ARHS PGO Parent News

The Amherst High School PGO is partnering with the North Hadley Sugar Shack & Market for Perfect Gift-giving for the Holidays! Please consider supporting your ARHS PGO this holiday season by purchasing great gifts from the North Hadley Sugar Shack & Market! Fill out the google form and you are on the way, we hope you have a wonderful holiday season. This fundraiser will begin today on December 1st, 2023 and orders will be taken through December 14th, 2023. Pick up for the orders will be between December 16th, 2023 to December 22nd, 2023 at the North Hadley Sugar Shack and Market. If other arrangements need to be made please contact Nancy Johnson at johnce34@gmail.com.

Google Forms for Orders: https://forms.gle/ACJFV9swHPi4P5GN6

Click here for a story about ARHS winning a Lemelson-MIT InvenTeam grant of $7,500 to improve search and rescue operations.

Families of NHS students, please send the $25.00 fee as soon as possible. If the fee is an issue for your families, please reach out to Ms. Brena at the email below. If your student is not interested in being part of this chapter, please let Ms. Brena know so she can take them off the list.

If you have any questions, email Susana Brena at brenas@arps.org

The Maroon Envelope Fundraiser supports our Students and Teachers Grants Program and enriches the high school in ways most needed.
Your donation of any amount will fund grants to support a wide range of requests, including students’ participation in art shows, visiting musicians and speakers, student-led clubs, health and wellness programs, and more.

Please give now so we can reach our goal of $3,000 by December 1st, 2023.

Two ways to give:
1. Donate by credit card, Apple Pay, or PayPal on this MightyCause page (7% fees)
https://mtyc.co/zdt2we
2. Write a check payable to ARHS PGO and drop it off at the school office or mail it to:

ARHS PGO
℅ Nancy Johnson, PGO Fundraiser
430 Long Plain Road
Leverett MA 01054

Deadline for Senior Photo submissions (and senior baby photos!) will be Thursday, February 1st, 2024 Please spread the word! Please send senior photos (and any questions) to: yearbook@arps.org

Camille Butterfield, ARPS coach and local artist, is hosting a farewell art show and fundraiser in December. Please come for the opening or closing event, or both!

For more information on the show, contact Camille: timetracks.timetrails@gmail.com
For more information on the Boosters, see https://hurricaneboosters.com/t-u-r-f-capital-campaign

Dec. 1-2: ARHS Theater: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime
Dec. 6: Financial aid webinar
Dec. 8: Early release day
Dec. 9: Art show opening
Dec. 14: Last day for PGO Holiday fundraiser
Dec. 14-16: ARHS Theater Immersive
Dec. 19: ARHS Winter Concert
Dec. 25-Jan.1: Winter break

Haga clic AQUI para ver los artículos del boletín en español

After receiving a great deal of feedback from teachers the school has decided to shift our Advisory/Flex Block plan.  Advisory will be meeting once a month starting in December (instead of every Monday). Advisories will occur on the first Monday of each month on these dates: Dec 4th, Jan 8th, Feb 5th, March 4th, April 1st, May 6th and June 3rd 

This means that students will need to sign up for FlexBlock offerings Monday-Friday on the weeks without an advisory. This will allow them to access additional support in their academic classes and sign up for more clubs/activities. This also means that they will need to sign up for your FlexBlock classes on Fridays or over the weekend for the following week (previously students could sign up during Advisory).

The FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) is going live in  December. However, you should create an FSA ID NOW!!! The FSA ID is an “electronic signature” that you and your caregivers need to complete the FAFSA. Each senior must create an FSA ID – ( caregiver and step-parents if  parent/guardian files jointly).

Winter sports registration is now open! Please use this link to view more information and to register. Once registered more information will be sent out by the coach at a later date. The coaches directory and more information can be found on the athletic webpage. The first date of the winter season is Monday November 27, 2023.

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

The Maroon Envelope Fundraiser supports our Students and Teachers Grants Program and enriches the high school in ways most needed.
Your donation of any amount will fund grants to support a wide range of requests, including students’ participation in art shows, visiting musicians and speakers, student-led clubs, health and wellness programs, and more.

Please give now so we can reach our goal of $3,000 by December 1st, 2023.

Two ways to give:
1. Donate by credit card, Apple Pay, or PayPal on this MightyCause page (7% fees)
https://mtyc.co/zdt2we
2. Write a check payable to ARHS PGO and drop it off at the school office or mail it to:

ARHS PGO
℅ Nancy Johnson, PGO Fundraiser
430 Long Plain Road
Leverett MA 01054

The PGO raises money all year to support activities in the school. We provide supplemental funds for community-building events at the school; this fall we purchased cream and helped fund a bounce house obstacle course for Community Day. All year long we fund small grants for students and staff–for example last year we helped send students to a Model UN conference, paid for guest speakers in classes, funded a class trip to a poetry reading, and provided supplies for the new student mural pictured here, among other activities.

