The Navigator - April 2024

It is hard to believe that April vacation is upon us and there are just eight weeks left of the school year. These weeks will fly by, especially for members of the Class of 2024. There are so many special events that will occur in the next two months and I hope that all seniors will take the time to fully enjoy these once-in-a-lifetime events with their friends and family. You can find the full list of events for the remainder of the year in this edition of the Navigator.

The New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC) completed our decennial accreditation visit in late March. This visit was the final step in our 10-year accreditation process, where educators from other schools visited Morse and took an independent look at Morse and explored our strengths and areas of growth. The Morse Faculty has been working for over two years on this accreditation and it feels great to cross this significant step in the process.

Have you heard that Morse has officially adopted our new Vision of a Graduate, which will guide much of our work moving forward, similar to our mission statement? Among other adjustments, Morse realigned our quarterly recognition drawing to celebrate students who are demonstrating characteristics of our vision of a graduate.

Performing and fine arts students have been busy over the last two months. Morse hosted our annual Fine Arts Night in early March and our Jazz Night in early April. Both nights featured the talents of our choral and instrumental groups, as well as our rock ensemble, music theater, and beautiful 2D and 3D art pieces. We are still looking forward to the spring concert on May 14th, the musical theater class performance on May 31st, and the rock ensemble concert on June 2nd.

I hope you were able to attend the Morse Spring Musical. This year we had an outstanding performance of Freaky Friday. Actors and crew put on three performances that showcased the unbelievable talent of our students. The show was a good lesson in perspective and very funny!

The second-annual Morse ski trip occurred in early March and was a fantastic opportunity for many students to get out on the slopes for a nominal fee. Around 35 students traveled with us to Black Mountain of Maine and all reported having a great time.

All grade 9 students spent a day at Bowdoin College in late March, where they took some time away from academics and spent the day focused on building resilience and avoiding actions and habits that could get in the way of their future goals. We believe that Morse has conducted this Freshman Awareness program for more than thirty years.

The transition process has begun for the incoming ninth-grade class (the Class of 2028!). We held parent and student meetings over a month ago and Morse counselors have conducted individual meetings with all students and parents as they prepare for the transition to Morse. We will have a step-up day on May 24th when students will tour the building with their schedules and sign up for clubs and activities.

Morse hosted a very successful professional development opportunity in mid-March for other Maine schools to visit Morse and learn how they could create unified programming and become a unified champion school. The conference was at capacity with 32 participants and several on the waitlist. The conference was a success and may prove to be an annual event. It feels great to have other schools coming to Morse to learn how to increase inclusion in their school communities!

It is so exciting to see members of the Class of 2024 record their plans on the board in the Student Services office. Students are making plans for 2 and 4 year colleges, military services, apprenticeships, employment, and much more. If your senior has not recorded their plans, please have them stop-by the Student Services office and put it on the board!

We are in the second-half of the second semester and the mid-semester grade report should be in your mailbox very soon. If you have any questions, please reach out to your students’ teacher(s) or school counselor via email.

I hope you enjoy this edition of The Navigator,

Eric Varney

evarney@rsu1.org

The Morse High School faculty and staff join Principal Eric Varney in recognizing the academic achievement of the following seniors:

Valedictorian Grace Tetreault resides in Bath with her parents Cara Martin-Tetreault and Peter Tetreault. Grace is an AP Scholar with Distinction and received the Maine Seal of Biliteracy in Spanish, an AP Capstone Diploma, and a Maine Career Exploration Badge. She is also a ALA Dirigo State and Girls Nation Delegate. Grace is a member of the National Honor Society, School Community Liaison Council, and the Women’s Empowerment Club. She was also a Geiger Museum Learning Intern at the Maine Maritime Museum and earned 1st Place for her non-fiction this year at the Patten Free Library. When she’s not rowing or swimming, you can find Grace commentating on many athletic events for Morse. She has volunteered her time with Maine Discovery For Youth, a program which takes elementary schoolers on outdoor trips. In her free time she likes to Contra dance, sail, play the guitar and piano, and spend time with her friends and family. Grace plans to take a gap year and have fun! When Grace does pursue a post-secondary education, she would like to study theology or history and museum studies. Her hopes and dreams include using storytelling as a platform to bring underrepresented historical narratives to life.

