April 26 Blog Post

Well we are in the "home stretch" of the 2023-2024 school year!  Hard to believe that by the time this blog is posted, we will have just six weeks left of school!  I'm sure students and staff are already getting excited, while perhaps parents/guardians maybe not as much! ☺. Lots of information and news to share, so I'll get right to it after sharing some great pictures of WHY we do WHAT we do of course - OUR STUDENTS!

Now on to the important information!

LET'S END THE SCHOOL YEAR STRONG - A REMINDER ON THE IMPORTANCE OF SCHOOL ATTENDANCE!

Good school attendance sets the stage for Gorham students to fully benefit from the many great learning resources and activities our schools offer each and every day.  Just look at some of the learning experiences that are seen in the pictures above and imagine trying to re-create those for students who were absent.  We can do our best, but there is nothing like being physically present when engaging learning is occurring in our classrooms (which is most of the time)!  

When students miss these experiences they just can't be 100% replaced.  Now, don't get me wrong - there are times when students need to be absent, and as a school we get that and support that.  Please have students stay home if they are sick and have a fever for example.  But absences should always be the "exception" and not the "rule" as my father always used to say to me growing up.

Did you know that...

-  Chronic absenteeism in the early grades correlates with reduced literacy and mathematical achievement over multiple years?

-  Chronic absenteeism at the middle and high school level is one of the strongest predictors that a student will fail to graduate on time or even drop out altogether?

-  Students who have regular attendance at school have been shown to achieve at higher levels than students who do not have regular attendance?

-  Students who fail to read at grade level by the end of third grade are four times more likely than students who achieve proficiency to drop out of high school.  Adults without a high school education generally earn lower incomes and experience higher unemployment than their peers who do earn a high school diploma, putting them at greater risk for poverty? 

-  students who are chronically absent in the early years of their education may not learn crucial school readiness skills (abilities such as critical thinking, problem solving, and creative thinking), and can fall behind their peers in social-emotional development?

(from https://www.attendanceworks.org/ April, 2024)

These are some really good reasons to make sure we all think about the importance of regular daily school attendance and the benefit that regular attendance has for all children.  Besides, when our students are absent, WE MISS THEM!  We only get them 175 days out of the whole year for just 6 hours each day and we want every single student for as much time as we can get them! 

Parents/Guardians - want more resources to better understand the importance of regular school attendance and perhaps learn about additional tools to help improve attendance for parents and educators?  There is A LOT of great information out there...but below are just a couple sites I might recommend to start with:

-  Attendance Works - a national nonprofit whose vision is that:  "Students of all backgrounds and circumstances attend school regularly, engage in learning and thrive".

-  Count ME In - a state nonprofit whose mission is: "Increasing student attendance through data-driven strategies so that every child is an engaged, successful learner".  

Let's all work together to end this school year STRONG in Gorham with all of us together in school!  I don't know about you - but I don't want to miss a single day!  GO RAMS!

UNDERSTANDING PUBLIC SCHOOLS VIDEO #4 of 4 IS READY TO VIEW!  TOPIC:  THE FUTURE OF GORHAM PUBLIC SCHOOLS!

The fourth of a four part series of videos aimed at helping the general public better understand public schools here in Gorham is now ready to view.  The topic of this fourth video is on the future of our public schools with special "community champion" guest - Dr. Andrew Dolloff (Current Superintendent of Schools in Yarmouth, and long time resident of Gorham).

The video is about 45 minutes in length and (I have to admit)  a little "geeky" when you have two Superintendents sitting down to chat!  However, I think you will find it an extremely informative video about what we see on the horizon for public schools in the near to mid-term future!  Check it out using the link below:

Video #4 - Understanding Public Schools - The Future Of Gorham Schools

You can also view each of the previous THREE videos in the series using the links below:

Video #1 - Understanding Public Schools - Public Schools in the 21st Century with special guest - USM President Jackie Edmondson.

Video #2 - Understanding Public Schools - Public School Governance with special guest - Kathy Garrard, local business partner and long time Gorham resident.

