June 2: Dance celebration
June 5: Pasta dinner for seniors
June 8: AR[T]HS opening
June 11: Race Amity Day celebration
June 15: Last day of scheduled final exams
June 16: Makeup final exams
June 16: Staff Appreciation Lunch
June 17: Ancestral Bridges Juneteenth Legacy Celebration
June 19: Town Juneteenth Celebration
June 20: Affordable housing listening session
Click here for a flyer with details about this celebration at Mill River, which includes an all-ages basketball tournament and Human Rights Youth Hero Awards.
Come to the Town Common at 12 pm on Monday, June 19th for the 3rd Annual Jubilee. Click here for a flyer about the Ancestral Bridges Juneteenth Legacy Celebration on Saturday, June 17.
The Town of Amherst wants to hear your input on affordable housing. Click here for detailed flyers in English, Spanish, Portuguese and Chinese.
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Click here for a full listing of special end-of-year events for the Class of 2023.
On June 16 the PGO will provide a staff appreciation lunch for all the ARHS staff. We need parent volunteers to help with setup, serving and cleanup for this event. Please use this link to sign up for a slot if you can help. And if you have not yet donated to fund this meal, we are within $173 of our goal; you can make a donation of any size at this link.
The ARHS PGO is requesting KINDERGARTEN photos of students in the Senior Class of 2023. The photos will be featured at the Pasta Dinner for the Senior class on Monday, June 5th. Please send a KINDERGARTEN or early elementary photo of your Senior to Susan Wells: susanenrightwells@gmail.com or upload your photo here: Senior Class of 2023 Kindergarten Photos
Please submit all photos by Tuesday, May 30th so photos can be printed in time for the dinner.
Join us for a celebration of dance at ARPS on June 2! This is the 20th Anniversary of ARHS Dance Theatre Ensemble, and our first Post-COVID opportunity to celebrate Tracy Vernon’s career and retirement.
The next MPAC meeting will take place on Wednesday, May 24th, 2023 from 7:00 to 8:00 pm via Zoom. Click here for a flyer with important details, including the Zoom link.
ARHS families and students are raising funds for the Amherst Bx Varsity Ultimate team to travel to Salt Lake City in June to play in the High School National Invitational Tournament (HSNI). You can make a donation here.
May 26: junior recommendation requests due
May 29: Memorial Day, no school
May 30: Senior kindergarten photos due
June 2: Dance celebration
June 5: Pasta dinner for seniors
June 16: Staff Appreciation Lunch
A free summer theater program is offered at the Pelham Library. Auditions for high school-age students will be held on June 3, and everyone gets a part. Click here for a flyer with all the details. Remember to pre-register soon at bit.ly/PelhamPlayers
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As building-level leaders at ARPS, we have the privilege of spending our days in the company of your children, supporting the amazing educators who teach and care for them. It’s joyful and rewarding work, but it isn’t always easy. It can be challenging, chaotic, and sometimes heart wrenching. This is one of those times in the ARPS community. We are coming together today to acknowledge that fact and to state, unequivocally, that every administrator, faculty and staff member in the Amherst, Pelham and Regional Schools is dedicated to holding your children close in support as we move forward together. Every school has caring, loving teachers, paraeducators, counselors, coaches, and others who are ready to help. Please feel free to reach out to your school’s office anytime.
And to our LGBTQIA+ students and families, we pledge our unconditional, unwavering support and solidarity. Our actions must speak louder than our words in support of our LGBTQIA+ community, who have been continually marginalized and oppressed. As district leaders, we must lead with courage and compassion. Together and in collaboration with faculty, staff, students, and families, we pledge to act with immediacy and integrity to restore trust and rebuild our community so everyone feels acknowledged, appreciated, and accepted for who they are. Please remember that you are loved; you are valued; and together, we are ARPS.
In Community,
Elizabeth Burns, Amherst Early Education Center Administrator
Derek Shea, Crocker Farm Principal
Jennifer Smith, Crocker Farm Assistant Principal
Tammy Sullivan-Daley, Fort River Principal
Julio Fernandez, Fort River Assistant Principal
Micki Darling, Pelham Principal
Nick Yaffe, Wildwood Principal
Allison Estes, Wildwood Assistant Principal
Diego Sharon, ARMS Principal
Talib Sadiq, ARHS Principal
Samantha Camera, ARHS Assistant Principal
Miki Gromacki, ARHS Assistant Principal
David Slovin, Summit Academy Principal
The PGO thanks Principal Sadiq and Assistant Principal Gromacki for hosting a coffee on May 4. The presentation they shared can be viewed here. We spent most of the time discussing the current block schedule; students and families will be surveyed about the schedule later this spring. We encourage you to read through the presentation before taking the survey, since it contains a lot of useful information. We also heard a bit about next year’s plan to align grades 7-12 while a search is underway for a permanent principal at ARMS, and we heard about the school’s plan to implement a consistent phone policy for next year.