Salutatorian Chase Roth-Wells resides in Georgetown with his parents Andrew and Nina Roth-Wells. Chase is an AP Scholar and earned outstanding achievement awards in science, world languages, English, fine arts, and mathematics. He was also awarded with the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) Computing Award. Chase has participated in soccer, indoor/outdoor track and field, football, esports, the Quiz Show, Interact Club, Outdoor Club, intramural sports, and the 826 Ski Squad. He has volunteered his time by hanging wreaths downtown with the Rotary Club, baking for library bake sale, spring cleanup with Bath Housing, Popham Beach cleanup, and being on the state track meet hurdle crew. In Chase’s free time he likes to watch sports, work on DIY computer and car projects, hang out with friends, and play sports. Chase plans to attend Lehigh University in the fall. He was accepted into the Integrated Degree in Engineering Arts and Sciences (IDEAS) program at Lehigh where he will likely pursue mechanical engineering and product design as his concentrations. Chase’s hopes and dreams include earning his degree and pursuing a career in a field that he thoroughly enjoys.

Second Honor Essayist Sarah Ouellette resides in Woolwich with her parents David and Esme Ouellette. Sarah is an AP Scholar with Honor and was awarded with the Rochester Institute of Technology Bausch+Lomb Math/Science Award. She also was named a Maine Maritime Museum essay contest winner. Sarah is a member of the National Honor Society. Sarah has had a very impressive athletic career at Morse. She holds the KVAC and Morse High School pole vault records and most recently won the MPA Class B Pole Vault State Championship. Sarah has volunteered her time as a junior counselor for Chop Point Kids’ Camp, was a mentor for BMS students, a Freshman Community Service Day chaperone, and has participated in the North Woolwich Church youth group. In her free time she enjoys sailing, baking, training, and watching professional track and field. Sarah will be majoring in biomedical science at Roberts Wesleyan University and competing at the NCAA DII level on the track and field team, coached by pole vault champion Jenn Suhr. Her hopes and dreams include pursuing graduate degrees and/or medical school to become a medical researcher or sports medicine doctor.

Adelaide Hinds resides in West Bath & Bath with her parents Keith Hinds and Diana Doyle, and Jennifer Hinds and Tyson Soule. Addie is an AP Scholar with Honors and has received the Seal of Biliteracy in Spanish, the Dartmouth College Book Award, and the Smith College Book Award. Addie served as Class President for three years and participated in theater, yearbook, HOBY, Interact Club and Women’s Empowerment Club. She is a Midcoast Youth Center board member, excerpt writer for Sagadahoc Democrats, Youth Adviser for Jean Guzzetti’s state senate campaign, and the creator of the ‘Some Good News’ YouTube series during the pandemic. In her free time she enjoys reading, spending time with friends and family (especially her little siblings Jasper & Lily), going to Cafe Creme, singing, and swimming/kayaking/paddleboarding when the weather allows. Addie will be attending Northeastern University and studying medicine with hopes of becoming an OB/GYN or pediatric surgeon. She hopes to find a career that she loves and continue to spend time with her family whenever possible. She would like to travel and practice medicine across the world.

Elena Trundy resides in Bath with her parents Leslie and Michael Trundy. Elena is an AP Scholar and an active participant of the Interact Club, Women’s Empowerment Club, Outdoor Club and Green Club. She is a member of the School Community Liaison Council. Elena has participated in Yearbook, Long Reach Swim Team and Morse swimming. In her free time she enjoys spending time with her friends and family. Elena plans to attend college and study environmental science while continuing to swim. Her hopes and dreams include pursuing something in the environmental science fields.

