.00 on transportation and expects to receive $329,737.00 from the state for fiscal year 2013.. Orange Elementary is projected so spend approximately $300,000.00 on transportation in fiscal year 2012 and because it is not a regional district, reimbursement from the state will be $0.00. A regionalized Orange Elementary would receive an additional $172,770.00. These are funds that the district would receive every year.

Bonus Aid: The state has allocated bonus aid for regionalization to the tune of $50.00 per pupil. Orange, Petersham, and Mahar are projected to have around 1,800 students in the next academic year. So if regionalized we would receive a one-time payment of $90,000.00.

Cost Savings: There are cost savings in every consolidated position, merger of purchasing agreements, and increased dollars available in grants for a larger district. I will be presenting these amounts at the informational session on October 13, 2011 at 7:00 PM here at Mahar.

Educational Benefits

A strong elementary focus can now be held by the overseer of elementary education found in the Assistant Superintendent for Elementary Education. Prior to the creation of this position, Dr. Burnim had to oversee all of the financial, facility, state reporting, and personnel decisions in the district, leaving little or no time for education.

Professional development can be shared among all three districts in the generation of common languages and themes for student learning.

A Pre-K through Grade 12 curriculum can be created that is the same for ALL learners.

Uniform preparation of students can be ensured – meaning that seventh grade at Mahar is the same for all students, no matter which town they come from.

From my perspective it is very difficult to see drawbacks. I can see the complexities of getting the regionalization approved, but drawbacks are hard to find. Right now I see school buildings in Orange that need to be repaired, technology that needs to be enhanced, professional development for teachers that needs to take place, teachers who we need to return to work, test scores that need to improve, and textbooks that need to be purchased.

In Petersham I see a school funding formula that is teetering. While the number of school choice students at Petersham Center is a badge of honor, these students are funded at a level that is significantly less than that of students who live in the town in which they are educated.

At Mahar I see seventh grade MCAS scores that have yet to be adequately addressed. To improve seventh grade scores, we must interact with the curriculum in grade 6. To improve 6th grade MCAS scores we must improve practices in grade 5, and so on.

To me Regionalization can be explained as an endeavor of transformation. If accepted it will bring about a change in our system and a changes in individuals who work therein. If we continue at our current pace, state takeover of our schools is a real possibility in the coming years. The state and federal government have set standards that we are not meeting. In not meeting these standards, our students are the people who will suffer. We can be better together, and regionalization is the road to this taking place.

A Question About Inclusion

2011-08-16T23:57:00.000-04:00

When I started writing this blog, I had hoped that it would bring about lively online dialogue about the issues that confront our students, teachers, families, and schools. In preparation I did some research on how school superintendents across the country have used blogs to communicate with members of their school communities. I found that many superintendents started out with the best intentions, yet wound up shutting their pages down. You see, the anonymity offered by the Internet attracted people to these well-intended sites who had other motives.

Many of these tech-savvy school administrators found themselves confronted by statements that were charged with hate, anger, threats, and other inappropriate material. Essentially, people could post whatever they wanted on these blog sites with no accountability. With this in mind I instituted a more comprehensive technological form of identity verification on this blog. Sadly, the steps that one must go through in order to post seem to have diminished the quantity of posts that I have received. Irrespective of this fact, I am happy to see that this site is on the verge of recording 12,000 hits.

Over the past couple of weeks I have had the opportunity to meet with many in the community who are concerned about our latest unfortunate turn of events. I have also responded to questions at public meetings, and am now experiencing an uptick in the number of questions that I am receiving via E-mail. I decided that with the permission of those who E-mail me, I will begin posting my answers to their questions online. I hope that this will be one more way for our districts to communicate accurate information with regard to our budget crisis and our efforts to regionalize the Orange, Ralph C. Mahar Regional, and Petersham Elementary schools.

Today’s question came via E-mail from Orange Elementary parent, Rachael Coolidge. Rachael’s inquiry pertained to the difference between an elementary inclusion class and those that were not labeled to be inclusion classes in our recent press release about class size in the Orange Elementary system. If you have not had the opportunity to read the release, it was posted on this very blog just one week ago. In Mrs. Coolidge’s E-mail she wondered why there were more inclusion classes in grade 4 at Dexter Park Elementary than in other grades. I thought that this was an excellent question and I could not wait to get to it this evening. So Rachael, please accept my thanks for taking the time to send me the message.

Before answering this question there is some educational jargon that must be understood by all readers:

Least Restrictive Environment (LRE): This term comes from federal legislation (IDEA) that deals with the education of students with disabilities. It refers to the location in which education is provided for students who are educated under this section of law. This law states that children with disabilities must be educated with non-disabled students to the maximum extent possible, and with respect to each individual’s disability.

Full Inclusion Classroom: In Massachusetts a Full Inclusion Classroom is one in which students with disabilities are educated in regular education classrooms with their same aged peers for 80% or more of the school day.

IEP: Individualized Education Plan – the legal binding document that describes the educational program of a student educated under IDEA (Special Education Legislation).

Back in 2001 it appears as though the Orange Elementary Schools had more than 175 full time instructional staff. Today it appears as though there are nearly 70 less full time teachers and classroom aides than there were ten years ago. Over the last thirty days I learned that in 2001 each classroom at Orange Elementary had both a regular education teacher and a special education teacher. So it is my understanding that in 2001, Orange Elementary had what I would call the “Gold Standard” in elementary education staffing. With the advent of school choice, the district has remained with very close to the same student population for all of these years – yet there is significantly less staff.

The 2001 model offered all students with disabilities education in the “Least Restrictive Environment.” Students with special needs were equally dispersed throughout the schools. In this system each child can be provided with his or her daily educational needs in any and all classrooms.

Each year from 2001 the number of employees in the Orange Elementary system was reduced. The reductions were not quite as dramatic as those that took place just a couple of weeks ago. These were quiet reductions. When employees retired, resigned, or were terminated they simply were not replaced. The fact that their positions were not filled did not draw the attention of our recent 22 layoffs. Eventually each classroom that was populated by two teachers each only had one teacher to provide the same quantity of instruction.

According to the law that I mentioned above (IDEA) students with disabilities are required to have services from special education licensed personnel. As staff was reduced students with disabilities were assigned to classrooms with the remaining special education teachers. In the current model, there are many classes in which the classroom teacher and the special education teacher are one in the same. What Rachael sees in the class size report is the serious efforts of the previous superintendent to remain in compliance with special education regulations as resources became less and less available to the school system.

My research has indicated that it has taken several years for this model to evolve. In its current form there must be special education teachers at every grade level. Also, in this model we are not likely to see students who have IEPs in classrooms of teachers who are not properly licensed to provision instruction to special education students.

This special education delivery system will not endure with me in the position of superintendent. I would change it immediately if I could, but funding is not available for professional development to institute a new, more effective model. Also, we are significantly lacking in an even more precious resource…..and that is time.

Orange Elementary Projected Class Size Report Released

2011-08-11T15:31:00.003-04:00

Released to local media: August 9, 2011

A little more than one week after laying off 22 Orange Elementary School Employees, new Elementary Superintendent, Michael R. Baldassarre released the K – 6 Class Size Report. “I have been asked by many parents and staff what the effects of the layoffs would be on class size” said Baldassarre. One such forum in which the superintendent was questioned about class size was during the Orange Elementary Finance and Facilities meeting on August 2, 2011. This meeting, held at Mahar Regional was attended by more than thirty concerned parents and community members.

Mr. Baldassarre stated, “There is no doubt that the number of students in a single classroom directly impacts both the quality and quantity of educational attention that each student receives.” “This is precisely why music, art, and physical education were cut from the fiscal year 2012 budget. Our commitment has to be to keep classes as small as possible so that our children have the best and most opportunities to learn to read, write, and do arithmetic” he went on.

The reduction of staff at Orange Elementary is just one of many issues being faced by the district in the next academic year. Deficiencies in funding have also called upon the superintendent to question how facilities repairs could be funded. New on the Orange Elementary facilities radar is the leaking roof at the Dexter Park Elementary School. When Baldassarre and a reporter from Channel 22 News entered the facility for an interview on August 1, 2011 Baldassarre noted water pouring into Principal Softic’s office. Baldassarre, speaking at the previously mentioned finance and facilities meeting also stated that there were little or no funds in the fiscal year 2012 budget for textbooks, technology, curricular materials, or professional development.

More than 450 parents and concerned citizens have gathered on Facebook to express their concerns. Many Orange residents have become educated about the term, “Net School Spending.” This is the term used to illustrate the absolute legal minimum amount of funding that the Commonwealth expects to be dedicated to each school district in the state. Unfortunately, Orange Elementary has not been provided with the legal amount to fund education in fiscal year 2010, and it appears as though that mark will again not be met when the books are closed for 2011.

At the August 2, 2011 meeting, one parent asked of Baldassarre, “How are you going to fix all of this?” Baldassarre’s response was that the task of repairing and/or improving would be a difficult one. Without proper funding it is possible that scores on state tests plummet. If scores plummet in consecutive years, the district runs the risk of being taken over by the state. “We don’t want to see that happen” said Baldassarre. “This is a time to look at transformative system-wide reforms that will benefit our students” he said. Baldassarre was referring to the regional planning efforts. Over the past two years the school committees of Orange Elementary, Petersham, and Mahar have joined forces in unifying their special education administrations and central offices under a single superintendent.

Coming in the next few months the superintendent is expected to present the committees with unified technology departments, cafeteria services, and maintenance departments. Baldassarre said, “This can’t happen soon enough. We have to combine to create efficiencies and save funds wherever and whenever we can.” The districts stand to gain substantial funding through regionalization. Once an agreement is voted Mahar, Petersham, and Orange stand to gain more than $90,000.00 in regional bonus aid and more than $200,000.00 every year in state regional transportation reimbursement.

Baldassarre encourages any person with questions about regionalization efforts to contact him directly via e-mail (mbaldassarre@rcmahar.org) or phone (978-544-2920).

Fisher Hill Elementary Kindergarten Room A: 24 students
Fisher Hill Elementary Kindergarten Room B: 24 students
Fisher Hill Elementary Kindergarten Room C: 25 students
Fisher Hill Elementary Grade 1 Room A: 23 students
Fisher Hill Elementary Grade 1 Room B: 23 students
Fisher Hill Elementary Grade 1 Room C (Inclusion): 18 students
Fisher Hill Elementary Grade 1 Room D (Inclusion): 19 students
Fisher Hill Elementary Grade 2 Room A: 23 students
Fisher Hill Elementary Grade 2 Room B: 22 students
Fisher Hill Elementary Grade 2 Room C: 22 students
Fisher Hill Elementary Grade 2 (Inclusion) Room D: 17 students
Fisher Hill Elementary Grade 2 (Inclusion) Room E: 16 students
Dexter Park Elementary Grade 3 Room A: 25 students
Dexter Park Elementary Grade 3 Room B: 24 students
Dexter Park Elementary Grade 3 (Inclusion) Room C: 20 students
Dexter Park Elementary Grade 3 (Inclusion) Room D: 20 students
Dexter Park Elementary Grade 4 (Inclusion) Room A: 22 students
Dexter Park Elementary Grade 4 (Inclusion) Room B: 22 students
Dexter Park Elementary Grade 4 (Inclusion) Room C: 22 students
Dexter Park Elementary Grade 4 (Inclusion) Room D: 26 students
Butterfield Elementary Grade 5 Room A: 20 students
Butterfield Elementary Grade 5 Room B: 18 students
Butterfield Elementary Grade 5 (Inclusion) Room C: 14 students
Butterfield Elementary Grade 5 (Inclusion) Room D: 14 students
Butterfield Elementary Grade 5 Room E: 19 students
Butterfield Elementary Grade 5 Room F: 19 students
Butterfield Elementary Grade 6 Room A: 20 students
Butterfield Elementary Grade 6 Room B: 20 students
Butterfield Elementary Grade 6 Room C: 19 students
Butterfield Elementary Grade 6 Room D: 18 students
Butterfield Elementary Grade 6 (Inclusion) Room E: 16 students
Butterfield Elementary Grade 6 (Inclusion) Room F: 15 students

Facebook: 450 and Growing

2011-08-10T00:28:00.001-04:00

Back in 2009 when I started this blog, I tried to hone in on the impact that technology has in and around the school system and our students. For the most part I had been thinking about cyber bullying and smart phone uses that well, weren’t all that smart. Recently the reality of the social networking era has taken its impact on our elementary system while those who have worked most intimately with our new problems have remained internet silent….until now.

I have read plenty of articles and scholarly research about the impact of social networks in both the academic environment and in the community. When used appropriately, social networks such as Facebook can be powerful sources of information. They can be places where people share ideas and educate one another about complex and often misunderstood things. These same social networks can also be powerful sources of negativity or even worse, assist in the proliferation of information that is lacking in credibility.

CBS Channel 3 and Channel 22 Springfield newscasters took interest in the fact that more than 450 people joined a Facebook page that focuses on the financial condition of the Orange Elementary Schools. With this, I could not help but to log on and read just about every post from every person since the page was created. I was happy to find people who quickly educated themselves about school funding regulations in our state and shared them with the many readers on the site. Sadly too, I noted some posts that were full of misinformation and unflattering remarks.

On August 2, 2011 I stood in the Eileen Perkins Media Center at the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School and took question after question from parents and community members until there were no more. The communication in which we engaged was much more authentic than the posts that have filled the aforementioned Facebook page. Questions asked were answered in real time, and without the benefit of asynchronous communication offered by sites such as Facebook - answers were given to moms and dads in a more immediate and genuine fashion.

While school district administrators will not be posting on Facebook anytime soon, you can find us here at Mahar in our new Combined Elementary and Secondary Central Office. Our school’s administrators have been and will continue to respond to your phone calls, your letters, your E-mails, and we are available to meet with you in person too. And, if you are reading this blog – don’t hesitate to post questions here.

The Regionalization of our school districts can be the most transformative educational movement that has taken place in our towns since the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School was built in the 1950’s. This effort can be the axis on which opportunities are built while resources are saved. I hope to be blogging more in the very near future about this topic, and your questions, concerns, or comments will provide me the opportunity to do just that. So please, post away!

Elementary Strategic Planning Committee Seeks Volunteers

2011-07-06T16:53:00.003-04:00

Sent to All Local Media
July 6, 2011

The Orange Elementary School District and Petersham Center Elementary School have partnered to initiate the process of creating and implementing a joint Strategic Plan. To oversee this process, Orange Elementary School Committee Chair, Dr. Joanie Cohen-Mitchell and Petersham Center Elementary Principal, Mrs. Rebecca Phillips have been named as co-chairs of a soon-to-be-formed Strategic Planning Steering Committee. With the assistance of Dr. George Ladd of the Lynch School of Education at Boston College, the steering committee will lead and coordinate efforts to involve all community-stakeholder groups in the process. If you are a representative of one of the stakeholder groups identified below or would like to recommend a representative to take part in this process, please send a letter of interest or recommendation by Friday, July 15, 2011 to the attention of the co-chairs P.O. Box 680, Orange, MA 01364 or apply via E-mail to mbaldassarre@rcmahar.org.

Group 1: Peterhsam/Orange Parents, School Councils, Booster Organizations

Group 2: Organizations in Partnership with Orange Elementary and Petersham Center
Elementary Schools

Group 3: Local Businesses, Young Entrepreneurs’ Society, Chamber of Commerce (All
member towns)

Group 4: Elected officials, Fire and Police Departments (All member towns)

Group 5: Senior Citizens, Library Trustees, Churches, and other clubs and organizations.

Group 6: Orange Elementary/Petersham Center Staff; School Committee Members

Sentinel and Enterprise - June 11, 2011

2011-06-11T18:14:00.003-04:00

Pathways Program Helps Students Blaze Their Own Trails

by Marissa Donelan
mdonelan@sentinelandenterprise.com
published June 11, 2011

Members of the class of 2012 at the Pathways Early College Innovation School arrived from all backgrounds -- home-school programs, urban high schools and and private schools.

But when they graduate from the program, a trailblazing partnership between the Ralph C. Mahar school district and Mount Wachusett Community College, the 20 teens will already have their associate degrees, and they'll have at least one special designation in common: They'll be the first-ever round of alumni from the state's new Innovation Schools program.

On Thursday, Gov. Deval Patrick stopped by the campus to hear their stories, smiling when he heard students describe the class as a family. Patrick and state legislators last year passed an education-overhaul bill that made Innovation Schools possible.

Under the Innovation School program, any group of stakeholders in a community -- teachers, community groups, businesses or colleges, for example -- can partner with a local school district to tailor a plan designed to meet students' needs, whether through a theme, such as dual-language programs, or a different structure, like extended-day programs or longer calendars. Qualified proposals receive planning grants, and can move forward seeking local and state approval.

Pathways Principal Garo Papazian said the first class of students -- who used School Choice from 11 school districts -- are advanced learners who were ready for the challenge of college-level classes, mature enough to navigate more independent learning.

"When you know students, you see where they're going to go, you see what they can do," Papazian told Patrick. "With these kids, you see something in their eye and know they need more. One-size-fits-all education doesn't work for everybody."

Patrick agreed, saying: "That's the whole point of ... the bill, to meet kids where they are."

Twenty new students will enter the program in the fall, MWCC officials said. There are challenges -- students move from their comfort zone to a new program in their junior year, and they're responsible for their own transportation to school.

Mahar District Superintendent Michael Baldassarre said the idea for the program was developed even before legislation was passed to create Innovation Schools. The goal was to form an academically challenging program for motivated students who weren't thriving in a "four years, four walls" high school.

Ashley Williams, 17, of Leominster, said she looks forward to coming to school every day with students who choose to be there. There are no distractions from reluctant or disruptive classmates, and professors have high expectations, Williams said.

Pathways is only the second Innovation School in Massachusetts, and the first high school-level program, said Bridget Rodriguez, director of planning and collaboration for the Executive Office of Education. Nearly 30 Innovation Schools have since received approval for development across Massachusetts.

Fitchburg High School Principal Richard Masciarelli visited the school along with several state and MWCC officials, Gardner Mayor Mark Hawke and state Rep. Rich Bastien.

Masciarelli said he's encouraged by Pathways, and other partnership programs and alternatives, as signs students will continue to have increasing, worthwhile options for their education.

Patrick said he's excited about the success of the Pathways program and was impressed with the students' motivation in seeking a school program that would best suit them. The idea behind autonomous Innovation Schools is to create niche programs to help students excel.

He listened as Lynea German, 17, of Townsend, spoke about moving from home-schooling to a public charter school to a religious school before she found Pathways, which has had "a profoundly positive effect" on her life.

"What were you searching for?" Patrick asked German about her jump from school to school.
She looked at her classmates, then the governor, and responded: "This."

Patrick Gets Up Close View of Local Innovation in Education

2011-06-10T14:39:00.001-04:00

By Andres Caamano - Senior News Editor/NIE Director
The Gardner News

Published On Friday, June 10, 2011

Pictured:
Mount Wachusett Community College (MWCC) Vice President, Patricia Gregson (Left); Massachusetts Governor, Deval Patrick; Ralph C. Mahar Regional School District Superintendent, Michael Baldassarre; MWCC Board of Trustees Chair, James Garrison (Right)

In a visit that was in the works for about a month, Gov. Deval Patrick spent time Thursday morning with area school officials and Mount Wachusett Community College administrators to discuss, among other things, the Pathways Early College Innovation School.

While the likes of Gardner Mayor Mark Hawke were among numerous officials on hand for a roundtable discussion that led off the governor’s visit — surrounded by a wide representation of public school officials from surrounding districts — the notable absence of any Gardner Public Schools administration was glaring.

It wasn’t long ago that Pathways’ predecessor, Gateway to College, incorporated a partnership between the Gardner schools and MWCC, from 2006 to 2009. That program was created as an alternative to students thinking of dropping out, and having fallen behind on credits, it offered a second chance to earn a high school diploma. But while Gateway might have left the Gardner public schools, it thankfully did not leave the region, moving 20 miles west to the Mahar Regional School District in Orange.

Even though Gateway to College is no longer represented in Gardner’s public schools (or isn’t involved in Pathways), this space was encouraged to hear Hawke acknowledge the benefit of having at least the college involved in both.

“The people in this room have touched so many lives, and I consider it incredibly fortunate to have Mount Wachusett Community College and these programs here in Gardner,” noted Hawke to the governor.

And from Gateway’s birth came Pathways last year, with the new program meant to provide motivated high school juniors a chance to earn a high school diploma while also earning college credits.

On paper, it sounds like a great idea, but unfortunately, so many public schools seem trapped into a focus that they are solely a K-12 operation, and fail to understand the need to collaborate with schools at the higher education level.

Pathways became possible with a unanimous vote last June by the Mahar Regional School Committee, as the state’s second “Innovation School” came into being.

While Mahar Superintendent Michael Baldassarre admitted to Gov. Patrick that some of the initial steps to create it were “actually very easy to do,” particularly with the help of MWCC, he added, “This is what the power of a partnership is, because we give (MWCC) what they need.”

Once implemented, upon hearing the oft-repeated reactions to the program from its students, Baldassarre wasn’t taken aback.

“With me, it resonated, as I was a teacher, then an assistant principal and a principal. I know what it’s like for a lot of the students,” he said. “You have students in any high school that go above and beyond every day, but do so quietly, humbly, and they don’t ask for anything. They just want to transcend the barriers and become something.”

Unfortunately, for these students, despite these aspirations, the Mahar superintendent acknowledged the numerous hurdles they must deal with at their age.

“Teenage life is sometimes very difficult. Teenagers — as much as we want them to be responsible, young adults — are developing socially and emotionally,” he said. “Sometimes that plays out in concerning ways. So for that student who doesn’t want to be a part of that, there’s a place.”

And for the 14 Pathways students on hand Thursday at MWCC, they each spoke highly to the governor about how the program has proven to be the right “place” for them. It was often framed in the context of how they’d become frustrated in high school, with issues ranging from having to deal with “the politics” at a school to the lack of course choices.

After discussing the program with area school officials, though, Gov. Patrick noted, “There are actually other models like this, which is one of the reasons I’m here. No. 1, though, is that we want to encourage innovation in education, because the more we try these things and meet kids where they are, the more motivated they are, the better the result.”

Among things the governor also took quick note of was the strength in the partnership between Mahar and the college.

“They have a great advantage here, and an extraordinary partnership with Mount Wachusett Community College,” said Gov. Patrick, who added that the program was also achieving the administration’s goal of closing achievement gaps, while promoting innovation and excellence.

While the governor might have deemed that there are “other models like this,” Baldassarre took a different view, stating, “This is the only one of its kind right now. There isn’t anything else that allows you to get the associate’s degree and high school diploma at the same time. It’s very unique.”

With what has been accomplished thus far, the Mahar superintendent went further, deeming it ready to be spread across the country. And proof of an interest to do just that, have been discussions with educators from as far away as Kansas, to want to learn more about Pathways.

“This program is certainly attracting attention, and for one program of 25 kids, people see that it can be replicated,” said Baldassarre. “We’ve established that it is successful, and we’d like to see it replicated to offer more opportunities for more students.”

At the current pace, approximately 20 students each semester are enrolling in Pathways. That was the size of the first class, spread across 11 different school districts, and Baldassarre voiced a hope it could annually graduate between 15 to 20 students annually.

Considering what the Pathways students had to say about the program, such a goal doesn’t seem outlandish.

“We all want to be here, and you are not forced to be here, as you are in high school,” noted Ashley Williams, formerly a Leominster High student. “Then there is the environment and the freedom. Here you have a choice and you want to stay.”

Or as noted by Lynea German of Townsend — who had attended a number of area schools, along with being homeschooled, having last attended Francis W. Parker Charter School in Devens — “School was dragging and dragging. I had been at every type of school and this is allowing me to realize my dreams.”

When Gov. Patrick asked German what she had been searching for, she quickly replied, “This program kicked me into gear.”

Even with options like Gateway or Pathways, Baldassarre emphasized Mahar hasn’t stopped there. Another alternative, he noted at Mahar is the “First Year Experience” program, where students are taught college-level courses by Mahar teachers at the school, with the credited authorized by MWCC.

“We’re acclimating students to the college experience as quickly as possible,” he said. “It started with seven or eight students, and now we have 44 students registered this year. So the partnership isn’t only alive and well on (MWCC’s) campus, but also in the school district environment.”

It simply comes down, he said, to offering students a multitude of choices to expand their education.

“So we have students earning college credits everywhere. They are earning them (at MWCC), they are earning them online, they are earning them (at Mahar) in our classrooms. And they are earning them for free. That’s a big thing. If a student leaves Mahar with 12 or 15 or 18 college credits, we’ve saved that family thousands of dollars, and the student has already developed a college transcript.”

(Andres Caamano is the Senior News Editor/NIE Director at The Gardner News. He can be reached at acaamano@thegardnernews.com.)

Press Release from Governor Patrick's Office - June 9, 2011

2011-06-09T19:44:00.001-04:00

Pictured
Massachusetts Governor, Deval Patrick (head of table) meeting with School and Community College Administrators

Governor Patrick Visits Pathways Innovation School

Thursday, June 9, 2011 – As part of the Patrick-Murray Administration's strategy to close achievement gaps by promoting innovation and excellence in education, Governor Deval Patrick today visited the faculty and staff of the Pathways Early College Innovation School - the state’s second Innovation School - to hear from students and staff on the success of their first year in operation.