Video #3 - Understanding Public Schools - School Funding with special guest - Shawn Moody, local business partner and long time Gorham resident.

That is it for the series!  I hope you have found or will find these videos to be a solid resource to you as a community member in Gorham to better understand our public schools.  Special thank you to Georgia Humphries and Benjamin Dyke from Gorham GoCAT TV for helping to produce these videos!  It was a pleasure spending time with you!  We are lucky in Gorham to have such a great resource for our community!

A FEW IMPORTANT CALENDAR UPDATES/REMINDERS

As we begin what I lovingly refer to as the "sprint to the finish line" that is this time of year for any school, I thought it would be a good idea to just share a few BIG dates with you!

Important state NWEA testing will be going on during a 5 week window starting Monday April 29, 2024 and ending by May 31, 2024.  Grades 1-10 will be participating.  As mentioned earlier, attendance during this time will be important for LOTS of reasons - testing being just one of many!

The current last day of school for students and staff will be Monday, June 10, 2024.  Students will be dismissed at Early Dismissal times on this day to begin their summer vacations!  Staff will stick around for the afternoon's closing activities and messages to end the year.  

The GHS Senior Walk will take place at our elementary schools starting at approximately 9:00 a.m. on Friday, June 7, 2024.  This event will be "streamed" using our district facebook page for those that are interested in watching live!

The GMS 8th grade recognition ceremony has been moved to Friday, June 7 starting at 5:00 p.m. due to the two school days lost to our most recent storm.

GHS Graduation will be going on as planned on Sunday, June 9, 2024 starting at 4:00 p.m.  For details CLICK HERE.  

Again, there are many, many, many more events going on during the last 6 weeks of the school year across all of our schools!  The best way to track them is on our website!  Just go to www.gorhamschools.org and then click on your child's school and then scroll down to the activities' calendar or news posts!

And - we are off! ☺

SUPERINTENDENT 360 EVALUATION SURVEY REMINDER!  STAFF/FAMILIES/COMMUNITY MEMBERS NEEDED TO PARTICIPATE!

The following information was shared in my last blog post - but I wanted to remind folks to PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE participate and that the deadline for completion of the survey will be May 3, 2024.

Each year the Gorham School Committee conducts a 360 evaluation process regarding my performance.  Part of this process involves sending out surveys and asking key stakeholders to please share your thoughts/opinions on current strengths of my leadership and current areas where I can improve.  This process is a great process to provide me much needed feedback on how it is that I can improve my practices each and every year to better serve the children of our great community.

I would ask Staff, Parents and Community members to please take a moment to complete this important survey.  I'll also send links out via our school messenger system more broadly.  Please note there are two surveys below. One for staff and one for parent/community.  Please be sure you click on the right one!  

Last year I had well over 250 parents/community participate and well over 200 staff!  This information is shared with SC members and used to help develop my goals for the coming year - so the information is very important!  Thank you in advance for participating!  

LINK -  Staff 360 Survey For Superintendent

LINK -  Parent/Community 360 Survey for Superintendent

GORHAM FISCAL SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE HAS ITS FIRST MEETING!

The Gorham Fiscal Sustainability Committee had its first inaugural meeting this past Monday night (4/22/24) and it was a great meeting!  

If you recall from previous posts, the purpose of this joint committee between the Town Council and School Committee is to:

"Understand the existing financial landscape for the Town of Gorham and the Gorham School            Department.  To evaluate the future financial landscape, and to use this knowledge to make recommendations for how to maintain sustainable taxes while continuing to manage the present and future growth of our community over the next 5-10 years".

There were also three key "deliverables" that this committee has been charged with:

1.  Develop a series of recommendations to the Town Council and School Committee for how to reduce costs (or mitigate continued cost increases).

2.  Develop a series of recommendations to the Town Council and School Committee for how to increase revenues that will offset direct taxpayer expenses at both the municipal and school levels.

