Category Archives: Parent News

May 25- Memorial Day May 26- Seniors Only-Return School Materials and get Cap and Gowns (As Scheduled) May 27- Senior Graduation Photos Taken (As Scheduled) June 5- Graduation Car Parade through Towns 3:00 PM – 4:40 PM (Not school sponsored) … Continue reading →

Gowns4Good connects graduation gowns to healthcare workers in need of personal protective equipment (PPE) in the fight against COVID-19. http://www.gowns4good.net

Here is the updated list of area establishments that are open for business (as of 5/19): Link: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1MSBFnv08nc7yap2TmBgmyLyUfzEwLixoc1updNS8jxU/edit

Are you in the Town of Amherst and in need of a mask for you or a family member? The Town-Wide Initiative:  Masks4All! can help! Call us at 413-259-3002 or fill out the quick form online at http://www.amherstma.gov/getinvolved The mission for … Continue reading →

Juniors and seniors majoring in mathematics from UMass Amherst’s Education Club and Math Teaching Club will be offering free drop- in math tutoring for Amherst High School students via  Zoom. Feel free to join with your friends for group tutoring … Continue reading →

Friday, May 15th, 7:00 pm, Youtube https://youtu.be/t0QpWhp7WD0 20 short plays in under two hours, all written and directed by ARHS students. We’re taking the show to a virtual stage to share an evening of short plays.  Youtube:  https://youtu.be/t0QpWhp7WD0

Parent_Student Communication #1 Parents/Guardians and Students,  We hope that all is well with your families and loved ones. These past few months have been challenging to all in our school as we have transitioned from traditional instruction settings to a … Continue reading →

Challenging times call for a creative commemoration. Here’s the info on cleaning out lockers, getting awards and diplomas and ways we will celebrate you this graduation: ARHS 2020 Flyer FINAL (1)

May 19th at 12:15 until 1:00 PM Join Your Friendly Neighborhood College & Career Advisor and members of the guidance team for a discussion about the pluses and minuses of deferring a semester or a year for college. We won’t … Continue reading →

Hello Class of 2021 – Please find a listing of college planning opportunities below to support your college planning process – College Planning Workshops Thrive, More Just Survive the College Planning Process – Week of May 18th – TBD Panel … Continue reading →

This year’s AP Exams will be exclusively online.  Security protocals for the exams require all students worldwide to test at the same time. The College Board made other changes to this year’s exams, including changes to timing, format, and content … Continue reading →

Free Career Skills Workshops are available to all Amherst High School Students through Connecting Activities and The Collaborative for Educational Services. Matt Rigney is hosting this series of  workshops which will include topics like resume writing, cover letters,  interviewing, and much more. … Continue reading →

Jones Library staff have been fielding questions about how patrons can access the Library’s physical collection. While we agree COMPLETELY that access to reading material is essential to influencing our quality of life, at the present time, it is the … Continue reading →

May 4, 2020 Parents, We would like to thank all of you in the support that has been provided during this historic and unique time in the life of your child. The impact of this pandemic has prevented your child … Continue reading →

Join us Friday, May 8th at 2:15 PM to watch Sherry Balzano & Karen Peters present “Parenting During Anxious & Uncertain Times”. This video will provide tools and strategies to maintain connection & well being for parents within the distri. The … Continue reading →

Staff made the following message for students on the Google Classroom https://youtu.be/w7o1fPhmst8   Preview YouTube video ARHS2020 We Miss You All!

This year’s AP Exams will be exclusively online.  Security protocals for the exams require all students worldwide to test at the same time. The College Board made other changes to this year’s exams, including changes to timing, format, and content … Continue reading →

Spring 2020 Meeting Tuesday, May 12, 7 PM via Zoom Now, more than ever, the performing arts at ARPS need your support!   Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81187703566?pwd=TEM0M0VMYnorcWxLZWJvQzVCS2R2dz09 Meeting ID: 811 8770 3566  Password: 2Yb9PF Activities and accomplishments during our first two … Continue reading →

The Pioneer Valley Excellence in Teaching Awards program annually honors Western Massachusetts educators and seeks to motivate teachers at all stages of their careers to aspire to excellence. The Amherst Regional Public School winners are: Kelsey Geer Amherst Regional School … Continue reading →

Free Career Skills Workshops are available to all Amherst High School Students through Connecting Activities and The Collaborative for Educational Services. Matt Rigney is hosting this series of  workshops which will include topics like resume writing, cover letters,  interviewing, and much more. … Continue reading →

May 8- “Parenting During Anxious & Uncertain Times” video 2:15 PM May 11- May 22- AP Exams Administered Online May 12- Juniors: College Essay Writing Workshop –  2-3 pm May 12- ARPS Friends of the Performing Arts Spring 2020 Meeting- … Continue reading →

We’re in this together.  Support the COVID-19 Hunger Response Fund. Thank you to everyone who has contributed so far!  Dear Community, I hope you and yours are safe and well. For those of you who are grieving, my heart is … Continue reading →

Multi-Arts invites young people to participate in PROJECT EARTH,  and contribute in the creation of a play exploring Earth’s healing journey. The project will be a theater production with instrumental music to premiere in the summer of 2020. We will have FOUR meetings on Saturdays … Continue reading →

Dear ARPS Families: Governor Charlie Baker has announced that all schools in Massachusetts will remain closed for the remainder of the 2019-2020 school year.  This was an anticipated decision based on the projected curve of COVID-19 cases across the Commonwealth. … Continue reading →

In last Friday’s weekly ARPS Update  newsletter, the Superintendent shared an online survey the district is doing to get feedback on Distance Learning 2.0 and how it’s going for families and students.  Your feedback will help ARPS make updates and … Continue reading →