“The Pathways Early College Innovation School is using the Innovation School model to provide a dynamic education to their first class of students,” said Governor Patrick. “The students and staff here are trailblazers and I am excited for their strong start and for their future as a school.”

The Pathways Early College Innovation School is operated through a unique partnership between the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School District and Mount Wachusett Community College (MWCC). The primary purpose of the school is to provide motivated 11th grade students, some of whom have faced educational and other challenges, with an alternate pathway to higher education. The school was established by the unanimous vote of the Mahar Regional School Committee in June 2010, and it became the state’s second Innovation School. During his visit today, Governor Patrick met with students and staff to learn about their first year and about how the flexibility and autonomy of operating an Innovation School helped ensure success for the students.
“The powerful stories of achievement of the students at the Pathways Early College Innovation School are inspiring,” said Education Secretary Paul Reville. “This is a powerful model for collaboration between school districts and community colleges, and I am very proud of the accomplishments of the students, the Mahar Regional School District, and MWCC.”

The school is located on the MWCC campus and currently serves students from Athol, Barre, Baldwinville, Bolton, Fitchburg, Gardner, Leominster, Lunenburg, Orange, Shirley, Sterling, Townsend and Winchendon. The students are enrolled in MWCC courses and receive credit toward both their high school diplomas and certificate or degrees. In addition, they receive individualized academic and career support, participate in internships and other employment opportunities, and have access to all MWCC facilities and services.

“The Pathways Innovation School wouldn’t be possible without our many talented teachers and educators and our strong partnership with Mount Wachusett Community College,” said Mahar Superintendent Michael Baldassarre. “The Pathways Early College Innovation School is accomplishing its mission of helping all students access an education that prepares them for a long and successful future. We believe that the opportunities provided by the school can inspire and inform the rest of the school districts in the Commonwealth.”

“What is amazing about the Pathways Innovation School and MWCC’s Access programs is that the work is going on at a relatively small community college in a relatively rural area by a highly motivated group of professionals” said MWCC President Daniel Asquino. “This is a testament to the vision and inspiration led by Governor Patrick and Secretary Reville born out of the Readiness Project of which I was privileged to sit as a member of the team. This educational opportunity is priceless and the success of the program serves as a model to be used beyond Mount Wachusett Community College.”

The Innovation Schools initiative, a signature component of the Patrick-Murray Administration's Education Reform Act signed in 2010, gives educators the opportunity to create in-district schools that operate with greater autonomy and flexibility while keeping school funding within districts. These schools can implement creative and inventive strategies related to curriculum, budget, school schedule and calendar, staffing, professional development, and school district policies to improve learning outcomes for all students and reduce achievement gaps.

The Dennis-Yarmouth School Committee recently approved the proposal for the Marguerite E. Small Innovation School which is set to open in September. The vote brings the statewide total of Innovation Schools to nine, with several more in the pipeline.

The Executive Office of Education and the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education have secured Race to the Top funding as well as grants from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, The Boston Foundation and the Nellie Mae Education Foundation to award planning and implementation grants and provide site-based technical assistance to applicants. Twenty-four planning grants were awarded in March and additional grants will be awarded at the end of the calendar year. The deadline for the first round of implementation grants is June 30, 2011.

Guidance documents and additional information about funding sources are available at the Innovation Schools website: www.mass.gov/edu/innovationschools

Massachusetts Education Secretary Paul Reville to Speak at Commencement - June 3, 2011

2011-06-02T13:20:00.003-04:00

Tomorrow (June3, 2011) at 6:30 PM Massachusetts Education Secretary, Paul Reville will take the stage at the Commencement Ceremony for the Ralph C. Mahar Regional High School Class of 2011. Secretary Reville was invited to be the keynote speaker at this year’s ceremony after working with administrators at Mount Wachusett Community College and the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School in the creation of The Pathways Innovation High School. The graduation ceremony will take place on the football field at Ralph C. Mahar Regional in Orange, MA. This event is free, and all are invited to attend.

The Pathways Innovation School is an “Early College High School.” In this scenario students who attend may receive an Associate’s Degree and High School Diploma in the same time that it takes to earn the high school credential. This program is made even more enticing by its ability to provide the Associate’s Degree to students at little or no cost.

The Innovation School is a true innovation and is one of many that have taken place in Mahar’s recent history. The clearly articulated vision, mission and core values provide a philosophical road map for members of the Mahar school community to move in an upward direction in student achievement, personal growth, school climate, partnerships, and school finance. In essence, district and school leaders use this plan to engage in student-centered decision making.

In 2008 the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School District entered into an agreement with the CAPS Educational Collaborative to provide educational services to students with severe disabilities on the Ralph C. Mahar Regional campus. The students come to Mahar from the Mahar Regional member towns of New Salem, Orange, Petersham and Wendell. Other students in the program are from surrounding school districts such as Gardner, Winchendon, and Barre.

During this academic year one student, a member of the class of 2011 asked her principal, Mr. Scott Hemlin if she could be allowed to work as a volunteer in one of the two CAPS classrooms that cater to students with special needs. In response to this request, and in accordance with the Ralph C. Mahar Core Values this young lady was provided with an opportunity to provide service to the students in the classroom. At the same time she earned high school credit toward graduation as she learned about the education of students with special needs. At the Class of 2011 Awards Ceremony on Wednesday night not many in attendance were surprised to learn that she will be going to college to become a teacher for children with special needs.

The CAPS/Mahar partnership was created in accordance with the Mahar Mission. The effect of this partnership was felt not only when Candace began working in the class. It was felt when the students in the class began to participate in Mahar student events such as the Senator Games – a competition in which each class competes in athletic events against one another. Even more emotional was the standing ovation that the entire Mahar student body gave to the CAPS students at a pep assembly after showing the medals that they won in the Special Olympics.

When the Class of 2012 (next year’s senior class) met with their guidance counselors to select their courses for the next academic year, even more students requested to work in the CAPS classrooms. When I heard that twelve students out of a senior class of 140 requested to be of service to the students in the CAPS classrooms, I was amazed. Our partnership not only provided opportunities for personal growth – it also improved our school culture. It will be our pleasure to show Secretary Reville the quality education that is offered to students in our regional district when he arrives tomorrow evening. The CAPS program is one of many opportunities our students have to learn and grow.

Please visit the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School website (www.rcmahar.org) to learn more. School choice applications are available on our website and are due in the Superintendent’s Office before July 1, 2011. Please do not hesitate to call with questions, or to request a tour of our facility.

Hannaford's Awards Mahar $1,474.00

2011-06-02T10:29:00.000-04:00

Athol/Orange Hannaford Store Manager Joe Goody announced today he would be presenting a check in the amount of $1,000 to Mike Baldassarre representing Mahar Regional on May 16 at noon at Hannaford Supermarket. The $1,000 education grant is being awarded to Mahar for raising the most dollars through the Hannaford Helps Schools program. In total, the school raised $1474.00

Under the terms of the program that ran from September 5 to December 5, shoppers could raise funds for local schools by purchasing participating products. This year, there were more than 900 eligible products, including Hannaford brand items and products from partners General Mills, Clorox, Heinz, Ocean Spray, Gorton's, Bush's Beans, Kellogg's, Bayer, McCains, New World, Coke, Hershey, Nestle Beverage, Purina, Tyson, Mott's and Welch's. More than 2,700 schools in five states participated in the program, raising more than $650,000 overall. In the 11 years since its inception, the Hannaford Helps Schools program has raised more than $6.75 million for participating schools.

There was no limit on the amount that could be raised by each school. Each store has awarded an additional $1,000 education grant to the one school registered with that store that raised the most funds. Mahar was Athol/Orange Hannaford’s education grant winner.

“On behalf of Hannaford, it gives me great pleasure to present this check to Mahar Regional,” said Store Manager Joe Goody “Hannaford is committed to improving the quality of life in the communities we serve, and I can’t think of a better way to do so then by investing in our local schools.”

About Hannaford Supermarkets

Hannaford Supermarkets, based in Scarborough, Maine, operates 176 stores and employs 27,000 associates in Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York and Vermont. Most Hannaford locations have full-service pharmacies and all stores feature Guiding Stars, the nation’s first storewide nutrition navigation system. For more information, visit www.hannaford.com.

Public Forum on Consolidation/Regionalization - March 2, 2011

2011-04-01T16:09:00.001-04:00

On March 2, 2011 a public forum was held at Butterfield Elementary School in Orange. The purpose of this event was to update our communities on the three school district central office consolidation as it has been voted unanimously by our school committees to take effect on July 1, 2011. This video opens with a presentation by Massachusetts Association of Regional Schools Consultant, Ken Rocke, who provides a our progress to date and plans moving forward.

At the conclusion of Mr. Rocke's presentation I, along with Superintendents Burnim, Martin, and Regionalization Planning Committee Chair, Michael LeBlanc took questions from those who attended. Much thanks to Orange Town Administrator, Rick Kwiatkowski for facilitating the question/answer portion.

This event was aired on AOTV.

The video can be viewed on line by clicking the link below:

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/23993984/Regionalization_small.wmv

Mahar Dam Removal - Requesting Deadline Extension

2011-02-16T18:11:00.001-05:00

Sent to all local news agencies
February 15, 2011

The dam at the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School was again the topic of discussion at the February 9, 2011 School Committee Meeting. There, GZA GeoEnvironmental, Inc. Project Manager, Derek Schipper and Engineer, Gregory W. Hunt presented the findings in the recently completed Dam Removal Feasibility Study. The total cost for dam removal was presented to be in the neighborhood of $330,000.00. These presenters validated that the cost of dam repair would exceed the cost of removal by as much as $200,000.00.

Ralph C. Mahar Regional School District Superintendent, Michael R. Baldassarre informed the School Committee that former State Representative, Christopher Donelan had interceded on Mahar’s behalf. Because of Mr. Donelan’s work, the district was offered the opportunity to apply for an extension of time for project completion. “By delaying this project for one year, we will likely be able to borrow funds from the state at a reduced interest rate, due to a fund being created for exactly this purpose” said Baldassarre. The Superintendent was provided with this information by Office of Conservation and Recreation Chief of Staff, Stephanie Cooper.

The Ralph C. Mahar Regional School Committee voted unanimously to have Baldassarre send the request for extension. “At the very least we will be provided with more time to come up with funding necessary for the project” said the Superintendent. Baldassarre stated in the meeting that six month follow up inspections will continue during the state of abeyance, ensuring the safety of the Mahar property and surrounding homes.

All of the abutters to the Mahar Dam were invited to attend the meeting, but only one Orange resident attended. Mr. Baldassarre asked the representative from GZA to forward the presentation so that it can be placed on the Mahar website so that those who could not attend would still be able to access the information that was presented.

GZA Presentation may be viewed by clicking below:
http://www.rcmahar.org/blog/2011/02/16/mahar-dam-removal-presentation-to-school-board-2-9-2011/

Budgets Shrink as Pressures Rise for Massachusetts Schools

2011-02-04T14:52:00.000-05:00

As published in The Gardner News, February 4, 2011

There are mounting pressures on the landscape of Pre K - 12 education. While the federal government is investing billions of dollars into the transformation of public education, via the Race to the Top Fund, cities and towns across our great nation are struggling to come up with the fiscal means to sustain their educational achievements, however great or small they may be.

At the same time, officials at the state level are debating whether or not school districts should be consolidated in efforts to increase capacity, decrease expenditure, and improve student performance. And on top of all of this, there is even more debate about the creation or abolition of charter schools.

While the aforementioned issues seem to be separate, a common theme exists. The Race to the Top Fund is actually $4.35 billion; cities and towns are looking at ways to spend less because there is not enough to go around; state officials are looking at the expense of education in small districts versus large districts, and the major debate about charter schools is that when they are formed, they divert much needed funding from local public schools, thereby making public school improvement increasingly difficult.

I have found that my educational colleagues have differing views about the aforementioned. While administrators in large districts seek their districts’ share of Race to the Top funds, administrators from small districts groan at the seemingly insignificant dollar amounts they are scheduled to receive. Some school officials are doing all that they can to partner up with neighboring schools in shared purchasing agreements and combined services, while others see consolidation efforts as an attack on local autonomy.

Yet while all of these debates ensue, school happens. While President Barack Obama is on television supporting high achieving charter schools, while State Rep. Marty Walz, D- Boston, is in deliberations about state-mandated district realignment and regionalization, and while superintendents are pleading with local finance committees not to slash education funding in the next fiscal year, the students are walking through our doors ready to learn. Not surprisingly, parents are also expecting that we will deliver on our promise to prepare each child to maximize his or her human potential.

Most school districts in Massachusetts receive more than $11,000 per student per year for the purposes of education. With this in mind, you have the right to expect the very best for those who are attending your schools. For those not directly involved in public education, you can help your schools improve too. You may be a town official, a parent, a business owner, or a taxpayer. You can do your part to ensure that the children in your town are receiving a high quality education:

Parents and local business owners
You might consider becoming a member of the school council of your local school. Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 71, Section 59C calls upon the involvement of this council in the creation of the school’s budget. As a parent or community representative you can see to it that the programs and services most valuable to you and to your school community remain intact.

Town officials
Do not hesitate to ask for school program reviews from independent evaluators. Only then will you know that the taxpayers’ dollars are being utilized for the maximum benefit of your towns’ students. Since you are recommending the dollars to be spent, you have the right to know that those dollars are being spent wisely.

We know that the financial times for Massachusetts cities and towns will be difficult in the next fiscal year. Regardless, the state and federal government will continue to increase the demand that our public schools improve through a rigid system of accountability. And while this is happening the pressures will mount and the debates will continue.

Mahar Dam Removal Presentation: February 1, 2011

2011-01-24T09:32:00.001-05:00

SENT TO ALL LOCAL NEWS AGENCIES
January 24, 2011

On February 1, 2011 at 6:30 PM GZA GeoEnvironmental, Inc. Project Manager, Derek Schipper and Norwood District Office Manager William H. Hover will present the findings and recommendations of the Mahar Dam Removal Project to the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School Committee and to the general public. At the conclusion of the presentation committee members and members of the general public will have the opportunity to ask and have answered their questions about the removal of the Mahar Dam.

In September 2009 the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School District received a letter from the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs informing that the Mahar Dam was classified to be in “Poor Condition.” This letter set forth a series of costly inspections and evaluations that ultimately called upon the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School Committee to make a difficult decision. The committee could have chosen to repair the dam or to have it removed altogether, but leaving it in its current state was not an option.

The final decision was to move forward with dam removal and restore the waterway to its original condition before the dam was created in the 1950’s. Dam removal was the more cost effective of the two options. The Mahar Regional School Phase I Dam Inspection/Evaluation Report indicated that the total cost of dam repair was estimated at more than a half of a million dollars and costly inspections or repairs could continue as long as the dam was in existence. The more cost effective option of dam removal is expected to cost approximately $300,000.00 – but this amount will only have to be paid once.

Many townspeople in Orange have been particularly concerned with the repair or removal of the dam. Officials from the Towns of Wendell, New Salem and Petersham have also been concerned because the cost of dam removal will affect the budgets of all four member towns. Letters will be sent to abutters to the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School District specifically to invite them to the February 1 presentation which will be approximately 20 minutes in duration.

Mahar Athletes Recognized

2010-12-20T12:07:00.000-05:00

As Printed in The Athol Daily News
December 16, 2010

Recently, the Mahar Student Council organized the Annual Thanksgiving Pep Rally. This year, in addition to the school and student council recognizing the football players, cheerleaders and all fall athletes, they also recognized Mahar's Special Olympians. The football team and student council presented these Olympians with Super Fan sweatshirts. Posing with the Olympians are senior football players for the Senators. Rear, left to right - Gisele Gagne, Tracy Ferrazza, Eddie, Liz Porter, Melitza Meldonado (squatting down). Middle row - Emily, Michelle Paine, Olivia, Mitch, Alicia, Nate, DJ, Sue Ayotte, Brendon. Front row - Evan Paradise, Andrew Chandler, Adam Bergantino, Parker Russell, Isaiah Jones, David Burnham, Andy O'Loughlin, Zach Kohlstrom, Dylan Barnes, Peter Mulder, Richard Anderson. Photo by Rhonda Whitney

Strategic Planning Efforts Tied to Mahar's Successes

2010-12-17T16:15:00.002-05:00

As Printed in The Gardner News
December 17, 2010

When asked the question, what do children do in school? Most people would simply answer, “They learn.”

Okay...
Learn what? Learn to read? Learn to add? Learn to think? Learn to reason?

Truth be told, the list of what students actually learn in school has been placed into books – so many that you could fill rooms with them from the floors to the ceilings. Some books are about what students learn in classes, while others focus on what they learn in the hallways, in the cafeteria, or on the sports fields.

Here is a more difficult question: What do schools learn? Quite often when leaders wish to improve schools they explore the practices of the most successful businesses in America. They try to uncover philosophies, paradigms, and practices that have helped their upward movement.

There are five characteristics that tend to present themselves in these companies:

1. They have strong organizational cultures (people believe in one another);

2. They have huge ambitions (far-reaching goals);

3. They try and try (experiment to find what works best);

4. They grow their own leaders (management development);

5. They never stop trying to top prior achievements (never good enough).

In order for these five characteristics to work, organizations (like people) need to continuously adapt, grow, and change with their surroundings. In successful organizations, change is not viewed as a hazard. Rather, change is an opportunity to become better.

In 1995, two authors by the names of Leithwood and Aitken defined “Learning Organizations” as those with groups of people pursing common purposes who are willing to constantly change – in hopes of becoming better.

One would expect that since schools in general are viewed as the center of learning that they would be the organizations most likely to adapt to changes in student populations and new ideas in teaching and learning, but this is often not the case.

For starters, the organizational structure of schools has been the same for many years and those who have worked in these structures often resist change. Even worse, there are often leaders who haven’t the slightest clue about the power of a shared vision and the impact that it can have on teaching, learning, and adapting the educational organization to best fit the needs of learners.

Undoubtedly the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School District has made remarkable progress in improving educational opportunities for the students in Orange, Wendell, Petersham, New Salem, and for those who choose to come from other communities via school choice policies.

You may have read about our partnerships with Mount Wachusett Community College (The Gateway to College and Pathways Early College Innovation School), our three in-house alternative programs, the partnership with the CAPS Educational Collaborative, our relationship with the Illinois Institute of Technology, or perhaps our recent improvements in student test scores on the MCAS.

The reason that there are so many successes found in our district is rooted in our strategic planning efforts, which were recently renewed.

In April 2010, the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School initiated the process of updating and revising the district’s Strategic Plan under the guidance of hired consultant and Boston College Professor Emeritus, Dr. George Ladd. To accomplish this task, a steering committee comprised of members from within the school, the school community, and the communities-at-large was selected from a pool of applicants.

The committee was charged with reviewing a number of key areas including: student achievement, personal growth, school climate, collaborations and partnerships, and resources.

Over several months, the eleven-member Strategic Plan Steering Committee met numerous times to update and revise the Strategic Plan.

As part of this course of action, the committee surveyed nearly 800 members of identified stakeholder groups, their constituents, and the community as a whole, to ascertain a much broader perspective. The information collected in this survey guided the committee in updating the school’s core values and the school’s vision and mission statements.

The ultimate purpose of this five-year Strategic Plan is to ensure that the R.C. Mahar Regional School continues to move in a direction congruent with the school’s vision and mission and that the school’s efforts and actions are reflective of the plan’s core values.

Our district is guided by a carefully crafted Mission and Vision. From this mission and vision a set of Core Values was also renewed. While you review these core values think about the fact that any and every decision that is made in our district educationally and fiscally is rooted in these values.

You will then understand why our school has progressed so rapidly, and how our partnerships have developed. It is my pleasure to share our core values with you!

Student Achievement

We believe all students learn best when actively engaged in the learning process.
We believe education is about student growth that includes core academics, the arts, cultural awareness, and physical, social and emotional well-being.
We believe the purpose of education is to enable students to become self-reliant learners and productive, responsible citizens.

Personal Growth

We believe in promoting personal responsibility in students so they may reach their full potential.

School Climate

We believe all decisions should be made in the best interest of students while recognizing and welcoming their individual differences.
We believe in a safe environment built on communication and a shared decision making process that supports curiosity, creativity, respect, and positive attitudes.

Collaborative Partnerships

We believe in identifying and developing diverse opportunities for students to engage in active learning within their communities.
We believe the education of a child is the shared responsibility of town, educational, family, and student communities.

Resources

We believe in school personnel working with family and town communities to provide ongoing information regarding student achievement, school-related activities, and annual budget and expenditures.
We believe in utilizing fiscally responsible strategies which support teaching and learning to meet the unique needs of students.

The Literacy Project - Orange, MA

2010-12-15T17:08:00.005-05:00

Last week I was invited to visit the Orange, MA Literacy Project by one of the members of their Board of Directors, Amy McMahan. The Literacy Project offers free classes to adults in the Massachusetts Towns of Orange, Ware, Northampton, Greenfield, and Amherst in beginning literacy as well as GED preparation. Today, I spent two hours at the Orange, MA location visiting with Director, Cathy King. I also had the pleasure of meeting Haley, Kim, Dan, Alyssa, Jessica, Yaras, Jackie, and Cristal. These students were kind enough to sit and talk with me for about an hour about their experiences and opinions in and about high school.

When I first walked in I was curious about what a GED program looked like. Aside from those offered in the schools in which I have worked, this is the first one that I have seen. I wanted to know what their per pupil expenditure was, where funding came from, how much space they used, what their enrollment was, and how much they paid for the use of the space that they were in. I call these “administrative vitals.” I was curious to know how these figures differed from those that we work with in the day to day operation of the public school. I was provided nearly all of the information that I requested, and then so much more.

I learned that more than half of the 70 young adults enrolled in the Literacy Project (all five towns) are between the ages of 16 and 25. This percentage was more than reflected in the classroom that I visited, and I was a little surprised to learn that four students are over the age of 60. Most of the members of the Literacy Project found their way to the program by word of mouth and others were referred by schools or other state agencies. Administrators often refer to statistics such as these to bring attention to a subject – which is exactly what I am trying to do.

I am almost ashamed to say that in all of the time that I have been working at Mahar, that I never knew that there was a GED program on the same street as our school – just a mile away. After my visitation today, I could not help but think that I should have visited a long time ago. First of all, seven of the eight students who were taking class there today were high school aged. Second, no matter where these young adults went to school or what they were doing before they joined the Literacy Project they are people who are striving to better themselves through education and they are right here with us in the Town of Orange!

When I sat down I explained to the GED candidates that I had a hard time understanding what happens in between the time that first graders are literally climbing on their desks to get their teacher to call on them to answer a question and the time when teenagers that walk away from school entirely. What are schools doing wrong? What can we do different? How can we be better?

Some of the responses were easy. For instance one young lady felt that teachers could be a little bit more flexible, especially in understanding that students have challenges outside of school. “Things go on in life” she said. Using this as a basis for further discussion, I went around the room trying to get just a snapshot of their individual stories. For every issue that was presented around schooling, there was an issue that presented about the times when school is not in session.

For instance, I learned that one of the students changed schools eleven times in less than five years. Then another student told me that one of her administrators told her mother that she would never get a high school diploma. One of the students moved out of her home at the age of 16 prior to losing focus on school. And another told me that her teachers were judgmental of her and her life outside of school. When asked about playing sports, she said that she enjoyed one of them. Then after being kicked off of a team, she never went back. “Teachers should let us learn at our own pace, like we do here” one student remarked. Then another said, “School should be fun. I mean it doesn’t have to be like a dance and everything in lights. Just make it a cool place, you know?”

To answer your question Jessica, yes. I do know. What I hope that you know is that education is not only about how you say hello at the age of five or six (kindergarten), or how you say bye-bye at the age of 17 (graduation). It is a life-long process that you are in. Where you are today is only a Polaroid snapshot - and down the road you, your friends, me and everyone we know will have grown by what we learned along the way. Today, I was fortunate to have learned from you.

Excess & Deficiency Account Request Highlights Democracy in Action

2010-12-08T18:10:00.001-05:00

Since I began in my role as superintendent in July 2009, I have met with the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School Committee in the Eileen Perkins Media Center at least once each month. In my time with the Mahar School Committee much has been discussed, deliberated, and voted upon in our monthly meetings. In every case the decisions that have been made impacted our school community in positive and uplifting ways. Up until last night, I have been able to make clear recommendations rooted in school improvement, student wellness, and organizational stability.

On the heels of the certification of the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School District Excess and Deficiency Account a request came in early November. The Board of Selectmen and Finance Committee of the Town of Orange requested that we lower our assessments to the towns to the tune of $100,000.00 to assist with some unforeseen deficits that presented at the end of the last fiscal year. This would mean that the assessment to the Town of Orange would be lessened by $75,000.00 prior to June 30, 2011 and that the Towns of Petersham, Wendell, and New Salem’s assessments would be lowered by a collective $25,000.00.

Regional school regulations dictate that setting or lowering assessments to towns is strictly a school committee decision. With this in mind, I prepared a short report on what the Excess and Deficiency account is, how funds find their way there, and what they are used for. I also provided information on potential problems with lowering the amount that the district holds in its Excess and Deficiency account. Ultimately, I did all that I could to ensure that the committee had all of the information necessary to make a well informed decision on the use of the funds.