From Ms. Cuffee-Gray: ARHS Alums! We’d love to have you back to speak to current ARHS students about the paths you’ve taken for Life After ARHS. They can hear what you have to say far better than us adults. Did you head to a 2 year or 4 college, get a job right out of high school, start your own business, GAP Year, Apprentice in a trade? Regardless of your path, it is helpful for students to hear first hand what Life After ARHS is all about.

Please complete this form to let us know your availability – LINK.

Nov. 19: South Asian Fall Festival
Nov. 21: Book release party
Nov. 22-24: Thanksgiving break
Nov. 27: Coat drive ends

Haga clic AQUI para ver los artículos del boletín en español

Amherst Regional High School is in the process of starting a School Site Council, a group consisting of ARHS educators, parents of ARHS students, at least one student, and possibly local community members. 

The main areas of responsibilities of the School Site Council are:

1. Adopting educational goals for the school that are consistent with local educational policies and statewide student performance standards
2. Identifying the educational needs of students attending the school
3. Reviewing the annual school building budget
4. Formulating a school improvement plan

This is the LINK to the full description of the School Site Council. Please let Principal Talib Sadiq (sadiqt@arps.org) know if you are interested in being on the council; once we have a list of interested parents and guardians, the PGO will facilitate an election in December, following DESE guidelines.

Winter Registration is now open. Please use this link to register. Winter Sports Night is November 16th at 6:00 PM in the High School Gym.

The Maroon Envelope Fundraiser supports our Students and Teachers Grants Program and enriches the high school in ways most needed.
Your donation of any amount will fund grants to support a wide range of requests, including students’ participation in art shows, visiting musicians and speakers, student-led clubs, health and wellness programs, and more.

Please give now so we can reach our goal of $3,000 by December 1st, 2023.

Two ways to give:
1. Donate by credit card, Apple Pay, or PayPal on this MightyCause page (7% fees)
https://mtyc.co/zdt2we
2. Write a check payable to ARHS PGO and drop it off at the school office or mail it to:

ARHS PGO
℅ Nancy Johnson, PGO Fundraiser
430 Long Plain Road
Leverett MA 01054

The ARHS PGO is happy to partner with Minted’s Fundraising Program which provides the ARHS community with a unique promo code: FUNDRAISEARHS offering 20% OFF Minted cards and gifts all year round, and 15% of 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.

Nov. 15: Coffee with the Principal
Nov. 15: AP Exam payment due
Nov. 16: Winter Sports Night
Nov. 22-24: Thanksgiving break
Nov. 27: Coat drive ends

Hello Families and friends of ARHS,

The phone policy put in place this year has helped to reduce the number of students wandering the halls, but unfortunately, it has not significantly reduced the number of students vaping in the bathrooms. Two of the six multi-stall student bathrooms each have vape detectors in them. In September those detectors went off 237 times, and in October they went off 170 times. There’s no way to tell how many times students have vaped in the other bathrooms without detectors.  

Having the detectors in those bathrooms and reacting to the alerts isn’t solving the problem because the students who set off the alarm are often gone by the time the Hall Monitors, Deans, and/or Administrators are able to respond.  There is some education about the dangers of vaping and addiction happening in the 9th-grade Health class, but it’s not comprehensive enough to solve the problem alone. We are working on additional ways to educate our students about the dangers of vaping nicotine and marijuana,  but we need to approach the current problem from a variety of angles. One of those approaches will be informing families when we see a pattern of the same students in the bathrooms around the time that alerts are going off. We will also start searching students when we see more than one of them in a single stall together. I’m sending this message to students as well, and I will be making announcements next week to let them know about this stricter approach. 

On Wednesday, November 15th from 6:30pm-7:30pm in the ARHS Library, I will have another PGO Coffee with the Principal. This meeting will focus primarily on how we can work together to deal with this serious issue. Please join us if you can.

Take care

Amherst Regional High School is in the process of starting a School Site Council. What is a “School Site Council” you ask? They are a group consisting of ARHS educators, parents of ARHS students, at least one student, and possibly local community members. 

The main areas of responsibilities of the School Site Council are:

1. Adopting educational goals for the school that are consistent with local educational policies and statewide student performance standards
2. Identifying the educational needs of students attending the school
3. Reviewing the annual school building budget
4. Formulating a school improvement plan

This is the LINK to the full description of the School Site Council. Please let Talib Sadiq (sadiqt@arps.org) know if you are interested in being on the council. Thank you

Order by November 10th, Pick up at The North Hadley Sugar Shack on Tuesday, November 21st between 12pm & 5pm.

NOTE: On the MightyCause website, if you would like to order multiple pies, please complete a separate donation/order form for each pie. 

