April 30, 2021

 Good afternoon-

As we continue to adjust to more traffic in town and double the amount of students back in the building we ask that you work with your student to arrive at the school by 8:30am. Students should be in their seats at 8:35am. If you are arriving on campus at or after 8:35am the back doors will be locked. Please drop your student at the front entrance so that students can check in at the front office. Thank you.

PFIZER COVID-19 VACCINE CLINIC           

Saturday, May 8^th, 2021
from 8:30am-5:30pm
MetroWest-Westborough Regional Vaccination Site DoubleTree Hotel, 5400 Computer Drive, Westborough

Open to Students Ages 16+ (must be 16 by 5/8)

Appointments Required. 
Click link below to register

https://home.color.com/vaccine/register/northborough?calendar=fa5bc901-ea7e-4020-88ba-885a43ef7075

This is for first dose appointments only.   Second dose appointments for May 29^th will be scheduled on-site

 

Students ages 16 and 17 must bring a completed Parent Consent Form to the clinic.  Download the form at: https://www.mass.gov/doc/ma-consent-and-screening-form-for-individuals-under-18-years-of-age-english-4222021/download.

 

The MetroWest-Westborough Regional Vaccination Site at the DoubleTree Hotel (5400 Computer Drive, Westborough) is a collaborative effort by the Health and Fire Departments of the following towns: Ashland, Boylston, Holliston, Hopkinton, Northborough, Southborough and Westborough.

 

Please review this information regarding the MCAS testing schedule for 2021:

MCAS testing at AHS (click to see full letter)

Classes of 2022 & 2023

May 12-13- English

May 20-21- Math 

Members of the classes of 2021 & 2024 will learn remotely/from home on these days in order to account for space and proctoring coverage. Students will be expected to complete asynchronous work following the regular school schedule and may have synchronous classes for the last two blocks of the day.  

Class of 2024 enrolled in Biology:

June 8- Biology

We now have a late bus available at AHS Monday through Thursday. The routes are linked here: AHS late bus and can be found on the APS website.

Information for Parents on homelessness

April 25, 2021

 Good afternoon-

I hope you all had a restful vacation. We look forward to welcoming students back tomorrow. I continue to request that you follow expectations around travel and remind your students of our building based expectations. Thank you to all of those who completed the travel form!

When you arrive tomorrow you will see a lot of work has been done on our new AHS sign. We are so grateful to the town, our Student Council, and the Class of 2020 for providing the funding to make this long planned for project a reality!

Arrival:

Please ask your student to have their mask on when exiting the car or arriving on campus. Students who arrive before 8:20am should wait outside in a socially distant manner. Students exiting cars should also take personal responsibility to maintain distance from those around them. 

Students must be in their classrooms for the start of the school day at 8:35am. The AHS tardy policy is now in effect and students may face consequences (detention, loss of parking privileges, etc.) for arriving late to school. 

Dismissal:

Thank you to all who have been cooperative with our new dismissal procedures. Our staggered dismissal time is scheduled from 2:35-2:55. Parents are asked to follow traffic directions, staying to the right of the road and weaving through the faculty parking lot, to allow the buses to safely enter the drive. 

Technology:

Remind your student to continue to bring their Chromebook and charger each day!

Pool testing will continue for all registered students on Tuesday mornings. Please remind your student that if they are registered it is a weekly test and they are welcome to come to the Distance Learning Lab (next to the nurse's office) as soon as they arrive. We will have more information about student athlete participation in the next few days and anticipate any other students participating in in-person extracurricular activities will also be required to test. 

Dear Parent/Guardian of the Class of 2023, 

As a reminder, this week we will administer the SOS Signs of Suicide program with all members of the sophomore class. The program teaches students about this difficult topic and encourages them to seek help.

SOS has been used by thousands of schools over the past few decades and this will be our 5th year administering the program. AHS students will participate in the education and screening during on April 27 & 28, 2021. Studies have shown that it effectively teaches students about depression and suicide while reducing the number of students’ self-reported suicide attempts. 

We encourage you to visit www.sossignsofsuicide.org/parent for information on warning signs for youth suicide, useful resources, and some of the key messages students will learn.

If you have any questions or concerns about your child’s participation in this program please contact me or any of our school counselors. If you choose to op your child out of the screening process please complete this form by the end of the day Monday, April 26. 

April 16, 2021

Good afternoon-

As the first week of in-person learning comes to a close I am sure your student(s) are exhausted. It is nice be able to head into break. Thank you to the students and families who continue to be vigilant around COVID protocols and support our need to wear masks, socially distance, etc. I know the COVID fatigue many are feeling but we need to continue with these safety measures in order to keep our entire community safe. 

Transitions seem to be the challenging times at AHS. Teachers and students have shared positive reports about being back in the classroom. Students are more vocal and engaged then they have been in a year. We will continue with frequent reminders of expectations and will be looking to make some ongoing adjustments after the break. 

Report Cards: 

Grades are now posted in iStudent/iParent. If you have a question or there is an inaccurate grade please reach out to your teacher. Because of how we run averages Final grades are showing for each class. (Classes that meet Terms 2 & 4 will have the final grade recalculated in June and currently reflect simply the Term 2 grade.)

MCAS schedule:

Testing dates for MCAS will be announced after break. Currently the Classes of 2022 and 2023 are scheduled to test during the month of May. Members of the Class of 2024 who are taking Biology Honors this year will test the first week of June. (Term 1& 3 Honors Bio students who want to review in have been provided with the link to an MCAS Review website.  It is posted in their Google classroom and/or the class webpage.)

Club news:

The Environmental Action Club is offering free River Birch trees to residents of Ashland.  We will be planting these trees over April vacation.  If interested, please send an email to nduffy@ashland.k12.ma.us for further details.

April 9, 2021

Good afternoon-

Hard to believe we have reached the end of term 3! Grades closed today and students start their new Term 4 schedules on Monday. Please make sure your student checks their schedule this weekend to make sure they understand where to go Monday morning. We will have counselors and support staff at all of the entrances to help direct them as well!

It is so exciting to think that on Monday we will be welcoming almost all of our AHS students back to the school together. This has been a long and challenging year and I am so grateful for the tireless work of our teachers and staff to create a safe environment for our students to learn. We are beyond excited to welcome them back, while we also continue to be concerned about the health and safety for our community. At AHS we consider is a team effort of everyone in the building since our students are young adults. 

As parents, I ask that you continue to encourage your student to abide but current COVID guidance. I understand the COVID fatigue all of our students are feeling but it is a team effort to keep the community safe. 

Here are some reminders and suggestions for all students:

1. Masks must be worn at ALL times in the building with the exception of lunch. Students may remove their mask when seated and eating. 

2. Chromebooks and chargers should continue to come to school each day. 

3. Students are encouraged to bring a water bottle. Bottles with spouts or a straw are helpful to be able to drink water while in class. 

We will have class meetings as well as an all-school (within individual classrooms) activity on Monday to help remind students of expectations while also building relationships and school culture.

As a reminder Ashland High School will be conducting an anonymous survey of our students in grades 9-11, called the Developmental Relationships Survey from Search Institute. This survey includes 3 core modules that measure Developmental Relationships, Social Emotional Learning, and Equity. Please review the attached letter from Jennifer Cutler, our Director of Social Emotional Learning, for more information about the survey. 

Have a wonderful weekend!