As of this moment there is approximately $590,000.00 in the Excess and Deficiency Account. By law the district can hold up to 5% of its budget in this account. These funds are set aside to pay for any unforeseen expenditure that can range from a roof that has fallen into unforeseen disrepair, emergency litigation, or any other unexpected and necessary expenditure. If the funds are not used in the current fiscal year then they are used to lower the assessments to the towns in the next fiscal year. For instance, $460,397.00 was used from last year’s Excess and Deficiency Account to reduce assessments to the towns in this, our current fiscal year.

At last night’s meeting our school committee deliberated about lowering the assessments to the towns for quite some time. As a matter of fact, this was the second consecutive month in which the request was being considered by the school committee. Unfortunately, just prior to their discussion and deliberation I had to present a $333,000.00 projection for the Department of Conservation and Recreation’s order to repair the Mahar Dam as it was presented in the recently conducted Feasibility Study. As one would expect, after all of the discussion and deliberation the school committee voted not to lower the assessment to the towns in a 6 - 4 vote to deny the motion. Had the motion to lower assessments even made it to a vote, regional school law requires a 2/3 majority to change the budget. That would equate to a 7 – 3 vote, that was just not there.

After the vote was taken I witnessed what I believe to be the classiest statement ever made at a Mahar School Committee meeting. Orange Selectmen, Robert Andrews introduced himself to the committee and thanked them for taking their vote. He told us that he was there in support of the Orange Town Administrator who spoke on behalf of the Selectmen. He mentioned that the vote did not go as he had hoped it would and then he said, “What just happened here is Democracy, and I thank you for it.” There was a moment of silence as what Mr. Andrews said soaked in. You see, when a statement of scorn or disdain was expected by most in the room, the thoughts of a highly actualized leader, citizen, and public servant were heard.

Will Rogers was one of the best known celebrities of the 1920’s. One of his many famous quotes was, “A man only learns in two ways, one by reading, and the other by association with smarter people.” With this quote in mind I would like to thank you Mr. Andrews. Last night you gave us all an opportunity to be associated with and learn from you.

Organizing the Disorganized Student

2010-12-02T17:24:00.003-05:00

When I was in Junior High School my principal, Mr. LaDuca provided me and my fellow students with time to focus solely on organization. I can still vividly recall "Backpack Resets" and "Locker Clean Out." In most schools locker clean out takes place on the day before the last day of school as a time for each student to assist the maintenance crew in preparing the lockers for the next school year. Mr. LaDuca on the other hand, allowed his students fifteen minutes during the school day every ten weeks to straighten out our individual storage nightmares.

Prior to drafting this blog post, I asked Middle School Dean, Mr. Dion to open some sample lockers so that I could see if my recollection of a messy eigth grade locker has endured the test of time. As you can see from the picture at the top of this post, it has. This picture is exactly what I saw in the second locker that Mr. Dion opened. I do not know who it belongs to, but I know that it is indicative of a topic that needs to be addressed.

The truth of the matter is the biggest challenge many students face is not learning to read or mastering matematical computation but rather getting organized. Many students have good reasoning ability and well-developed academic skills, but they get failing grades when it comes to the nuts and bolts of learning tp bring the proper materials to class, keep track of papers, use time wisely, write down assignments correctly, and turn them in on time.

With this in mind the Ralph C. Mahar, Orange Elementary, and Petersham Elementary Parent Advisory Council will sponsor an event directed at helping parents help their students get and stay organized. The Workshop entitled: “Organizing the Disorganized Student” will be offered in the Eileen Perkins Media Center on December 7, 2010 from 9:00 to 10:30 a.m. Participants in the workshop will learn the organizational styles of their children; learn how to choose school supplies most compatible with your children's organizational styles; learn how to effectively organize a school locker; and learn how to get homework home, back to school and into the teacher’s hands.

Workshop presenter, Victoria Elliot, is a licensed School Adjustment Counselor who has worked at Mahar Regional School since the fall of 2006. Mrs. Elliott has worked extensively with a number of students who have struggled or are currently struggling with organizational issues. Since students' grades are often negatively impacted by disorganization, the Mahar Counseling Team decided it would be beneficial to the community for Mrs. Elliott to share her organizational strategies for students in this parent workshop. Mrs. Elliott received her bachelor’s degree in psychology from Mount Holyoke College and her Master’s Degree in clinical social work from Smith College.

For those unable to attend a daytime program, the workshop will be repeated in the evening January 24, 2011 from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. Light refreshments will be served. For further information contact: Mrs. Page or Mrs. Elliott at 978-544-2535.

The Staples© Commercial With the "That Was Easy" Button

2010-11-29T17:46:00.000-05:00

This afternoon when I walked into my office I took special note of the “That Was Easy” button that is on my desk. This small electronic device was made popular by Staples © commercials, and over the past few years the number of “That Was Easy’ buttons in offices across America is likely to have multiplied many times. I found this little noise maker in a cabinet in my first office here at Mahar, and I looked for every possible opportunity to use it. I realized today that it has been quite some time since I have heard its familiar sound and for fun, I pressed it.

As soon as I heard “That Was Easy” I responded, “Not Exactly!” My thoughts immediately went to the work that I have been engaged in with fellow Superintendents, Dr. Patricia Martin from the Petersham Elementary School District, Dr. Paul Burnim from the Orange Elementary Schools, and our consultants Mr. Ken Rocke, and Dr. Steve Hemman from the Massachusetts Association of Regional Schools. For the work that we have been doing together there should be another button that when pressed utters, “That Was Challenging” or perhaps “That Was Pretty Complex.”

Together my aforementioned colleagues and I have been working on comprehensive plans to consolidate fiscal, governance, contractual, and data functions of our central offices. This work comes on the heels of our successful consolidation of our three districts’ special education administrative offices. In our shared special education team we have successfully shared professional expertise, services such as Speech and Language Therapy, duties, costs, and have begun to craft a three district counseling corps to meet the social and emotional needs of all students from Pre- K through grade 12.

Since we began working together about a year ago, we have found much common ground. Today we sat together in a Massachusetts Department of Education sponsored workshop put on by the acclaimed National Institute of School Leadership. Several months ago we began a journey together to bring Response to Intervention (RTI) to all of our districts’ classrooms, and together we are analyzing data to improve instruction for our students at all levels. We have been working together with a shared premise – that we can recreate a better system of teaching and learning for the children in our districts by focusing on sharing one piece of our organizations at a time.

For quite some time, each of our school districts have worked “in isolation together” if such a thing is possible. I now find myself thinking of the mathematical fact, “the whole is equal to the sum of its parts” and understand that improving each facet of our individual organizations by combining resources, expertise, experience, and a shared mission with one another, that we will create more promising situations for our students.

Our shared special education team has been made possible with the support of the Ralph C. Mahar Regionalization Planning Committee and our three school committees. The success of the Special Education merger is also rooted in a group of employees who are willing to work together to come up with creative and innovative solutions. In our most recent school committee meetings the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School Committee and Orange School Committees openly discussed and voted the pursuit of consolidated central offices. None of the above has warranted the pressing of the “That Was Easy” button.

I now turn to you, the readers of this blog. If you have any questions about our consolidation effort, please do not hesitate to post them. If appropriate, your question will be seen by all and answered publicly.

Can A Small Town Initiative Pay Off Big for Mahar Students? Yes it Can!

2010-11-04T13:17:00.007-04:00

Earlier this year the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School was visited by a number of people from the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT). Dr. Harvey Kahalas, Dean of the Stuart School of Business at IIT was led with others on a tour of Orange, Massachusetts by our Town Administrator, Rick Kwiatkowski. Dr. Kahalas took particular interest in our small town as he thought that it would be a good fit with IIT’s Sustainable Program in Entrepreneurship and Economic Development (SPEED). Even more exciting was the interest that Dr. Kahalas and the administrators at IIT took in our high school.

Dr. Kahalas sat with me and asked me a very simple question; “How would you like for some of your graduates to attend IIT in Chicago?” “Of course” I responded. But I was very skeptical. First, IIT is located in the heart of downtown Chicago. Second, IIT is a very difficult school for any student to earn admission to, and third, IIT is a very expensive school to attend. The list of IIT graduates includes CEOs from all over the country, Presidents of companies, Vice presidents, and Chairmen of Boards of Directors. One of IIT’s graduates is the Vice President of Toyota Motors Automotive Operations. This college has been referred to as the MIT of the Midwest.

The special offer that was proposed to our school makes available to graduates from Ralph C. Mahar Regional High School an opportunity to attend IIT at a rate that is affordable and for some students nearly for free. Currently, tuition, room and board, and other fees for a student who attends IIT is approximately $32,000.00 per year. IIT has extended to our graduates an opportunity to attend IIT on their Presidential Scholarship which can cover most of this cost. For students who are financially eligible, that cost may turn out to be free.
What’s the catch? The proposed Sustainable Program in Entrepreneurship and Economic Development (SPEED) project has been designed recognizing that the future of small towns is in the hands of today’s youth. Therefore, any student who attends IIT as a part of this partnership will be expected to come back to Orange during the summer months of his/her college experience and use his/her IIT education to help the Town of Orange create jobs, save energy, or engage in some other activity that will create successful outcomes for the residents of our Town.

IIT believes that “A town’s longevity and vitality, and the survival of its culture and values, are determined by its ability to educate a new generation of young leaders who believe in their community’s future and who are willing to shape it with innovative ideas and entrepreneurial spirit. The SPEED program is centered on the belief that providing young people with an outstanding education that allows them to reach their highest potential is important for individuals and their community alike.

Last week I flew to Chicago with our Town Administrator and a local entrepreneur. We were given a tour of two of IIT’s three campuses. We had personal meetings with Stuart School of Business Dean, Harvey Kahalas, Vice-Provost for Undergraduate Admissions, Gerald Doyle, and more than twenty administrators, professors, and staff at IIT. We also sat with University Provost, Alan Cramb for hours discussing the possibilities generated by our partnership. It was clear to me that these individuals believe that they can and will make an impact on small towns in America. I made it as clear as I could to them that our school district is proud to be part of this picture.

The Provost, Vice-Provost, and Dean of the Business School took particular interest in our newly created Pathways Early College Innovation School. They expressed an interest in meeting with me and with the administrators at Mount Wachusett Community College about the prospect of graduates of this program attending IIT. After all, a graduate from the Pathways program is a graduate of Ralph C. Mahar High School, which qualifies these students for the SPEED program at IIT. I will be meeting with administrators at Mount Wachusett Community College next week to discuss this program becoming a reality for students in our area.

I have said this before, and I will say it again. We do not educate in a vacuum. Partnerships have been a key to the many successes that the Mahar district has had in recent years, and they just keep coming. Yesterday we signed an agreement in which the American International College (AIC) will be renting our facility in the evenings beginning in January to teach graduate education classes. Our collaboration with the CAPS Educational Collaborative continues to provide exciting educational possibilities for high-need students, and it appears as though our relationship with Mount Wachusett Community College is about to grow once again.

If you are interested in your child earning an Associates Degree along with his/her high school diploma free of charge, please call my office. If you are interested in your child attending the Illinois Institute of Technology at a severely reduced rate (or free) please call my office. And finally, if you are just interested in becoming a part of the Mahar School Community, do not hesitate to call. I am willing to share with you our Mission, Commitments, and Beliefs so that you may decide if they can work for your family and for your children.

2011 John and Abigail Adams Scholarship Winners at Mahar

2010-10-20T14:16:00.004-04:00

Sent to All Local Papers: October 20, 2010

At 10:00 AM on October 20, 2010 thirty-six students in grade twelve at Ralph C. Mahar Regional High School were called to a meeting in the Charlotte Ryan Theater. There, they were met by Ralph C. Mahar Regional School District Superintendent, Michael Baldassarre; Principal, Scott Hemlin; and Guidance Counselor Caitlin McKenna. These students were informed that they had been named recipients of the John and Abigail Adams Scholarships for their performance on their Grade 10 MCAS Examinations during the 2008 – 2009 School Year.

There are a number of criteria that a student must meet to be eligible for this honor. First, a student must score in the Advanced category in either the Mathematics or the English language arts section of the grade 10 MCAS test and score in the Proficient or Advanced category on the second subject (Mathematics or English language arts); and must have a combined MCAS score on these assessments that ranks in the top 25% in their school district. Superintendent Baldassarre informed the students named below telling them, “I hope that you see how cooperation, hard work, and preparation bring about circumstances such as these. When you are willing to put in the effort as you have, your success is as predictable as sun in the summer and snow in the winter. ”

Students who are named recipients of the John and Abigail Adams Scholarship are entitled to four years of free tuition upon their acceptance to participating Massachusetts public institutions of higher education, such as a University of Massachusetts campus or a community college beginning with the fall 2011 semester. Sadly, this scholarship does not cover the cost of college fees, which can be up to four times more costly than tuition, room and board, textbooks, and other expenses.

Ralph C. Mahar Regional High School 2011 John and Abigail Adams Scholarship Winners:

Tamieka Adams
Richard Anderson
Christine Annable
Dylan Barnes
Adam Bergantino
Michael Bergman
Jaimee Briggs
Abigail Coffin
Kristina Daly
Krista Frank
Laura Garrity
Heather Hunt
Isaiah Jones
Karissa Kilhart
Kendra Kilian
Andrea Kolodziej
Nathan LeBlanc
Amanda Marion
Tyler McGrath
Ryan Mongeau
Stephanie Murcell
Colin O’Brien
Andrew O’Loughlin
Breanna Poirier
Hanah Pultorak
Christine Richardson
Matthew Robinson
Steven Rooney
Parker Russell
Victoria Simmington
Kayleigh Soucie
Melissa St. Laurent
Dana Stowell
Kasey Rorchia
David Valiquette-LaLonde
John Waters Jr.

K-9 Search at Mahar Today

2010-10-06T10:47:00.002-04:00

Sent to All Local News Agencies, October 6, 2010

At 9:40 AM on October 6, 2010 the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School’s Administration in conjunction with the Orange Police Department conducted a K-9 search of the Regional School. K-9 Handlers from the Towns of Belchertown and Montague assisted Orange Police Officer, Clay Rushford in the search of the Mahar facility. Mahar Superintendent, Michael Baldassarre indicated that K-9 searches are done routinely in at Mahar Regional to ensure that students are discouraged from bringing substances to school. “We do all that we can to discourage substance abuse. Substance use is counterproductive to all that we do in school, and we take measures to communicate this to our students” said Baldassarre.

The students and staff are accustomed to K-9 searches of lockers and other public areas of the building. Searches such as these can take place several times during a school year. Today’s search was slightly different from those in the past, however. On April 6, 2010 the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School Committee approved a policy that allows canines to enter and search classrooms once they are cleared of students and staff. Since the K-9 is trained to sniff the air in common areas, searches such as these have been ruled by the United States Supreme Court to be a non-intrusive way to search public facilities for drugs and illegal contraband.

“Today’s search included four randomly selected classrooms. I am happy to report that no drugs or contraband were discovered and there was no need to question a single student” said Mahar Principal Scott Hemlin. Should the K-9 have been alerted by the smell around any locker or personal belonging, the Mahar administration would then follow a protocol that was also approved by the school committee in April, 2010. Today though, there was no need to continue with any further investigation. School Resource Officer, Chad Softic would not comment on when the next search of the facility will take place.

Congressman John Olver Visits Mahar

2010-09-30T14:20:00.001-04:00

On Friday, September 24, 2010 Congressman John Olver paid a visit to the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School. While there, he watched the Mahar Senators win their fifteenth consecutive game (dating back to 2009) by a score of 52 – 0 over Palmer High Schools’ Panthers. Congressman Olver was treated to a special surprise in between the first and second quarters of the game when he was called out to the 50 yard line to receive an award. The Ralph C. Mahar School Community honored him for his assistance in procuring more than $200,000.00 in federal funding to pay for the fully handicapped accessible seating that was installed a little more than one year ago.

Congressman Olver was met on the field by Mahar School Committee Chair, Maureen Donelan (left), Superintendent, Michael Baldassarre (presenting award), and Mahar Principal, Scott Hemlin (left). Fittingly, Olver’s friend and colleague, State Representative Christopher Donelan offered kind remarks about Olver and ended my naming the Congressman “An Honorary Mahar Senator.” Donelan worked closely with Congressman Olver to procure the funding necessary to complement the 2005 multi-million dollar Mahar renovation with the handicapped accessible bleachers. Donelan was also honored by Mahar for his works in a September 2009 ceremony.

Indicators of School Success

2010-09-24T11:56:00.001-04:00

Published in The Gardner News: September 24, 2010

A little more than a week ago the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education publicly released MCAS scores from the Spring 2010 for the Commonwealth’s public schools. Increasingly since the passing of the No Child Left Behind Act, these scores have been used by the media, parents, and school officials as an indicator of how effective each school is at teaching students how to read, write, and do arithmetic. Score summaries and other data pertinent to school effectiveness such as drop out rates and suspension rates are available for any public school. You can view these “School and District Profiles” by visiting: http://profiles.doe.mass.edu/

For the faculty and staff in the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School the release of MCAS data provided a feeling that the school is on the right path with regard to curriculum and instruction. At the beginning of the 2009 – 2010 academic year, programmatic changes at the middle school to add direct instructional time in the areas of mathematics and language arts paid off. In grade seven in particular, there were a total of 69 scores of “proficient” and “advanced” on the 2009 combined Mathematics and Language Arts MCAS examinations. In 2010 the number of grade seven “proficient” and “advanced” rose to 105. So, the number of students scoring “proficient” and “advanced” in grade 7 went up by more than 50% in one school year!

Sadly though, many schools use MCAS data as the sole source for measuring their effectiveness. At Mahar however, this is not the case. In a recent school committee report, I was proud to point out that in the 2006 – 2007 school year our administrative offices handled nearly 2,000 disciplinary referrals. In the 2009 – 2010 school year the administrative offices processed only slightly more than 900 disciplinary referrals. A reduction of more than 1,000 referrals per year over a three year period equates to more time in class for our students. Also, our faculty and staff have noted how our student body increasingly displays behaviors associated with respecting themselves, their school, and their peers.

Last week our varsity football season opened in Holyoke, MA. While we are proud that our team won its first game of the season and fourteenth straight, we are more proud of the correspondence that our Athletic Director and Head Football Coach, Jim Woodward received from the Athletic Director at Holyoke. He wrote, “Your players also showed a great deal of sportsmanship on and off the field.” An unsolicited comment such as this from a colleague who is miles and miles away is yet another indicator of the school success that is characterized in the Mahar Regional School District.

While test scores are a fine indicator of school success, I have always believed that the success of a school community is not only displayed with numbers on a website. The success of a school community is felt in the hearts and minds of the students, parents, faculty, administrators, and staff. We take school climate and school culture very seriously at Mahar. It is our constant hope that the successes we continue to have in our classrooms become conversations in our families’ living rooms.

To learn more about the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School, please visit www.rcmahar.org. The Ralph C. Mahar Regional School accepts students from towns outside of our member towns of Orange, Wendell, New Salem, and Petersham under the Commonwealth’s School Choice Law. If you are interested in choosing Mahar, please feel free to contact me in my office at 978-544-2920 or E-mail me at mbaldassarre@rcmahar.org.

Invitation to Complete the Core Values Survey

2010-09-13T11:42:00.001-04:00

Since April 2010 a committee established by the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School District has been meeting to update and revise the district’s strategic plan. As a part of this process, The 2010 Strategic Plan Core Value Survey has been developed by the “Strategic Planning Steering Committee” to gather input from members of the whole school community. Information from completed surveys will assist the committee in identifying and prioritizing the communities’ beliefs and ensuring that they are incorporated into the new strategic plan.

Your opinions and suggestions are critical to the preparation of what will become the next five-year strategic plan for the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School District. This plan is being designed to improve the overall educational experience for the students of the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School and it will serve as the foundation upon which decisions are made. The ultimate goal of the strategic plan is to ensure that the R.C. Mahar Regional School continues to move in a direction congruent with the school’s vision and mission and to ensure that the school’s efforts and actions are reflective of the plan’s core values and beliefs.

Copies of the core value survey can be picked up and dropped off at the Town Halls, Schools, Libraries, and Senior Centers in Orange, Wendell, Petersham, and New Salem. The survey may also be completed online by visiting the school’s website at www.rcmahar.org and clicking on the Core Value Survey link. This survey will be available between Monday, September 13, 2010 and Wednesday, October 13, 2010.

Thank you in advance for taking the time to complete the survey.

2010-08-30T15:50:00.004-04:00

In this photo:

Ralph C. Mahar Regional School Superintendent Michael Baldassarre (left) talks about the Pathways Early College Innovation School with Governor Deval Patrick, State Representative Christopher Donelan, Orange Teachers Assocation President, Kelli Gervais and District Attorney Candidate, Dave Sullivan.

To learn about the Pathways Early College Innovation School and the Innovation Schools Initiative in Massachusetts the link below will take you to the July 23, 2010 feature that appeared on WFCR (NPR).

http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/wfcr/news.newsmain/article/0/0/1679351/WFCR.Local.Features/Flexibility.and.%27Charter.Like%27.Options.for.Districts.with.MA.Innovation.Schools

Displays of Leadership: Dr. Edward McCaul

2010-08-30T15:29:00.003-04:00

I recall some time ago when Southwest Airlines CEO, Gary Kelly was videoed working at a Southwest baggage drop off counter at an airport. His actions were caught on camera and used in Southwest Airline commercials, and seemed to be a hit among customers and Southwest employees alike. Earlier this year CBS began airing a show called “Undercover Boss”, a program in which the head of an organization shows up to work with a disguise on and learns of employee behaviors that are often untoward in the world of business.

Early last year, former Ralph C. Mahar Regional School District Superintendent surprised staff members in the Westbrook Public Schools when he took a rake and went outside of the Central Office Building in Westbrook, ME to do his part to clean up leaves and debris that were in front of the building. In doing so, Dr. Namin expressed to the faculty and staff in his district how important that he felt a neat and orderly presentation was for parents and students. I have learned and continued to learn that small actions such as these can make a huge difference in the attitudes and beliefs of those who work in every facet of a school or any other organization for that matter.

Tremendous research on the topic of Leadership now exists along with publications and websites that were created and maintained by successful leaders in all facets of business and education. The Institute of Leader Arts has a website that provides 30 pieces of advice to would be leaders. I have posted the website at the bottom of this post. Some of the highlights are:

Make others feel important. People will follow you when you make them feel important, not when you make yourself feel important.

Promote your vision. No one will follow you simply because you decide you want to lead. You must have a clear idea where you want to take the group you lead - then you must promote it and convince those you lead that the goal is worthwhile.

See and be seen. You've got to get around to really know what's going on, to fix what's wrong, and to capitalize on what's right. It's also the only way those you lead can be sure you're for real.

Recently I was told about a school district in which the budget was so tight that it was not possible for the teachers and staff to enjoy a cup of coffee or juice prior to their welcome back assembly as they have for dozens of years. Rather than go out and purchase a few pounds of coffee, a couple of gallons of juice and some pastries, the leader of the district informed all of the staff in writing that the organization would not be able to supply the usual accompaniment of juice, coffee, and cookies before their opening day assembly. A more equipped leader might have spent a small portion of his/her $150,000.00 + salary on a small token of appreciation for those who do the bulk of the work and just said, “Thank you for all that you do.”

So why do I point all of this out today?

On Friday I noticed my friend and colleague, CAPS Educational Collaborative Executive Director, Dr. Edward McCaul in and around our school several times. At one point he was wearing polo shirt, and then later in the day he was wearing his sports coat, a dress shirt and a tie. Then at the end of the day he was outside with his polo shirt on again, only this time over his dress shirt and tie. I went out to ask him what he was doing. I discovered that in the absence of one of the bus drivers he decided that he would drive the wheelchair van to pick students up and drop them off at home. Many people might find this surprising, but I did not.

Actions such as this define Dr. McCaul as the type of leader that we all have the potential to be. Our actions do not always have to be as profound as an Executive Director who decides to also drive the busses. It could be in a Superintendent who believes that his or her staff deserves a cup of coffee. It can be in a seventh grader who stops in the hall to pick up debris on the floor that he or she did not put there. It is in a Director of Food Services who also does the dishes and in a counselor who drives to the home of a student for a signature on a form. This leadership is in all of us, and each and every time it is displayed our school becomes an even better place to be.

http://www.stuffofheroes.com/30_vital_leadership_actions.htm

Day Two Already???

2010-08-26T11:49:00.001-04:00

For the faculty and staff in the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School District their first day of work was Tuesday and the 2010 – 2011 School Year officially began when our students filed into their classrooms yesterday. As has been my yearly tradition since the night before I entered Mrs. Volpe’s Kindergarten classroom, I spent the night before my first day tossing and turning. There is so much excitement in a new school year.

For our Students
In many cases our students spend their summers with a smaller group of peers. The first day back to school offers each of them an opportunity to reconnect with friends that they may not have seen for more than two months. They wonder how they will get along with their new teachers and whether or not the classes they are in are going to be hard. I heard one middle school student talking to her friend in the hallway yesterday, “I hope Mrs. Normandin doesn’t give a lot of homework.” “She does” I responded. She didn’t say anything, but looked very disappointed.

I watched yesterday as our new students in seventh grade peered at their schedules and then looked up taking in all of their new surroundings. Moments later I saw the juniors and seniors in the hallway hugging. In more than one instance I had to ask some of the boys not to jump on one another’s backs. I guess this is their way of saying, “Hello” to a friend who was sadly missed when school was not in session.

