June 7 Blog Post

It is hard to believe that this is the last blog post for the 2023-2024 School Year here in Gorham!  As I type this, students have just 1.5 days left of school and are eager (to say the least) to see their summer vacations begin!  I am sure staff are thinking the same too!  It has been a wonderful school year here in Gorham and we couldn't be happier to see the growth in our students that has occurred.  Before I share some pictures and then get on with some informational pieces, I just wanted to take a quick moment to THANK YOU - THE FAMILIES AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS of our students for all your hard work and dedication to learning this past year as well.  The education of a child is the role of an entire community - and boy what a great community we have here in Gorham supporting our students!  GO RAMS!

And yes - there were just too many great pictures at the end of the year...so I had to share more!

Now on to the end of year information.

UPCOMING CHANGE TO GORHAM WEBSITE AND MESSAGING SYSTEMS

Later in June the Gorham Schools will be switching over to a new website host.  Our current website host is Ed Lio.  We will be moving to a new website host called Apptegy.  This new site will be much more phone friendly and will allow us to be much more interactive in our messaging.  All the same "good stuff" currently on our website will be on our new website, and our current student focus will remain our focus - but you will notice some differences, and perhaps have to find things in a slightly new way - so please be patient with the changes.  Overall I think you are going to love it though!

One thing that will also be different will be that our new website host will ALSO be our new messaging system host.  Where in the past we have had to have two different software packages (one for website and one for messaging) our new website will allow us to do messaging straight from the website.  What you will see on your end will be similar to the past, but the efficiencies gained on our end will be significant.  We will still be able to send informational emails, texts, and phone messages so yes students can look forward to those early morning snow calls for sure!

Our plan is to practice with our new "toys" over the summer and make sure everything is ready to go for the opening of school in late August.  Please stay tuned!

ONE FINAL REMINDER ABOUT 2024-2025 SCHOOL CALENDAR!

The 2024-2025 school calendar has been out for a while now, but we did make a change last month for the opening day of Kindergarten.  The revised calendar is on our website and also LINKED HERE.  Students will begin just before labor day in our usual "rolling" manner with grades 6,9 & Pre K starting on August 28, then adding grades 1-5, 7-8 and 10-12 on August 29 and finally adding on the first day of school for K on Sept. 4.

We have 8 early release days once again this coming year and we have five built in snow days in the calendar as is traditionally the case.  Overall, our usual 175 school days for students and 183 for teachers!  Please check out the calendar and reach out with any questions!  I know summer hasn't even begun yet and I already miss our students!  Can't wait to see them back in August!

2024-2025 SCHOOL YEAR TRANSPORTATION SURVEY NOW OPEN FOR FAMILIES!

Each year the Gorham Schools request that families complete a transportation survey to assist us in developing the most efficient bus routes possible.  If your child will require transportation to an alternative site or daycare either in the a.m., or p.m. or both - YOU MUST COMPLETE THIS FORM.  If you will just have your child picked up and dropped off at their residence, then there is no need to complete the form.  When completing the form please note that locations selected will remain in place for the entire school year.  

Please CLICK HERE for the survey link.

For more information or additional questions, contact the Transportation Office at  222-4925 or email Judy Philbrick (judy.philbrick@gorhamschools.org) or Norm Justice (norm.justice@gorhamschools.org).  Thank you!

FINAL REMINDER - FY 25 BUDGET VALIDATION REFERENDUM - PLEASE VOTE!

I realize most of us could think of better things to do on a beautiful June 11 day, than to go to a stuffy building and stand in line to vote - but that is exactly what I am encouraging you to do! ☺

The proposed FY 25 School Budget has been approved by the School Committee (6-0 vote).  Our proposed FY 25 School Budget has also been approved by the Town Council (6-0 vote) with no changes.  Now in order to complete the school budget approval process, the budget must be approved by voters via a validation referendum.  This vote will take place on June 11.  

A "YES" vote means you approve of the proposed budget as is.  A "NO" vote means you do not approve of the proposed budget as is.  If a majority of voters vote "YES" then we have a fully approved budget and we move on in preparation for the opening of school next fall.  If a majority of voters vote "NO" then we do not have an approved budget and we must repeat the entire process (SC vote, TC vote, and referendum) for as many times as it takes us to get all three approvals.  I am sure many of you can remember this process from last year's three referendums.