Evan D’Souza resides in Arrowsic with his parents Jonathan D’Souza and Jennifer Hagans. Evan received the Suffolk University Book Award, Sociology Class Award, AP English and Language Class Award, and is a 6-time High Honors recipient. While at Morse he has participated in cross country, tennis, indoor/outdoor track and field, and Ping Pong Club. Evan has provided photography services for the Greater Androscoggin Humane Society, the Arrowsic Arrow, and the Arrowsic Climate Committee. In his free time he enjoys playing tennis, running, swimming, taking pictures, juggling, and watching Kung Fu Panda. Evan will be attending NYU and double majoring in journalism and photography. His hopes and dreams include establishing a photography business and completing an IronMan.

Devon Gallice

dgallice@rsu1.org

The Winter season brought many different levels of success to the Shipbuilders. Our athletic program had over 200 athletes participate in a Winter sport at Morse High School. The traditions of the Winter athletics were on full display this past season. All of our teams improved their results from the previous school year.

Success was reached in multiple ways this Winter. Individuals found success and ultimately our teams improved their records and even brought home some hardware! Boys Swimming and Girls Indoor Track earned the KVAC Championship title! Boys Swimming swept the competition and won every event - led by Junior, Gaffney McDonough who was named the Male Swimmer or the Meet. Our Boys Swim team then went on to place 2nd in theMPA Class B State Championship meet! The Girls Indoor Track team was led by Junior Shealyn Brochu who was named the Athlete of the Meet scoring a perfect 30 points for the Shipbuilders!

As we head into the Spring sports season we have 240 kids participating in a Spring sport! Our coaches are ready for a great season and there is a lot of optimism for success across each program. The construction at McMann Complex will make things difficult at times but the ultimate goal and improvement of the facility will be well worth it. Please be patient and mindful of the construction going on and if you have any questions please reach out at any time.

We encourage you to come out and support our Shipbuilders! It will be a great end to the 2023/24 school year!

GO SHIPBUILDERS!

Andrew Pelletier

apelletier@rsu1.org

Visit us online: http://bit.ly/MHSstudentservices

Class of 2024: Final Senior Plan Form: All seniors complete this form. It is an exit survey about your after high school plans and serves as an application for local scholarships. Please complete this form https://bit.ly/MFSP24 by the deadline of Wednesday, May 2nd, 2024. We recommend you complete this form with your family as you may need their help in answering a few of the questions. The information on this form will be used by the Morse faculty to determine scholarship awards. To be considered for all scholarships, students are asked to submit a copy of their Financial aid award letter and their FAFSA Submission Summary or FAFSA Estimator Report to the Student Service Office by May 6th. If you need help getting these documents see Mrs. Rouillard-Hill or your School Counselor. Students selected to receive a scholarship will be invited by letter to attend an awards night on June 6th at 6pm in the theater. As a reminder other scholarship applications can be found online at https://bit.ly/826scholar or in the Student Services Office in the Scholarship Applications binder.

2024-2025 Schedules: Students completed course registration with their School Counselor in March. We’ll distribute 2024-2025 schedule in May. Add/drop will begin once schedules are released and continue until the end of the school year.

Worker’s Permit: Are you looking to get a summer job and in need of a worker’s permit? This website explains the RSU1 process: https://www.rsu1.org/page/work-permits-for-students

RaiseMe: Considering college after Morse or just looking for a way to stay active in high school? RaiseMe offers you an incentivized way to explore colleges and track your activities. For each activity you track, you’ll receive a micro scholarship offer which may later equal scholarship at participating colleges. https://www.raise.me/join/1016673764

Class of 2026: Student Services are visiting history classes this spring to have students complete a career exploration activity. Completing an interest inventory can help students explore interests and possible future careers. Here are some sites we recommend.

• https://www.mynextmove.org/explore/ip to complete a career interest inventory.

• https://collegeboard.roadtripnation.com A quick & interactive career clusters tool

Class of 2025 Important Dates:

• April 30th Consider Canada Fair 6:30-8:30 Scarborough High School

• May 4th SAT - register at www.collegeboard.com by April 19th (Fee $60)

• May 16th NEACAC Post-Secondary Fair Augusta Civic Center

• June 1st SAT - register at www.collegeboard.com by May 16th (Fee $60)

• July 13th ACT - register at www.actstudent.org by June 7th (Fee $68)

The 3rd Annual Unified Literacy Poetry and Art Gala will be held May 30, from 5:00 pm - 7:00 pm at Morse High School. Students’ work will be exhibited in the Library, Student Commons, and Conference Room 103 (Fishbowl).