For Our Teachers
The first day of work for teachers was Tuesday, August 24. Yet on Friday and on Monday so many of them were in their classrooms setting up seating arrangements, bulletin boards, and reacquainting with their work. More than one expressed to me the impossibility of sleep with so much stirring in their minds about the start of the new school year. “They better be ready to work” said one seventh grade teacher. Since our students come in to seventh grade from three different school districts there is always the unknown of how they will all be when they are together.

I just walked the halls of the middle school and the high school. I stopped in the Guidance Office, the Special Education Office, and the library. It is as if today is just the 182nd day of last school year. There was action in every class. Guidance counselors had students and parents in their offices making final adjustments to schedules, and Mrs. Thorn is providing new students with their official Eileen Perkins Media Center orientation. The phones are ringing, parents are dropping off lunches, and our quiet bureaucratic summer is now a fully energized organization.

There are many positive changes happening this year. I will be blogging about them in the coming days. I am so excited for this year – for our faculty, faculty, parents, and community, but mostly for our students. Welcome back everyone, and best wishes for a successful school year!

Welcome Back to Faculty and Staff

2010-08-11T13:45:00.001-04:00

It is with great enthusiasm that I welcome you to the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School District’s 2010 – 2011 Academic Year. I hope that you enjoyed a restful summer and that you were provided many opportunities to revive and renew. I can attest that my own sense of purpose with regard to providing our students with opportunities to maximize their human potential via a strong education is more alive than it has ever been. It is my hope that you will join me in this endeavor as we embark on the next year of our journey together.

There is no doubt that the accountability standards placed upon us have brought increased and often unwelcomed pressure to our daily work lives. The pressures placed upon educators to improve student outcomes have brought about a certain “blame game.” It appears as though the only consistent message is that educators are not doing enough or are not good enough to meet the demands of the government, the media, or the communities who depend on the American Education System to make a difference.

The pressures mentioned above bring about many responses from those in positions such as ours. Some choose to attribute underperformance to an inadequately funded education system while others point to the breakdown of families. Lately many politicians have pointed to the existence and nature of teacher unions as the problem while those in colleges and universities have held the entire American Educational Model as broken or flawed when compared to those in other countries. There may be some truth to these macro-level responses along with micro-level issues such as the influence of technology in the lives of our students.

As early as 1935, an author by the name of Harry McKown recognized that schools are in the most unique position to impact the development of individuals and society as a whole. He wrote, “Because of its strategic position, as represented by setting, materials, personnel, and leadership, it [school] can assist in the development of profitable experiences through the building of concepts (generalized thinking) and confacts (generalized conduct) that will be valuable in somewhat situations outside.” I believe that these words serve to solidify our positions as educators. Seventy-five years ago, Mr. McKown recognized that schools can and will make a difference.

This is not a time to blame. This is a time for us to accept our responsibility as those who are best poised to impact, improve, and provide promise for our students, their families, and this community. We are stakeholders who will continue to see issues develop, and when we put forth the effort to be accountable, responsible, and engaged, we have and will continue to make tremendous progress in seeing our clearly defined vision and mission becoming a reality for every student in our school district.

Pathways Early College Innovation School: Information Sessions

2010-07-23T15:54:00.002-04:00

Clicking the link at the bottom of this post will take you to this morning’s feature on NPR about the Pathways Early College Innovation School. This new program will be launched this fall. It is yet another collaboration with Mount Wachusett Community College that will provide our students and students around Central Massachusetts with the opportunity to earn their Associates Degrees at the same time that they receive their high school diplomas.

For parents and students who are interested in this new program the following is a schedule for information sessions that will be held at Mount Wachusett Community College:

Tuesday, July 27, 1 p.m., Room 125
Wednesday, July 28, 6 p.m., Room 125
Thursday, July 29, 10 a.m., Room 125

Tuesday, August 10, 1 p.m., Room 202
Wednesday, August 11, 6 p.m., Room 202
Thursday, August 12, 10 a.m., Room 202

Tuesday, August 17, 1 p.m., Room 202
Wednesday, August 18, 6 p.m., Room 202
Thursday, August 19, 10 a.m., Room 202

Tuesday, August 24, 1 p.m., Room 202

http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/wfcr/news.newsmain/article/0/0/1679351/WFCR.Local.Features/Flexibility.and.%27Charter.Like%27.Options.for.Districts.with.MA.Innovation.Schools

Fire on Prentiss Street

2010-07-23T14:02:00.001-04:00

When I was a little boy I remember standing in front of Central Lanes in Niagara Falls, NY while it burned to the ground. My older brother and I were on a Saturday morning bowling league, and I recall the sadness of knowing that we would be taking some time off from our weekend activity. Actually, Central Lanes was never rebuilt so my dreams of making the Professional Bowling Association could never be realized. In the days after the fire, my brother and I would sneak into the wreckage to find bowling balls, pins, and other bowling related paraphernalia.

That was the only time that I can recall seeing what the devastation of a fire looks like from the inside. Central Lanes burned down in the early 1980’s. My memory of the fire at the bowling alley revived when I walked through the fire at Ralph C. Mahar Administrative Assistant, Elaine Mitchell’s home last week. During one of last week’s storms, lightning struck Elaine’s home and within moments the entire second floor was engulfed in flames. As you can see in the photo, what was once a bedroom is now a wet charred pile of insulation, wood, and other materials used to build a home.

It was with good fortune that Elaine and her family were not home that evening. Not being in the house when the lightning struck provided the guarantee that no one was hurt. The day after the fire, one of our colleagues went to TD BankNorth in Orange and opened an account named “The Mitchell Family Fire Fund.” It is going to take a long time for Elaine and her family to get everything back to normal. While their home is being repaired/rebuilt they will be displaced and have many obstacles to overcome. Any assistance that the Mahar Community can provide will be much appreciated.

Strategic Planning Process is Underway

2010-06-18T17:07:00.000-04:00

The first meeting of the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School District Strategic Planning Committee was held on May 27, 2010. At this first meeting committee members came to a consensus in the identification of Stakeholder Groups and named liaisons for each. Once this was accomplished an open discussion regarding the core values of the district took place. The Stakeholder Groups and Liaisons are:

Group I: Parents – Liaison: Chante Jillson

Group II: Collaborative Agencies - Liaison: Susan Wallace

Group III: Local Businesses – Liaisons: Olinto Paoletti and Rick Kwiatkowski

Group IV: Educational Agencies – Liaison: Dr. Edward McCaul

Group V: Fire and Police – Liaison: Officer Chad Softic

Group VI: Students – Liaison: Adam Bergantino

Group VII: Elected Officials – Liaisons: Robert Andrews and Rick Kwiatkowski

Group VIII: Organizations and Clubs – Liaison: Olinto Paoletti

Group IX: School Council – Liaison: Chante Jillson

Group X: School Committee – Liaisons: Judy Curley and Scott Hemlin

Group XI: Mahar Staff – Liaison: Matthew Parsons

Group XII: Sports Boosters – Liaison: Chad Softic

The next meeting of the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School District Strategic Planning Committee will be held on June 30 at 4:00 PM in the Eileen Perkins Media Center at the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School. Any person who is interested in speaking with the any of the above named Stakeholder Group Liaisons is encouraged to contact the Superintendent’s Office at the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School at 978-544-2920.

Gardner News Article: Published June 11, 2010

2010-06-11T16:31:00.004-04:00

This past Saturday I attended the Retirement Banquet for the Teachers and Staff who will be closing out their long and distinguished careers in the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School District. As I prepared my congratulatory speech for these consummate professionals, I came to know that our seven retirees worked a combined 222 years in the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School. I could not help to stop and reflect on how many students were served by these individuals or think about the total number of lessons that were given by my esteemed, soon to retire colleagues.

Our seven retirees along with all of the other educators who began their teaching careers in the 1970’s have been witness to and lived through the continuous flux that has surrounded the American Education System for a very long time. When our most veteran retiree, Mrs. Softic started teaching in 1971 federal legislation had yet to be passed to require individuals with disabilities be included in the education of their same aged peers. The students did not have cellular phones, video games, or I-pods, and nor were there computers in the classrooms to assist in the instruction of curriculum. In many cases, the only curriculum to speak of was the one that the teacher decided to implement each day.

In 1971 the starting pay for a teacher at Mahar was $6,500.00. If a teacher hired in 1971 were to receive a 3% raise each year, every year until 2010, he or she would be taking home approximately $20,000.00 per year after 39 years of full-time service. And let us not forget that when teachers were hired in 1971 there were still educational requirements that they must have in order to get teaching jobs. Now, in 2010, a teacher must have a Bachelors Degree, must have had some formal education in the area of teaching and learning, must pass tests for educational licensure, and must obtain a Masters Degree within the first five years of hire.

Today, the expectations of the teaching profession are being compared to the expectations of the world of business. This can be found in the focus on results and outcomes on tests of basic skills with the accompaniment of rewards for excellence and penalties for underperformance. To be blunt, the Federal Government is telling schools that they must improve and the improvement of a school is based on how well students do on tests of basic skills in the areas of reading, writing, and arithmetic. The demands of the Federal Government are being adhered to by each state’s Department of Education and we are all working to improve student outcomes while at the same time providing your children with a place that is first and foremost, safe.

The fiscal crises that are being faced by each town are calling upon local officials and local school leaders to make reductions to school budgets. Educators are being called upon by the Department of Education to do more, and then called upon by Town Governments to do more with less. So it is through improved effectiveness and increased efficiency that we make the educational environment safer with fewer counselors and have our students read and write better with fewer teachers. Adding to the dilemma that some suggest lowering the salaries of those who might be successful in the completion of these tasks, the field of education becomes less attractive to those who would be deemed the best and the brightest teachers. The most qualified simply go elsewhere and become employed doing other things.

What happens next?

Student test scores fall.

School culture plummets.

Families choose to send their children to other public school districts via School Choice.

Those who can afford private schools for their children exercise this option.

There is then less funding for essential services such as bussing, counseling, and mediation.

Losing sports teams.

Drop out rate increases.

Schools become characterized by violence and drugs.

Property values decrease.

Those who can afford homes elsewhere leave.

Tax base decreases.

Go back to the top of this list and start the process again.

I am proud to say that this is not the case in the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School District. We boast a school committee that displays the understanding that a strong school system is the axis on which an entire community can transform and improve. We have clarity in our belief that a strong school attracts the attention of families who seek the best for their children. We are driven by a strategic plan that provides an inspirational and motivational compass. Many in the area are now aware that Mahar is a great school – and the school committee and administration is on a path to make it even better.

If you would like for your children to be part of our excellent programs, our championship sports teams, or feel that that they would benefit from the support of our outstanding Coordinated Counseling Team or Special Education Department, please do not hesitate to contact us. With the completion of the 2010 – 2011 Schools’ Master Schedules complete, we are looking to fill seats that we have available for students to come to Mahar via Massachusetts School Choice Policies. It would be my pleasure to schedule a tour of our multi-million dollar facility and answer any questions that you may have. For more information please visit http://www.rcmahar.org/.

State Representative Christopher Donelan's Keynote Address - Commencement 2010

2010-06-09T16:52:00.003-04:00

Distinguished platform guests, class officers, faculty and staff, parents and friends and members of the class of 2010.

So tonight is the big night. I have to say that this class, of 2010, is probably one of the more talented, both in academics and athletics, than any I have seen at this school. You deserve our applause.

I want to thank the class of 2010 for inviting me to be a part of this special night.
Having kids of my own here at Mahar, I know most of you. I have attended your games, some of you have camped out on my living room floor.

I have written college recommendation letters for a lot of you, So I am honored to be a part of your special ceremony and I want to take advantage of that honor by using my time tonight to speak directly to you and pass along a few thoughts I hope will help you as you begin the next journey of your life.

As you contemplate your future and prepare for the several steps you have yet to take in life, allow yourself to remember all of the people, places and interactions you have had in life.

Your family and friends. Priests or ministers. The staff at Mahar and the friends you have made here.

All of the contacts and experiences you have in life are what weave the fabric of your being.

Who you are, your values, your goals are all influenced by the interactions you have and what you bring away from those interactions.
This goes for past interactions, current experiences and it will apply to all future interactions.

So here is a thought that you can feel free to use whenever you are trying to figure out where you are going and how you are going to get there.

“Life isn’t about finding yourself, Life is about creating yourself.” George Bernard Shaw said this and there is so much wisdom in that short statement.

You do not find values, you form them. You do not find knowledge you aquire it. You do not find character, you build it.

Who you are today you did not find, you are the product of your creation and that creation has its foundation in all of the interactions you have had right here.

Think about your experiences at Mahar. The goal here has been to educate you. To teach you and prepare you for life.

Here you have acquired the knowledge and skills you will need to create yourself: dedication, hard work and self discipline. Here you have been challenged to change and grow.

What is fascinating about today is that this is just the beginning. The job of creating yourself has just begun, and as you leave here, I want you to remember that the process of creating yourself never ends. As long as we experience life, we continue to grow and change. The creation is ongoing.

So as you contemplate your choices and look at all your options, I want to ask you to consider public service as a path toward continuing that creation.

Getting involved in your community is very rewarding. Volunteering, working in the service sector or being in elected office offer ways that we can contribute to our quality of life. It is a way of influencing the creation of others.

I started in public life a month after my college graduation. I accepted a position as a police officer in my community and eventually worked in the criminal justice field for 16 years before changing course. I am now completing four terms in the Massachusetts House of Representatives.

One thing I have learned along the way is that there is no shortage of complainers, but there is a severe shortage of people willing to get involved.

This leads me to the second thought I wanted to share with you. Think about this one. “The world is run by those who show up.”

The first time I heard that I chuckled to myself until I realized how true it is.

Think about local government. Your school committee or board of selectmen. Think about the state House or the White House. Those in charge choose to show up, and now they make decisions that shape our community, our Commonwealth and our country. The question is, will any of you decide to show up?

It is our hope that you will. That is why so many of us in this community worked so hard to build this beautiful academic and athletic facility, so that the many talented students who pass through these doors will be the future leaders of America.

It is our hope that you will be the men and women who will make the right choices, rather than the easy ones. That you will be the ones willing to show up.

Some of you might wonder if these thoughts really apply to you. Can a graduate from a small high school in the tiny town of Orange really do anything that will make a difference?
I had those same thoughts when I sat with my classmates on this stage waiting to receive my Mahar diploma.

Draw inspiration from a story I want to tell you about a man who did make a difference. He is someone you are all familiar with, but none of you know. A man who often inspires me.

He graduated from Orange High School in 1930. He had greater challenges than most of us. He was legally deaf and needed braces on his legs to help him walk.

He went off to college and, despite his handicaps, he excelled , earning his bachelors degree and eventually a law degree. He returned to his small town and taught high school for a time but then decided that he wanted more. He wanted to make people’s lives better.

He was a strong believer in intergenerational responsibility; that is the obligation of each generation to leave our community stronger for the next. He wanted to be one of those people who show up.

He ran for state representative. He lost. But think about it. It is the early 1930’s. He is deaf and struggles to walk.
Many gave him credit for trying and left it at that, but trying wasn’t enough for this young man. He was determined. He ran again for state representative the next available opportunity. He worked harder and longer.. and this time he won.

Now picture his arrival in Boston. He gets off the train, he has difficulty hearing, there are no handicap ramps to ease his steps and he comes from a part of the state where there are more cows than people.

If he was noticed at all it was because the city folks were looking down their noses at him. That was alright. No excuses. He would just work harder than everybody else.

He served in The House of Representatives from 1938 until 1944 when He was elected to the Massachusetts State Senate.

This small town boy was using all he had learned in high school, college and in daily interactions to create himself.

I could keep you here all night listing his accomplishments, instead I will simply tell you that he went on to serve with distinction for 18 years in the Massachusetts Senate rising to the position of Chairman of Senate Ways and Means, arguably one of the three most powerful men in State government.
During that time he wrote and passed the law that created regional schools in Massachusetts and he wrote and passed the law that created the University of Massachusetts.

Think about this for a moment. This one man transformed education in Massachusetts.

Every person who has had the benefit of a good education because they were able to attend a regional school has him to thank,

and nearly 50 years after his death, thousands still benefit from their University of Massachusetts Degree, because he chose to show up and use his leadership and vision to create a state university in Massachusetts.

He was a young man from the small town of Orange. You all know his name, but I would bet most of you did not know his story. He was Senator Ralph C. Mahar.

This high school you are graduating from tonight serves as a monument to Senator Mahar and his dedication to education and to future generations. This school also serves as a monument to you and your potential.

And if you have the opportunity to visit the University of Massachusetts, there is a round building next to the Isenberg School of Management, the Ralph C. Mahar Auditorium. Again, a monument to a great man from a small town who chose to show up.

In 1962, Senator Mahar was the guest speaker at this very podium, talking to the graduates of the high school that had just been named in his honor. He said to them;

“"May you always have faith in yourselves whatever hardships may develop in the years ahead.
May you be individuals in the sense that you make up your minds, that you think straight and that you stand on your own two feet. May you have a sense of social conscience which shows concern for your fellow man.”
He was telling those graduates to create themselves.

When you leave here tonight for the last time, remember the story I have told you. Let nothing hold you back. Be the one willing to show up. Forget about finding yourself, go out there and create yourself…. and with the grace of God and your hard work – I know each of you will create something special.

Superintendent's Commencement Address 2010 - It Takes A Village

2010-06-09T16:48:00.002-04:00

Thank you to The Ralph C. Mahar Concert Band and Director, Mr. William Choe for providing us with the musical accompaniments for our ceremony today.

Thank you to Mrs. Kilhart, Ms. Smith and Ms. Smith, Ms. McKenna, our director of Facilities Mr. Bates and his crew for creating the appropriate atmosphere for celebration.

Thank you State Representative Donelan for your words of inspiration and for your continued leadership in our school community. Please know that we are saddened by your departure from the State Legislature. But should you engage your new position as Sherriff with the same fervor that you as you have the role of Representative, we know that Franklin County is in hands that are sure to keep us safe.

Mr. Goodhind – Thank you for the last three years of leadership. We wish you the best as you return to your roots as an elementary school principal. I will be calling you in the fall when our MCAS scores are released to thank you for a job well done.

ORA NA AZU NWA – This statement was made famous in 1996 when Hillary Clinton wrote and spoke about it. It is an African Proverb that means – IT TAKES A VILLAGE TO RAISE A CHILD.

Moms and Dads, Friends and Families – much went into this moment - the students that are sitting here about to receive their diplomas – It all started about 18 years ago with the work that you did as families in your homes.

Then there was Kindergarten, First, Second Grade and so on. In the Spirit of “It Takes a Village” Thank you Superintendents Burnim, Martin, and Wickman, Principals Hunter, Haggerty, Haigh, Softic, and Phillips and the teachers and staff at Swift River, Petersham Center, Dexter Park, Butterfield, and Fisher Hill Elementary Schools for teaching these young ladies and men how to write, read, add, subtract, and treat others with respect. Mahar could not succeed without your continued efforts and works.

And Thank you Mr. Hemlin, Ms. Curley, Mr. Trill and all of the Mahar faculty and staff. Our work as educators is important. We hope that our graduates continue with success that brought them here today. We hope that they will continue to learn and grow. We hope that they will come back to our community, open businesses, buy homes, and be leaders. Give us reasons to build new and bigger schools, and new libraries to accompany those that we already have.

There are many more who need to hear and read these words of Thanks.

Thank you to the Mahar School Committee for the policy decisions that allowed these students to sit here today.

Thank you to Mr. Kwiatkowski, Ms. Bull, and Mrs. Alrdrich for you leadership in our four towns and for your continued support of our Regional School District.
Thank you to the Seeds of Solidarity for our school gardens and the Mahar After Prom Party Group for giving our seniors a safe place and enjoyable evening after the prom.

Thank you to President Daniel Asquino and Mount Wachusett Community College for opportunities for our students to earn college credits during the school day and for our partnership in the nationally recognized drop out prevention program – The Gateway to College.

There are a number of students graduating today because of the support of the Communities Collaborative and Director Jim Regan. Having personally witnessed Mr. Regan’s work, I can say that it is a travesty that the funding for his organization is no more. Jim, you made a difference and you need to hear me say that. ORA NA AZU NWA my friend. It takes a village.
Thank you to the Orange Historical Society for opening your doors for our student to research the history of this beautiful Town.

Thank you to Wal Mart for allowing our students to raise funds at your store.

Carol Stockwell, Alice White, Anne Grosky, Michael Roche, Nate Bruer, Lori Seymour and Ellen Softic please stand up. I could spend the evening talking about your works alone. Thank you for a combined 222 years of service to our students and their families. Join me in a round of applause for our retirees.

Thank you to Chief Spear, Officer Softic and the Orange Police Department along with The Community Coalition for Teens, Dial SELF, Quabbin Mediation, Cydi Boyle and the Northwestern District Attorney’s Office and NELCWIT for your work in providing proactive solutions for safety and wellness for our teens.

There was a time not long ago when our students with specific learning needs had to board a van each morning and go to Gardner so that they could get the quality education that they deserve. Now, these students come to school with their same aged peers right here at Mahar and they take part in the highest quality education that I have seen. Thank you Dr. McCaul and the CAPS Educational Collaborative for making this possible. While these young men and young ladies are recipients of the excellent education that you provide – they are teaching our whole school community life’s most important lessons – those of perseverance and possibility.
This school, this education, and the experiences of these graduates do not happen all by themselves. What we are here to celebrate is the work of the people and organizations that I thanked, and all of those who I missed in this speech.

I hope that more people and organizations will join us in the next academic year. ORA NA AZU NWA – IT TAKES A VILLAGE.

Thank you.

NHS Awards Ceremony Keynote Speech - May 17, 2010

2010-05-19T17:06:00.004-04:00

I was asked to post my keynote speech from the NHS Awards ceremony at the Elks Club on Monday Night:

Delivered May 17, 2010

Good Evening. Before I begin, please allow me to express my gratitude to Mr. Bjorn, Nic Guerra, and to the Ralph C. Mahar National Honor Society for selecting me as this year’s keynote speaker. To be honest, I never thought I would see the day when I would be invited to speak to a group of people. Often in my life, and even more lately, I have asked myself – How did I get here? How is it that I am involved in this situation? I mean I think I’ve made it a habit to plan for things – but honestly, I never planned for this. Some of you might be surprised to know that when I started college, my intention was to become a social worker – and not a teacher, principal, special education director, or a superintendent.

So, did I get here by luck or chance, or was it something else? Thomas Jefferson said, “I am a great believer in luck, and the harder I work, the more I have of it.” President Jefferson knew then what we all know now – it was never luck. Luck comes in lottery tickets, and in games of chance and that is about it. You aren’t lucky to be here. Rather this night is the natural consequence of hard work, sacrifice, perseverance, discipline, and focus. We can all recognize the potential energy in this room.

Whether you are in grade 10, 11, or 12 – you have been defined by your membership in the National Honor Society as those who are most likely to succeed. You have all of the preconditions for success – you are nourished properly and cared for by your families who are sitting around you. You have the work ethic, the giftedness, or a combination of both that allowed you the opportunity to have the grades and recommendations necessary to be a member of this distinguished group. But because of your age in relation to mine, and to your parents, and to your grandparents – we still cannot say for sure if you will be successful. But that depends on how you define success.

Right now I can say for sure of the soon to be graduates that are here tonight:
· 1 will study art at MWCC
· 2 will go to UMASS
· 1 to Assumption
· 1 to St. Joe’s
· 1 to Massachusetts College for Liberal Arts
· 1 to Bridgewater State
· 2 to WPI for Engineering
· 1 to Babson
· 1 to Fitchburg State to study Special Education
· 1 to New England School of Business
· And 1 all the way to Western Carolina University

Someday an old friend may come to you and ask you what you do, or who you have become. Of these 13 seniors, the response could be:

I am an artist.
I am the Marketing Director for (Name your company)
I am a lawyer
I am a History Teacher
I am a Math Teacher
I am the Vice President of my company
I am the Director of Special Education at Mahar (I say that to Nicole since I heard she is going to school to be a Special Educator)

After you respond to the question, you will hear it. Someone will say “Wow you really are lucky!” Before you hear the question and before you answer remember me telling you this tonight. Are you lucky because you came to school every day? Are you lucky because you did and do all that is asked of you by your teachers and your families? Are you lucky because you do extra? Are you lucky because you will not accept failure? There is no luck in “Try”, no luck in “Work”, and very very little opportunity for luck in success.

I had a nice speech to deliver tonight about success, but it changed at about 10 AM this morning. I began my day at St. Mary’s Church on Congress Street in Orange, where I faced some cold and hard reminders about life. I was reminded that life is more like a series of Polaroid pictures than it is about a video that is always running. Each choice that we make is a snapshot that leads us to the next…and then to the next. If you took a picture of me when I was 15, you would find a boy washing dishes at the Pine Plaza Restaurant in Niagara Falls, NY – doing homework while waiting for the potatoes to boil so that I could peel and cut them into what would become home fries. Each of us has a snapshot of that time – and this morning while I sat at the funeral for a boy I knew – I wondered about his snapshots.

This morning, that young man reminded me that life is not perfect. We live in a world where hopes and dreams are constantly shattered by wars and fighting, by addiction, by accidents, by illness, by hate, by anger, and by greed. In some cases dreams can just slip away as we struggle to get through each day over a long period of time. But a simple change in perspective can bring joy to our lives everyday, if we are willing to do just two simple things….Take little bites, and chew them well.

