Student Assemblies and Handbook Review

Dear Parents and Guardians,

We have had a great couple of days with our Spartans back these past couple of days! There has been a positive energy as staff have emphasized connections before content, and we have students getting into the business of the curriculum as we build those relationships.

This morning, we began hosting assemblies with students to review some of the Handbook expectations and to discuss some changes that have occurred. In addition, we use the opportunity to set the tone for the year, for students to be reminded of guidance counselors, and to share what we anticipate being some of our goals for the individual grades.

Today, we began with grades 10 and 11, and, as part of the conversation, we reiterated two major points. First, we discussed that cell phone use is a privilege, not a right, and that some teachers may limit cell phone usage in class; we shared that the expectations from teachers may vary from room to room, but that, when made clear, students will respect those guidelines. We indicated that we believe it to be a strong tool, be it in playing music for some students who work best, for calculations, or even for research, when the iPad may not be best.

Our second point revolved around a school-wide challenge and expectation that we have regarding bullying and harassment. In a powerful moment, Mr. DiMeglio asked any student who felt like s/he had been bullied to stand up if they chose to do so. About a dozen brave students stood up, and others in the audience raised hands. The purpose was not to single out those who had been bullied, but to highlight that this is a shared experience, that we believe in the collective good of the students, and that we want to shift the mindset from walking away to standing up as an ally to those who maybe cannot stand up for themselves. The reality, as Mr. DiMeglio phrased it so well, is that bullying and targeting of some students at UHS is "an elephant in the room that we cannot ignore," so rather than starting with a Powerpoint, we did so with a discussion ,and an awareness. It was a powerful moment that many students have already expressed gratitude, as did the staff members in attendance.

Finally, while we did not explicitly share this in the meeting, we will be reviewing with the students some expectations regarding technology. Specifically, please check iPads and cell phones for the presence of virtual private networks (VPN's), which interfere with our school network and are explicitly forbidden on school-owned devices. Students will bypass our security protocols and processes by installing virtual private networks on their devices. Our own network detects the presence of VPN’s on devices, and, in turn, compromises bandwidth for school devices. This may include iPads we issue and cell phones that students bring to school, so we ask you to have students uninstall them; if found, consequences may be imposed, including the restriction of technology privileges.

We look forward to partnering with our students, staff, and community to make UHS better for all our students. We thank you for your insight, empathy, and support.

Michael Rubin, Principal