If your family ordered a Senior Lawn Sign and did not yet get it, they can be picked up at school by either the student or their parent/guardian at Ms. Wilnelia Melendez’s office.
Thank you so much to everyone who already donated. We are within $700 of our goal to pay for this end of year thank-you to the ARHS staff. You can donate at this link.
There will be a mandatory meeting for ALL 9th graders signed up for AP Biology next year on Monday, June 5th during the plus block in room 220. Students must attend in-person; they will be receiving a textbook and the summer assignment.
Families of the Class of 2024 (and their juniors) should have received an email on May 12 from Deidre Cuffe-Gray about the ARHS process for requesting letters of recommendation for post-ARHS plans. The information sheet included in that email can also be found here; note that May 26 is the deadline for juniors to submit their first round of recommendation requests.
We only need 2 more volunteers to help with setup, and 3 to help with cleanup. Please sign up here if you are available to help with this tradition for seniors on Monday, June 5. Thank you to everyone who already signed up to help!
From Ms. Cuffee-Gray: Seniors! Let us pronounce your name correctly at graduation. Make sure sure we know were to send your transcripts. COMPLETE YOUR “Class of 2023 Final Senior Survey” in Naviance by May 22nd. This is REQUIRED! Need help? Come ask!
Please note that graduating Senior email, google drive, and network accounts will be deleted on July 30th. Seniors can download almost everything in their account (email, documents, calendar, etc) using Google Takeout (instructions link below). We highly encourage you to download your account data immediately as the data will not be available after July 30.
Here are instructions on how to export your data using Google Takeout: https://support.google.com/accounts/answer/3024190?hl=en
This weekend is the 38th Annual ARHS Student Written Play Festival. Shows run at 7:30 PM this Thursday, Friday and Saturday, May 18-20.
Next Tuesday, May 23rd at 7 pm in the ARHS auditorium will be the final big Performing Arts concert of the year, where we also recognize our seniors. All choral ensembles are performing, in addition to Wind Ensemble and Symphonic Orchestra.
May 18-20: ARHS Student Written Play Festival
May 21: AEF mini-golf
May 23: Final concert
May 26: junior recommendation requests due
May 29: Memorial Day, no school
June 5: Pasta dinner for seniors
This year, ARHS’s SAGA is a community sponsor of the proclamation. It will be read at a ceremony on June 2nd at 4 pm, along with the raising of the Progress Pride flag. All ARHS community members are welcome to attend.
A free summer theater program is offered at the Pelham Library. Auditions for high school-age students will be held on June 3, and everyone gets a part. Click here for a flyer with all the details.
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Tenth graders will take the mathematics MCAS next Tuesday and Wednesday May 16th and 17th. Students in 9th, 11th and 12th grades will have a late start those days. The full schedule is available here.
Every year the ARHS PGO puts on a Staff Appreciation Luncheon at the end of the year. We need $1900 more to fully fund this thank-you to all the teachers and staff who work so hard for our students. You can donate at this link. Thank you to the families who have already donated; no contribution is too small!
The senior class will have a celebratory pasta dinner on June 5, and tradition holds that families of the junior class volunteer to set up, serve and clean up from this event. Please sign up here for a 1-1.5 hour volunteer slot.
Please come out and support the class of 2023 on Monday, May 15th at the Texas Roadhouse from 3pm to 8pm. The Texas Roadhouse will be donating 10% of your total food purchases to the Class of 2023!
The ARPS Summer School Program runs from July 5 to July 28. Click here for a flyer with details about the programs offered as well as registration information.
The Varsity Letterman Jacket store just opened!
1) Here is the link to the store. Click here to see a flyer for the jacket.
2) The store is open for two weeks.
3) THE ATHLETIC DEPARTMENT DOES NOT BENEFIT NOR RUN THE STORE if you have questions HOWEVER please fill out this form
May 15: Dine to Donate at Texas Roadhouse
May 16-17: MCAS, late start for 9th, 11th and 12th
May 21: AEF mini-golf
May 29: Memorial Day, no school
Celebrate Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month at the Jones Library by participating in a Chinese paper cutting workshop on Tuesday, May 23, 2023.
For these workshops, we welcome teaching artist Zhonghe (Elena) Li as she shares the history and philosophy behind traditional Chinese paper cutting. She is a Cambridge multi-media artist who specializes in traditional Chinese paper cutting art and watercolors, and is the recipient of Mass Cultural Traditional Art fellowship and Traditional Art Apprenticeship award.
