Thursday, April 19, 2012

Principal's Message for April

Each month in the principal’s message I mention how we simply can’t believe how the year in flying by…and this month is no exception. We have entered the final marking period! The third quarter report cards will go home with your child today. Our final report card of the year will be mailed home shortly after the school year ends. Remember that final course averages are calculated from the four quarters plus the final exam, each worth 20% of the final grade. The final exam schedule is posted at the end of this message.
The annual school budget vote will take place on May 15th from 6:00 am-9:00 pm at WGHS. Dr. Brown will be reviewing the major components of the budget on May 1 at 7:00 pm in the LGI at the high school. Our PTO meeting will precede the presentation at 6:30 pm.
By the time you read this we will have finished the ELA portion of the New York State Testing Program. The mathematics assessment will commence on April 25 and run through the 27. Please make every effort to avoid appointments on those days as the testing starts promptly at 8:00 a.m. We recommend “early to bed and a good breakfast” every day of the year, but this advice certainly helps support students as they tackle assessments that run 90 minutes each session.
Last month I mentioned that CMS (along with every building in the district) has formed a Bullying Prevention Coordinating Committee (BPCC). The BPCC recently completed two days of training and are very excited to bring this information to the entire school community. Melissa Ahern, our ADAPEP counselor, is serving as the chair of the BPCC and our parent representative is Mrs. Kris Northrop. She will be instrumental in helping us to bring this training to parents. I want to thank her for making such an important commitment to our school. We will be bringing you a finalized plan for full implementation at the start of next school year.
Our teachers continue to work on implementing the Common Core Learning Standards which will come into effect next school year. We are adjusting our curriculum maps and unit assessments to align to the new standards. You can learn more about the Common Core Initiative by visiting this site.
Please mark your calendars with these important dates:
May 23 – Grade 8 Science Assessment - Performance
 *June 3 – Save Modified Sports road race and softball game
*Check the District Web site for more information*
June 4 – Grade 8 Science Assessment - Written
June 14 – Algebra Regents (grade 8 accelerated students)
June 18 – ELA Finals (10:30 a.m. dismissal)
June 19 – Math Finals (10:30 a.m. dismissal)
June 20 – Social Studies Finals (10:30 dismissal)
June 21 – Science Finals (10:30 dismissal)Last Day of School
As always, please feel free to contact me should you have any questions or concerns.
Take good care,
~ Beth