CPS Superintendent's Update

Dear CPS Community,

My message comes early as this is a short school week, and there is no school tomorrow Friday, March 29th. School will resume (this is no fool’s joke) on Monday, April 1st. That’s right, March is coming to an end as it roars out this week with some wet weather, and dryer days on the horizon. It will be interesting to see if April lives up to its “April showers bring May flowers” saying as we enter the month next week. We kick off the month on April Fool’s Day. Be on the lookout for tricksters next Monday. Hopefully, you will not be the recipient of a hoax or two from one of these jokesters as you go through your day.

As we enter the last term of the school year, I would like to share an update from the Massachusetts Department of Health (MA-DPH) based on guidance from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) regarding isolation strategies for respiratory viruses including COVID-19. MA-DPH has updated its recommendations to both the general public and school settings. According to their guidance, the 5-days of isolation has been discontinued and schools should follow the recommendations for the general population to stay home when you have symptoms of any respiratory illness, like flu, COVID-19, and RSV, and employ the preventative measures outlined on their website. Staying home when sick helps prevent the spread of germs. There are also a few things you can do to help prevent the spread of respiratory viruses including:

• Get vaccinated for flu and COVID-19
• Stay home when you are sick
• Use hand and respiratory hygiene
• Wear a mask around others
• Get tested for flu and COVID-19 so you can get treated
• Avoid crowded areas and maintain physical distance
• Increase fresh air

There are no restrictions for students or staff who wish to wear a mask at school for preventative measures. Wearing a mask is a family and individual choice, which will be upheld at each school. For additional information on respiratory illnesses and guidance information, please visit our CPS Health Services website.

Please enjoy this week’s highlights and have a wonderful long weekend.

Yours truly,

Jay Lang, Ed.D.

Superintendent of Schools

• Athletics Schedule
• No School, 3/29, All Day
• CHS Senior Internships Begin, 4/1, All Day
• CHIPS PTO Meeting, 4/1, 6:30 p.m.
• Early Release, 4/2, See School Schedules
• Town of Chelmsford Elections, 4/2, 8:00 a.m.
• CPS, McCarthy, and Parker Orchestra Open Rehearsals, 4/4, 5:30 p.m., 6:30 p.m., and 7:00 p.m.
  

Ten Chelmsford High School students competed at the Massachusetts DECA State Career Development Conference, which was held March 7-9 at the Marriott Copley Hotel and Hynes Convention Center in Boston. Over 3,000 students from across the state attended, competing in marketing, finance, hospitality, management and entrepreneurship events. Please visit our website to read more about the students that competed and the event.

Some exciting new equipment has been acquired by the technology department at Chelmsford High School, including DOBOT robots and an Intellitek BenchMill. The items were purchased with STEM grant funding provided by Lockheed Martin through Project Lead The Way (PTLW). These resources have been integral in launching a new course at CHS called Computer Integrated Manufacturing, which provides students the opportunity to learn about manufacturing processes, product design, advanced robotics and automation. Please visit our website to read more about this grant.

This week, CHS orchestra students participated in an in-house clinic by professors Dr. Upham, Dr. Orvik, and Dr. Wood of UNH to prepare for our annual spring festival "Open Rehearsals" at the Carl J. Rondina Performing Arts Center. The CHS students are preparing two pieces for their upcoming open rehearsal concert on April 4, Russian Easter Overture by Rimsky Korsakov (arr. Sandra Dackow) and Fire Dance by Soon Hee Newbold. Special thanks to orchestra director Kate Comeau for organizing this opportunity for our students.

Audiences are welcome to join the CHS, McCarthy, and Parker orchestras perform at their open rehearsals on April 4. This is a free event and open to the public. The schedule is:

• 5:30-6:30 Parker Orchestra

• 6:30-7:00 McCarthy Orchestra

• 7:00-7:30 CHS Orchestra

The Chelmsford a cappella, directed by Amanda Roeder, competed in the semifinal round of the International Championship of High School A Cappella at Mechanics Hall in Worcester. The Thursdays placed third and advanced to the Wild Card round. The Crescendos took first place and will advance to the final round in NYC as Northeast Region champions! They also took home special awards for Outstanding Vocal Percussion by Milo Betton and Outstanding Choreography by Maya Belmonte, Sahithi Chaturvedula, and Lindsay Monke. Congratulations is in order for both groups!

Meet The Crescendos!

Lilly Bean

Maya Belmonte

Milo Betton

Samhita Badhri

Ananya Bharti

Madison Brevileri

Sahithi Chaturvedula

Cailin Deutschmann

Lily Faucher

Karen Khela

Anastacia McCarron

Lindsay Monke

Jocelyn Pica

Riley Tambo

Isabella Travers

Tiffany Vu

The CHS Intro to Photography class has been busy learning and experimenting with concepts like Rule of Thirds and Point of View, as well as making collages. View the full gallery here: bit.ly/4cnFPWf

Byam Art Night is Thursday, May 9th, 5:00-7:00pm!

Suggested time slots are K-2 5:00-6:00pm, and 3rd-4th 6:00-7:00pm, but please stop by anytime that works for your family. Every single child will have artwork displayed!

• View K-4 Artwork in the halls!
• Glow Gallery in the Art room!
• Complete an Art Scavenger Hunt for a chance to win a gift certificate!
• Check out the Scholastic Book Fair outside!

Make plans to celebrate the end of the school year: Take the family out to the ballgame! Your kids can join fellow students from both McCarthy and Parker to enjoy watching the Boston Red Sox play the Detroit Tigers on Thursday, May 30th at 7:10pm. Tickets are $40 per person with a portion of the proceeds benefiting both PTOs. Tickets are expected to sell out like last year so act fast to get in on the action! See the directions to get your tickets for this event.

Go to: https://givebutter.com/gMsmi9 to place your order.

Or, use the QR code below on the attached flyer.

Print out our flyer as your reminder!

NOTE: Tickets will be emailed to your MLB app directly in May!

Please see our list of open positions at the Chelmsford Public Schools. We would love for you to join our team.

Chelmsford High School has a cashless system for admittance to its regular season home athletic events. To get your tickets, CHS has partnered with GoFan.co, a digital, cashless ticketing app used by more than 10,000 schools, for fast and convenient payments for regular season home games. CHS fans are encouraged to download the GoFan app. For Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association postseason tournaments, the MIAA also utilizes GoFan.co as its own ticketing system. Visit the MIAA Ticket Information page.

The mission of the Chelmsford Public Schools is to educate, engage, prepare, and empower well-rounded and knowledgeable learners who PERSEVERE through challenges, demonstrate RESPECT and INTEGRITY in their words and actions, are DEDICATED to their community, and display EMPATHY as global citizens while discovering and pursuing their full potential.

Email: information@chelmsford.k12.ma.us
Website: https://chelmsfordschools.org
Location: 230 North Road, Chelmsford, MA, USA
Phone: (978) 251-5100
Facebook: facebook.com/chelmsfordpublicschools
Twitter: @ChelmsfordPS