3.  Develop a series of recommendations to the Town Council and School Committee for how to improve communications between various stakeholder groups within the community of Gorham to aid in understanding current and future financial limitations moving forward.

Members of the Committee include:

The first meeting was an organizational meeting where we spent some time getting to know each other a little better before brainstorming the various topics we feel we need to understand before being able to start focusing on the details of the "deliverables" and then we worked to schedule 1 years' worth of meetings!  Everyone left very optimistic about the future of our strong community!

You can view the past and upcoming agendas and other materials for the committee by going to the Town's website LINKED HERE.

You can view the recording of the meeting held on April 22, 2024 by CLICKING HERE.  

FY 25 PROPOSED SCHOOL DEPARTMENT BUDGET PROCESS UPDATE

On Tuesday, April 23, 2024 the Gorham School Committee met jointly with the Gorham Town Council for its annual Budget Workshop meeting.  

You can view the full recording of the meeting by CLICKING HERE.

You can view the slide presentation shared at the meeting by CLICKING HERE.

Finally, you can view the Town Council Budget Booklet by CLICKING HERE.

During this meeting the School Committee shared an overview of the proposed FY 25 School Department budget with the Town Council and offered up an opportunity for Q&A and dialogue regarding the budget.  There was a great exchange of thoughts and ideas shared between the Town Council and School Committee with no substantive changes being recommended.  The meeting ended with an offer for continued questions to be asked by Town Councilors using the Q&A Budget Document SHARED HERE right up until the scheduled May 14 Town Council vote.

The next step in the process for the approval of the proposed FY 25 School Department Budget will be for the Town Council to vote on the proposed budget as part of the overall Municipal Budget.  This vote is scheduled to take place on May 14 at a meeting scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. in council chambers.  

There will be a public hearing on the budget at that time for individuals that may like to speak to the Town Council directly to share their opinions regarding the proposed budget.  Individuals may also email council members directly in advance of the meeting to have their comments considered in the decision making process by the Town Council.  

Once the vote is taken at this meeting (May 14), the final step in the FY 25 School Department budget approval process will be the public referendum vote that is scheduled to take place on June 11, 2023.  Please mark your calendars now to make sure you go to the polls!

ASPIRE GORHAM APRIL NEWSLETTER READY TO VIEW!

Check out April's Aspire Gorham newsletter by CLICKING HERE!  Lots of great articles keeping you up to date on the incredible work happening in our Aspire programming across the district!

PK-5 SOCIAL PARENT INFORMATION NIGHT - TOPIC:  SOCIAL MEDIA!

If you are a parent of a student in grades PK-5, you are NOT going to want to miss this information night!  Check out the flyer below for more information!

NEW GORHAM ASSISTANT SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS ANNOUNCED!

The Gorham School Department is proud to announce that Dr. Quinton Donahue, will serve as the new Assistant Superintendent of the Gorham School Department, beginning July 1, 2024.

Dr. Donahue enters this level of leadership with an extensive breadth and depth of experience in both administration and the classroom with over 20 years of experience in fostering academic excellence and cultivating positive learning environments. Over the past five years, he has served as the Principal of Gorham Middle School, demonstrating a proven track record of driving student achievement, implementing innovative educational initiatives, and promoting a positive, relationship-centered school climate.

Prior to his role at Gorham Middle School, Dr. Donahue served as Principal of Mount View Middle School (Thorndike, ME.), where he achieved significant academic growth and earned recognition for his leadership. Before his administrative positions, he dedicated 10 years to teaching high school math at Hampden Academy (Hampden, ME.), inspiring students to excel in mathematics.

Dr. Donahue holds a Ph.D. in Education with a focus on Educational Leadership from the University of Maine. His research centered on enhancing critical thinking in mathematics classrooms. Additionally, he earned a Master of Education in Educational Leadership and a Bachelor of Science in Secondary Mathematics Education from the University of Maine.

Beyond his professional achievements, Dr. Donahue is an active member of the Gorham, ME community, where he resides with his wife, Jessica. Passionate about empowering students and educators, Dr. Donahue continues to make a profound impact on education, inspiring excellence at every level.  