BUY YOUR YEARBOOK BEFORE WE SELL OUT!

Once they're gone, they're gone. We don't re-order.

No more on-line orders but you can drop off a check/cash with Mrs. Barter in the health center. Make sure to include the student's name.

$50.00 before yearbook distribution day June 3rd; $60.00 on June 3rd.

Morse Yoga

Date: Tuesday, May 7th

Time: 11 AM-11 PM

Tell them you support Morse Yoga and 75% of proceeds go toward adolescent yoga!

This Spring the Consulat Général de France à Boston sponsored a French American Friendship Contest to commemorate the 80th anniversary of D-Day in June 2024 and the 200th anniversary of Lafayetteś last trip to the United States. The contest was designed to highlight and celebrate the friendship between the United States and France. Two groups submitted outstanding projects. The first group, Gray Kettell, Colin McDorr and Jai Marlowe, chose to show their love of history by creating an amazing lego display of Omaha Beach on D-Day. The second group, Hannah Keller, Rose Strelneck and Isla Polizotto, shared their love of art by painting an interpretation of a mural in Paris originally and collaboratively painted by an American and French artist through the FAMA project. In the end, only one project could be chosen to represent Morse in Boston and through a panel of judges, the painting by Hannah, Rose and Isla was chosen to move on to the next round of the contest.

On April 9, the painting was chosen as one of 15 finalists in New England by the French Consulate in Boston. Hannah, Rose and Isla will take part in a final interview on Wednesday, April 17 to potentially be one of three teams who will win a trip to France in June!

Wondering what CPP has been up to? Check out their February/March Newsletter!

Hello Class of 2024,

We are so proud of your hard work and dedication to Morse and the local community. On May 16 from 5:00-6:00 PM in the Culinary Cafe we will kick off the end of your year events with the 71st Annual Senior Tea. Here is a link to RSVP.

Alumni Weekend

June 7, 8, 9

Check out the store window displays downtown decorated by the classes celebrating their 5 year reunions and the senior class is also invited to participate.

Friday, June 7

Early Friday morning the Morse band will kick off the "Blue and White Golf Classic" hosted by the 50-year Class of 1974, at the Brunswick Golf Club, 165 River Road, Brunswick. Seniors awarded Morse High School Scholarships will also be recognized during the opening ceremony.

Saturday, June 8

The Alumni Room will be open from 10:00 AM -12:00 PM to visit our collection of Morse Memorabilia. We will be offering guided tours and this is a great opportunity to bring your extended family to show off the new school. The Alumni store will be open to purchase BHSAA merchandise.

Saturday night we will be hosting the 133rd Annual Alumni Banquet and you are invited to be our honored guests. The Banquet will be held in the Morse High School Gymnasium. The banquet starts at 5:00 PM, and we ask seniors to arrive by 4:30 PM. You will be escorted as a group into the gym to take your place as our newest members. The evening will be one you will never forget - a "must do" Senior year event! We look forward to introducing you to our eldest alumnus in attendance, the classes whose years end in 4's and 9's will celebrate their reunions and officially welcome you into the Association.

We will have tickets available at the Senior Tea and they will be available in the office after the 16th. Parents wishing to attend the banquet can purchase banquet tickets at the tea or on line. Deadline to purchase tickets is June 1st.

The weekend will be full of events for all Morse graduates and guests from near and far. For a complete schedule and FMI, check out our website bathalumni.org or find us on Facebook - Bath High School Alumni Association.

Attention Shipbuilder Underclassmen,

The Bath High School Alumni Association is preparing for its 133rd Alumni Weekend June 7th thru June 9th. This is a great volunteer opportunity, as well as a chance to learn about the Alumni Association. We need help at 2:15 p.m. on Friday afternoon, June 7th, to transform the gymnasium into a banquet hall. Work includes setting up the tables and chairs, then putting on the tablecloths and setting the tables for our 500+ guests. Generally, with many hands, this work goes very quickly.