There will be a virtual SEPAC meeting on 5/1/20 at 9:00 am.  The agenda will be: Approve Minutes Impacts of School Closure for Special Education (Questions encouraged). Delivery of services as outlined on IEP’s. Scheduling and logistics of IEP team … Continue reading →

With drasticly declining fiscal projections throughout our Commonwealth, the Regional School Committee is reopening the 2020-2021 budget process.  The Town of Amherst will host a financial indicators meeting with the Town Council, School Commities and Library Trustees on Monday, May … Continue reading →

Last Friday, the district hosted an insightful session with ARPS school counselors from the Elementary, Middle School and High School levels.  The discussion focused on managing the current situation, emotional health and well-being, and your children. You can see the … Continue reading →

Hello Class of 2021 – Please find a listing of college planning opportunities below to support your college planning process – College Planning Workshops Common Application Workshop on May 5th – 3:30 – 4:30 RSVP Link – https://calendly.com/cuffee-grayd/common-application-overview-for-juniors College Essay Writing … Continue reading →

A number of MA State schools have May 1st deadlines – Framingham State University – https://www.framingham.edu/ Worcester State University – https://www.worcester.edu/ Salem State University – June 1st https://www.salemstate.edu/admissions Fitchburg State University Rolling Admissions – https://www.fitchburgstate.edu/admissions/undergraduate/ UMASS Boston – May 15th – https://admissions.umb.edu/ Open Admission (except … Continue reading →

Dear Parent, Here’s important information to help guide your child through the AP® Exam day experience. New Resources AP Exam Day Checklist: Your child should complete this checklist (.pdf/513.39 KB) for each AP Exam they’ll be taking this year, and … Continue reading →

The College Board has announced that SAT administration will be on Saturday, September 26, 2020. This date will be for the SAT only, in the United States and internationally, with no SAT Subject Tests™ available. Sunday testing for religious reasons … Continue reading →

In accordance with Governor Charles Baker’s announcement last week that Massachusetts schools will be closed to in person learning for the remainder of the school year, the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) regretfully has cancelled all 2020 spring sports and … Continue reading →

Teens and tweens (ages 11-17) who participate in our virtual programming will be entered into a weekly raffle to win a $5 gift card to Antonio’s pizza. Each week there will be multiple opportunities to participate! This week you can … Continue reading →

The Town of Amherst is designing a playground for the children of Amherst, to be located in Kendrick Park.  The Planning Department, LSSE and DPW staff are working together to prepare a design, with input from the public.  During the … Continue reading →

The Amherst Business Improvement District (BID) invites the public to join them in honoring first responders, emergency services personnel, and  essential service worker with a town center drive-though event on Friday, May 8. The Luminaria lights will be lit by … Continue reading →

This “Open for Business” list compiled by the Amherst Area Chamber of Commerce & Amherst Business Improvement District (BID) lets community members know what services are available in the community as businesses adapt to the COVID-19 situation. View and Share … Continue reading →

Hello Artists and Art Enthusiasts, LSSE with the Town of Amherst is announcing a Kids Art Contest. We are looking for art that is inspired by all the helpers we see around us during this strange time in our lives. … Continue reading →

Today from 2:15-3:00 pm, the District will present our first YouTube live stream on the topic of Supporting Students’ Emotional Health and Wellbeing (PreK-12). Please join counselors Tara Luce, Crocker Farm, Hector Santos, ARMS, and Jaime Knox, Summit Academy, along … Continue reading →

The ARHS Library is one of the busiest places in our school, with an average of 182 students a day dropping by to study, conduct research, read, and connect with friends, teachers, and library staff on everything from academic projects and college … Continue reading →

In early April, the ARHS PGO joined with the other ARPS PGOs to organize a fundraiser to ensure that all Amherst and Amherst Regional public school students would have home wifi access during the school shutdown.  Thanks to the generosity … Continue reading →

There will be a virtual SEPAC meeting on 5/1/20 at 9:00 am.  The agenda will be:  Executive Board Meeting Agenda. Approve Minutes. Impacts of School Closure for Special Education (Questions encouraged). Delivery of services as outlined on IEP’s. Scheduling and logistics … Continue reading →

On Monday, April 27th at 6:30 PM, ARHS Principal Gene Jones will host a virtual Coffee with the Principal for families of 12th grade students.  The link to attend will be sent to all Class of 2020 parent/guardians via email. … Continue reading →

Dear Class of 2021, I can only imagine that the events connected to COVID 19 and your junior year are frustrating. Here is a brief update on opportunities to stay on top of the college planning process: Junior College/Life After … Continue reading →

Dear families, DESE, the Department of Elementary & Secondary Education, is in regular contact with us to offer guidance about how to navigate special education during this period of closure.  Attached is a Letter to Families and a Family Resource … Continue reading →

June 18th- Last Day of School June 27- MIAA Spring Sports Season Ends All other school events are canceled

This is a strange and difficult time for most students, but especially our seniors. This should have been a spring full of fun and recognition, but they will miss out on many rites of passage. Parents wanted to come up … Continue reading →

Look4Help is a searchable site for resources and support in Franklin, Hampshire and Hampden counties. There is a special section related to COVID-19. Look4Help provides resources concerning food, housing, mental health, addiction and recovery, health care, disability services, money, transportation, … Continue reading →

Link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1zThAjag9ajwzbBp3PF0cKw7GYSlBzmCU/view?usp=sharing Complete list available at bit.ly/AmherstAreaOpenForTheBusiness

Dear Class of 2020,  In beginning this communication to you I personally want to thank you for your leadership in bringing back the high level of spirit to ARHS. Whether it was homecoming, sports contests or other related extracurricular activities … Continue reading →