We look forward to welcoming Dr. Donahue to his new position within the Gorham Schools!

That is it for this blog post! Will check in again in a couple of weeks!

April 5 Blog Post

Well gotta say - I am not all that impressed with the weather so far this spring!  Let's leave it at that and move on to sharing some pictures of some of the great things happening in our schools the past few weeks!  

On to the updates...

UNDERSTANDING PUBLIC SCHOOLS 3rd VIDEO (of 4) READY TO VIEW!  TOPIC:  SCHOOL FUNDING WITH SPECIAL GUEST SHAWN MOODY!

The third of a four part series of videos aimed at helping the general public better understand public schools is now ready to view.  The topic of this third video is on school funding and there to help ask questions and get answers is our community champion Shawn Moody!

Of course, this 30 minute video isn't going to provide all the information about school funding that is out there, but I'm sure it will "wet your whistle" and hopefully prompt folks to do more research, or ask further questions to learn more!  As is always the case - I am happy to answer any questions - just email me at heather.perry@gorhamschools.org.

VIDEO #3 LINK

And just in case folks are interested in viewing the previous two videos...you can find them linked below:

-  Video #1 - Understanding Public Schools in the 21st Century with special guest USM President Edmondson.

-  Video #2 - Understanding Public School Governance with special guest Kathy Garrard.

There will be one more planned video coming out right around the end of the month of April.  This last video will be focused on looking into the future of Public Schools and what we see ahead.  Our very special community champion for this last video will be Andrew Dolloff, current Superintendent of Schools in Yarmouth and long time Gorham resident!  Stay tuned!

TEN YEAR FACILITIES PLAN & UPCOMING BOND REQUEST

As you may recall,  about two years ago the Gorham School Department worked with the Town of Gorham to conduct a comprehensive facilities assessment.  C.H.A. was the firm that completed the study.  You can find a digital copy of the final report by CLICKING HERE.

Since then the Gorham Schools has been working to pick away at the needs outlined in this study.  We recently have approved bonds that have updated our HVAC system at GMS and we are now working on upgrades to the HVAC systems at GHS.  Additionally, we were able to complete the final phase of modular expansions at Narragansett Elementary School that will open up this coming fall.

As we continue to use this report to guide our decision making, we will be bringing forward a request to the Town Council for a bond package that would address the next round of facilities needs in our schools.  We hope to present our request to the Town Council in June in preparation for a potential referendum question on the November ballot.  This is the first request of what we see as four requests that will need to occur over the next 10+ years.  

You can view our updated 10 year capital facilities plan list by CLICKING HERE.  

One item on our upcoming list that you may have heard about is our tennis courts.  At this time, we are unable to play matches safely on our courts because they are in such bad condition.  We have had the courts resurfaced many times over the years, but they are 20+ years old and resurfacing is no longer an option.  

In our facilities plan, we would like to move the existing tennis courts from their current location at GHS to a new location at GMS that would offer more accessibility to both our students and the greater public.  This area was actually previously permitted for this exact move when the MS was built.  The map below shows the general area we would be seeking to move tennis courts to.

Although this would take up a part of the fields that currently exist, we have worked with Gorham Recreation and others to make sure that all existing activities would still be able to occur on the same site.

Another big project listed on this first referendum request would be to start on the first phase of modular expansions at GHS.  This first phase would add space to the existing cafeteria and build out an additional 7 classrooms over by where the existing modulars are.  This would also allow us to move Adult Education spaces from GMS to add additional classroom capacity at GMS as well.  There would be three planned phases of modular expansion at GHS that could be developed as a mid range solution to our current long term facilities needs.

Please feel free to review the ten year plan and reach out with questions you may have.  As we get closer to a potential referendum, much more information will be forthcoming.