My father used to say this to me when I was a little boy, he said it to my sisters, and now I hear him saying it to his grandchildren. He says this because he did not want us to choke on our food. I have found that this statement can mean so much more. Take little bites and chew them well.
Let’s take the song “100 Years” by Five for Fighting. If you haven’t heard it, I encourage you to seek it out in the near future. For me, it affirmed my understanding that life isn’t perfect, but that there are perfect moments, and there are also our dreams. Our dreams can be as perfect as we want them to be. I will use just a couple of the song’s lyrics to guide this point.

I’m 15 for a moment – just dreaming

Most of us in this room have already been fifteen. It went by so fast – and yes, at fifteen we did dream didn’t we? Remember all the requirements at fifteen? Wake up, get ready, go to school, go to practice, go home, eat dinner, do your homework, go to bed. Well, not exactly. When I look back at fifteen I remember my friends, my teammates, certain conversations. I remember a dance, and a first kiss. I remember the moments of perfection. Of course we remember the tragedies too – but at fifteen we didn’t stop the dreaming.

I’m 22 for a moment – and she feels better than ever and I’m just dreaming

At twenty-two there were more requirements – working 40 or more hours a week. Paying the phone bill, the electric bill, the gas bill, rent, auto insurance, gasoline, an occasional parking ticket. I remember the Oklahoma City Bombing when I was 22 too. I also remember my grandmother’s smile, my sister’s recital, and Sunday dinners with my parents. More perfect moments and still there were my dreams.

I’m 33 for a moment – still the man but you see I’m of age, family on my mind

This is just about as far as I can go with experience credits. I remember learning that there are people who lie and and there are people who cheat. Sadly you will learn this too, if you haven’t already. I learned that there are people in the world who will do anything that they can to improve their positions financially or politically, no matter who is affected by their actions or how. In this difficult and painful time there were still the perfect moments of breaking bread with all of my family and all of my friends. There was perfection in hearing the words, “I do.” And don’t forget, I still had my dreams.

I’m 45 for a moment – counting the years of my life

It seems at this part there are many people who are dissatisfied. The terminology is “mid-life crisis.” It’s the time when some feel as though they have not done all that they had set out to and perhaps feel unremarkable. I don’t know this for sure because I haven’t been there yet, but I am preparing myself by observing:

I know the mother of a severely disabled child has much to worry about – yet she finds perfection in that child’s smile, and feels the undying love in the hugs and kisses of her baby. And yes, through both the difficulties and those moments of perfection, that mommy still dreams.

Half time goes by (the age of 50)
Suddenly you’re wise
Another blink of an eye
67 is gone

In that time between 15 and 67, life will throw so much at you. But you have already proven that you are fighters – and no matter how hard it gets you will find perfect moments, and you will follow your dreams.

Right now, here in this room, we are together living a perfect moment. The students here tonight are amidst a snapshot – a moment, right now is a just little bite. When I say chew it well – I am just telling you to enjoy it as much as you can, and never forget it. Tomorrow when you wake up set out on a journey to find as many perfect moments, moments just like this. Maybe your dream is a beach house on stilts, could be a family of your own, or perhaps a trip around the world. No matter what your dream is and whether or not you able to get there, don’t ever forget to enjoy, to digest perfect moments along the way.

Back to the song:
I’m 99 for a moment – dying for just another moment – and I’m still dreaming

Even at 99 we can dream. What are your perfect moments? What will your snapshots look like? To the students in the NHS – the stage is set for you to be great. Don’t pass on your opportunity. What are your dreams? What will you do tomorrow morning to make them come true?

Greenfield Recorder - May 7, 2010 - A Response

2010-05-07T16:43:00.003-04:00

Earlier this week I received a call from the Orange Town Administrator in which he invited me to attend an emergency meeting at Orange Town Hall on Saturday morning, May 8th. Mr. Kwiatkowski informed me that the topic of discussion at the meeting would be the projected budget shortfall for the Town of Orange in the 2011 Fiscal Year. I informed Mr. Kwiatkowski that I would be in attendance and I asked him if the Orange Finance Committee or Selectmen would like for me to bring anything. By anything, I not only meant the Mahar budget materials and information about our organization. I was also willing to bring the coffee and donuts that could help set the stage for meaningful dialogue about how we would work together to create the best situation for the families in the Town of Orange.

This morning [Friday] a staff member at Mahar came into my office and handed me the front page of the Local section of the Greenfield Recorder. She said to me, “Sorry to ruin your day…but you have to read this.” I carefully read the article that was written about the budget crisis in the Town of Orange, and then I read it again. Orange Finance Committee Member Jane Pierce speaking of the teachers at Mahar was quoted; “I feel if we have more excellent teachers then there are fewer needed. Doesn’t it sort of beg to a larger class size?” The reason that I read this twice was that I could not believe what she [Ms. Pierce] said. I have been in communication via E-mail with Ms. Pierce this week and I have been preparing a Mahar class size report for her. I thought that we were working together…but then I read her quote.

One of my mentors taught me that a public action should always receive a public response. With this in mind I am compelled to respond to the statements made by Ms. Pierce publicly. To be fair, if you did not read the article in Friday’s Recorder please stop reading this and go back and read it before you proceed in reading my response. If you did read it and my response is of interest to you, please continue. I am writing this article on behalf of the students who attend our school, their families, our staff, and the four towns that make up the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School District. It is also important to say that more than 75% of the students who attend Mahar reside in the town of Orange.

There are really only two points that I need to make. The first is that when one talks about the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School in terms of “they” you would expect that the person who is speaking does not reside in the Towns of Orange, Wendell, Petersham, or New Salem. It would be okay for a person from Athol, Gill, Turners Falls, Montague, or Amherst to talk about Ralph C. Mahar in terms of “They” but not for a person from Orange. The Ralph C. Mahar Regional School is here for the education of the children and young adults from Orange and our other member towns. I don’t call our teachers “the professionals.” Rather, I refer to them as “Our professionals.” Mahar is Orange. Mahar is Wendell. Mahar is New Salem. Mahar is Petersham. I have an agreement that was drafted in 1956 and later amended to back these statements up.

Second, I am going into Saturday morning’s meeting with a different paradigm than the one that Ms. Pierce conveyed in her statements to the Greenfield Recorder. I am going in to the meeting with the intent of building and sustaining synergy with my colleagues from the Town of Orange. I want to be part of a solution rather than part of an argument that has gone on for years. Rather than remind readers about what a wonderful school community Mahar is and rather than write about the ills of educating children in crowded classrooms, I am choosing to write about the need to change some hearts and some minds. Mahar should not be viewed separately from the communities of Orange, Wendell, New Salem and Petersham.

Breaking Down Bullying

2010-05-07T14:35:00.000-04:00

The unfortunate suicide of South Hadley teen, Phoebe Prince has brought about a renewed sense of purpose for school officials, legislators, those in law enforcement, parents, teachers, and students. Events such as those that recently took place in South Hadley, MA have a way of setting off a chain of events that forever change the landscape of the day to day operation of schools in America. I can compare the anti-bullying vigilance of recent days to the exponential increase in lockdown drills and implementation of Emergency Planning that took place in schools after the events at Columbine High School in 1999.

Never before has the actions of bullies been so clearly defined. In the book “The Bully, the Bullied, and the Bystander” Barbara Coloroso (2008) describes three elements of situations that involve bullies and those being bullied. First, the situation always involves an imbalance of power. That is that the offender is often bigger, older, stronger, more verbally equipped, or has more capital with peers. Second, the bully always acts with intent to harm. The offender means to inflict some type of physical or psychological pain on the victim or victims, and it is never an accident. Third, in instances of bullying both the offender and the victim know that the bullying can and most likely will occur again. This threat of further aggression is often the reason that bullying goes unreported to adults.

Coloroso (2008) asserts that the terror that is generated from the above mentioned actions renders victims powerless. Once this terror exists there is potential for extreme acts of aggression, retaliation, and a cycle of violence that can come from either the offender or the victim. School administrators and teachers now intimately aware and focused on the interactions of students with one another in classrooms, in the hallways, in the cafeteria, and on the sports fields have been hyper vigilant about ensuring that students are not engaging in these behaviors.

When crises such as those in South Hadley strikes the public school system groups of people whom I refer to as “Crisis Entrepreneurs” move quickly. These are groups of people and corporations who profit from seriously unfortunate events. To date, I have received about a dozen invitations to seminars and weekend retreats to meet with “professionals” about mitigating the problems caused by bullying in schools. One of these conferences was $600.00 per person to attend, and it came with a weekend stay at a four star hotel. These invitations come to me by fax, by E-mail, and in via the US Postage service. The faxes go in the recycle bin along with the mail, and the E-mails go directly to the junk E-mail box.

The Ralph C. Mahar Regional School has a department that focuses specifically on Student Support Services. Among this group of highly qualified professionals are veteran school counselors, a school psychologist, licensed school social workers, and a support team facilitator. This group meets weekly to discuss the interactions of individual and groups of students, their behavior in and outside of school, and proactive approaches to stopping violence while ensuring school wide social-emotional wellness. At Mahar, we understand a very simple fact: If students are not well, learning cannot and will not take place. How could a student who fears for his or her safety focus subjects like Algebra, Geometry, Chemistry, or anything else for that matter?

The No Child Left Behind Act calls upon school administrators to focus on student drop out rates, performance on state assessments, graduation rates, and specifically the performance of students in selected populations such as Special Education, English Language Learners, and those from Low Income Families. Take the pressure of these accountability standards and when added to the previous and approaching budget crises the public schools are faced with an entirely new set of problems. There is only so much funding, and where should it go? Do we risk lower test scores to keep our students safe? Do we focus on their wellness even though it might mean that class sizes may go up in our schools?

To me the answer is simple. The safety of our students comes first. Those who are best poised to ensure student safety are those who are trained to listen to them and when needed, act as their voices. I recognize that we are in a budget crisis – but I will not allow any reduction in funding to fall on the backs of our children who are in need of the most support. Those who are reading this article who have been bullied or been bullies know that bullying is not isolated to schools. Perhaps there are bullies in our adult lives too. It is my hope that the proactive approach of Mahar and the proactive approaches of other public schools will not only keep our students safe now, but educate them for a future in which they go out of their way to help, rather than hurt others.

Mrs. Grosky: Top Ten Semifinalist in Massachusetts Teacher of the Year Competition

2010-03-26T17:35:00.002-04:00

Since 1960 the Massachusetts Teacher of the Year program has honored a Massachusetts teacher who exemplifies excellent teaching. Now in its 50th year, the program’s purpose is to identify a teacher who is worthy of publicly presenting the importance of the teaching profession, and representing the positive contributions of all teachers in the Commonwealth. When one considers that there are more than 69,000 teachers in Massachusetts it is apparent that finding the single person to hold the title “Teacher of the Year” is no easy task.

All too often you will read articles in the newspaper about principals who unveil new programs in their schools, superintendents who make valid arguments for more funding for education, the donations of wealthy people to the schools, and school facility upgrades (if and when they happen). All of these things are good, but when it comes to schools the most important and relevant articles that should be written everyday are not. These are the articles that pertain to the miracles that happen in each and every school, public or private, in every town in America every single day.

An article a day could be written about teachers who make differences in the lives of their students. These differences come by way of instruction, conversation, feedback, reward, and redirection. Accountability standards and state regulations aside, teachers work incredibly hard and our communities need to know that. So let this article serve as a thank-you to all teachers as I write about one who I have come to know quite well. After my first observation of her in her classroom three years ago, I told her that I was not comfortable evaluating her. Rather, in my time spent in her classroom observing like a good little administrator should – I was witnessing and learning about teaching at its very finest.

Anne Grosky is a teacher in the Ralph C. Mahar Regional Middle School. She works with eleven students who have unique learning styles. Her students enter her classroom having learned that learning is difficult for them, and because of this, they are in a different educational setting than their same aged peers. Anne however, does not see this as a challenge. Rather, she told me that she sees her job as an opportunity to “straighten sagging shoulders” and “raise heads that are pointed to the floor.”

The students in Mrs. Grosky’s class work in a system by which they earn certain tokens at the end of each school day. These tokens are earned for positive peer interactions, completion of assigned work, helping others during the school day, and for their participation in learning at the highest level that these seventh and eighth graders can. The tokens are then deposited into an account, and then at the end of the week these students can write checks to the “Grosky Store” for school supplies, books, and other items that pertain to school. The students also have the option of saving their tokens in their accounts so that they may purchase the ultimate item from the proverbial “top shelf” of the “Grosky Store.”

The best item in the “Grosky Store” is Sunday Dinner at Mrs. Grosky’s home. When Mrs. Grosky first came to me with this idea, I did not know what to say. In ten years as an educational administrator I had never been approached with such a request. Once I had a clear understanding of what she was thinking, I had to accept the idea. Anne and her husband Mitch (a retired principal) have now taken to having Anne’s students over the house each week. There they assist in planning, preparing, eating, and cleaning up after a meal with Anne’s family. On one Monday in particular when Anne showed me the pictures of one of her students making a Caesar Salad something dawned on me. I was looking at a picture of a student, who at the age of thirteen and due to the situations of his life had never had the opportunity help prepare and enjoy a meal in the fashion that Anne had provided. My heart melted.

When I watch Anne teach and I see her science experiments, her class plays, and her truly multi-sensory approach to teaching, I know that miracles are happening in her room everyday. When I see the pictures from her home each Monday, I know that the miracles are now taking place on Sundays as well. What a treat…a teacher who loves her work, loves her students, and truly changes their lives. I believe that all teachers should be recognized, and as you have read, especially Anne.

So about a month ago, I got together with some of Mahar’s employees, parents, and with the students in Anne’s class. We decided that she should be the one who is called the “Teacher of the Year” and we put together a packet of information on her behalf. Just a couple of days ago, Mrs. Grosky was informed that out of the 69,000 teachers in Massachusetts that she has been named a Top Ten Semi-Finalist in the competition. The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education still has much to do to identify the person who will hold this prestigious title. The winner, by the way, is automatically entered into the National Teacher of the Year Competition. Because of rules that govern confidentiality, I cannot write about how Anne has helped each student individually, but I think that President Obama is going to be delighted when he meets her and learns about what she has done.

Cellular Phones = Handheld Computers: Parents Beware!

2010-03-10T15:18:00.004-05:00

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to read over state legislation that is proposed to limit bullying in schools. It is apparent that this law has been drafted in reaction to a recent tragedy in which a student who was being harassed by her peers made a drastic decision to take her own life. The legislation will offer school administrators increased flexibility in taking steps to eliminate bullying in schools while at the same time mandate that students be educated about these negative peer interactions.

In the wake of the tragedy that has driven this legislation, administrators all over Massachusetts and in many other states have been taking steps to ensure that their schools are free of the types of student behaviors that brought about this event. More specifically, my fellow Superintendents, Principals, Assistant Principals, Counselors, and Technology Directors have focused in on “Cyber Bullying,” what it is, and when and where it takes place.
It is not that we didn’t know about “Cyber Bullying” at Mahar. Each year we have guest presentations for our students that pertain to their behavior on the Internet and next month we will have a presentation for parents. We have known for a long time that just as the Internet provides a new method of communication for everybody, it also provides users with the idea that their one-way communications can remain anonymous. We spend a lot of time informing students that this is not so. Further, we have other concerns about students’ safety on the Internet because of the potential for them to be endangered by the predatory behaviors of some, identity theft, and other outright scams.

We thought that the aforementioned feared activities could not take place in school because we have such an elaborate technology system in place that simply will not allow it. In school, every move that a student makes on the Internet is monitored, and every word that is typed can be recorded. These filters are in place because of laws that exist to help us protect our students. But what I have learned recently is very important information, not only for teachers and administrators, but for parents as well.

When I was a child the Atari, the Apple II, and the Commodore 64 dominated the industry. There was no Internet and cellular phone calls were reserved for those in the military or those who were filthy rich. Today, the cellular phone is not just a phone – rather, cellular phones are handheld computers. A student who has a phone with a data connection can do anything that can be done on a computer, and this fact is one that needs the careful scrutiny of parents.

Those parents who are proactive and put surf controls on the home computer, limit time on the Internet for their children, and take other steps such as having the home PC in plain view might not be doing enough to protect their children from the dangers that exist on the “Net.” Even with all of the controls that are available, students can still use their phones – sometimes right in front of their parents and teachers to connect to the net and communicate with others. A student appears to be checking the time might be on Facebook, MySpace, sending a text, and/or so much more.

500 Lunches in 90 Minutes or Less!

2010-02-16T22:33:00.003-05:00

Tonight I used the Internet to see if I could find out how many restaurants there are in the United States. I learned that there are approximately 750,000 in total and that of these, more than 50,000 are classified as “Fast Food.” McDonald’s, Wendy’s, Burger King, and KFC all operate on pretty much the same premise – people walk in to the restaurant, wait in line for a relatively brief amount of time, then they get their food and leave, or they sit down and eat it pretty quickly.

It is likely that there is tremendous research on the eating habits of fast food lovers. For instance, it would be interesting to know the average number of minutes a person stays in one of these establishments. I would be curious to know how much money the average person spends and how many people can be served in one hour. The caloric content of fast food meals has been under intense scrutiny in recent years along with fat content and sodium levels – yet these establishments continue to flourish with hungry customers.

If I were to offer fast food franchise owners the opportunity to have more than 500 customers a day for 180 days a year, most would likely jump at the opportunity. This proposition would provide a chance to serve more than 90,000 meals a year. Let’s say I was to tell the fast food owners that the 500 meals per day would be served in less than 90 minutes? I think that would make the offer even better. Imagine the profits that could be made!

Now imagine that any meal served must meet Dietary Guidelines, which recommend that no more than 30 percent of an individual's calories come from fat, and less than 10 percent from saturated fat. These regulations also establish a standard for meals to provide one-third of the Recommended Daily Allowances of protein, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, iron, calcium, and calories. And one more thing….the maximum that can be charged for a meal is $2.50 (and it must include milk).

Mahar parents were recently notified of a twenty-five cent increase in an individual student lunch. The current fiscal situation both locally and nationally made this a very difficult decision to make. Mahar’s commitment to providing nutritious meals for its students remains – but it is becoming increasingly expensive to maintain.

Racing to the Top - We Have to Wait and See

2010-01-14T18:08:00.001-05:00

Lately the Race to the Top has been the topic of conversation in our schools and in the media. The Race to the Top is a competitive $4.35 billion dollar education reform program that could award Massachusetts up to $250 million dollars in additional funding for education. In order to obtain these funds the Massachusetts Department of Education has had to work collaboratively with State Legislators and stakeholders in drafting its proposal to the Federal Government.

On December 11, 2009 Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) Commissioner, Mitchell Chester sent a letter to School District Leaders asking that a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) be signed by School Committee Chairpersons, Massachusetts Teachers Association (Union) Presidents, and District Superintendents stating that their districts would commit to implement the initiatives named in the state’s proposal to the Federal Government. The Commissioner states very clearly in his letter that if Massachusetts were to be awarded the aforementioned funding, at least half of the grant award will be distributed to those districts who submit MOU’s that are signed by all three parties.

The MOU has been the topic of discussion since the release of the Commissioner’s letter, and for many more reasons that there is time to write about. First, in order for an MTA President to sign the MOU he/she needed the consent of the larger MTA as an organization and the support of his/her local Teachers Union. The School Committee Chairs needed to have the authorization from their School Committees to sign and finally, the Superintendent would have to sign as well.

Here is a link that will take you to both the letter from the Commissioner and to the MOU:
http://www.doe.mass.edu/arra/rttt/mou.doc

If Massachusetts is awarded the Federal funds associated with this agreement, the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School District would stand to gain approximately $27,000.00 in additional funding. The amount of funding for each district is based on how much Title I funding each district receives – which is an additional 15% of each district’s Title I funds….but these funds come with requirements……

What requirements???
Since the Teacher’s Unions, Superintendents, and School Committees were unsure of what the requirements would be many of these groups opted not to sign and/or submit the MOU. As of 9:00 PM last night, approximately 50% of the districts in the state had signed the MOU, and this is reflective of about 67% of the state’s K – 12 population. At Mahar the MTA President, School Committee Chair, and Superintendent (me) signed the MOU. With this we also signed a Memorandum of Agreement stating that any party could back out of the Race to the Top process at a later time – should the requirements of the grant be perceived to be prohibitive, remove collective bargaining rights, or be viewed as not a good option for Mahar’s students.

The state’s application to the Federal Government is due in Washington DC on January 19. I am not clear on what happens after that, but I will be sure to keep you posted. All that I know for sure is that with the Massachusetts application for the Federal funds are 245 signed Memorandums – and one of them bears our district’s name and required signatures.

Regional Assistance Centers

2009-12-01T16:33:00.000-05:00

This morning I attended a workshop that was sponsored by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE). Today’s workshop focused on another DESE initiative which is aside from the new computer data collection program for Special Education compliance reporting, the Readiness Project, or the new MCAS data reports that show student growth (DESE meetings of late). The DESE initiative du jour was creation of the District and School Assistance Centers (DSACs) across the state.

Essentially, schools and districts are now being ranked in a level system that places them anywhere from Level 1 to Level 5. I should specify that the level system relates directly to school performance under the No Child Left Behind Act…which means how our students perform on state assessments and meet other criteria such as timely graduation. The new level system works like this:

Level 1 – Meets Regulation – DESE provides voluntary access to online tools
Level 2 – At Risk – DESE suggests assistance for student groups and teachers
Level 3 – Needs Technical Assistance – ESE provides priority assistance and guides self-assessment
Level 4 – Needs Intervention – DESE requires intervention
Level 5 – Needs Substantial Intervention – DESE co-governs district

So where does Mahar stand in all of this?

Here is a breakdown of the 1766 schools in Massachusetts:

Level 1 – 464
Level 2 – 82
Level 3 – 1177
Level 4 – 43

We are in a group with 1176 other schools. Today our administrative team affirmed yet again our commitment to improve. Before the announcement of the District and School Assistance Centers, we were committed to reaching the benchmarks for student performance that is set by the state. Now we are also committed to moving Mahar to Level 2, and then to Level 1 in the new system unveiled by the DESE today. Only now, we know that we will have the assistance of some highly qualified folks at the DESE – one of which I have come to know as an outstanding person and consummate professional.

I am looking forward to working with our newly appointed DSAC Regional Assistance Director, Ken Rocke.

One more thing – for those of you who read yesterday’s blog, I went with the Quarter Pounder with Cheese & a Large Fries. I skipped the soda though and had a cup of coffee.

Super Size Me?

2009-11-30T16:05:00.004-05:00

Last week I drove to Western New York to visit my family. I did not pack any food for my seven hour drive, and when I got hungry enough I decided to pull off the highway to get a bite to eat. Sadly, one of the foods available to me at that moment was McDonald’s. I could have gone to the convenience store and grabbed a yogurt, or perhaps a granola bar – but the smell of the burgers and fries took over my senses and I had to give in. And while I stood at the counter debating over the Quarter Pounder or the Big Mac I realized that I had not been to the “Golden Arches” in more than five years.

It was around 2004 that I first encountered the movie, “Supersize Me.” This documentary was about a man who ate nothing but McDonald’s for breakfast, lunch, and dinner for one month. By the end of the thirty days he had gained considerable weight and was becoming very sick according to his physician. The doctor actually asked the man to give up on his month long project in the interest of good health. The constant flow of fast food was starting to affect his liver, mood, and cardiovascular fitness.

This morning irony struck when I read the topic of this month’s Educational Leadership as, “Health and Learning.” Each month this publication focuses on one topic in the American Public School System, providing those in educational leadership with information and insight to potentially improve schools large and small. The December 2009 issue covers students’ diets, sleep habits, emotional wellness, and exposure to drugs and alcohol.

As a school community we have focused in school eating habits with our district wellness policy as well as our policy to allow bottled water in the classrooms. One of the points made in Ed. Leadership’s article about healthy eating is that children who are continually exposed to fat, sugar, and salt will find these foods to be their friends. These children will then turn to these foods for comfort in times of stress, or just as a better tasting alternative to healthy foods. Once this cycle begins, it can be a hard one to break, and the repercussions can bring agony later in life.

You can see the first four minutes of the movie, Super Size Me by clicking the link below. I give this film two thumbs up!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V168xofxgu0

A Thanksgiving Blog

2009-11-25T15:53:00.002-05:00

Much has changed in the American School System since I was a child. I can recall decorating trees, decorating eggs in art classes, making cards for family members and sharing gifts with my classmates. Many of these activities are no more in public schools, or they are implemented with surgical political correctness, so not to offend any member of the community. Clearly the holidays of which I speak can have a religious connotation to them.

Ahhh, but then there is Thanksgiving. I am sure that there are some out there who treat Thanksgiving as a religious holiday – but for the most part it is a day when we get together with our families and friends to share in a celebration. This primarily secular holiday first occurred nearly 400 years ago and the typical celebration that is held in homes across America emulates what happened way back in the 1600’s.

Tomorrow the Ralph C. Mahar Thanksgiving celebration begins at 10:00 AM on our football field where our Senators host the Athol Red Raiders. There is tremendous excitement in both communities about this game. We are 9 – 0 and Athol is 9 – 1. Two excellent football teams meeting on a turf field on a 50 degree day, without a chance of rain. While those of us are here watching our teams and coaches battle it out, we will have in the backs of our minds the delicious food, and fine company that awaits us later in the afternoon.

