ARHS PGO Parent News

Haga clic AQUI para ver los artículos del boletín en español.

Continue to check ArbiterLive for updates, the link is on the athletic webpage. 

Please make sure an up-to-date physical is in with our school nurse, Robin Suprenant. Robbin’s email is suprenantr@arps.org . 

This Spring, the ARHS PGO is partnering with the North Hadley Sugar Shack and Market to sell Hanging Flower Baskets for this Spring Fundraiser! One Hanging Flower Basket is $25.00, and all profits are to go to the ARHS PGO to support grants and scholarships for students, staff, and teachers! 

Once you purchase the Hanging Flower Basket, you will receive a voucher sent to your address to present to the North Hadley Sugar Shack to pick up your plant. This fundraiser begins on Monday, April 29th, 2024, and ends on May 27th, 2024.

You will receive your voucher throughout the fundraiser period. This will be our last active fundraiser for the year, and we would like to thank you for all your support during the 2023-2024 school year.

Submit your order HERE. Pay either using Venmo (Grace-Johnson-258) or with a check payable to ARHS PGO. A purchase voucher will arrive by mail at the address you indicate in the form.

While this fundraiser will end at the end of May, people will be able to present their purchase vouchers to the shack throughout the summer.

If you ordered a Senior Lawn Sign and have not yet received it, contact Pam Rietkerk pamrietkerk@gmail.com to make arrangements for pickup. 

Does your student-athlete’s team need money for activities or equipment? Would you like to see all of your team’s seniors recognized? The Boosters can help!

Parents and coaches, email to let us know what is needed by your team, but first, if you ask, your team will need to participate in the Boosters in at least one of the following ways:

1. Join the Board of Directors
2. Be a “doer”- (i.e. work on projects, tasks, committees) by volunteering your time/skills
3. Be your child’s team liaison to Boosters
4. Attend Boosters meetings, or
5. Donate to the Boosters general fund to support Senior Night funding, Scholarship support, VIDSWAP athletic video support used by coaches and athletes, team needs/equipment, etc.

To help with any of the items above, or to make a donation, please email 413hurricanes@gmail.com and join our next meeting on Wednesday, June 12th at 6pm via Zoom: https://www.zoomgov.com/j/1609142632?pwd=YWJkZDdwMmhLU3JTTVgvUnBDbnFiQT09

Class of 2024

Seniors – ALL SENIORS – Must complete the FINAL CLASS of 2024 SENIOR SURVEY in Scior. This is an important survey as it allows to pronounce your full name properly at Senior Awards and Graduation. Due on May 26th. Complete the Survey in Scior – LINK.

Looking for continued support? Set a “Now What?!! Meeting” with Ms. Cuffee-Gray. What pathway? Financial Aid? Job Search? Which College to go to? Placement test for community college? SET A MEETING TIME.

Extended Deadline – Are you a First Generation College Student? 2 Year or 4 Year? The Barbara R. and Arthur Elkins Scholarship has been extended to the 13th. Use this APPLICATION to apply, and submit to scholarships@arps.org by 12 noon on May 13th. $1,000 for 4 years!!!

All reusable sneakers from our sneaker drive fundraiser program are recirculated to secondhand markets so people can access quality, pre-owned footwear at affordable prices.

Please consider donating used or unwanted athletic shoes to this fundraiser for the ARHS PGO and to help others and our environment! For each pair of athletic shoes donated to gotsneakers? you will not only be making a global impact, but you will also be helping the ARHS PGO earn money for student and teacher grants.

There are boxes ready to be filled in the high school guidance office. If you have a donation but cannot get to the high school, please get in touch with Nancy Johnson at johnce34@gmail.com to make other arrangements.

May 10: PreK-12 Early Release
May 27: Memorial Day – no school
May 31: PGO Spring Season Fundraiser ends
May 31: Seniors Last Day!!!!!

Haga clic AQUI para ver los artículos del boletín en español.

Seniors are heading into the homestretch and we are working hard to plan their celebrations. Here is the schedule for their last two weeks.  Please note that the prom will be at UMASS in the Student Union Ballroom, and graduation will be at the Fine Arts Center at UMASS.  More details to come!

Sam Camera
Assistant Principal 

This Spring, the ARHS PGO is partnering with the North Hadley Sugar Shack and Market to sell Hanging Flower Baskets for this Spring Fundraiser! One Hanging Flower Basket is $25.00, and all profits are to go to the ARHS PGO to support grants and scholarships for students, staff, and teachers! 