FY 25 BUDGET DEVELOPMENT UPDATE

The School Committee had its 4th and final FY 25 Budget Workshop meeting on Monday, March 25.  The focus of this meeting was on the revenue side of the budget. At this meeting, it was agreed that we would utilize $600,000.00 in fund balance to offset taxpayer expense.  We left the meeting with the following numbers for our draft proposed FY 25 school budget.  Operating cost increases of 6.9% and an overall expenditure increase of 7.7% increase (this includes CIPS, Debt Service and Adult Education).  We’re looking forward to our budget workshop meeting with the Town Council scheduled for April 23, 2023 at 6:30 p.m. in the downstairs conference room.

The School Committee is scheduled to vote on the proposed FY 25 budget at their April 10 School Committee meeting scheduled to begin at 7:00 p.m. in council chambers. The meeting will be live streamed and recorded.

A reminder - you can view all FY 25 budget materials by going to our website. CLICK HERE for a direct link.

FAFSFA - HAVE YOU COMPLETED YOURS?

Due to the delayed rollout of the Better FAFSA, in Maine, the Class of 2024 is significantly behind the Class of 2023 in FAFSA submission. The chart below shows the differences.

Many of our students and families continue to face barriers or challenges when navigating the FAFSA application process. This is where our support and guidance become invaluable.

The U.S. Department of Education (USED) and the National College Attainment Network (NCAN) have Better FAFSA resources. A few are linked below:

• USED has created Better FAFSA Toolkits for parents and families and educators and counselors.

• NCAN’s Navigating the Challenges of the 2024-25 FAFSA is regularly updated and highlights the FAFSA’s known issues (and workarounds if they exist). It is a good partner to Federal Student Aid’s Pro-Tips for the 2024-25 FAFSA Form page.

• FAFSFA Flyer

GHS Seniors who are planning to attend college next fall should complete the 2024-2025 FAFSA as soon as possible if they haven't already done so. Although there have been challenges with the new FAFSA this winter, it is still the primary application for financial aid. Students who are planning to attend a Maine Community College through the Free Tuition at Maine Community Colleges Program, MUST complete the FAFSA to qualify for free tuition. Please see the resources below for more updates on FAFSA processing and for helpful information sessions offered by Maine's higher education agency, Finance Authority of Maine (FAME). 

Paying For College

FAME Tuesday Tips - FAFSA Processing has begun

FAME FAFSA Completion Sessions

GHS Seniors and/or family members that would like to learn more or have additional questions can reach out to Trisha Cherry directly at trisha.cherry@gorhamschools.org.

NEXT WEEK IS THE WEEK OF THE YOUNG CHILD!

What is the week of the young child?  The Week of the Young Child is an annual celebration sponsored by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), the world's largest early childhood education association.  The purpose of the Week of the Young Child is to focus public attention on the needs of young children and their families and to recognize the early childhood programs and services that meet those needs.

This year's week is April 6 - April 12.  Want to learn more?  Check out these great resources from NAEYC!

I know we'll most definitely be celebrating our youngest learners in our schools!

UPDATE ON SCHOOL CALENDAR & SAMPLING OF END OF YEAR EVENTS

 

With the use of two storm days this week, I wanted to let folks know that that will push our last student day to Monday, June 10, 2024.  The last student day will be a half day of school for students.  GHS seniors, I think you can stop doing your "snow dances" now!  ☺

Speaking of seniors, graduation for GHS is planned for Sunday, June 9, 2024.  Graduation will be held on the competition field at GHS.  Below are a few other highlights of events - but please know there are MANY MORE.  The best way to follow events for your school is to go onto your school's webpage and check out their activity calendar!  There is so much going on - I can't possibly list everything here, but here's a sampling:

-  GHS Academic Awards Night - May 21 at 6:00 p.m. at MPAC.

-  K-5 Step up day - June 5  

-  GMS 8th grade celebration night - June 5 at 5:00 p.m. 

-  Incoming 6th grade family night - June 4 at 5:30 p.m. at GMS.

-  GHS Senior Walk - June 6 starting at approximately 8:45 a.m.

-  Senior celebration - June 6 at 6:30 p.m. at MPAC.