Anytime I have been asked which holiday is my favorite, I am quick to point out that it is Thanksgiving. I enjoy the camaraderie found in excellent athletic programs such as ours and Athol’s. So before the NFL games begin, before the turkey or the stuffing with the family – I would like to say good luck to both teams in tomorrow’s game. Play hard and of course play safe!

Please allow me to say Thanks in advance to the Senators and the Red Raiders for a great game, and Happy Thanksgiving to all of you.

H1N1 Clinic to be held December 11 at Mahar

2009-11-18T11:03:00.001-05:00

Sometime back in August, I posted the first blog that referenced H1N1. At about that time I was working with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health to secure influenza vaccinations for students in the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School District, and for our sending schools whose administrations expressed an interest. Today, I am happy to report that our H1N1 clinic will be held in our gymnasium on December 11, 2009!

Very soon, I will sit with the Orange Department of Public Health Director, Roger Mallet to craft a press release. We currently have about 250 students scheduled to be vaccinated, and want to make a push to get the vaccination to more of our students. I must also specify that the December 11 clinic is for H1N1 only and that we are continuing in our efforts to provide the seasonal vaccinations for our students. Once we get through the H1N1 clinic, it will be much easier, and more widely accepted that we are providing students with vaccinations in school.

I am also happy to report that elementary students from the Petersham Center School will be able to participate in the December 11 clinic. Any student from Petersham Center School can get theH1N1 vaccination if the proper paperwork is competed and he or she is accompanied by a parent. I have a suspicion that the students in high school will take the vaccination injection much easier than the children who will come from Petersham – so for the Center School students a Mom, Dad, or other Guardian must attend!

The H1N1 clinic has opened a door for our district and for our students. The idea of providing services like influenza vaccinations in the school setting creates a convenient way for parents to have their students undergo routine wellness activities. By having the vaccinations in schools, parents do not have to make doctor appointments (which can take some time) or take time off of work to sit in waiting rooms. I have added the link to the H1N1 cover letter and permission form for parents at the bottom of this blog.

Next on the Horizon:
Last night I made the acquaintance of the Vice President of Family Health Centers. I am going to coordinate with her in an attempt to have Dental Screenings and Dental Clinics for our students. Just like the influenza vaccinations, the dental clinics will be optional if we are able to get them in our school. I will also ask our elementary school partners if they are interested in taking part.

http://www.rcmahar.org/Flu/flu%20shot%20cover%20letter%202009.pdf

http://www.rcmahar.org/Flu/2009%20H1N1%20Influenza%20Vaccine%20Consent%20Form.pdf

Thanking Ted Sizer

2009-11-09T23:38:00.002-05:00

Each year the University of Massachusetts (UMASS) at Lowell asks doctoral students to take part in the annual colloquium. A colloquium is an event in which scholars get together to engage in discussion about a particular topic. Over the last couple of years I have had the opportunity to make the acquaintance of Boston Public Pilot Schools expert Dan French and renowned author, Jonathon Kozol. I have been provided with memorable moments at these events, my favorite of which was having Kozol’s book, Letters to a First Year Teacher signed by John. He wrote on the first page, To Michael. For all our children.

At one of these events I sat next to an older man and a woman who I assumed was his wife. While he sat and seemed to listen to every word that Dr. French was saying about the Boston Pilot Schools, his wife just sat and knitted. At some point the gentleman was introduced to everyone as Theodore “Ted” Sizer. I remember thinking to myself how fantastic it was to be sitting next to such a famous author. One of Ted’s books, The Red Pencil: Convictions From Experience in Education is among my favorites when it comes to ideas about improving the education system as a whole.

Among my favorite of Dr. Sizer’s assertions is the one that he draws about educational equality. He made a pretty compelling case for why things in schools are the way they are when he wrote, “Over the course of a year, most children spend more than twice their waking hours outside of school. This time, not surprisingly, carries far more influence than the amount of time spent in the classroom, if not for some, surely for most.” He goes on to say, “If we want a powerfully educated population we must attend to all aspects of each child’s situation, in deliberate, sustained combination.”

Now I don’t mean to bore you with quotes from books, but what Sizer says is very important. The fact that the percentage of students achieving proficiency on MCAS examinations goes up as the socioeconomics of the school community is not merely a function of happenstance. There is legitimate research to support that student achievement increases with socioeconomic status. If those who authored the No Child Left Behind Act would just realize this, our summer and weekend programming would be just as powerful as that which happens in our 180 day school year.

On the topic of socioeconomic status and its direct relationship on student achievement I could write for hours. In actuality, I have written for hours about this – but I really don’t want to bore you with research. The real reason that I wrote this blog tonight is that I want to say thank you to Ted Sizer, a forward thinker, a wonderful author, and a pioneer in the American Education System. On October 22, 2009 Ted passed away at the age of 77 after a lengthy battle with cancer. Ted not only left us with inspirational and promising ideas about how to improve education for our children – he left us with work that simply must be done.

Leadership Lesson: Dr. Thomas Weinberg

2009-11-02T17:37:00.003-05:00

Lately, most of my personal time has been spent putting together my doctoral dissertation. I have reached the point now where the end of my doctorial studies is in sight, and with this I have been working more furiously in hopes of reaching the end. One of the major components of this expansive document deals with leadership attributes and practices of school superintendents. While I was writing about these attributes and practices I felt compelled to stop and reflect on how one could become an exceptional educational leader.

I came to the conclusion that the leadership practices of any person (superintendents included) are influenced by formal education, informal education, and experiences. Formal education applies to those people who earn degrees in administration or some form of leadership. In colleges and universities these individuals are required to read certain works, write papers to synthesize concepts, conduct studies, and make presentations on leadership topics. Informal education applies to those pieces of research that prospective leaders choose to read, investigations and case studies about the success of others, and conversations about how to become promising in practice. Finally, experience applies to those things that happen in life that call upon us to behave in a particular manner the next time we encounter familiar circumstances.

Once I drew the conclusions above I started to think about my own formal education, the books that I have read, the research that I have been interested in and the people and experiences that have helped me to shape my independent thoughts about leadership and school improvement. Then it dawned on me – I am lucky to have been provided with an excellent formal education which has helped me to engage in self-directed learning opportunities. Also, over the past 15 years I have witnessed leadership practices that have been exceptionally successful and others that have been profoundly absurd.

Focusing in on exceptional leaders with whom I have been associated, I reflected on one of my Professors from Buffalo State College. In the mid 1990’s I was fortunate to have made the acquaintance of Dr. Thomas Weinberg – one of my Sociology Professors who was a winner of the SUNY Chancellor’s Award in teaching. Given the number of students that Dr. Weinberg has each year, it is unlikely that he remembers me, but because of his friendly nature and acts of kindness – I will never forget him.

You see, in the summer of 1996 I went to file my graduation paperwork with Buffalo State College’s administration. I found out (rather abruptly) that I was one sociology course short in reaching my own graduation requirements. This happened as a result of my being inappropriately advised by a brand new faculty member, and the fact that I did not take the personal responsibility of looking over my own course completion requirements in the prescribed courses of study for my degree. So there I was, twenty-two years old and in crisis. I was told that I would have to attend for one more semester so that I could take one class in order to earn my degree.

Dr. Weinberg happened to be walking by the Dean’s Office when I was being given this news. Although Tom is an expert in analyzing human behavior, it did not take his expertise to see that I was not happy. He took me out into the hallway and asked me what was going on – and when I was done he asked me to stay in the hall. He went into the Dean’s office and a couple of minutes passed. He then asked me to come into the Dean’s office where he presented me with an option.

Dr. Weinberg explained to me that the Dean was willing to approve an Independent Study for me that Dr. Weinberg would oversee. This independent study would mean that I would practically work day and night for the remainder of the semester and if I could complete the course work in time would be given my degree with the August graduates. I accepted the offer, completed the work, and earned a B in my independent study.

Dr. Weinberg had nothing to gain in helping me. He actually created more work for himself in doing so. My Sociology professor went out of his way for me simply because he could. I consider that day in the Dean’s office a lesson in leadership. Tom taught me something that day that has stuck with me more than any lesson I have learned in a classroom or any philosophy I have read in a book. Dr. Weinberg deserved the Chancellor’s Award that he received because as you could see, his lessons tend to stick with his students.

To Dr. Weinberg:
You taught me the value of providing opportunities for success. You could have walked right by me that day in 1996. You should know that when I have been confronted with the opportunity to do for another as you did for me – I have been following your lead.

Superintendent's Response to T & G Article Today

2009-10-28T17:02:00.002-04:00

An article appeared in today’s Worcester Telegram that you may have seen. If you have not, I have provided you with a link to the article via the Internet below. I am disheartened that this article inaccurately rated Mahar (via chart) in comparison to other school districts in the Telegram’s distribution zone. It is true that our median Student Growth Percentile (SGP) is 35.0 in ELA and 33.5 in mathematics – but please keep in mind that this is comprised of the following SGPs:

Grade 7 Math – 20.0
Grade 8 Math – 37.0
Grade 10 Math – 54.0

Grade 7 ELA – 21.5
Grade 8 ELA – 36.0
Grade 10 ELA – 54.0

The districts to which the Telegram and Gazette compared Mahar have SGPs that are inclusive of students’ performance on assessments in grades 4, 5, and 6 as well. To compare Mahar with other K – 12 districts in an accurate fashion, the following SGPs would have been included in our median distribution:

Petersham Elementary SGP for all Grades
Math – 44.0
ELA – 43.0

Swift River Elementary SGP for all Grades
Math – 68.0
ELA – 80.0

Orange Elementary SGP for all Grades
Math – 37.0
ELA – 38.0

In the coming days I will be contacting the appropriate personnel at the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to inquire about the existence of a Median SGP that is reflective of the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School District and our K – 6 partnering districts.

You can see how the accountability standards under the No Child Left Behind Act calls upon the quantification of student learning by bunching data. I have questioned and continue to question the data that is collected and how it is used. In this case, the Telegram & Gazette accurately reported half of the data for our Pre-K – 12 model and all of the data from other Pre K – 12 systems. It is my hope that the Telegram & Gazette will consider writing another article that is indicative of the steadfast work of our teachers, staff, and administration. If the chart printed in the Telegram & Gazette focused only on Grade 10 SGPs in English and Language Arts, Mahar would have been placed on their continuum above Quabbin, Ashburnham-Westminster, Gardner, Northampton, Leominster, Lunenburg, and many, many more.

One other thought….the time that it took to create this response could have been dedicated to real work with our teachers and the time that it takes for our teachers to read this response could have been dedicated to planning instruction.

http://www.telegram.com/article/20091028/NEWS/910280439

"They focus on trying to have us become critical thinkers."

2009-10-27T22:22:00.003-04:00

Last week I visited Cushing Academy in Ashburnham. I was able to sit in on a United States History Class and a Probability and Statistics class as an invited guest by my cousin Tyler. Tyler, an enthusiastic learner and hockey player is a member of Cushing’s Class of 2011. The experience was doubly unique for me – having spent so much time in and around schools I perceived teaching and learning in the same fashion that I do in my daily work but as Tyler’s invited guest I focused on his in class actions and behaviors. I left Cushing impressed with Tyler’s participation in his learning, and even more impressed with Cushing as a learning organization.

I have spent all but two years of my professional career in public schools. In the two years that I worked as an administrator in a private school I was able to see first-hand how the two systems are alike and how the two systems are different. The compare and contrast of public and private education has been the subject of countless studies, countless articles, and is always a topic of debate. Whether you are a public school or a private school advocate – the fact remains that there are differences, large and small.

If someone were to ask me if I believed in public education or private education, my answer would be, “Yes, I believe in education.” What is really important is that the student who is in the private school believes in his or her school and the student who is in the public school believes in his or her school just the same. Today I sent Tyler a text and asked, “You gotta take mcas @ Cushing?” He responded, “Nope. We have finals twice a year and that’s it.” I then sent another text asking, “They focus on SATs”?” Then Tyler responded, “Not exactly. They focus on trying to have us become critical thinkers.”

Of course I would rather see Tyler at Mahar – but given his answer today, Cushing is fine with me too.

A Challenge for Maria

2009-10-21T19:13:00.002-04:00

I am not sure if this is an oddity, but my father is a retired teacher, my older brother was a History Teacher and is now an Assistant Principal, one of my sisters was an English Teacher and is now a Professor at a University, and my other sister has just finished her degree to become an elementary school teacher. I suppose if I had more siblings and they also chose the field of education that our situation would become increasingly rare. Since the likelihood of me finding new siblings is unlikely, it appears as though we are just four for four in choosing the field of education as our lives’ work.

Maria (the Professor) and I often have conversations and debates about key issues facing teachers, administrators, and students in schools today. More often than not we agree and are quick to affirm one another’s beliefs in how to best go about the business of planning, teaching, assessing, and improving instruction. I think we provide each other with ideas about practices we can engage in during our workdays, and often motivate each other in working through the tough situations we are inclined to face in our work.

We often debate the merits and drawbacks of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) – and on any given day we can agree or disagree about some part of it. In our most recent conversation I stressed my frustration with the fact that many of the statistics reported on the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education’s (DESE) website provide viewers with insignificant data about our school district. I should say, the data is accurate – my frustration is with the fact that the reported numbers are often unimportant, lead people to make assumptions about our school that simply aren’t true, and in some cases I cannot even imagine why they are reported.

Now Maria is not one to accept what I say, or what any person says for that matter without empirical evidence, so she wouldn’t let me off the hook with just some random complaint about data reporting. I tossed some statistics at her that I found little value in and she was quick to refute. She provided me with new insights on why certain demographic data is published on the DESE website, who might be interested, and assumptions that could be drawn.

I looked over the website one more time and found a report that I will use to challenge my sister. Maria, by clicking the link below you will find the Massachusetts Department of Education’s “Staffing Age Report by Full Time Equivalency 2007 – 2008” for the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School District. Can you tell me what the value is in reporting the age of a school’s faculty? Are there generalizations to be made about teachers who are under the age of 30 or over the age of 60? There are many teachers in their thirties who have been teaching longer than teachers in their fifties, so it is not reflective of teaching experience……….this one is tough to figure out.

http://profiles.doe.mass.edu/profiles/teacher.aspx?orgcode=07550000&orgtypecode=5&leftNavId=828&

Readine$$ and $upport

2009-10-16T19:03:00.002-04:00

For many who are outside of the public school system the No Child Left Behind Act appears to be a wonderful piece of legislation that was set forth to hold school systems and those who work in them accountable for their students’ performance. For many inside the public school system the No Child Left Behind Act is a not so wonderful piece of legislation that places students’ performance on mathematics and language arts assessments beyond all else. Those who work in Massachusetts Public Schools are reminded increasingly as the time approaches that all students must be passing these all important tests by the year 2014.

So, the goal is set. By the year 2014 we are aiming to have each and every student reach the level of “Proficient” on their MCAS examinations and that is that, right? The dialogue among teachers and administrators does not shed a promising light on attaining this goal. I have heard this goal be referred to as impossible, absurd, unattainable, illogical, and many more words that I do not care to type. The truth is that those of us who are in education for the right reasons…those of us to got into this business with the intent of being part of a system that makes our world a better place really, really, really wants to obtain this goal. For if we obtain the goal of 100% proficiency – then we know that we are doing our jobs and that we are doing them well…..at least with regard to our students passing tests.

Then we have our mixed messages. On October 8, 2009 Governor Patrick announced the creation of “Readiness Centers” to support our educators. These centers have been created with the intent of improving education by providing teachers and administrators with access to proven instructional practices, and focused professional development to support what is taking place in the classroom. What a novel idea, and kudos to the Patrick Administration for taking the time and energy to realize that teachers cannot be excellent teachers without support. Now that I think about it, just the same as our students need support from their teachers and their families, and our teachers need the support of their administrators through professional development, administrators and school systems need support too!

The question is will the positive impact of the Readiness Centers be overshadowed by an inability to support our educational system with proper funding for our teachers, facilities, and students? Our government passed the No Child Left Behind Act, our government demands all students reach the level of “Proficient” on state examinations by 2014, and our government created Readiness Centers to help us make this so. Today it is hard for me to fathom that this is the same government that could soon reduce the funding that our school district receives to educate our students. A piece of legislation and a Readiness Center will not be enough to reach our 2014 goal. We need our teachers, we need our transportation, and we need our professional development. We won’t be able to get this done without proper $upport.

Would You Rather Make a Buck or Make a Difference?

2009-10-15T19:28:00.005-04:00

“It’s easy to make a buck. It’s a lot tougher to make a difference.”
- Tom Brokaw

Tom Brokaw certainly made plenty of bucks, and with his work on books such as The Greatest Generation also made a difference in the lives of many of our veterans. He also provided our veteran’s families’ a certain level of understanding of the trials and tribulations that their parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents faced in the World War II era. The quote above transcends media and finds its place in many circles of people who are gathered for the benefits of others, which includes but is not limited to those who teach and work directly with our children.

Very recently Mahar’s Principal, Mr. Goodhind unveiled a process by which students can show their teachers, coaches, and Mahar staff gratitude for their time and effort in teaching them and/or making this school a better place for them to learn. The Appreciation Stations are two boxes – one in the Middle School Office and one in the High School Office. Our students are able to place the name of a teacher or staff member who has helped them in some significant way and write a sentence or two about how. Each week Mr. Goodhind selects one of the submissions and has it read during announcements so that the whole school can be made aware of the efforts of those who work in our school community.

Each Monday, Mr. Goodhind will publish via E-mail all of the “Appreciation Notes” that were dropped in the box during the week prior. I have to applaud this mechanism as it not only allows our students a way to say thank you but it also affords them the opportunity to return the kindness that they receive from our faculty and staff everyday.

These types of activities generate a positive and uplifting energy when they are talked about in school. We spend so much time worrying about the budget, focusing in on test scores, and engaged in school improvement efforts that sometimes we forget to be grateful for the hard work and genuine level of care that is exhibited by our teachers, administrators, and staff. Let us not forget that these people chose a life of working with children – and in most cases with the intent of “making a difference” in their lives.

Don’t get me wrong though. A school can be like any workplace….at times at least. Complaints, criticisms, and what I refer to as “people downgrades” happen just as frequently in a school as they do in an office building. A “people downgrade” is simple gossip – a conversation about a person who did a thing – and in order for it to qualify as a downgrade – it must be negative.

“Any fool can criticize, condemn, and complain but it takes character and self control to be understanding and forgiving.”
- Dale Carnegie

Carnegie identifies what it takes to be a fool, and what it takes to establish that one has character. I think he might have added that it also takes a certain level of character to say “Thank-You.”

Drop Out Blog II

2009-10-13T18:15:00.002-04:00

School administrators who are reporting school drop-outs in Massachusetts must follow a chart that is provided by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) in deciding whether or not a student is, in fact, a drop-out. In most cases this chart allows me and my fellow superintendents the ability to accurately code whether or not a student is in school, some other type of academic program, or has some legitimate reason for not being in school. It really is a simple process – the DESE provides a list of student names and then the Superintendent or another school administrator decides which line on the chart corresponds with each student’s unique situation.

School districts are responsible for reporting data on student drop-out as accurately as possible. At Mahar, it is commonplace for every student on our drop-out list to get a phone call, or a visit from a guidance counselor, adjustment counselor, or administrator. We try to set up meetings with these students, and do whatever we can to get them back in school. In many cases last year Dr. Namin called students at their homes or at their places of employment to gather accurate information on their intentions to return to school and/or talk to them about our new programs that would allow them to earn their diplomas in new and creative ways. Like Dr. Namin, I have involved myself in attempting to get these students back in school.

The steps that we take at Mahar to reconnect our students with their education are also common practice at Mount Wachusett Community College. The Director of the Gateway to College, Mrs. Bibeau engages in the exact same practices that we do in attempts to get students back in school. As I mentioned in my last blog, the students enrolled at the Gateway to College at Mount Wachusett are considered to be students in the Ralph. C. Mahar Regional School District. Therefore, when a student drops out of the Gateway to College – the DESE considers the student to have dropped out of Ralph C. Mahar. So it is pretty clear that the partnership with Mount Wachusett is one that allows for us celebrate together, work together to help our shared students, and feel the same discomfort when these students decide to leave our program.

The single most frustrating of these discomforts that the Gateway to College and the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School District share is when one of our students moves away. Believe it or not, if a student moves away – even if it is 150 miles away – and if the student does not enroll in a new school, he or she is coded by the state as a high-school drop-out from our district. We go ahead and enter the code on our report that informs the state that the student transferred to another district in the state, but if the student does not enroll in that district – he or she is a drop-out. This is frustrating because there is almost nothing that we can do for students who are so far away.

Imagine this:

A student moves in to one of our four towns and registers to be a student at Ralph C. Mahar.

He or she gets a schedule and attends classes for two weeks.

One of our counselors notes that this student has not been in school for a few days and calls the student’s home to check in.

The counselor discovers that the student has moved to another town that is 25 miles away.
The student does not enroll in high school in the new town.

After attending Mahar for only two weeks – the student is coded as a drop-out from Ralph C. Mahar.

The drop-out rate is a hot topic in the educational arena and is often reported by the media to our constituents as a number that symbolizes our efficacy as an institution that educates adolescents and teens. Consider that last year five students moved away from our district and did not enroll in the school districts in the communities to which they relocated – and you can see our frustration. We are reaching out to students to get them back to school. We are creating atmospheres to keep them connected to our organization and in some cases creating individual programs for success. The way in which the drop-out rate is reported is really not reflective our work.

Collateral Data Damage: Drop Out Rate I

2009-10-08T17:54:00.002-04:00

Superintendents across the Commonwealth are required to report certain data to the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE - formerly known as the Department of Education). Some of this data is confidential as it pertains to individual students, while other parts of this massive data collection will be made public sometime after the end of this academic year. You can see the data that the state publicly reports at the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education Website by clicking on the link below. This data is available for all to see and is available for all public schools and public school districts in the Commonwealth.

Very recently we prepared our first report for this academic year. In preparation for our submission we engage in a process called “Data Scrubbing.” This is a process by which we look over the information that is going to be submitted and take steps to ensure its accuracy. For example, the state may need to be updated with regard to a student who they have recorded as a drop-out who is currently attending school or they may need to be updated as to a student grade levels, addresses, free lunch status, and so on.

Over the last three years the drop-out rate at Mahar has shown a significant decrease. Our former Superintendent, Dr. Namin took steps to ensure a low drop-out rate and last year Mahar reported a rate that was among the lowest in the state. This has been a statistic that we have been proud of – for it shows our willingness to reach out to students who are not feeling connected to school and offer to them alternative options for completing their high school diplomas. In our creation of two alternative education programs we found that we were able to keep students in school who were considering an early departure to go to work, or to earn a GED.

In our reaching out to this population of teenagers we attracted the attention of Mount Wachusett Community College and their program, “The Gateway to College.” The Gateway to College is a program that was started with funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation about four years ago at Mount Wachusett. This program offers students who have dropped out of school as well as students who are on the verge of dropping out a new way to earn their high school diplomas. Since this program is only offered at only 24 community colleges in the United States, Mahar is honored to have been asked to be a partner, and naturally accepted the offer.

In June of this year the Mount Wachusett Gateway to College hosted the single largest high school graduation that the Gateway to College has had nationwide. More than 25 students from more than a dozen towns who would have been high school drop outs received their high school diplomas – and for this we are quite proud. Since all of the Gateway to College students are Mahar students, we are happy to report to the that more students will be earning Mahar high school diplomas than ever before.

I have to report however, that with this excellent news will come what I now call, “Collateral Data Damage.” You see, we are reaching out to a population of students who have either dropped out of school, or are very close to making a departure from the educational scene. So despite our efforts, these students often choose to leave school again. Once a student enrolls in the Gateway to College or is accepted into one of our Alternative Education Programs, if he or she chooses to leave school again the state will record this as a drop out from Ralph C. Mahar High School.

There will come a time next year when the media might report a jump in the number of drop outs at Mahar. This will be true with regard to data collection, but I hope that the media will also report how much Mahar is doing to reach out to students to keep them in school in our towns and in towns across Central Massachsuetts. We can accept the “Collateral Data Damage” because what we are doing is right. The philosophical question at Mahar is changing from “What is our drop-out rate?” to “How many students have you reconnected with education?”

Please don’t hesitate to post questions about data collection, drop-out reporting, or our special programs as they will be the focus of future blogs. I am happy to answer any questions and/or concerns.

http://profiles.doe.mass.edu/profiles/student.aspx?orgcode=07550505&orgtypecode=6&leftNavId=303&

Evidenced by What?

2009-10-07T15:38:00.001-04:00

The dawn of the next phase of continuous improvement is now upon our school district. In this phase we will engage in the constant examination of data to make decisions that directly impact the academic and social performance of our students. We will almost become Missourian in our culture when we say, “Show me.” Data driven decision making calls upon all members of the school community to believe statements to be true, only when there is evidence to support them. Take a look at the statements below, that you may have heard in the past about our school or perhaps some school you have attended.

“______________ is a good school.”

Put the name of any school that you know to be “good” in the blank above. Now I ask how you know that it is a good school. Do the students at that school have better attendance than students who attend bad schools? Are the students at the good school tardy less frequently than the students at the bad schools? Do the students in the good school have better performance on state examinations than the students at the bad schools? Are the hallways cleaner than the hallways at the bad schools? I could go on and on, as you can see.