Once you purchase the Hanging Flower Basket, you will receive a voucher sent to your address to present to the North Hadley Sugar Shack to pick up your plant. This fundraiser begins on Monday, April 29th, 2024, and ends on May 27th, 2024.

You will receive your voucher throughout the fundraiser period. This will be our last active fundraiser for the year, and we would like to thank you for all your support during the 2023-2024 school year.

Submit your order HERE. Pay either using Venmo (Grace-Johnson-258) or with a check payable to ARHS PGO. A purchase voucher will arrive by mail at the address you indicate in the form.

While this fundraiser will end at the end of May, people will be able to present their purchase vouchers to the shack throughout the summer.

Please RSVP/request an interpreter HERE.

Access the flyer in other languages HERE.

The School Equity Advisory Committee (SEAC) is part of the Amherst Regional School Committee. SEAC has been hard at work. Currently, we are reviewing the Bullying Policy with hopes of maintaining a focus on Restorative Justice Practices as opposed to punitive measures such as expulsions.

We will meet next on Wednesday evening, May 8th, 2024 from 6:45pm to 8:45pm in ARHS Library. Please join us in the good fight for all our children.

Thank you. ~Mary Lou Conca

Carefully review your FAFSA and Cost of Attendance/Award Letters. The FAFSA delays have some colleges extending deadlines for enrollment. It is possible to ask for extensions for enrollment deadlines and to appeal to colleges to have your award letters reconsidered. Check in with the folks in the Future Center for a “Now What?!! Meeting”. If you need support, set a time.

Seniors – The APEA Scholarship has been extended to 5/10 at 3:35 pm. Please check your email for details about the ARHS Scholarship Booklet regarding completing the application properly. Don’t miss this opportunity! You must make a copy of the document HERE

Amy Rose Hamel Scholarship – Deadline Extended

AMY ROSE HAMEL graduated from ARHS in 2000…Her acceptance to Greenfield Community College through the Dual Enrollment program, reignited her love of learning. Up to five $1,000 Awards. Details below! 

Ms. Deidre Cuffee-Gray

I Said What I Said, I Wrote What I Meant. This workshop offers an introduction to poetry and spoken word as a tool and outlet to support emotional well-being. It also offers a chance to deepen emotional intelligence and awareness through the act of writing. This program is funded by The Public Health Institute of Western Massachusetts.

Meeting at Bangs Community Center Glass Room
Cost: Free
Instructor: Elisha DeJesus

Mental Health 101. A comprehensive workshop that focuses on psychoeducation and therapeutic techniques to promote healthy mental and emotional well-being among youth. This workshop will use elements from evidence-based practices such as Narrative therapy, CBT, Bibliotherapy, Mindfulness, DBT, etc. It will also emphasize the importance of lived experience, social justice, and its impact on mental health.

Cost: Free
Instructor: Whitney Dodds, Wellness for the Culture

To sign up for either FREE class and for more information, please visit our Amherst Recreation Registration Page

Becky Demling

Some college-bound seniors have received an email from MassAid. This is a legitimate email and a way to track the aid that you receive. https://www.mass.edu/osfa/massaid.asp.

MASSAid is an information system used by the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education’s Office of Student Financial Assistance (OSFA) to manage state-funded financial aid programs. The MASSAid Student Portal allows students to access and review their financial aid records online, which helps them monitor their eligibility for state financial aid each year. The portal also includes the College Cost and Financial Aid Eligibility Information Tool, which helps new financial aid applicants learn their eligibility.

Ms. DeidreCuffee-Gray

Our sneaker drive fundraiser keeps sneakers out of landfills and reduces toxic chemicals from being released into our air and soil. All reusable sneakers from our sneaker drive fundraiser program are recirculated to secondhand markets so people can access quality, pre-owned footwear at affordable prices. All heavily used and damaged footwear is recycled to reuse materials or to convert waste into new energy.”

Please consider donating used or unwanted athletic shoes to this fundraiser for the ARHS PGO and to help others and our environment! For each pair of athletic shoes donated to gotsneakers? you will not only be making a global impact, but you will also be helping the ARHS PGO earn money for student and teacher grants.

This fundraiser drive started in February and will continue throughout the school year. There are boxes ready to be filled in the high school guidance office. If you have a donation but cannot get to the high school, please get in touch with Nancy Johnson at johnce34@gmail.com to make other arrangements.