Click HERE to order, or scan the QR code

Today jumpstarts the One Ask, Please Give! The Maroon Envelope Fundraiser supports our Students and Teachers Grants Program and enriches the high school in ways most needed.
Your donation of any amount will fund grants to support a wide range of requests, including students’ participation in art shows, visiting musicians and speakers, student-led clubs, health and wellness programs, and more.

Please give now so we can reach our goal of $3,000 by December 1st, 2023.

Two ways to give:
1. Donate by credit card, Apple Pay, or PayPal on this MightyCause page (7% fees)
2. Write a check payable to ARHS PGO and drop it off at the school office or mail it to:

ARHS PGO
℅ Nancy Johnson, PGO Fundraiser
430 Long Plain Road
Leverett MA 01054

(free! or just the cost of a stamp)
https://mtyc.co/zdt2we

AP Exam payments are due on or before Wednesday, November 15 at 10 a.m. There is an additional fee for any AP Exams paid/ordered after November 15.

Detailed information can be found HERE.

Judi DellaMarco
Amherst Regional High School
Scheduling Office – Room 207
Email:  dellamarcoj@arps.org

Open to families of English learners, former English learners, and all ARPS families who speak languages other than English

The next MPAC meeting is on Nov. 8th, 2023, at 7:00 pm.

• Zoom meeting link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82901035594
• Let us know HERE if you need an interpreter for the meeting.

We hope everyone who attended our last meeting will invite a multilingual family to join us.!

José Lugo
MPAC secretary

Amherst Cinema presents “Sembène Centennial” seminar Samba Gadjigo and Jason Silverman, followed by Sembène’s XALA, on Wednesday, November 8 at 7pm

Tickets for this Cinema Seminar are available at the Amherst Cinema box office and online: https://amherstcinema.org/films-and-events/sembene-centennial

For more information about this event, click HERE.

Nov. 4: Family Film
Nov. 8 – Amherst Cinema presents “Sembène Centennial” seminar
Nov. 15: Coffee with the Principal
Nov. 16: Winter Sports Night

Haga clic AQUI para ver los artículos del boletín en español

As our Mum Fundraiser ends, the ARHS PGO would like to thank everyone for their support. Through your efforts, we raised $1,232.00, which will go towards teacher/students/staff grants and funds to help with field trips if necessary and many programs the PGO helps fund throughout the year. We also would like to thank the North Hadley Sugar Shack for partnering with us this year and allowing us to meet our fundraising goals.

The PGO is committed to raising as many funds as we can this year to increase our abilities to offer more grants and needed funds as requested by students, teachers, and staff. We are again partnering with our North Hadley Sugar Shack friends for our next fundraiser, the Fall Season Pie Fundraiser, which will begin October 20th.

Again, Thank You to all, and let’s keep the momentum going!!!”

The ARHS PGO

Order by November 10th, Pick up at The North Hadley Sugar Shack on Tuesday, November 21st between 12pm & 5pm.

NOTE: On the MightyCause website, if you would like to order multiple pies, please complete a separate donation/order form for each pie. 

Click HERE to order, or scan the QR code

It is playoff time. Please make sure to check ArbiterLive for any updates to the athletic webpage.

Check out the FAQ ARHS Athletics HERE.

Class of 2024 –  

Please note that you are required to submit transcripts, teacher recommendation, and school counselor recommendation requests THREE WEEKS prior to your deadline. Here is a link to the 2024 College Planning Checklist. Please review this for accurate information regarding the application process.

Regardless of your Life After ARHS path, you have not scheduled a Life After ARHS meeting with Ms. Cuffee-Gray, please consider setting an appointment – link.

Wanted! Recent ARHS Alums to participate in a Life After ARHS Panel – Who’s home for Thanksgiving Break? Class of 2018-2023. Contact Deidre Cuffee-Gray – cuffee-grayd@arps.org.

Only 50% of the students have paid the $25.00 fee so far. Please remind them to bring their check/cash to the main office in an envelope with my name on it. Checks are payable to ARHS, please write NHS and the name of your student on the memo. If your student is on free/reduced lunch they do not have to pay but they have to email me about it. If you have any questions please email me at brenas@arps.org

Thank you

Susana Brena
NHS Club advisor

AP Exam payments are due on or before Wednesday, November 15 at 10 a.m. There is an additional fee for any AP Exams paid/ordered after November 15.

Detailed information can be found HERE.

Judi DellaMarco
Amherst Regional High School
Scheduling Office – Room 207
Email:  dellamarcoj@arps.org

Open to families of English learners, former English learners, and all ARPS families who speak languages other than English

The next MPAC meeting is on Nov. 8th, 2023, at 7:00 pm.

• Zoom meeting link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82901035594
• Let us know HERE if you need an interpreter for the meeting.

We hope everyone who attended our last meeting will invite a multilingual family to join us.!

José Lugo
MPAC secretary

Nothing relevant is marked for the rest of the month!