Dear Friends of Gateway:

Here is this week’s installment of Gateway’s weekly e-newsletter.  As always, your feedback and suggestions are welcome. 

QUOTE OF THE WEEK: “Our progress as a nation can be no swifter than our progress in education. Our requirements for world leadership, our hopes for economic growth, and the demands of citizenship itself in an era such as this all require the maximum development of every young American's capacity. The human mind is our fundamental resource.” – John Fitzgerald Kennedy, Special Message to the Congress on Education, 2/20/61

COMING EVENTS:  A schedule of activities for the week ending November 17, 2007 is now posted.  (Items for this calendar should be submitted at least two weeks ahead of time!)

UPCOMING MEETINGS:  The next meeting of the Gateway Regional School Committee will be November 14 at 7:30 p.m. in the Learning Resource Center (2nd floor) of the MS/HS. The first half-hour of all School Committee meetings this year will be dedicated to planning for the future. Agenda items include a vote on the high school trip to see the Lion King; a vote on the potential change in date for the March Parent-Teacher Conferences; an update on the Blandford School Septic System; and discussion on the distribution of flyers from non-town/non-school organizations. The Friends of Gateway will meet tonight (November 6th) at 7 p.m. in the Superintendent’s Office. The public is invited and encouraged to attend all meetings.  

CHINESE VISITOR SPENDS WEEK AT GATEWAY SCHOOLS: With 2800 students in grades 7 – 9—and classrooms of 60 – 65 students—Dr. Liren Jiang’s school in China couldn’t be more different from Gateway Regional Middle School. Click here for information about last week’s visit. Gateway’s Dr. Janice Doppler will visit Dr. Jiang in China this spring.

Dr. Liren Jiang showed fourth graders from Russell Elementary School where he lives in China.

TWENTY-FIVE GATEWAY SENIORS RECEIVE ADAMS SCHOLARSHIP: Twenty-five seniors at Gateway Regional High School have received a John and Abigail Adams Scholarship, which offers four years of free tuition to Massachusetts public universities and colleges. Awards were made for high scores on the state MCAS exam. Read on for more information.

SCHOOLS CLOSED FOR VETERANS DAY: Gateway schools will be closed on Monday, November 12th for Veterans Day. The Gateway Wellness Center will also be closed. The Littleville Wrap-Around Program will be open from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.; parents must pre-register for the day and pack a lunch for their student!

VETERANS, COMMUNITY INVITED TO GRADE 6 ASSEMBLY: Area veterans and community members are invited to the Gateway Performing Arts Center on Friday, November 9th at 12:30 p.m. to celebrate Veterans Day. Grade 6 students will be reading essays written after they interviewed military veterans; the sixth grade band will also perform.

GATEWAY TO HOST AREA SR. CITIZENS FOR ANNUAL CONCERT/LUNCHEON: The Gateway Regional School District extends a warm invitation to area senior citizens for its Annual Holiday Luncheon and Concert at the Gateway Performing Arts Center on December 5th. Click here for additional details.

FINANCIAL AID NIGHT FOR PARENTS OF COLLEGE-BOUND STUDENTS: The Guidance Department at Gateway Regional High School will hold a Financial Aid Night for parents of students planning to attend college. The event will be held on Tuesday, November 20th from 6:30 – 8:30 in the Gateway Performing Arts Center. Click here for details.

HIGH SCHOOL GRADES CLOSE: Principal Kathleen McSweeney has announced that High School grades close on Friday, November 9th. Report cards will be issued on November 15th.

THE GREAT AMERICAN FAMILY READ-IN: The research is very clear--reading to young children pays big dividends when they start school. But there's no reason to stop reading together when children become independent readers. In fact, the National Education Association sponsors The Great American Family Read-In and their website will give you activities for the entire family to consider. November is Family Literacy Month so it's a great time to read together!

REMINDERS:

• ALUMNI SOUGHT FOR HS COLLEGE FAIR: Graduates of Gateway Regional High School are invited back to school for the Alumni College Fair on Wednesday, November 21, 2007 from 9:30 – 10:45 a.m. in the cafeteria. Speak with current Gateway students about why the college YOU attend was a great choice! Interested alumni should contact Jeanene Iglesias (jiglesias@grsd.org or 413-685-1107) by Tuesday, November 13th to let us know the college you will be representing. Breakfast will be served to all participating alumni.

• RAISING FUNDS FOR SOLDIER’S SON: The Student Council at Gateway Regional High School is taking up a collection for Jeremy Bouffard’s son, Caleb. Jeremy, his widow, and his sisters all attended Gateway. Jeremy was killed in Iraq on August 22. Members of the Student Council will be collecting donations during lunch on Tuesdays and Thursdays for the next two weeks. The jar will also be in the School Store through the month of October; the school store is open Monday through Thursday from 2:10 until 2:30 p.m. If donating by check, checks should be made out to the Jeremy Bouffard Memorial Fund for the Benefit of Caleb Bouffard c/o Citizens Bank.
• ATTORNEY TO SPEAK WITH PARENTS OF YOUNG ADULTS WHO HAVE DISABILITIES: Attorney Hyman G. Darling will address parents of young adult students with disabilities about legal issues that should be considered as students age out of public school. Topics will include guardianship, durable power of attorney, health care proxy, SSI benefits and financial planning for adulthood. Click here for details.  
• LITTLEVILLE PTO HOLDING GIFT CENTS FUNDRAISER: If you order by November 19th, you can purchase all of your holiday gift certificates at face value, and the Littleville PTO will earn a percentage of the sales. Patrons simply order the gift card in its available denomination—for example, Barnes & Noble Gift Cards can be purchased at $10, $25 and $100 levels. If you select a $25 card, your payment is just that--$25. But the school will earn 7% of that sale through this program. To order, see a Littleville student or parent, or click these links for list of available cards and an order form. Return to Littleville School PTO with payment by November 19th.

IN CLOSING, the Superintendent’s Corner for this week is attached. In this week’s column, Dr. Hopson reflects on educational changes being made locally and nationally in response to the No Child Left Behind Act. Are they improving education? Read the entire column for details.

Have a great week!

Wendy V. Long, Editor