On Saturday, June 8th, from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., the Association will host an Open House at Morse. Alumni will return to walk the halls, check out the Alumni Room, and buy memorabilia. We need student tour guides who walk the halls every day to take alumni and visitors through the halls of Morse. For most alumni this will be their first opportunity to see the new school.

The 133rd Annual Alumni Banquet will be held at Morse High School Gymnasium, starting at 5:00 p.m. Alumni start arriving around 3:30 p.m. We need student escorts to take them to the classrooms where they will meet for the promenade of classes to the banquet. We also need servers during the Banquet. After serving, you will be treated to a meal in the cafeteria, and then we will need your help with clean-up. From the eldest alumnus in attendance to welcoming your comrades, the Class of 2024, you will see what Morse PRIDE and tradition is all about!

Please consider volunteering. You can sign up with Mrs. Trundy in the Guidance Department, Mrs. Riggs or Mrs. Leeman-Hook in the Main Office, or email us at morsalumni@gmail.com.

CALLING ALL MORSE ALUMNI!

The BHSAA/Morse High School Alumni Association needs your help. We are seeking new members to the "working" Alumni committee.

Our numbers have decreased in recent years and we need participation from people like you who want to keep the tradition alive. Volunteer opportunities for the Senior Tea in May, Alumni Social, Open House, Banquet set up Friday and Banquet execution from serving to clean-up Saturday. We meet four to five times a year and now offer a virtual option for the meetings.

Please consider joining us for our next meeting May 15th in person or virtually. Watch the website for a link to join. FMI email morsealumni@gmail.com.

Additional Health Services are available at Morse High School through a partnership with RSU 1 and LincolnHealth.

RSU 1 has partnered with LincolnHealth to begin offering expanded school-based health services at Morse. These services may include:

• Treatment of acute, chronic, and injury-related health conditions

• Well-child checks

• Immunizations

• Behavioral health treatment

• Reproductive health

• Oral health

Services are provided by an onsite Nurse Practitioner (NP) and Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) employed through LincolnHealth. Services are provided in an effort to improve access to health care for youth and staff in schools in a safe, supportive, and confidential way. All major insurances and MaineCare are accepted and sliding fee scales and other payment support are available. Students and staff do not need to be regular patients of LincolnHealth/Maine Health to be seen at the Morse School-Based Health Center. LincolnHealth will work with your primary care office for referrals as needed.

You will need to be registered with LincolnHealth to be seen at Morse School-Based Health Center. You can register online by clicking here. If you have questions about the new services you can contact LincolnHealth School staff by email at LincolnHealthSchoolClinics@mainehealth.org or by calling 207-633-1934. You may also reach out to Tasha in the Morse Health Center by emailing nsuttmeier@rsu1.org or by calling 207-443-8250 option 2.

Are you the best speller in your class? Do you know what a lexophile is (and can you spell it?)? Do you have friends who also love to spell? Sign up your team of 2-4 members of individuals age 16 and over to compete in PFL’s Spelling Bee Competition on May 10. Theatricality, funny/punny team names, and costumes are encouraged!

Thanks to a generous donation, the $100 team fee has been covered for three teen teams, so sign up asap! Visit patten.lib.me.us/spelling-bee for more information and to sign up.

For more information about the Judith Williams Scholarship program, visit https://midcoastmainecommunityaction.org/judith-williams-scholarship-application-and-information/ or contact Crissia Lindsay at crissia.lindsey@mmcacorp.org.

Please call 443-8250 (option 1) to speak with the Attendance Secretary, Heidi Levasseur. You may also send an email to hlevasseur@rsu1.org.

April 15-19: School Vacation Week

April 27: Spring Fling Dance, 7pm

May 14: Spring Music Concert, 7pm

May 23: Academic Awards Night, 6pm

May 29: Mainsail Assembly, 9:45am

June 2: Rock Band Concert, 3:30pm

June 6: Scholarship Awards Night, 6pm

June 9: Class of 2024 Graduation Ceremony, 2pm

Morse Website

Brightspace

Student Handbook

Daily Bell Schedule

District Calendar