“___________________ is a bad school”

Now you are thinking of a different place than you did in the beginning of this blog. Again, why is it a bad school? Do the students get suspended more frequently than the students in the good schools? Are the hallways darker there, the teachers meaner, the budget thinner, or the grounds messier? What makes a good school good, and a bad school bad? What is now being recognized in school improvement efforts all across the country is that some good schools aren’t as good as people think they are, and some bad schools are surprisingly better than local sentiment allows for them to be.

Truth be told is that good schools are made up of good students, good parents, good teachers, good administrators, a good school committee, good towns, and good….well good schools are just made up of good and that’s that. Then, once we examine the fact that schools are essentially placed in the center of their communities with the purpose of educating children, staffed by those who choose a life of working in the field of education, and parents who are sending the absolute best children that they have to school – I have to ask, how on earth can a school be bad???

A good sports team is good because they win more than the bad sports teams. An airline is good because it has no crashes to speak of and few if any delayed flights. McDonalds is a good business because they have sold a trillion burgers. Mahar is a good school district because……..now its time to go to work and make decisions that show why we are a good school – and engage in decision making that makes us even better.

Influenza Vaccination Update

2009-10-06T17:12:00.001-04:00

I am happy to report that we have finished our preparations to offer free influenza vaccinations to our students and staff. We worked closely with the Orange Department of Public Health Director, Roger Mallet and the Office of Public Health at the state level to secure vaccinations for our school community. Now we are awaiting the delivery of vaccinations so that we move into the action phase of this project.

Soon, our students will be coming home with forms that must be filled out if they are to receive one or both vaccinations that will be offered during the school day at Mahar. We anticipate the arrival of the H1N1 vaccinations first, and then the seasonal influenza vaccine a week or two later. Any parent who is interested in having their child or children vaccinated simply has to fill out and sign the forms that come home with our students. As a safeguard, we will be calling parents to verify the authenticity of their signatures on the forms that we receive back from our students.

Anyone with questions or concerns about the H1N1 vaccination should consult first the fact sheet that we send home with the sign up forms. If questions and/concerns remain unanswered, parents can call the school and speak directly with our school nurse at 978-544-2542. It is important to note that the influenza vaccinations are optional – and are simply being offered at school as both a courtesy and convenience for our families.

I have learned that there are many different thoughts about vaccination in general. Some parents and community members are diligent about getting vaccinated every year, while others have gone their whole lives without having the influenza vaccination. It is our hope that this initiative will serve to reduce the number of H1N1 and seasonal influenza cases in our community, nonetheless.

Alphabet Soup

2009-09-29T16:45:00.001-04:00

When the alphabet soup of school administration finds its way into meetings, presentations, speeches, and publications many sets of eyes glaze over. Imagine if I were to stand in front of any group and say, “As we prepare for our upcoming NEASC decennial visit, we are focusing on our students’ MCAS scores, their performance on the PSAT, SAT and ACT, while combining our efforts to improve our CPI so that we make AYP.” I hope I didn’t lose any readers with that sentence.

For those of us who work in education – that was nothing. Special Education offices are even more prone to the utilization of acronyms that further confuse people. You see, a student can be on an IEP for many reasons which include, but are not limited to ADD, ADHD, PTSD, ODD, PDD, ED, SED, CP, MR, or LD. Often, students who are educated under IDEA and place on IEPs might receive the service of an SLP, OT, PT, or LISCW. And, let us not forget that the school district works closely with DYS, DCF, DMH, and DMR to meet the needs of all of our students.

Today’s blog will serve as a tutorial for one of the acronyms above that is very important to our district as well as those around the state. The Federal Government requires an accountability system in education and in Massachusetts our students’ progress is measured by their performance on the MCAS.
MCAS – Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System – these are the tests that the students at Mahar take in grades 7, 8, and 10 in English and Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies.

Our performance is measured by a number called our CPI.

CPI – Composite Performance Index – the name of it isn’t really important. What is important is how it is calculated.

Students can score anywhere from 200 – 260 on an MCAS examination. To calculate the CPI, the scores are broken up by the state in the following fashion:
A student who scores between 240 – 280 gets 100 CPI points
A student who scores between 230 – 238 gets 75 CPI points
A student who scores between 220 – 228 gets 50 CPI points
A student who scores between 210 – 218 gets 25 CPI points
A student who scores under 210 gets 0 CPI Points

Let’s say that 99 students take the MCAS in grade 10 English and Language Arts and they scores ar3:

65 students score between 240 and 280 which equates to 6,500 CPI points
15 students score between 230 and 238 which equates to 1,125 CPI points
15 students score between 220 and 228 which equates to 750 CPI points
4 students score between 210 and 218 which equates to 100 CPI points
1 student scores lower than 210 equating to zero CPI points

Our CPI total for this distribution is 8,475. This number is divided by the number of students who took the test (which is 100 in this case). And there you have it – our CPI is 84.75.

This number (84.75) is used by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to determine our “Accountability Status.” You should also know that by 2014 the goal has been set that ALL schools have a CPI of 100 – meaning that the number of students who score below 240 must be zero.

We are working on it!

School Community

2009-09-26T11:33:00.002-04:00

I really don’t know what it is like to work in a place other than a school anymore. The last time that I was a full time employee in an organization that was any different than the education system was in 1995 when I worked in a group home for developmentally disabled children. I do listen to my friends and family talk about their jobs, and note that working in a school is quite different than working in the business world.

The term “Membership has its Privileges” applies to more than just the American Express Card. Think about it – we call our teachers “faculty members” and not “employees.” There are many reasons that this is so - such as the incremental raises of the teacher contract, the fact that teachers get better with years of service, and that in the world of education people are more likely to stay in the same place over for a long period of time. This is often a highlight of high school commencement ceremonies…the part where a speaker acknowledges those who have been teaching for 10, 20, 30 years and beyond.

The nature of the school organization allows those who work together to become very close over the years that they are conjoined. It is commonplace that we celebrate the success of one another outside of work in events such as obtaining graduate degrees. There are also the milestone events of new children, marriages, home purchases, and retirement. The terms “Mahar Community” and “Mahar Family” have been used interchangeably over the years, and this week in particular.

I have recognized that working in a school is special for many reasons – the aforementioned connections being only one of them. With the good comes the difficult too though. We celebrate together, and every so often we ache together as well. Along with the joy we find in watching our students grow and learn, and the connections we have with our colleagues – we come across painful times just the same. The broken hearts of this week reminded me that before the No Child Left Behind Act, the MCAS examinations and strict standards that there is a community of people who care about one another – and how important that is.

Sub Enthusiasm

2009-09-22T16:56:00.002-04:00

Constantly, I reflect back on my own education and contrast my experiences as a student with the educational product that we provide for our learners today. Every once in a while something happens or somebody says something that brings me back to wooden floors, chalk boards, and wall clocks that we knew worked because we could actually hear the electricity buzzing through them. Recently I heard of a student who walked into a classroom and when he saw that his regularly scheduled teacher was not present said, “Yeah! We have a sub today!”

I recall my own penchant for substitute teachers when I was in school. The substitute teacher signified a break in routine, often less stringent expectations with regard to behavior, and an increased likelihood of a movie (now referred to as multi-media presentation), permission to talk quietly (frequently referred to as cooperative learning), or time to quietly complete outstanding assignments (now called structured learning). So when I heard that a young man had such outward excitement about his substitute teacher, I was not surprised.

I was in high school at just about the dawn of having to pass a test to get a diploma. In New York there was one diploma for the students who passed the tests and a different diploma for the students who did not. There was the “High School Diploma” and for those of us to took the state examinations and passed them, there was the “Regents Diploma.” As fate would have it, all students must now pass the examinations to get a diploma – and this is true for more than just New Yorkers and – well there is another question – if one from New York is a New Yorker, what is one from Massachusetts, a Massachussettser? Please accept my apologies for going off topic there.

Get to the point Mr. Baldassarre!

We (teachers and administrators) harp on the fact that we need our students to be in attendance everyday so that they may have proper time to assimilate all of the material necessary to have a crack at passing their MCAS examinations. If we were to adjust our curricular delivery in times of teacher absence – and our adjustments are not appropriate we would be taking away from our students’ education just the same as if they were absent. At Mahar we require teachers to have proper plans in place so that students continue to learn in the wake of teacher absence – and in our new drive to continue to improve our performance on state exams will monitor our substitute teachers to ensure that educational quality remains in the classroom.

All of this because of one eighth grader’s enthusiasm about his substitute teacher – who was actually a high school teacher filling in for a middle school teacher so that he could attend a meeting:

Student [with smile, pumping fist]: “Yeah! We have a sub today!”

Teacher [gently]: “I am sorry, you must be mistaken. Will you please take your seat so that we may begin?”

Student [frowns]: “Sorry.”

Plastic Ono Band (Side B)

2009-09-21T17:44:00.002-04:00

What is everybody talking about?

Bagism, Shagism, Dragism, Madism, Ragism, Tagism, This-ism, that-ism?

Ministers, Sinisters, Banisters and canisters, Bishops and Fishops and Rabbis and Pop eyes, And bye bye, bye byes?

Revolution, Evolution, Mastication, Flagellation, Regulations, Integrations, Meditations, United Nations, Congratulations?

These are some lyrics from a song that on June 1, 2009 turned 40 years old. Perhaps you know of it?

Today as I pulled into my parking spot I noticed Mrs. Ganson’s art students designed and created over 100 Peace flags. As you can see in the picture, the flags were displayed around the flag pole. Our students engaged in this project to promote International Peace. The flags were moved inside and are on display outside the Eileen M. Perkins Library Media Center with the hope of promoting International Peace for more than just one day.

"All we are saying is give peace a chance"
- John Lennon

Bleacher Blog!

2009-09-19T12:41:00.000-04:00

Opening night for the Mahar Senators Football Team was a double win. First, the Senators Varsity squad displayed their level of preparedness in both offensive and defensive plays earning their first victory of the year. Second, the community celebrated the completion of the bleacher project with a dedication ceremony that took place on the 50 yard line. A thirty plus pound bronze plaque was unveiled with a ribbon cutting ceremony – reminding all of the level of support the Mahar community gives to its district.

I was not involved in the process that this community engaged in to reconstruct the school, put in the new athletic field, or secure the $300,000.00 necessary to construct our fully handicapped accessible bleachers. I was not yet a part of this school community when the construction was underway either. Now though, I see myself as a fortunate administrator and am grateful for the work that went into making Mahar what it is today.

At the ceremony last night we honored those who made contributions to the Roberta Baxter-Swan Memorial Fund and those who donated to the Kyle Flood Memorial Fund by having both families on the field to cut the ribbon and to unveil our new plaque. We also honored Congressman John Olver who was unable to be present for the ceremony and State Representative Christopher Donelan for their support of our school.

State Representative Donelan did not know that his name was going to appear on the plaque. Just two weeks ago he sat with me in my office preparing the perfect wording for this new monument. When I put the order in, I added Chris’ name to those who need to hear us say “Thank-you.” As a matter of fact, just before the ceremony Mr. Donelan attempted to look under the cloth that covered the plaque. I stopped him, telling him that it is bad luck to look at the plaque before it is unveiled. I wanted him to be surprised – which I believe he was.

To me the bleachers are not luxurious because they are new, or shiny. The luxury lies in the fact that they are the most handicapped accessible that I have ever seen at a school. Those who are mobility impaired no longer have to sit at the sideline trying to look through spectators, players, coaches, cheerleaders, or for that matter a fence. The bleachers are indicative of how inclusive our community has become – as now a person in a wheelchair can go all they way up to the press box! For one young man that I know, I hope to see him up there soon.

Congrats to the Mahar Football Team on their opening night win under the lights. And congrats to the Mahar community for the bleacher project – done to perfection.

Making Sense and Saving Cents

2009-09-15T18:27:00.000-04:00

Have you ever driven or walked around the Mahar campus and noticed signs that discourage idling? I am not certain when these signs were put up – but they make sense and save cents at the same time. Parents and guardians who are picking up their students from school should pay close attention to these signs, not only because turning off the engine in a car that is standing still saves money and the environment, but because it is now a law.

Recently I was told that schools are now required to have signage that informs those in waiting cars around the school that there are fines associated with idling for more than five minutes. Apparently sitting at the side of a road with a car engine running can mean a fine of $100.00 for the first offense if ticketed by an officer of the law. School officials will not be issuing tickets or fines around Mahar, but will continue to abide by the requirement that signs appear around the school.

I know that this new law is in effect for many reasons. While it saves money for the individual consumer, it diminishes the amount of gasoline that is being burned at the same time. It also lowers emissions from automobiles – which improves our air quality and who could complain about that? I believe that this law is in place to call upon citizens to continue to be mindful about how our acting locally can have a global impact.

*Please accept today’s post as a request for Mahar parents, bus drivers, employees, and student drivers to abide by this new mandate.

My Friend Angelo

2009-09-10T17:29:00.001-04:00

Today I was thinking about a next door neighbor that I had when I lived in Western New York. His name was Angelo and over twenty or so years we had a relationship that changed many times. As a child he chased me from his yard and actually brought me to my mother because his yard was off limits. Angelo’s back garden cut a good portion of my trip to a local mini-mart, so I recall good reason for jumping his fence. I also got into trouble for picking his grapes, taking peaches from his trees, and for picking at his sunflowers. Fortunately for Angelo, my friends and I didn’t like the taste of raw tomatoes or we would have gotten in trouble for taking them just the same as the peaches and grapes.

Angelo met me when I was born and I knew him until I was nearly twenty five years old. In my adulthood I realized that we had the common problem of a shared driveway and winters anywhere near Buffalo helped neighbors become the best of friends. When I was twelve years old Angelo had a snow blower and I had a shovel. When I was twenty-two Angelo was too frail to push his snow blower while I shoveled, so the snow blower became mine along with the responsibility of the entire driveway. I should probably say that my friendship with Angelo got better as both of us aged – and it was strongest when he was in his mid eighties and I was in my early twenties.

I recall a spring morning when I was in the backyard with my dog and Angelo called me into his backyard. He told me that morning that his grapes were my grapes and his peach trees were mine too. He encouraged me to take some tomatoes to my grandmother, and he showed me where to find the cucumbers and eggplant if I so wanted. This was a weird and unforgettable moment – for sure. We began to talk about how one learns to grow such things, and I was particularly interested in the peach trees. He had a knack for peaches – his were the best.

Just days after this I went out to mow our lawns and Angelo wanted to talk again. He brought me to the middle of my backyard to show me the tiny peach tree that he planted there for me. He had to show me so that I did not run it over with the lawn mower. He gave me instructions on when to water it and told me that he would show me what to spray it with when the time came. The tiny tree grew quickly, but it would take a couple of summers before it actually produced peaches. When the tree was about three feet high, Angelo showed me how important it was to pluck the leaves and buds that were at the very bottom of the longer branches. He explained that the energy that the tree put into those new leaves in its trunk would be taken from the larger more important fruit bearing branches. I will never forget that he told me how this was not only true for trees. He said in his Italian accent, “Dis-a true-a witha you life-a too.” For those of you who don’t speak broken English he said, “This is also true in life.”

Standing by my new peach tree on that day I was given quite the message. I was told that in all things there would exist smaller (seemingly important) detractors that removed energy from what was most important. The message that Angelo gave me on that day I now see as a lesson. It is true in relationships just as much as it is in tasks at work. It is also true in the classroom if a teacher sees the objective of his or her lesson as the branch of a tree that will bear fruit. With this philosophy, lesson intrusions (like the leaves at the trunk of the tree) are identified and diminished so that maximum energy goes into teaching which results in more learning for our students.

*Today’s blog is written in memory of my good friend Angelo Ruggeriello who taught me how to grow a good peach, and so much more.

Mick Jagger Lied

2009-09-09T17:27:00.000-04:00

Since my post on Thursday which provided information about how and when our students would be able to access President Obama’s address to students I have had two very thoughtful responses on this blog, two teachers visit me, and one phone call from a community member who felt that the President’s address should have been more of a priority at Mahar. In my personal meeting with the aforementioned teachers and in my phone conversation with a thoughtful and concerned community member I found myself explaining our reasons for leaving the presentation of the speech at the discretion of our teachers and asking that it be connected to instruction.

The President’s address has provided an excellent opportunity for dialogue about how our school district is responding to the call of our federal and state governments to provide our students with a high quality education. The accountability standards set forth by the legislation in the No Child Left Behind Act has called upon school and district administrators to examine every opportunity to maximize teaching and learning opportunities for students. As was the case with specifying that the President’s address be used not only as an opportunity for inspiration but as a tool for instruction, Mahar continues to focus on every aspect of education to improve outcomes for students.

Inside the School
Inside the school our students and community will find that we have a brand new facility that is spacious and clean. We have all of the technological enhancements that one would expect in a school and much more. Networked computers are in every classroom, video projectors with SmartBoards ™ are available for our teachers, and we subscribe to a number of on line search engines from which our students can retrieve information. We have a highly qualified and dedicated instructional force paired with a dedicated staff to support our students’ learning and emotional needs alike.

Outside of the School
Outside of school we provide our students with opportunities to participate in athletics during all three seasons and in all grades. We have after school clubs and activities for students who prefer engagement outside of our athletic offerings, and seek to expand these activities this academic year. We provide academic programs that are innovative after school hours (PM Instruction Program) and off campus (Gateway to College at Mount Wachusett Community College), yet like many schools in the Commonwealth and in America even with our great efforts we know that there is room to continue to improve. We ask ourselves, what else can we do?

Putting Time on Our Side
I know that Mick Jagger said it first, “Time is on my side, yes it is” and you know what? For educators, this might not be true. Just the same as any school in Massachusetts we have 180 school days to prepare our students for year end assessments, the next grade, and to prepare our seniors for college. Each year we are given just slightly more than 990 hours to provide requisite instruction and assess our students to see that they have responded to the program that we offered. That’s it, 990 hours. Is the school year too short? Is the school day not long enough? Should students go to school in the summer? To these questions I only have opinions. The one thing I know for sure though is that educators must examine what students are doing in the 990 hours we do have, and take steps to see that every minute of every hour is put to proper use.

Every Minute in Every Class

2009-09-08T17:55:00.003-04:00

This afternoon President Obama addressed the students at Wakefield High School in Arlington, VA with a speech that was intended for all of the students in America from Kindergarten through grade 12. In classic Obama fashion our President delivered an inspirational message with an emphasis on students doing their part to succeed in school. He reminded students that each one of them is good at something and that each one of them has something to offer.

Today, some Massachusetts schools stopped everything to ensure that each student heard President Obama’s message while others limited when and where the speech could be seen and/or heard. At Mahar, students may see the speech at the discretion of their teachers when and where it is pertinent to the subject matter being taught. The decision not to play President Obama’s speech live was a pragmatic one which allows for the continuity of instruction that has been established in our classes to continue. We are also fortunate to have the technology available to copy the speech and play it at any time - when it is appropriate.

The President’s speech was nearly twenty minutes in duration. Twenty minutes in the classroom is really more than twenty minutes when one considers pre-lesson activities, post-lesson follow up and time to transition from one topic to another. Furthermore, the school only has so many televisions and if the whole school were to have to move to larger areas to view the speech, twenty minutes could have quickly become up to an hour out of regularly scheduled classes.

Finally, in the age of “No Child Left Behind” teachers and administrators are being held accountable when students do not achieve certain benchmarks on yearly tests. This is very serious. Our school is required to make “Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP)” on the MCAS. In some cases school districts have missed making AYP by one tenth of one point and have been determined to be Schools In Need of Improvement, In Corrective Action, or In Need of Restructuring. Twenty minutes out of a class for one student is 20 minutes. 20 minutes outside of a class for 800 students is 1600 minutes. That 20 minutes could very well be one tenth of one point on an assessment for which teachers are here to prepare our students. Every minute in every class counts.

President Obama to Address Students

2009-09-03T18:02:00.000-04:00

This afternoon the Massachusetts Superintendent’s List Serve (E-mail messages between most Massachusetts Superintendents) had a frenzy of activity. The issue that was predominant today was the upcoming address that President Obama has planned for students. On September 8, 2009 at noon our President will deliver a national address to the students of America. According to the United States Department of Education the president will speak directly to the nation’s children and youth about persisting and succeeding in school. More specifically, the president will challenge students to work hard, set educational goals, and take responsibility for their learning.

The debate among teachers, principals, and superintendents today has been whether this event will be required, optional, allowed in certain circumstances, or not at all in classrooms, schools, and/or districts. Concerned parents have been calling schools with questions about the President’s address, some stating that they did not want their children to take part in viewing it. The aforementioned debate when paired with the concerns of parents has called upon superintendents around the Commonwealth to issue proactive statements with regard to the President’s address.

The students at Ralph C. Mahar will not be viewing the President’s address live. We have the technology to record the presentation and then use it at appropriate times in instruction, and this is what we have planned to do. This will allow our teachers the appropriate time to view the address and create lesson activators, lesson plans, and activities that will allow it to be connected with the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks. What is more important is that our students do not have any reduction in teaching and learning time in mathematics by what appears to be an excellent lesson in civics.

If the President’s message is of particular importance to our families, we encourage that it be viewed at home. The US Department of Education has posted the many different ways in which the President’s address can be seen live or later on. President Obama’s address might stir up interesting conversations at home about school, motivation, learning, and educational success – great topics for the dinner table! I have posted the link to the United States Department of Education’s page below.

http://www.ed.gov/admins/lead/academic/bts.html

The Change In My Pocket

2009-09-02T22:52:00.000-04:00

If you want to make enemies, try to change something.
- Woodrow Wilson

I love quotes. Now that I am thinking about it, I just realized that I have taken the time with my friends to create and debate about top ten lists of favorite movies and favorite songs, but have never taken the time to develop a list of top ten favorite quotes. I just added an item to my “to do” list – but I need some time to find the quotes and then rank order them.

The quote above is what is on my mind right now. I don’t think it is as profound as some others that I like, but it is perhaps the truest of statements and was said by a man who knew how difficult it was to change something, or anything for that matter. Change is so difficult and so complex that one could fill a classroom with books from the floor to the ceiling, and wall to wall with books on the topic. There are books about change theories, change processes, change experiences, how to change an organization, and even books about how to change relationships. There are different schools of thought on change, such as change from within an organization, and others on the archaic “top down” approach which is pretty much rejected throughout the education system.

Any student in an educational administration program today reads about, discusses, and writes about the complexity of change. The reason for this is quite simple. Change brings struggles, particularly in organizations such as schools. The education system is “systemized” – in structure it has been the same for a very long time and attempts to alter structures that have existed for any length of time brings about personal feelings of anxiety, fear, and in some cases anger.

In education we have to accept the challenges that accompany change. For those involved in the change process the challenge of change often equates to a modicum of personal struggle. For those who have an understanding of history in our country and in the world, it is understood that struggles associated with change have made the world a better place. Just one hundred years ago Frederick Douglass commented about this. I am not sure if President Wilson ever made the acquaintance of Frederick Douglass but when Douglass was in his seventies, Wilson was in his thirties – so it is possible. That is a just a side thought.

“Without struggle, there is no progress.”
- Frederick Douglass

Primetime Teaching: Controversial Issues in the Classroom

2009-09-01T16:35:00.001-04:00

When I was in school studying to become a teacher one of my favorite professors, Tom Sheeran talked in my Instruction and Assessment class about the importance of not missing “the teachable moment.” Dr. Sheeran explained to us that there would be times when we taught that we would have the students’ attention in what he referred to as “Primetime.” According to Dr. Sheeran, “Primetime” was any moment in which all of the students were focused on one thing – and for whatever reason, harmony existed among a class because of it.

The state of affairs in our country continues to create teachable moments in our classrooms. More specifically, controversy over a number of topics helps create educational situations that stimulates and involves young minds. Politically, high school students can have different opinions about immigration, Iraq, Afghanistan, world trade, and most recently, health care. These “Primetime” topics can heighten our students’ attention level along with their awareness about what is going on in world as it changes around them.

The recent debates over healthcare can be used in mathematics classes as students learn computations. They can learn to project costs, analyze savings, and estimate levels of service based on the number of healthcare workers in relation to our current population. Students can use their calculations in the creation of position papers supporting their ideas, and they can even learn about various bacteria and viruses in their science classes to add to their understanding of a controversial issue such as healthcare.

What is even more important is that our students learn that their opinions are among many others that may be different. They learn to listen to one another’s thoughts and proposed solutions on difficult topics. Dr. Sheeran would tell us that “Primetime” teaching means that students are learning substance, etiquette, and practicing communication skills all at the same time. I think it is most important that our students learn to respect one another while they are learning, and the controversial issues of our time provide us with an excellent opportunity to do this. I also think that Dr. Sheeran would agree.

Don't Just Stand There - Do Something!

2009-08-31T21:58:00.001-04:00

This week the media reported the particulars of President Obama’s vacation on Martha’s Vineyard, a surging wildfire, a tropical storm and at least one hurricane. We get so used to reports of the foibles of celebrities and athletes along with reports of catastrophes around the world that the news becomes easy to ignore. But every once in a while a story comes along that is both unexpected and shocking. Such is the case with the recent recovery of kidnap victim Jaycee Dugard in Antioch, CA.

It is difficult to fathom that a person could go missing for more than eighteen years and then be found in almost any circumstance. The conditions by which Ms. Dugard and her daughters were discovered will be the subject of many news reports in the coming weeks, conversations in offices all over the world, and fodder for researchers and psychologists for many years to come. Recent reports of the failure of “the system” to uncover Jaycee’s whereabouts will serve as the tip of the iceberg in an examination of opportunities that existed to free this young woman from her captor.

