Weekly News and Notes

We have a few updates from UHS this week.


Grades for Quarter 4

After much deliberation and consideration, we have landed on what we think is a simple, fair way for students to earn grades for the work they are completing in the fourth quarter. At the same time, we acknowledge the variety of challenges that exist, and we want to be sensitive to those so that those students who cannot complete all of the assignments, or who may have difficulty with some of the deadlines, do not find the fourth quarter to be a significant impact.

While individual assignments will still be listed as "credit" or "no credit," all assignments are being assessed on a 1-4 scale, with 2 the minimum standard for earning credit or passing. As a result, our teachers, who are tracking that information, will compile a grade at the end of the term based on all assignments, using the following scale:

Category	Description	Pass/Fail	Report Card Grade for Term 4
Credit with Distinction (CWD)	Student makes an outstanding effort and completes all or almost all of the work assigned.	Pass: 90% - 100% of all assignments submitted by students are assessed as passed at a 3-4 level.	95
Credit	Student makes an effort, completes majority of the work.	Pass: 67% - 89% of all assignments submitted by students are assessed as passed (2 or higher).	80
No Credit	Student makes little or no effort and completes little to no work assigned.	Fail:  Less than 2/3 of all assignments submitted by students are assessed as passed.	59

Students will have the opportunity to resubmit work if graded at a 1 or 2 to earn a 3 or 4. Also, for students who struggle with completing written assignments but prioritize attendance in virtual class sessions, teachers will have the latitude to incentivize whatever work a student is doing. The goal will be for us to avoid penalties for those who are struggling during this time, be it because of home, academic, or emotional reasons.

We are sharing this now with the intention of moving forward with some sort of grading metric in the next week or so, and, as assignments are posted on Friday, this will help students prioritize.


WIC services available at home

The MA Department of Public Health's Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Nutrition Program is informing our health and community partners that WIC services are available by phone.  ALL WIC Programs are able to provide all services by phone to align with social distancing efforts. Our website will be kept up-to-date as well.  Contact local WIC programs with any questions about breastfeeding, nutrition or shopping.  Even if local program offices are not open, they are responding to phone calls and providing services from remote locations. WIC is committed to providing families with continued support now and in the days ahead.

WIC welcomes families at any time. Check out WIC's eligibility page to see how to families can apply online for WIC services. Parents, grandparents and foster parents may apply for children under the age of five years who are in their care.

Call WIC at 1-800-942-1007 or 617-721-6601weekdays, Monday through Friday 9am – 5pm.  If you hear a recording, please leave a message with your name and telephone number, and staff will respond the same business day or email a Local WIC Program directly with any questions.  Download the list: WIC Local Program Email Addresses.

Cancellation of Prom

We met with the senior class and families last night and informed them, as we do the rest of the community, that the prom in its traditional sense will be cancelled for 2020. We do so with a heavy heart and after much deliberation. While there still exists the possibility of an event being scheduled for the summer, the reality is that we do not anticipate being able to host an event with more than 300 students without any distancing guidelines whatsoever.

We share in the disappointment and sadness for what our students have lost. In the meantime, we will be working with both classes, including the Class of 2021, to try and find some celebratory events when it is safe to do so.

Time Management

I am sharing a link here that we are also sending to students about working from home during remote learning, particularly for students who need to evaluate the best way to accomplish the goals of schoolwork. It's a quick read and hopefully helpful to some.

Town Hall

We will be hosting another town hall-style meeting on Tuesday, May 19 at 6:30 p.m. A link and password for the meeting will be sent on Tuesday. Please do not share that link or post on social media.

Teacher Appreciation Week

Finally, this past week was Teacher Appreciation Week. As many people have shared with countless memes, gifs, and social media posts, these past few weeks have given us a sense of the stability, function, and capacity of so many of our educators, from the content they teach to the relationships they forge. I will admit that five years ago, when I accepted the principalship of UHS, that I found the faculty to be welcoming and curious, but also unsure of what sort of change would be undertaken. From my perspective, they have done much heavy lifting as we have moved UHS in countless ways, from master schedules and course requirements, to expectations for collaboration, to the integration of new technologies and a willingness to partner with others around the nation.

UHS is a school that is absolutely still on the rise and has not yet hit its full potential, but the journey on which we have been and the commitment of everyone in the building toward realizing that potential has never once been in question. I know that you share your appreciation for the work of educators of our entire district, for all they do and all they bring. If you have a minute, send a quick note of appreciation to one (or all) of your student's teachers, celebrating teacher appreciation week. Even as we are apart, it is an easy way to stay connected for us to continue to be stronger together.