IvyMath is providing all Amherst Regional High families with a free online math tutoring session and an in-depth parent conference to discuss your child’s strengths and weaknesses and how they compare to grade level.

IvyMath will also create a custom learning plan that maps out the exact areas your child should be focusing on in math for the rest of the year and what they will need to review over the summer. You’ll have the opportunity to ask questions and understand what your child needs to feel confident and stay on track in math next year.

The IvyMath tutoring session, parent conference, and learning plan are free for all Amherst Regional High families. Popular times fill up, so please register quickly! 
Signup now at: IvyMath.com/Boost

May 8: In-person MPAC meeting
May 8: School Equity Advisory Committee meeting
May 10: PreK-12 Early Release
May 27: Memorial Day – no school
May 31: PGO Spring Season Fundraiser ends

Haga clic AQUI para ver los artículos del boletín en español.

DIAL/SELF Americorps is an amazing opportunity for high school graduates who want a rewarding GAP Year! For more information, click HERE to access the flyer.

Here are videos of Sequoya and Brianna’s Americorps colleagues (our Americorps Members working in the Future Center and Restorative Justice respectively! Liam’s story about LightHouse; a compilation video of Jahan in action; Nick explaining why D&D is important; a walking meditation with Joshua; all members sharing why they serve!

The Graphic is the student newspaper of Amherst Regional High School. Most articles printed in The Graphic are written by students in Journalistic Writing classes.

The Graphic, and its lead reporter Talvin Dhingra, were recognized by the Student Press Law Center in Washington, D.C. as finalists for the 2023 Student Freedom of Information Award. Their investigative reporting revealed instances of misgendering and lack of support for trans students by school counselors, leading to staff suspensions and resignations. The recognition highlights the role of high school journalists in addressing complex community issues, according to Gary Green, Executive Director of the Student Press Law Center.

What a great publication! http://thegraphic.arps.org

Life After ARHS wants you off your couch during April Break! Join our Americorps Member Sequoya on a tour and information session:

Hampshire College on 4/16 at 1:00pm (meet at 12:30pm)
Amherst College on 4/17 meet at 1:15pm at ARHS (will walk)
UMASS Amherst on 4/18 at 1pm at UMASS at 12:30pm. 1:00pm 

4/12 Deadline to Sign Up (non-ARHS sponsored event). Register Here

Support the HS Senior Class: 10% of the total order will be donated to the class.

“The deadline to submit orders for lawn signs celebrating your graduating senior is April 15th.”

Buy one and donate one sign for another graduating student. $15 per sign. Orders are due Monday, April 15th. Click HERE to access a Google Form to order your lawn sign.

Signs will be available for pickup at the Class of 2024 fundraiser dinner at Texas Roadhouse on Tuesday, April 23rd, or by arrangement. 

Contact Pam Rieterk (pamrietkerk@gmail.com) with any questions or to arrange an alternate date to pick up your order.

Congratulations to the 2024-2025 Excellence Award Grant recipients! In its 30th year, the Amherst Education Foundation (AEF) is thrilled to announce a total of $24,594 in grants have been awarded in support of programs spread throughout the Amherst-Pelham School District.

Click HERE for more details on the following projects: Community Building & Restorative Practices at Fort River; Fiber Art As A Mindful Practice at Summit Academy; Gymnastics Mats at Crocker Farm; Pelham Elementary Playground Project: Outdoor Big Block Play, and Zooming In: 6th Grade Microscopes and Microscope Cameras. 

Thank you to all the individuals, businesses, and organizations that have supported AEF throughout the years, making it possible for us to continue helping teachers and staff in our public schools implement such important projects and programs!

Our sneaker drive fundraiser keeps sneakers out of landfills and reduces toxic chemicals from being released into our air and soil. All reusable sneakers from our sneaker drive fundraiser program are recirculated to secondhand markets so people can access quality, pre-owned footwear at affordable prices. All heavily used and damaged footwear is recycled to reuse materials or to convert waste into new energy.”

Please consider donating used or unwanted athletic shoes to this fundraiser for the ARHS PGO and to help others and our environment! For each pair of athletic shoes donated to gotsneakers? you will not only be making a global impact, but you will also be helping the ARHS PGO earn money for student and teacher grants.

This fundraiser drive started in February and will continue throughout the school year. There are boxes ready to be filled in the high school guidance office. If you have a donation but cannot get to the high school, please get in touch with Nancy Johnson at johnce34@gmail.com to make other arrangements.

