Thursday, March 3, 2011

Welcome!

I hope you and your family enjoyed a much deserved February break. I had hoped to have this up and running in January, but it has been a much busier winter than I anticipated. Hopefully March brings us a reprieve from old man winter.   I intend to use the blog in lieu of a newsletter.  It will be a forum to share good news, observations, and information about our schools and education in general.  I will continue to use our district website for formal communications of meetings, announcements, budget development, and the posting of public documents.

Looking ahead at the March calendar there are a few noteworthy events I'd like to bring to your attention.

Saturday, March 5th
  • Manchester Essex Regional Middle High School is hosting the MA High School Drama Festival.  Visit  the district site for more details - Drama Festival 2011
  • The Boys basketball team will take on Matignon in the Division 4 North Quarter finals at 8:00pm.
Wednesday Evening, March 9th

  • The state’s leading expert on bullying and violence among students, Dr. Elizabeth Englander will speak to MERSD families about the nation’s bullying trend and what each of us can do to minimize it in our schools.  I encourage you to take the time to hear her presentation.
On the budget front, the MERSD School Committee finalized its budget proposal in February.  While the FY12 proposal only increases 2.1% over FY11, a significant reduction in revenue and federal grants will result in a 4.5% assessment increase to the towns.  March is packed with opportunities to learn and share your opinions on the school budget for FY12 - visit the MERSD Budget page for information on the goals driving the budget as well as dates and times for meetings and forums. 
 MERSD Budget Page