360 EVALUATION FOR SUPERINTENDENT

Each year the Gorham School Committee conducts a 360 evaluation process regarding my performance.  Part of this process involves sending out surveys and asking key stakeholders to please share your thoughts/opinions on current strengths of my leadership and current areas where I can improve.  This process is a great process to provide me much needed feedback on how it is that I can improve my practices each and every year to better serve the children of our great community.

I would ask Staff, Parents and Community members to please take a moment to complete this important survey.  I'll also send links out via our school messenger system more broadly.  Please note there are two surveys below. One for staff and one for parent/community.  Please be sure you click on the right one!  

Last year I had well over 250 parents/community participate and well over 200 staff!  This information is shared with SC members and used to help develop my goals for the coming year - so the information is very important!  Thank you in advance for participating!  

-  Staff 360 Survey For Superintendent

-  Parent/Community 360 Survey for Superintendent

That's it for this blog post.  Hopefully the next one I sent out I'll have power back!  Have a great weekend everyone and stay safe! 

March 22 Post

Spring has sprung, but it seems winter has not yet had its last say!  Hopefully this weekend's precipitation is just wet and not white - unless of course you are a skier and then I am sure you are hoping for the opposite!  

Its been a busy few weeks in the Gorham Schools!  Check out the pictures below to get a snapshot of some of the cool stuff happening!

Now on to the information!

SCHOOL CALENDAR CHANGE REMINDER! 

Just wanted to make sure everyone got the information regarding the upcoming calendar change that we are making due to the Solar Eclipse.  WE HAVE MOVED OUR ORIGINALLY SCHEDULED APRIL 3 EARLY RELEASE DAY TO MONDAY, APRIL 8.  Monday, April 8 will now be an early release day for students while April 3rd will now be moved to a full student day.

We are making this shift for safety reasons associated with the April 8 eclipse which will be occurring at 3:28 p.m.  This time is smack dab in the middle of our elementary school bus runs home and we thought it best to perhaps not tempt fate to have our buses on the roads with our most precious cargo at a time when 97% of folks may be entirely distracted by the eclipse!

If you have questions, please reach out to your school's office.  Otherwise, in the spirit of the eclipse, I thought I'd share some resources for families and perhaps child care providers for how to safely enjoy the eclipse and all the educational opportunities that go along with it!  Some quick resources are below!

*. Maine Department of Education Eclipse Resource Page.

* National Science Foundation Total Solar Eclipse 2024 Website

*. National Environmental Education Eclipse Resource page (scroll a little to the bottom for some great activities)

*. New Hampshire PBS Resources 

*. Resources from NASA

RECENT EAT AND LEARN EVENT - THANK YOU!

Just wanted to send a quick THANK YOU out to the 60+ people who showed up at our second annual Anti-Racism & Equity Committee "Eat and Learn" event held on March 12!  

This year we asked students to participate by creating original artwork around the theme of advocacy.  Students were asked to think about a time when they either helped to advocate for someone or something or a time when others needed advocacy and/or support, or a time they had perhaps witnessed advocacy in action and what that meant to them.  Students could draw, paint, create banners, poems, videos, or any of the myriad of artistic forms that are out there to express their views on the importance of advocacy.  

We had 30+ students involved and they most certainly did all that!  We displayed their artistic creations at the Eat and Learn event at the GHS library and then allowed others to walk through to view the art and even talk with the artists themselves about the importance of advocacy.  We had pizza, chips, and drinks available and it was an absolute joy to see so many so deeply engaged in these important conversations with one another.  

Then about half way through the event our facilitator, Mr. Ward, encouraged everyone to participate - not just the artists who had pre-submitted work!  On tables set up in the back participants could draw pictures, create word walls, or cut out pictures for a collage on the same topic of advocacy.  I didn't realize there was so much creativity in the room (not including mine of course) and the results were incredible!

Thank you to members of the community engagement equity group (a subgroup of the anti-racism and equity committee) for putting these great ideas together, communicating and organizing and just making sure a wonderful night was had by all in attendance! It was a true reflection of our great community here in Gorham!  Proud to be a Ram!