The officers* at UC Berkley who broke this case will be heralded as heroes in the final analysis of any case study. The actions of these officers go hand in hand with a lesson that we try to instill in our students – one in which we ask them to be “active bystanders” if they witness an event that calls into question the safety of some other person. Somewhere, right now as I am typing this blog entry there is a person, maybe two, or maybe dozens who watched the finding of Ms. Dugard and her children in horror. Every person who says, “I knew it” is a person who could have ended the agony in which Jaycee and her daughters lived for many years.

Not long ago citizens were called upon to look out for one another in airports and on planes. Post 9-11 alertness put a stop to a would-be shoe bomber and the flood of phone calls to the FBI stopped terror plots in locations all over the country. These events should not be forgotten and along with what we witnessed this week in Antioch, CA should serve as a reminder of what we ought to be doing for one another. If you question the safety of any person, it does not hurt to take out your phone and make a call.

* To UC Berkley Officers Allison Jacobs and Lisa Campbell…Nice Job!

Reduced Energy Consumption = Cost Savings Now!

2009-08-27T18:01:00.004-04:00

Over the last couple of months I have had many discussions with local leaders and other school administrators about next year’s budget. It seems apparent that preparations for the 2010 – 2011 school budget will be equally as difficult as the process we engaged in during the Spring 2009. Having incurred cuts to our students’ transportation, school staffing, and supply budgets, I would be remiss if I did not communicate my worries about what is to come in the next fiscal year. I began communicating about the budget with our staff at our Opening Day for Teachers meeting on Tuesday.

The superintendents for whom I have worked for on my way from teaching in Western New York State to becoming a Superintendent in Western Massachusetts have taught me well. Dr. Namin taught me to avoid negativity after I already learned from a couple of former superintendents that “Doom and Gloom” just doesn’t sell. The position of superintendent was not bestowed upon me so that I can tell everyone how bad things are. I believe that I was given the position of superintendent so that I can say how things are going to improve and how we are going to be better.

I recall an ESPN segment in which Patriots Coach Bill Belichick said something about the “5 P’s.” I think it means, “Proper Planning Prevents Poor Performance.” Someone please correct me if I am wrong via the comments section on the blog. This is the philosophy that I adapted in working with the budget that we have in place and in planning for the one that is to come. I would like to talk about one endeavor that appears to be working…and it is only school day number two.

At our first faculty meeting I displayed a PowerPoint slide that provided what our district paid in electric each month during the 2008 – 2009 school year. I explained how unused funds at the end of this year can be used to offset next year’s budget and then stated what I would do to save funds now in an effort to avoid crisis later. I explained how we removed more than 60 light bulbs that use a minimum of 24 watts per hour and how areas of the building that are lit by sunlight through large windows would go with the lights turned off. I pointed to the ceiling in the media center in which the meeting was held to illustrate how I only needed to turn half of the lights on.

I asked the teachers to participate in energy savings with me. If the learning process is not disrupted by turning off some of the classroom lights, I asked them to feel free to do so. Unsure of what the outcome would be to my suggestion I took a walk around the building today and looked in each and every classroom. As I would expect I saw teachers interacting with students all over the place. I also noticed that business as usual was being conducted in 43 classrooms with some of the lights turned off. The lights in the gym were almost completely turned off because of massive windows and very few lights were on in the openness of the Eileen Perkins Media Center.

At the end of the day we are turning off all of our computers and some unnecessary electrical appliances have been removed from classrooms. Some of the teachers have sent messages with suggestions to change the temperature control in air conditioned areas to further diminish our energy consumption. Last year we spent in the neighborhood of $200,000.00 on electric. I am not sure how much we will save through our efforts this year, but will communicate via a monthly report the results of this endeavor. When it comes to keeping what we have to provide educational services to our students, everything counts, and we have to do all that we can to keep these services in place.

"Hey, Thanks!"

2009-08-26T18:06:00.002-04:00

Oddly, the only sound that I can hear right now is the sound of my fingers tapping the keyboard as I type this entry. When I arrived at 7:30 this morning there were students in bunches all over the grounds. I could see the busses pulling away from the building and I could hear all of the chatter that comes with 800 middle school students and high school teens. The sound of the first bell (we call it a bell but it is actually a long beep), the morning announcements over the PA, and the “Good Mornings” going back and forth among the students, teachers, and staff. Now, at 5:45 PM all is quiet as I sit here and type.

As I walked the hall just moments ago, I noticed that new signs already adorn the walls. Our students moved quickly to get the word out that the Children’s Hospital Bloodmobile will be at Mahar on September 8, 2009 from 9:00 AM – 2:00 PM. The 11 x 16 signs can be found throughout the high school reminding students who are of age to sign up in the cafeteria during lunch. The teachers have gone home along with the students – but it is quite clear that they were all back in action today. The first day of school is done, and I have to say it went very very well.

Summertime in the administrative offices is probably like any day in any administrative office. Budget work, curricular preparation, human resources management, and networking happen in offices all over the world everyday. There is just something different about it when the students and teachers are buzzing around the building. There is a renewed sense of energy that exists on the first day of school that is hard to explain. My friends who work in the pharmaceutical industry, in hospitals, in law offices, and in sales can never understand this. Their last “first day” of school was so long ago that this is all foreign to them. When the students are here and the teachers are teaching our administrative team is reminded of the importance of our work.

Today I was walking down a hallway in the center of our building when I came across a young man with his schedule in his hand. He had a look of uncertainty as he looked once at the paper in his hand and at the classroom number on the wall. I stopped and asked him if he needed some assistance. He told me that he had to go to his English class in the high school and he did not know where it was. I took a look at his schedule and told him that I would walk him there. As we walked I had the opportunity to ask him his name and where he was from, and so on. He told me that he went to Athol Middle School last year and that Mahar was new to him.

I learned that he liked his middle school, but that so far he likes Mahar too. This young man is a soccer player and he is hoping to be able to make one of our teams. When we got to the door of his classroom I wished him well and just before his face went from conversational to nervous he looked me in the eye and he said, “Hey thanks.” As I walked back to my office I thought about the simplicity and the perfection of that moment. I had the opportunity to meet one of our students on my way from one office to the other. The best part of it was that the young man took a second to say thank-you. Some person, perhaps his parents, or maybe one of his teachers (I hope both) took the time to teach him to show gratitude when someone lends him a hand. To the person or people who taught this young man – please accept a “Thank-you!” from me.

Which Teacher is the Most Important?

2009-08-25T19:02:00.005-04:00

Orange Elementary Superintendent, Paul Burnim and I agreed earlier this summer that we would be working together to build a sense of community across our districts. There is much to be gained by our efforts and working together makes perfect sense when you think about it. Take a look:

For most of our students, the road to Mahar travels through the Orange Elementary Schools.

We work with the same families.

We work in the same community.

We work for the same purpose.

So, yesterday morning I had the opportunity to meet briefly with the teachers from the Orange Elementary Schools and Superintendent Burnim paid our faculty a visit today. We are already working together to secure influenza vaccines for our students and staff and we are working together on a competitive grant that focuses on school safety. We are also having discussions about areas in which the elementary and secondary curriculums could interlock in some project based learning opportunities for our students.

The partnership that we are developing caused me to really think about the education system and those who really make a difference working with children and adolescents. Having worked in high schools I know that it is common for one teacher to see himself or herself as more important than another teacher on the basis of the grade or subject matter that he or she teaches. This phenomenon is even more profound today because the federal and state government bases a school district’s effectiveness on the results of Mathematics, English, Language Arts, and Science examinations. Therefore a teacher of mathematics may see what he or she does very differently than a teacher of art, music, or foreign language.

So, which teacher is the most important? Is it the Kindergarten teacher who teaches children the alphabet, their colors, and how to count or is it the First Grade Teacher who teaches the children to read? Perhaps the Fourth Grade Teacher who teaches the children to write a three paragraph essay is more important than the Sixth Grade Teacher who teaches multiple digit division? Is the Physics Teacher who conducts laboratory experiments on acceleration more valuable than the Music Teacher who teaches a child to play the piano, a trombone, or a guitar?

Truth be told, while the teacher is a solo act in his or her classroom he or she cannot do it alone. The Physics Teacher will have a difficult time teaching the principles of acceleration to a child who has not learned basic math. The Fourth Grade Teacher can’t teach a child to write an essay unless the child has learned how to hold a pencil, how to write letters, and how to read. It is a fact that every teacher in the life of a child is important. Reading, writing and arithmetic are just as important as creativity, problem solving, and respect. The teachers in our high school cannot do the work that they do unless the teachers in the middle school provide the requisite instruction. Just the same, the teachers in our middle school cannot do it without the work of the teachers at Orange Elementary, Petersham Center School, and Swift River Elementary.

The Most Important Teacher: The one who prepares the children for the teacher who has them next.

"Work!" and "Study!"

2009-08-24T18:08:00.003-04:00

Sometime during the 1950’s my grandfather and grandmother traveled from a town that is located in the Gran Sasso Mountains of Italy to Western New York State. They moved from a town of less than 100 people to a city of more than 60,000 in search what we commonly refer to as “The American Dream.” My grandfather had a formal education that took him to the equivalent of our third grade, and to my knowledge, my grandmother did not even have that. In Western New York, my grandfather made his living building houses with his brothers while raising his four children.

My grandfather instilled in his children and in his grandchildren very simple, yet successful ideas about how to be successful in life. I recall as I grew up that his two key areas of focus were “Work!” and “Study!” These two focus areas can be seen quite clearly in my father and in his siblings. They too traveled to a new country, ready to learn a new language, ready to learn new skills, ready to study, and willing to work.

The next generation (my siblings, cousins and I) were handed my grandfather’s torch at a young age. If my grandfather were alive yesterday he could tell his friends that he has a grandchild who is a lawyer, one who is an accountant, three teachers, one vice principal, a superintendent, and a fireman. If my grandfather were alive today, he could tell his friends that he has a granddaughter who is a College Professor and who earned her doctorate degree on August 24, 2009!

My sister and I agreed that when she finished her doctoral defense that she would call my office and just leave the message, “Dr. Hopkins called.” Today, amidst the preparations for the first day for faculty and staff I walked out of my office and was shown a slip of paper that said exactly that. My sister is now a doctor of education, and once again the values instilled in a family have paid off big.

Our school year will begin for students on Wednesday morning. When I am standing out on the sidewalk watching the parents pull up and the students walk in I will be thinking about this. As each student passes by me I will wonder if he or she is the next lawyer or doctor, fireman, or policewoman, researcher or teacher. Our faculty and administration will call upon them to do the same two things that my grandfather called upon me to do, “Work!” and “Study!” I know that our work as educators will pay off for them, just as my grandfather’s work paid off for my little sister today.

One more thing...
I would also like to take this opportunity to congratulate my sister for earning her doctorate degree today and send out an honorable mention to my parents, grandparents, and all of the teachers that she had for a job well-done.

Mount Wachusett Community College and Ralph C. Mahar

2009-08-21T17:33:00.001-04:00

We begin this school year with our renewed partnership with Mount Wachusett Community College in full swing. First, we are proud to be the partnering high school with Mount Wachusett Community College in the Gateway to College Program. This innovative educational program currently provides educational services to nearly 200 students from all over Central and Western Massachusetts. The program was started by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and some other partners several years ago. There are now 24 Gateway to College Programs in the country – and we are honored to be a part of the network.

The Gateway to College is an educational program designed to reconnect teenagers with education after they have dropped out of high school, or if they are considering dropping out. In recent years, Mahar has touted a very low drop out rate, and this is one of many reasons that Mount administrators would consider our district. We already do much to keep our students in school with our AM and PM Alternative Programs, dual enrollment offerings, and our in house special education programming. Mount Wachusett Community College could have asked any school district in the area to partner with them in Gateway. Mahar is nearly 20 miles away from the Mount, and there are many schools in between Orange and Gardner. The fact that Mount Wachusett Community College chose Mahar to become their new partner in the Gateway to College Program is very very special. Over the last year we have discovered that the administration at Mount Wachusett Community College shares our ideology that all of our students can learn and grow – hence the Mount’s campaign, “Start Near, Go Far.”

The partnership that is now solidified in Gateway has brought us to where we are now. The next phase of our partnership involves our joint effort in creating a prospectus for a “Readiness School.” The Readiness initiative that began with Governor Deval Patrick’s Readiness Report will bring new innovative learning centers to Massachusetts. On September 15, 2009 we will submit our intent to use the 2009 – 2010 school year to plan the Ralph C. Mahar/Mount Wachusett Alliance School. For more information on the Readiness Project you can view the Readiness Report be clicking on the link below.

http://www.mass.gov/Agov3/docs/Readiness%20Final%20Report.pdf

Validation

2009-08-20T18:12:00.001-04:00

At about this time each day I pull out my list of blog topics (that continues to grow) with the intent of selecting a topic for the day. As I was about to do this today, my E-mail alert went off – informing me that I had a message in my inbox. The message that I received was from a parent who attended last night’s “New Parent/Student Orientation” and in an instant I found yet another topic – which is the subject of tonight’s post.

The parent who wrote to me expressed her satisfaction with our school – which is why she decided to use the School Choice program to come to Mahar from another community. The line of her E-mail that really struck me was, “We are school of choicing our daughter to Mahar because of the caring people and the commitment that we have seen in Mahar's educational community.” I have to say that it is delightful to receive unsolicited messages such as these. When reading this, I am reminded that the hard work of our administrators and faculty is paying off for our students and their families.

So often in schools, administrators and teachers only hear from parents when there is a problem or dissatisfaction about some event. Usually when the phone rings, when the E-mail alert goes off, or when a parent is standing in the office there is a need to resolve some type of conflict. Now that I think about it, this is true outside of schools as well. How often do we go out of our way to tell some person that what he or she is doing is special, how valuable people are in their roles, or provide encouragement for others to continue doing those things we deem “good?”

Earlier this summer Mrs. Ramon (our high school adjustment counselor) told me about a video on You Tube.com that is called “Validation.” It is approximately 15 minutes in duration, and the message that it provides viewers is worth the time. I have posted the link to this video below, and I hope that you will take the time to watch and listen to it. This short film has been viewed more than 2,000,000 times on YouTube, and it has earned the coveted “5 Star” rating.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cbk980jV7Ao

What Makes Mahar So Great?

2009-08-19T18:34:00.001-04:00

Just a few moments ago I had the opportunity to greet many of the students and parents who will be new to Mahar next Wednesday. As I walked from my office on one side of our facility to the Kermit Cook Auditorium that is located on the other, I started to think about what I was going to say to this group of parents and students. To be honest, until I stood in front of them in the auditorium I had absolutely no idea how I was going to address them.

While I stood at the back of the auditorium as they filed in I noticed how the students looked up at the high ceiling. Prior to my arrival in the auditorium I noticed some of the parents looking the school hallway up and down. And when I was standing in front of the group of nearly 100 people I noticed one young man staring at the grand piano that is positioned in front of the stage. That is when it hit me.

In my welcome to our new seventh graders I asked them to notice how shiny our recently waxed floors appear. I asked them to look at the new lockers and to pay close attention to our video surveillance system in place for their safety. I talked about the technology that we have such as our computers, smart boards, and digital projectors. I went on about the musical instruments, turf field, and athletic facility. I talked about how important our facility is in Mahar being such a “Great School.”

The next part of my introduction was about the fitness of our faculty and staff. The truth of the matter is that new desks, upgraded computers, digital projectors, and beautiful facilities don’t really teach the students. In teaching, the rubber hits the road where the teacher interacts with the student. I explained to our new Moms and Dads how we have the best teachers and staff in place to teach their children and how the best faculty is the second part of Mahar being such a “Great School.”

Finally, I told our new parents and students about the third and most important part of what makes up a “Great School.” I asked one of the new students in the room to tell me his name. He told me his name was Gabe, and I told Gabe that he was the third and most important part of a really “Great School.” I asked another student to tell me her name. She said it was Amber. I then told Amber that she was the most important part of Mahar’s being such a “Great School.” Then I asked a parent for his name. He said his name was Mr. O’Leary, and I told Mr. O’Leary that he was the most important part of Mahar being such a “Great School.”

The point that I made with our new parents and students is that Mahar is great and the reason that this is so is because of our students and our parents just as much as it is great because of our resources. The involvement of our new parents and the participation of our students in their own education is what will transform Mahar from the “Great School” that it is to the “Best School” it can be.

H1N1: Revisited

2009-08-18T16:02:00.002-04:00

This morning I was able to expand my personal knowledge about influenza vaccinations and the H1N1 virus that was previously a topic on this blog. As a member of the Athol-Orange Emergency Preparedness Committee I have the opportunity to attend meetings at Athol Hospital about every six weeks. As I expected would be, the major topic of discussion was the upcoming flu season and the added danger of an H1N1 outbreak. I learned some very valuable information that I believe needs to be shared with anyone who is willing to read.

There are Two Types of Seasonal Influenza Vaccination – H1N1 Vaccine is a Third
Inactivated - this is actually “killed” vaccine that is given in the “flu shot” by injection into the muscle.

Live, attenuated – this is weakened influenza vaccine that is sprayed into the nostrils. For the use of this type of vaccine, it is very important that the person who is taking it is healthy, and not experiencing any type of illness.

Novel H1N1 Vaccine – the term “novel” is applied to this vaccination to indicate that it is the only one of its kind – in a sense H1N1 is the only occurrence of this strain of influenza.

Timelines
The general (seasonal) influenza vaccine is going to be released within a week with the recommendation from the Center for Disease Control that those responsible for its distribution begin earlier this year than in previous years. This is because the H1N1 vaccine is likely to be released in October. It is also possible that the H1N1 vaccine will be given in two separate injections that are a number of days apart.

Distribution
Normally the general (seasonal) vaccine is shipped to over 3,000 locations in Massachusetts. The Massachusetts Department of Public Health stated in today’s conference call that the H1N1 vaccine would only be shipped to 1,800 specific sites. It was stated that there is likely to be significantly less supply of Novel H1N1 vaccine than the supply of seasonal influenza vaccine. I was also provided with information from the Massachusetts Executive Office of Health and Human Services that specified an order in which the vaccination would be distributed. These efforts will focus first on the following target groups:

• Pregnant Women
• Household and caregiver contacts of children younger than 6 months of age
• Health care emergency medical services personnel
• Children from 6 months to 18 years old
• Persons aged 19 – 24
• Persons aged 25 – 64 years who have medical conditions associated with higher risk conditions.

The Importance of School Involvement
To date in Massachusetts nearly 63% of the reported cases of H1N1 influenza have been confirmed to be in those between the ages of 0 – 18 years old. In this group of nearly 900 children there was one fatality. The school day is characterized by many students seated in classrooms in which they are not far apart from one another. Students in the middle and high school are more likely to shake hands, high five, and/or hug and kiss. It is imperative that we continue to educate our students on the importance of hand washing and proper hygiene. It is our hope that the H1N1 vaccine along with healthy practices that we continually remind our students to practice will limit the incidence of H1N1 and seasonal influenza in our community.

Let's Be Real!

2009-08-17T17:32:00.005-04:00

This morning our High School Adjustment Counselor (Mrs. Ramon) and I sat down with Jeanette Voas and Kat Allen from the Community Coalition for Teens to review the results of a recent assessment of our students. Earlier this year, our 8th, 10th, and 12th grade students participated in a survey designed to assess adolescent substance use and other risk behaviors. This survey was also conducted in 2006 – so we are able to compare data from 2006 with what was collected in 2009.

In all, approximately 75% of the students who were given the survey actually completed it and their responses provided us with valuable information. The conversation that I had today focused on what appeared to be a downward trend in students’ use of marijuana, alcohol, and/or tobacco. Most school administrators would be happy about this, but after I have had some time to digest the survey I am having different thoughts. To be perfectly honest the statement that comes to my mind is simply, “Let’s be real!”

First, this survey only reports what students are willing to say. We have to ask ourselves how many adolescents are willing to admit on paper that they have used drugs, gambled, smoked, been drunk, stolen, or perhaps carried a weapon? Second, I wonder what the responses of the 25% of students that did not respond would have been. Perhaps there are reasons that approximately 100 students chose to simply not respond? Finally, the fact that we are even assessing such things means that there is a problem. So, like I said above, “Let’s be real!”

When it comes to drug use, alcohol use, and other risky behaviors my head is not in the sand. 12.9% of our eighth grade responders and 22.2% of our twelfth grade responders admitted to using marijuana within thirty days of taking the survey. To be honest these numbers are unacceptable and any reasonable mind can conclude that the real number of students who have used marijuana is actually higher than reported. So I can’t sit here and cheerfully report that fewer of our students are using drugs in 2009 than in 2006. I have to be truthful and say that some of our students are using drugs, and that in and of itself is deplorable.

As a former Dean of Students, Assistant Principal, and then Principal I have accumulated many awful stories. For every story that I have about confiscating illegal substances and dangerous items from students during the school day there is probably one that I forgot. In the last seven years I have confiscated cigarettes, alcohol, marijuana, cocaine, hallucinogens, pills, and heroin (syringe included) from students. Given these experiences and the aforementioned survey results, I feel that we have to step up our efforts to ensure an alcohol and drug free school.

This year, we will continue to hold evening events to keep parents in the know about teen drug use and abuse. We will continue to provide our students with the health and wellness education necessary to curb the likelihood of poor choices about drugs and alcohol, and we will continue to work with our outside partners. We are grateful for organizations such as the Community Coalition for Teens, the work of our counselors, and for whatever funding that we receive to keep our parents informed and our students safe. But guess what…..It’s not enough. In my mind, one student who chooses to use drugs is just too many.

H1N1 Vaccine: Coordinating Efforts

2009-08-14T16:49:00.003-04:00

Throughout the summer I have been inundated with updates from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and the Department of Public Health (DPH) regarding the H1N1 virus (formerly known as Swine Flu). At first I thought that this flood of information was fueled by the media frenzy on this topic. Most of us recall the media frenzy that surrounded SARS, which affected a little more than 8,000 people worldwide in 2003. Technically speaking there were more news reports about SARS than there were people affected by it.

I decided to do a little research on the Avian Flu (also known as Bird Flu) and found that around 250 people over 12 countries lost their lives as a result of this illness. Similar to the recent releases on the H1N1 Virus, experts feared a pandemic situation with the Avian Flu. As I poked around the Internet on this topic I began to uncover what a pandemic would really mean and began a proactive plan to keep our school community as insulated as possible from the threat of this illness.

When the World Health Organization issued its warnings back in March, we took immediate action. We provided our students with instruction on the importance of keeping their hands clean and away from their eyes, noses, and mouths. We taught them the importance of coughing and/or sneezing into a tissue, or into their sleeves, and our maintenance crew worked to keep our facility as clean as possible. Now experts are saying that there is a possibility of a return of H1N1 in the fall that will be more viscous that the outbreak that the world experienced in the spring.

Whether or not the H1N1 hits, we must be proactive in our actions to keep our students healthy. We have opened a dialogue with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health as well as our local Board of Health. After conversations with Orange Town Administrator, Rick Kwiatkowski and Orange Board of Health Director, Roger Maillet, we have decided to coordinate our efforts to offer vaccinations to our students and local residents when they are available this fall. It appears likely that Dr. Burnim will also have the vaccine offered to elementary students – and parents can expect a joint communication from Dr. Burnim, Mr. Maillet an me at the beginning of school.

I anticipate that there will be free vaccinations available this fall for our students who are currently living in low-income situations. Funding for these vaccinations has traditionally been offered by the State DPH, in which a small number of students have accessed the vaccine through their pediatricians. Mr. Maillet is working on another initiative to inoculate those who do not fall under the DPH program that the schools have access to. It is my hope that we will be able to offer the vaccination in school this fall – but it is even more my hope that H1N1 just goes away.

Federal Stimulus Funds Going to Work at Mahar

2009-08-13T16:53:00.001-04:00

Just this February, President Obama signed The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) into law. This economic recovery package was created with the intent of turning the crises created by our recent fiscal situation into opportunities for many American citizens. Students who are educated under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) are benefactors of this legislation, and this equates to another innovative program in the Ralph C. Mahar Middle School.

Under the ARRA, the Federal Government allocated $107,600.00 for the Ralph C. Mahar Regional School District. Our district was able to apply for these funds with an application that abided by the conditions set forth in a memo from Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education Commissioner, Mitchell Chester. One of the main provisions of the proposal was that it must create jobs while improving educational outcomes for students who require Individualized Education Plans (IEPs).

We have done much at Mahar over the last two years to create alternative learning situations for some of our high school students. The programs that we created resulted in a lower drop out rate and increased savings. High school students who were educated outside of our district in alternative learning environments now have an in-district opportunity. Building upon this model, our ARRA application provided for the creation of a Middle School Alternative Classroom here at Mahar.

This proposal was accepted by the State Department of Education in full. Our administration has worked through the summer to create an educational environment for middle school students who are challenged emotionally, or who have developed ineffective responses to stressful situations. These responses have resulted in missed learning opportunities over time, and in some cases have called upon costly private educational placements.

As for the creation of jobs and stimulating economic growth at the local level, it appears as though ARRA will live up to its expectation. This grant has resulted in the hiring of a new full-time teacher, a new full-time paraprofessional, and all of the textbooks, educational supplies, and materials for this new program to exist. Some of the funding has been set aside for these middle school students to attend field trips, and there is even funding for much needed professional development in this area. We are so grateful to be able to provide this new and innovative program for our students this year.

Thank-you ARRA!