What helps the most in this process is to get as many people out to vote as possible.  What is least helpful is to have a small minority vote and then we are left guessing as to what the community truly wants.  The more individuals that vote, the clearer the messaging is and therefore, the better the outcomes are for our community regardless of whether the end  result is a yes or a no.

PLEASE MAKE IT A PRIORITY TO VOTE ON JUNE 11!  Every vote, every voice counts!  THANK YOU!

If you want to learn more about our proposed budget, please visit our website where you can find all the information you need (and then some) to understand what is in the proposed school budget and why.  

Budget Information Link:  https://www.gorhamschools.org/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=456522&type=d&pREC_ID=1150991

GHS SENIOR CREATES VIDEO TO HELP 8TH GRADERS TRANSITION TO HIGH SCHOOL

The other day I wandered over to the high school after lunch to catch a little of the 8th grade step up day at GHS.  I was expecting to see a bit of what I had always seen...students assembled in the MPAC, Mr. Jandreau and other school admin. welcoming the incoming students, and a bunch of adults talking to students about what it is like to be a 9th grader at GHS.  That's what I expected.  That is NOT WHAT I HEARD!

Instead, as I walked in, a guidance counselor was introducing a video that was going to be shown to the 8th graders (soon to be 9th graders).  The video was made by a Senior at GHS as part of his senior project in videography.  The student's name was Izak Young.  Izak wants to be a videographer in his future career - and when you watch this video - you can see why!

Izak recruited a few of his friends from GHS and a few students from GMS to develop a short film entitled:  A Tale of Two Schools.  The purpose - to help show incoming 9th graders what it is like to be a student at GHS and to help them feel good about transitioning to a new school.  Well - HE NAILED IT!

The film is a little long (just under 20 minutes) - but boy is it worth the watch if you want to see a glimpse of students talking to students about their experiences as students in our schools!  Check it out via the link below and THANK YOU to Izak and friends for this awesome production and your willingness to help out our younger students as they make the big "leap" to the high school!  We sure do have some VERY TALENTED and VERY COMPASSIONATE AND RESPONSIBLE STUDENTS IN GORHAM!  GO RAMS!

Video Link:  https://vimeo.com/953674153/e3820d7c05

GREAT FALLS KINDERGARTEN CELEBRATION VIDEO - WHY WE DO WHAT WE DO!

Another great video that I wanted to share just in case you missed it on social media is a video made of a recent Kindergarten class celebration at Great Falls Elementary School.  Now, all of our elementary schools do a wonderful job of celebrating our Kindergarten students as they move on up to big first graders each year, but Great Falls just happened to capture it on video and in so doing, captured a snapshot of just why we do what we do as educators, as parents, as families, and as communities to support our children in their learning.  All you need to do is listen to the words of the song being sung and see those smiling faces!  

Definitely worth the share and worth the watch!

Video Link:  https://drive.google.com/file/d/1mM7fFvibxpGEk0Acxx8mWuYjTLkbeSVx/view?usp=sharing

GHS SENIOR PARADE HAPPENING ON SUNDAY EVENING

We will once again be inviting the ENTIRE COMMUNITY OF GORHAM to help us celebrate our seniors by coming out with signs and noise makers to cheer on our seniors for their senior parade!  Here are the details!  Please grab a sign and come out and cheer on our seniors as they embark upon the next big chapters of their lives!

HAVE A GREAT SUMMER!  CONGRATULATIONS AND THANK YOU!

Congratulations to the GHS class of 2024.  We are so sad to see you move on, but so excited to see what you will contribute to this awesome world!  

Congratulations to all of our students for successfully completing another great school year and "moving on up" to the next steps in creating your own future stories.

Thank you to all of our staff for making sure each and every student felt cared for and valued for who they are as learners in our schools!

Finally, THANK YOU to all of our parents, their families, and our greater community for modeling our Code of Conduct and for supporting our students in their learning endeavors, wherever that may have taken them!

Enjoy the summer break!  I look forward to seeing our students back again this fall!