Dear R.H. Conwell Families, Happy Friday!
School Committee News: In an ongoing effort to increase communication with the school and our community, the School Committee has committed to host opportunities for direct interaction with Committee members outside of public meetings. Next Friday, September 17, will be the first opportunity at 3:30 with Amanda Brooks-Clemeno and Cai Walkowiak.
Hosted at the Worthington Public Library, 1 Huntington Rd. Worthington 01098. Come say hi and chat about the school, the children, and the community. The green light will be on, and the backdoor will be open.
Updates from the Nurse’s Office: Friendly reminder to all families regarding masks: face masks are required while indoors for all students, staff, and visitors. Face masks MUST cover both the nose and the mouth at all times, except while eating. Please work with your child(ren) on proper face mask use, we are continuing to offer friendly reminders to students, and are hoping to nip the bad habit before it continues further.
Last night, the School Committee voted to approve the use of Covid-19 testing in schools as an additional mitigation strategy for us to help keep our school community safe and healthy. Please be on the lookout for future communication from me next week regarding the testing options in school as well as the consent form for families to submit prior to beginning our testing program. Please note, this is a voluntary program, and families may choose to opt in or opt out at any point during the school year.
Equity Committee: I would like to thank the equity community members (listed below) for joining this committee. This group will meet during the next two months with two facilitators from the Collaborative for Educational Services. These initial dialogue sessions will support the group with how to have connected conversations and begin discussing what equity means for the Worthington School District. We are very appreciative of these community members’ participation! Members include; Abigail Smith, Claudia Mejia-Haffner, Alexis Breiteneicher Schneeflock, Pam Thompson, Katie Dahill, Ana Vilma Walkowiak, Barbara Richert, Tony Bertera, Bruce Todd, Amy Breiteneicher, Jaime Ricci, Deb Clapp, Kel Thomas, Diane Brenner, Jan Roby, Ruth Lehrer, Evan Spring, Sarah Jonsberg, Amy Wang, Kathryn Ewald, Gail Bergeron, Emily Lak, Gretchen Morse-Dobosz
Health Class: Please follow the link to a syllabus for the health curriculum
Health Curriculum Topics by Grade
School Pictures: Monday, September 13, 2021 is a Picture Day for students in grade K- 6. And, on Tuesday, September 14, 2021, the preschool will have their pictures taken. All students will have their picture taken.
Preschool Paraprofessional: The district is seeking a paraprofessional for the preschool classroom. Preschool runs from 8:15 – 3:30 Tuesday – Friday! Please contact me at gmorsedobosz@hr-k12.org for more information.
Substitutes: We are looking for classroom substitutes. Please contact the main office for more information.
Weather Station: The third and fourth graders weather station is set up near the drop off and pick up area for families. Please do not touch the weather station because that could impact the data they are collecting. Thank you!
Lunch Volunteers for Preschool: We are seeking one volunteer every day from 12:00 – 1:00 to help preschoolers with lunch and getting settled for rest time. This will allow for the preschool teachers to take a lunch break. Please email me at gmorsedobosz@hr-k12.org if you are interested.
MILK: A reminder that if your child is buying a meal, milk is included. If your child is buying milk by itself, the cost is $0.50.
Lunch: Until further notice students will eat snacks and lunch outside.
- Friday lunch: Caregivers are welcome to join Friday lunch. We are limiting lunch to three caregivers per class. The K-2 lunch begins at 12:00 and the 3-6 lunch begins at 12:35. Please sign up to attend Friday lunch using the following link. The next family lunch will be Friday, September 17, 2021. Please come to the front door and sign in at the office first.
- If you would like to purchase school lunch the cost is $4.00. While attending family lunch, we expect that caregivers will sign in at the front office, will wear a mask while they are inside, and find a spot outside with their child. At that time, we ask that families be mindful of social distancing since masks are not required while outside.
PTO: The PTO will hold their first in-person meeting on September 14 at 3:30. Below is the link to attend virtually.
Join Zoom Meeting https://us06web.zoom.us/j/87891548667?pwd=dklRNmcweXBpU3lBaEdLK281eUIzdz 09
Meeting ID: 878 9154 8667
If caregivers are unable to attend meetings in person or virtually, and would like to submit a question to the PTO, all questions can be sent to jaimiericci@verizon.net by 2:30 p.m. on the day of the meeting.
School Council: We are looking for ONE parent representative and ONE community representative to serve on the school council. Please email me ASAP –
gmorsedobosz@hr-k12.org if you are interested.
Upcoming Events:
September 14, 2021: PTO Meeting at 3;30 p.m.
Join Zoom Meeting https://us06web.zoom.us/j/87891548667?pwd=dklRNmcweXBpU3lBaEdLK281eUIzdz 09
Meeting ID: 878 9154 8667
September 16, 2021: Virtual Parent Meeting with Gretchen beginning at 6:30 p.m. During this meeting, I look forward to hearing from families about how the start of the school year has gone for families. I will also share information about the ESSER funds the school district has received and the different ways we can use this money for the school district. If you plan to attend, please RSVP to me by 3:30 on Thursday, September 16th. Thanks in advance.
Join Zoom Meeting https://us06web.zoom.us/j/83768785785?pwd=OVVsQ205VVdUUmc2aXlJK3NIVlVX Zz09
Meeting ID: 837 6878 5785
Passcode: 551638
September 22, 2021: Equity Advisory Committee at 3:30 p.m.
September 27 2021: Noon Dismissal – Faculty PD
October 7, 2021: Curriculum Night and Open House at 6:00 p.m. Have a wonderful weekend!
Gretchen Morse-Dobosz
Superintendent/Principal
gmorsedsobosz@hr-k12.org