NEED YOUR HELP/FEEDBACK -  ASSISTANT SUPERINTENDENT HIRING PROCESS!

Earlier this winter Dr. Brian Porter, our current Assistant Superintendent of Schools, announced his retirement at the conclusion of this school year after 25+ years of service to our district.  It will certainly be no easy task to replace him, but we must endeavor to do that very thing. 

That being said, we are just now wrapping up our first round of applicant interviews and will be preparing for a 2nd round of interviews with between 2-3 finalists for the position.  This is where WE NEED YOUR HELP AND FEEDBACK!  On the evening of April 3 between 5:00 - 7:00 p.m. at Gorham Middle School, we will be conducting a stakeholder interview process.  During this process, we are inviting members of our staff, parents/guardians, and community members to participate in the selection process.  

The evening will include breaking stakeholder participants up into two groups and asking each candidate to present to each group on a topic of our creating.  The candidate will conduct their presentation for roughly 20 minutes and then the rest of the time (20-30 minutes) may be used for open Q&A from stakeholder participants.  At the end of the event, stakeholder participants will be asked to complete a brief ratings form for each candidate.  Data from this form will then be reviewed by the hiring committee to help make final recommendations.

If you are interested in participating in this process - PLEASE COMPLETE THE FORM BELOW so I know roughly how many to plan on!  

Stakeholder Participation Interest Form Link:  https://forms.gle/DxXYLDha2Z5HSAGc9

THANK YOU!

MIYHS DATA IS RELEASED - WORTH A LOOK!

The Maine Integrated Youth Health Survey (MIYHS) is a biennial survey of Maine students in grades 5 through 12 that monitors health behaviors and attitudes regarding tobacco, alcohol, substance use, mental health, nutrition, physical activity, and protective factors.  The MIYHS was first administered in 2009 and is offered in February of every odd-numbered year.  The MIYHS is conducted by the Maine Department of Health and Human Services in collaboration with the Maine Department of Education.  

Publicly available data reports for the state, geographic public health districts, and counties are available for each survey cycle since 2009 on the public results page LINKED HERE.  All other data by individual schools is protected due to confidentiality rules.  The Gorham Schools, however, works with Cumberland County Public Health to put together a summary of information that can be shared publicly.  

On March 13, 2024 Brooke Proulx, GMS Social Worker presented this summary information to the Gorham School Committee.  It is most definitely worth the watch!  You can view the presentation by CLICKING HERE and going to the minute 47 mark! 

You can also review the slide presentation provided by CLICKING HERE.  

And just to "wet your whistle" a little bit...I thought I'd share a few screen shots of the data that jumped at me...

You want to see more? And there is A LOT more to see...you will need to click on the links above!  ☺

SCHOOL COMMITTEE BUDGET WORKSHOP MEETINGS UPDATE

The Gorham School Committee has met TWICE since my last blog post.  They met on March 11 and again on March 18.  Below you can click on links to the meeting agenda and recordings for both meetings:

*. March 11 Meeting Agenda with Links

*. March 11 Meeting Recording

*. March 18 Meeting Agenda with Links

*. March 18 Meeting Recording.

You can also go to our website LINKED HERE to view all of these materials and more to get you up to date on all the discussions thus far!

At this time, our proposed FY 25 budget would be an operating expenditure increase of 6.99%, and would have an impact on the mil rate of +$1.02.  Please keep in mind, however that the School Committee has not yet begun its discussions regarding revenue streams.  The work that you see thus far has all been focused on expenditures and trying to make sure we are as tight in expenditures as we can be while still maintaining needed programming for students.  

The focus of March 25's meeting will be on the revenue side of the equation and further adjustments will continue to be made at that time.  

With an eye towards expenditures - I thought I'd share a particularly telling graph below with all of you as I think this one graph helps to tell the tale of one of our biggest cost drivers over the past 3-4 years - special services.  