Help Environmental Action Club offset carbon emissions in the community by purchasing a tree sapling! Each sapling only costs $5, and EAC will deliver and plant it in your yard!!

Please use the link https://tpevents.org/school/4194 by April 18th to order your sapling, or to find out more about the event.

Apr. 15-19: Spring Break
Apr. 23: Dine-to-donate @ Texas Roadhouse

Haga clic AQUI para ver los artículos del boletín en español.

ARHS has decided to extend Quarter 3 to include Monday, April 8th. This will provide the additional time students need to complete the work associated with Quarter 3. This means that our plan for showing Mr. Mahnken’s eclipse video will still occur on Monday in all D-period classes but with Q3 D period classes rather than Q4 D period classes.

D-period teachers will provide eclipse viewing glasses for every student so that they can safely watch it later that afternoon (we recommend starting to watch at around 3 pm).

Sam Camera
Assistant Principal

Buy one and donate one sign for another graduating student. $15 per sign. Orders are due Monday, April 15th. Click HERE to access a Google Form to order your lawn sign.

Signs will be available for pickup at the Class of 2024 fundraiser dinner at Texas Roadhouse on Tuesday, April 23rd, or by arrangement. 

Contact Pam Rieterk (pamrietkerk@gmail.com) with any questions or to arrange an alternate date to pick up your order.

We are actively recruiting Hampshire County parents and caregivers of 12-18-year-olds for some focus groups we’ll be running at the end of April/beginning of May. Focus group discussions will be about caregivers’ relationships with their kids, and how they approach the topic of youth drinking and cannabis use with them.

If you are a parent or caregiver and would like to sign up, please do! You can sign up by clicking here.

Support the HS Senior Class: 10% of the total order will be donated to the class.

Art students at ARHS have been proudly making bowls in their Ceramics courses to donate to the Amherst Survival Center’s Empty Bowls Dinner for the past 16 years. After throwing almost daily for three months, students became incredibly good ceramicists and set a very high bar for their donations.

Volunteering and viewing their bowls alongside those of outstanding local potters is always a great honor. Making a $50 donation is something most of them couldn’t normally do. Alums have repeatedly said that being a part of Empty Bowls affected their outlook on creative ways to help others and contribute to their community. Tickets to the Empty Bowls Dinner, Saturday April 6th, can be purchased on the ASC website. 
• Includes a handcrafted bowl.
• Includes soup of your choice, bread, and light dessert.

Students from left to right: Thatcher Rudnik, Yasmine Alvarado Moreno, Caroline Lambert-Mergendahl, Hayden Reilly Hogan.

Hannah Hartl
Art Teacher
Amherst-Pelham Regional High School
hartlh@arps.org
0

Our sneaker drive fundraiser keeps sneakers out of landfills and reduces toxic chemicals from being released into our air and soil. All reusable sneakers from our sneaker drive fundraiser program are recirculated to secondhand markets so people can access quality, pre-owned footwear at affordable prices. All heavily used and damaged footwear is recycled to reuse materials or to convert waste into new energy.”

Please consider donating used or unwanted athletic shoes to this fundraiser for the ARHS PGO and to help others and our environment! For each pair of athletic shoes donated to gotsneakers? you will not only be making a global impact, but you will also be helping the ARHS PGO earn money for student and teacher grants.

This fundraiser drive started in February and will continue throughout the school year. There are boxes ready to be filled in the high school guidance office. If you have a donation but cannot get to the high school, please get in touch with Nancy Johnson at johnce34@gmail.com to make other arrangements.

Join Mass Mammals for a conversation about their Citizen Science Project on Thursday, April 11 from 7:00 – 8:00 pm in the Woodbury Room at the Jones Library.

Two undergraduate researchers from Amherst College will share a bit about black bears in Massachusetts, have a conversation about their project, and invite you to learn how you can be a more engaged and involved community scientist! The Massachusetts Mammals Citizen Science Team is a research group focused on tracking mammal populations across the state through community data submissions. Free and open to the public.

Apr. 6: Empty Bowls Dinner
Apr. 15-19: Spring Break
Apr. 23: Dine-to-donate @ Texas Roadhouse

Haga clic AQUI para ver los artículos del boletín en español.

Students at work on their field trip to the UMass Crafts Center. Thank you again, PGO, for awarding us grant money to make this trip possible. The students were overjoyed and so engaged in every aspect of the trip. 

