WINTHROP PUBLIC SCHOOLS Office of the Superintendent - 17A Highland Ave. - Winthrop, ME 04364

WINTHROP BOARD OF EDUCATION Ginny Geyer (Chair) Kristin Shumway (ViceChair) Joe Pietroski Milton Hadley David Audet WINTHROP STUDENT REPRESENTATIVES Mitchell DeBlois Samantha Phinney Emergency Closing Announcements Parents and staff will be notified through a phone message, text, and e-mail when closings occur. Information can also be found on the district website. www.winthropschools.org

January 2015

(207)377-2296 x403

www.winthropschools.org

A Note from the Superintendent To our students, parents, staff and community: All of us in the Winthrop School Department have been struggling to come to terms with the recent deaths of three of our young community members. The loss of individuals so young is a tragedy for all of us, and healing will require time and effort. To that end, the Winthrop School Department engaged our school district crisis team - - along with counselors from outside the district - - to provide

assistance to students and staff. They have been informed of available support and care services, and have been given access to be able to share their grief. WPS offers grief resources to teachers and families as posted in this newsletter, as well as on our websites. As you know, young people are impressionable, and we’re counting on our staff, parents, and community to help emotionally support our students and remain vigilant for any signs that

could warn of impending issues of concern. One of the many benefits of living and learning in a small community such as ours is that we support each other in hard times. Let’s do all that we can to help one another, and particularly to support the families that have suffered this terrible loss. Please contact Superintendent Rosenthal with any questions or concerns at 377-2296.

Available Resources Grief and loss counseling is available on each school campus. Other helpful resources: Crisis and Counseling 626-34448; Kennebec Behavioral Health Services 6263455 (Augusta), 377-8122 (Winthrop); Maine General 888-496-5701 Porch Light Program—young adults (ages 17-24) who attended WPS for at least 2 years. This program provides free short-term counseling services. Contact Kennebec Behavioral Health Services at 377-8122 and reference the program. Winthrop Unites Committee—This committee currently meets on the 3rd Thursday of each month from 6-8pm at the home of Megan Antonucci. She may be contacted at 377-6848. This is a wonderful resource for parents and community members. Helpful Websites – http://www.kbhmaine.org/ http://www.crisisandcounseling.org/ https://sites.google.com/a/winthropschools.org/whs/suicide-prevention-resources http://www.search-institute.org/content/40-developmental-assets-adolescents-ages12-18 http://wapo.st/1sKZXtp

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“Mission Statement:

The Winthrop Public School Communities’ mission is to create a solid foundation for students that allow them the

Recent Board Actions The Strategic Plan, three years in development, has now been completed. It was approved by the Winthrop BOE in December and presented to the Winthrop Town Council in January. It is available on the district website. The Technology Plan 20142017 was adopted by the BOE and the state DOE in June. It is also available on the district website.

Policy Approval:

Personnel:

IHBEA – Programs for Students with Limited English Proficiency

Teresa Harrington – Administrative Assistant to the Superintendent

IHBEA-R -LAU Plan Serving English Learners

James Feagin –WHS technology ed tech III

DBD – Board Officers

Jeff Cordoza – WGS Guidance Counselor

DBE – Board Committees BBEC-R-Drug Free Workplace Regulations

opportunity to acquire the skills necessary to achieve success in a global world.

School Board Meetings (all meetings begin at 6:00 PM Feb. 4, Mar.4, Apr.1 School Board Workshops Jan. 21, Mar. 18, Apr. 15 Holidays - MLK, Jr. 1/19, Presidents Day 2/16, Patriots Day 4/ 20

Superintendent Gary Rosenthal – contract renewed through 2017-2018 school year Kim Meuse – ELL Coordinator

Facility Upgrades We have been working to upgrade our buildings over the last two years, and as part of WPS Strategic Plan, additional facility improvements will be made over the next few years. To date, the following improvements have been made:

Repair of bleachers in WGS gym, locker room improvements New coolers in WGS and WHS, new warming units at WMS and WHS

New roof at WGS

Exterior LED lights, parking lot painting, interior and exterior painting at each school

New electrical outlets in WGS cafeteria and computer lab

All windows have been replaced in WGS and WMS as well as improved

building insulation, ondemand hot water heaters, and security camera installation Carpet and boiler replacement at WMS New gymnasium entry doors and boiler upgrade at WHS

Coming Soon: Coffee Bar at WHS

Early Release Days – 2/13, 3/20 Winter Vacation – 2/16-20 Teacher Workshop – 4/16 Spring Vacation – 4/20-24

Bullying and Harassment Winthrop Public Schools takes bullying and harassment very seriously. We want each student to feel important and respected. To that end, WPS have very comprehensive policies in place regarding these issues. These policies can

be found online on the district website http://www.winthropschool s.org/directory/policymanual. Forms that need to be filled out to start the process are available as well. Policy JICK – Bullying, JICK E-1 –Report form, JICK– R administrative

procedures, Policy ACAA Harassment, ACAA-R Complaint Procedure. Respect, Responsibility, Integrity, Cooperation, and Compassion are the core values of WPS. As a community we can work together to carry them out. “It takes a village to raise a child.” – African Proverb