Basically, what the table and graph above shows us is that our special education numbers and costs continue to grow at a rate that is out-pacing our general enrollment growth, and our general fund budget growth over time.

Find out more about this data by watching the meeting videos!  Next budget workshop meeting will be on Monday, March 25, 2024 at 7:00 p.m. in the upstairs conference room.  The public is welcome to attend, or you can wait for the video link! 

ASPIRE GORHAM PRESENTATION TO GORHAM SCHOOL COMMITTEE!

Eliza Kenigsburg, Aspirations Coordinator for the Gorham School Department, Grace Olsen, Extended Learning Opportunities (ELO) Instructor for Gorham High School, along with Tracie Travers from JMG and Kenn Tompkins, Aspire Communications Coordinator PLUS TWO GHS STUDENTS provided a very informative update to the School Committee on the work of Aspire Gorham over the past several years as well as some really great information about the impact of the program across our district.  

Please CLICK HERE and go to the 3 min. 54 second mark of the video to watch!  I think you will be as impressed as I was at how articulate our students were, especially in sharing their "stories" with the School Committee about the importance and effectiveness of the program.  

Want to know more about Aspire Gorham?  CLICK HERE for an overview.  Want to learn more about our ELO program?  CLICK HERE for an overview of that too!  

Finally, want to see what has been most recently happening within our Aspire Gorham program?  Check out the most recent newsletter! 

CURRICULUM INFORMATION - HOW DO I FIND IT?

The Gorham Schools has done considerable work over the past year or more in trying to make our curriculum as transparent as possible for students and families, but sometimes I know it may be hard to find when you are looking for it.  

There are a few places you can go to find this important information so I thought I'd take a moment to consolidate it all in one place for families who may be interested in learning more.

First, if you go to our website and click on "About US" you can then click on "Gorham's Learning System".  When you get there you will find yourself in a place with almost too much information about our learning systems here in Gorham!  The right hand tool bar will help you to navigate!  It looks like this:

You can read first about our Commitment to Equity and Inclusion.  Then you can click on a link to check out an overview of our curriculum that includes a link to our Teaching & Learning Handbook and a direct link to all of our Graduation Standards and performance indicators.  These standards outline the skills we want students to focus on attaining at each grade level and in each content area.  

Next you can click on Gorham's Learning Systems Parent Resources.  This is a great page that has a more detailed overview of what your child will be learning across each grade level and content area.  This page also has a link to our Grading Guide.  At the high school levels you can also click on specific course syllabi for each course offered at GHS.  

Next you can click on some assessment data information, an overview of common core state standards and an overview of Maine's curriculum standards and performance indicators fore each area.  These are the documents that our specific graduation standards and performance indicators align to to make sure we are meeting all requirements of state law.  

Finally, you can click on a link to check out the State of the School's Report for each year since 2020 and learn more about our "Metrics for Success" tool.

I'd like to mention one more page as well that was created this year for our NEASC accreditation visit at Gorham High School.  For this one, you need to go to the district website, click on "Gorham High School" and then click on "Academics" and then "Course Curriculum".  This link goes even more deeply into the course curriculum for each course offered at GHS above and beyond the syllabi I mentioned earlier.

There is NO QUESTION there is A LOT of information contained on these website links.  It is all there, but it can be overwhelming at times to navigate.  As a parent/guardian or community member - after surfing around for a while - I'd encourage you to reach out directly to either your building principal or myself to ask further follow up questions.  These are materials that our teachers "live and breathe" every day...so we would love to engage in further conversation with families that may have questions! 

REGISTRATION NOW OPEN FOR SPRING ATHLETIC PROGRAMS AT GHS!

After the success of our fall and winter seasons - looks like it is time to start our spring seasons! GO RAMS!

Want more information?  CLICK HERE to go to our website for active links!  Sign up today!

STEEL BAND CONCERT COMING THIS WEEKEND!

Check out the flyer below for details!

Concert will be held at the GHS Performing Arts Center (MPAC).

That's it for this blog post.  My next one will be on April 5!  WOW...March is almost done! ☺