Kristen Ripley
Visual Art 

Hello,

My name is Mary Lou and I am on the subcommittee of the Regional School Committee called School Equity Advisory Committee (SEAC). We are having our monthly meeting next month, April 3rd, 2024, Wednesday at 6:45 pm to 8:45 pm at the ARHS Library.

The SEAC works hard to keep the focus on an equitable education for all our children.

We recently spoke to RSC to reject the budget as proposed which included cutting the Restorative Justice Coordinators at both ARMS and ARHS.

You can see us speak at the March 12th, 2024 RSC meeting at this link: (about 37 minutes in)
https://youtube.com/live/MGN4IFYEhso
https://youtube.com/live/fiepjBBUExY

It’s time to order a lawn sign for your senior. You can also donate a sign for another graduating student. $15 per sign. Orders are due Monday, April 15th. Click HERE to access a Google Form to order your lawn sign.

Signs will be available for pickup at the Class of 2024 fundraiser dinner at Texas Roadhouse on Tuesday, April 23rd, or by arrangement. 

Contact Pam Rieterk (pamrietkerk@gmail.com) with any questions or to arrange an alternate date to pick up your order.

REMINDER!!! Spring sports night is next week on 3/15/24 at 6PM in the high school gymnasium. 

Continue to check ArbiterLive for updates, the link is on the athletic webpage. 

Please make sure an up-to-date physical is in with our school nurse, Robin Suprenant. Robbin’s email is suprenantr@arps.org . 

Hello! I am Amrita Rutter, an ARHS senior and one of the leaders of Amherst Sunrise. As many of you may know, our school is facing MAJOR budget cuts this year which could greatly impact our experiences as students. One way that you can help us advocate for a solution is by filling out this FORM. You can also scan this QR code

The ARHS PGO is happy to partner with Minted’s Fundraising Program which provides the ARHS community with a unique promo code: FUNDRAISEARHS.

20% OFF Minted cards and gifts all year round, and 15% off each order placed using our unique promo code which will be donated back to the ARHS PGO at the end of the year.

Click here for a flyer with all the details.

The Amherst Hurricane Athletic Boosters scholarship application is now open.

The $1,000 scholarship is a one-time award to assist student-athletes pursuing further education. Scholarships are intended to recognize outstanding graduating athletes of ARHS. Applicants will be evaluated on the basis of their athletic success, dedication, sportsmanship, and leadership, as well as academic effort and character. The application deadline is March 31, 2024.  Click on the link below to apply.

Apply online today!

Art students at ARHS have been proudly making bowls in their Ceramics courses to donate to the Amherst Survival Center’s Empty Bowls Dinner for the past 16 years. After throwing almost daily for three months, students became incredibly good ceramicists and set a very high bar for their donations.

Volunteering and viewing their bowls alongside those of outstanding local potters is always a great honor. Making a $50 donation is something most of them couldn’t normally do. Alums have repeatedly said that being a part of Empty Bowls affected their outlook on creative ways to help others and contribute to their community. Tickets to the Empty Bowls Dinner, Saturday April 6th, can be purchased on the ASC website. 
• Includes a handcrafted bowl.
• Includes soup of your choice, bread, and light dessert.

Students from left to right: Thatcher Rudnik, Yasmine Alvarado Moreno, Caroline Lambert-Mergendahl, Hayden Reilly Hogan.

Hannah Hartl
Art Teacher
Amherst-Pelham Regional High School
hartlh@arps.org
0

Program Overview: The UMass Turing Summer Program is a free 3-week summer program for High School students interested in or would like to learn about Computer Science and its use to address challenges in healthcare, energy, and many others. The program requires a full-day commitment from students, and their ability to commute daily to the UMass Amherst campus is a must. Lunch is complimentary throughout the program.

Intended Participants: While the program is specifically designed for entering tenth and eleventh graders (entering sophomores and juniors) in high schools in Western Massachusetts, rising ninth graders and seniors are welcome to apply. A background in computer programming is not necessary to attend. A basic mathematics background is assumed for this program.

Program Format/Schedule: The program runs from July 8-26th, 2024, every weekday from 9:30 am to 4 pm, with one lab and two classroom sessions. These sessions expose students to sensing, data analysis, and visualization concepts. We design a hands-on program where students will learn by application, and the program will feature the use of signal processing and machine learning using Python and an intro to health sensing using apps for Android phones. 

How to Apply: Online registration is now open. Please visit https://lass.cs.umass.edu/turing (or scan the QR code) or email us at turing.umass@gmail.com