A workshop for adults and teens ages 12 and up will be offered from 6:30 – 8:00 pm. This workshop will include time to create your own animal paper-cuts in this hands-on workshop. We will learn how to fold paper, and do free designs and cuts. Please register for this workshop by sending an email to programs@joneslibrary.org
These programs are sponsored by the Friends of the Jones Libraries. Free and open to the public. For more information, please contact Janet Ryan at 413-259-3223.
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From the Superintendent Michael Morris’s email to families May 4: I am pleased to provide an update on the leadership plan for the 2023-2024 school year at Amherst Regional Middle School. We are putting in place a grades 7-12 leadership structure that will include two Interim Assistant Principals at ARMS, two Assistant Principals at ARHS and one Principal who oversees both buildings. Principal Talib Sadiq has agreed to serve as the 7-12 Principal, and Miki Gromacki and Samantha Camera will continue in their roles as Assistant Principals at ARHS. Julio Fernandez, current Assistant Principal at Fort River, and Rich Ferro, current ARMS science teacher, have been appointed as Interim Assistant Principals at ARMS. Both Mr. Fernandez and Mr. Ferro have administrative experience as well as direct experience at ARMS. Additional mental health and counseling support, which is being supported by funding designated for mental health services at ARHS earmarked in the Massachusetts House budget, will also be put in place for students.
This year of shared leadership will have profound, long-term benefits for students because it will provide an opportunity to begin the collaborative work of creating a fully-aligned 7-12 educational continuum that draws on the unique strengths of both ARMS and ARHS. I am grateful to Mr. Sadiq, Ms. Gromacki, Ms. Camera, Mr. Fernandez and Mr. Ferro for their willingness to take on these expanded roles next year as we conduct a search for a permanent ARMS principal.
It’s time to begin celebrating our Senior class of 2023! Order your lawn signs and/or donate a sign for another graduating student. $14 per sign. Orders due Friday, May 5th. Signs will be available for pickup at the Class of ’23 fundraiser dinner at Texas Roadhouse on Monday, May 15, or by arrangement.
Please use this form to order a lawn sign for your senior!
The ARHS PGO is requesting KINDERGARTEN photos of students in the Senior Class of 2023. The photos will be featured at the Pasta Dinner for the Senior class on Monday, June 5th. Please send a KINDERGARTEN or early elementary photo of your Senior to Susan Wells: susanenrightwells@gmail.com or upload your photo here: Senior Class of 2023 Kindergarten Photos
Please submit all photos by Tuesday, May 30th so photos can be printed in time for the dinner.
Every year the ARHS PGO puts on a Staff Appreciation Luncheon at the end of the year. Please help us raise $2500 to pay for this thank-you to all the teachers and staff who work so hard for our students. You can donate at this link.
The senior class will have a celebratory pasta dinner on June 5, and tradition holds that families of the junior class volunteer to set up, serve and clean up from this event. Please sign up here for a 1-1.5 hour volunteer slot.
From Julian Bellak, 11th grade: Did you know that idling your car can produce harmful carbon emissions that contribute to air pollution and climate change? Not only that, but idling is also a waste of fuel and money. Fortunately, there are easy steps you can take to reduce your carbon footprint and save money. Instead of idling, turn off your engine when you’re parked for more than 10 seconds. If you’re waiting for someone or something, consider turning off your engine and stepping outside to enjoy the fresh air. By reducing your idling time, you’ll not only help protect the environment and reduce your carbon footprint, but you’ll also save money on fuel costs. So let’s all do our part to make our community a healthier and more sustainable place to live.
For more information, check out Massachusetts State Law, the Town of Wellesley example policy, and an eye-opening demo on Twitter.
9th grader Finnley Chambers recently won 2nd place in the Sleep Research Society’s Infographic contest. Click here to see Finnley’s winning infographic with scientifically-backed sleep advice for teens!
May 7: AAPI Heritage Month Celebration
May 10: Early release
May 10: NHS deadline for juniors
May 15: Dine to Donate at Texas Roadhouse
May 21: AEF mini-golf
May 29: Memorial Day, no school
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The PGO will host an in-person Coffee with Principal Sadiq from 6:30-7:30 pm on Thursday, May 4 in the ARHS library. The topic for discussion will be the Block Schedule. The PGO will provide refreshments; all parents and guardians are welcome!
Deadline to apply to the National Honor Society has been extended to May 10th. Juniors with a GPA of 3.0 and up are elegible to apply. They all got an invitation on their email. For questions please contact me at brenas@arps.org
The Amherst Regional High School Chorale will be performing their annual Spring Concert on Tuesday, May 2nd at 7:00 at South Congregational Church in South Amherst. They will sing a wide variety of music they learned this semester, including songs they will be performing during an upcoming trip to Cleveland, Ohio. The concert is free and open to the public, though a free-will offering will be graciously accepted at the door.
Map link: https://goo.gl/maps/A6dLBdqAMpqkFVgX7
ARHS PGO Parent News 
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