SEPTEMBER 2021

Principal's Welcome Back Letter 

Dear CHS & CHARIHOtech Students & Parents/Guardians,


We are eager to welcome you back for the 2021-22 academic year.  As we plan for the year ahead, it is only natural that we take a step back and reflect on our successes and challenges during this past year of COVID protocols and concurrent learning.  We have learned a great deal and have a lot for which to be proud.  We were one of the few high schools throughout the state of Rhode Island to offer the most in-person learning days.  This was due to the many ways our students and faculty rose to the occasion.  Our teachers implemented concurrent learning, supporting both in-person and distance learners.  They prioritized standards and adapted assessment practices to ensure our students could demonstrate their learning in authentic ways.  Our students made shifts from in-person to virtual learning, socially distanced, masked up, interacted with their peers through Zooms, and quickly adjusted to a one-way traffic pattern.  Our students showed us that they know how to be adaptable and to persevere through uncertain and challenging times.  


As we move to a new academic year, trust that we will continue to set the bar high.  We will learn from what worked well and will continue to hold ourselves to high standards with a focus on high quality instruction by high quality teachers.  We have robust and proactive systems of support in place for students who may need some extra outreach in the year ahead.  One of our primary aims this year is to ensure our students who were distance learning for an extended period of time feel connected to our school and have the supports they need for a successful transition.  


We will continue our work of equipping students with essential skills early on in their high school career.  This past year, we provided Academic Readiness Skills Training (Charger 101) to all students in 9th grade through their advisories.  Our 9th graders learned effective study habits, time management and organizational strategies, email etiquette, and short- and long-term goal setting.  This upcoming year we will be taking this training a step further and will provide all 10th graders with Professional Readiness Training (Charger 102).  Students will learn about career clusters and begin their career exploration.  They will receive training on resume building, interview preparation, and professional work characteristics.  Our 9th and 10th grade Readiness Training will continue to reinforce the Learner Qualities that we expect in our students.  Each semester, we expect our students to demonstrate and show growth as Self-Directed Learners, Collaborative Workers, Respectful Citizens, Quality Producers, and to adopt a Growth Mindset.


Our administrative team and staff have been working hard to ensure a safe school opening for the 21-22 school year. Some things will look similar to last year and others different.  In order to support social distancing and masking breaks (when applicable), we will continue with a one-way hallway traffic pattern, increased passing time, outdoor learning opportunities, and reduced cafeteria lunch sizes.  Our block schedule has been modified to allow us to run six lunches, seven-minute passing times, and eighty-eight minute blocks, with the exception of block three, which will be one-hundred and twenty minutes in length to accommodate our six lunches.  Our school day will run from 7:30am - 2:15pm. 


The 2021-22 year brings some changes in our administration team.  I look forward to making the move from Assistant Principal to Principal and to continue to work alongside Mr. Auth as he continues to lead CHARIHOtech in providing students with access to over 20 career and technical programs and pathways.  We are also excited to welcome Ms. Bradanini as our new Assistant Principal.  She comes to us from Stonington as a former Humanities Coordinator and brings with her deep experience with curriculum, assessment and instruction.  As an administration team, collaboration and communication are at the forefront of what we do.  This is especially important in the year ahead.  Please do not hesitate to contact us at any time. 

We look forward to a great school year ahead as we encourage ALL Chargers to “Treat each other with dignity and respect.” and to Set Goals. Work Hard. Have Fun.

Andrea J. Spas, Principal

Gerry T. Auth, CHARIHOtech Director

Jean N. Bradanini, Assistant Principal


Check out our Welcome Back Video!

Our welcome back video, linked HERE, captures important back-to-school information. Learn about ways we are mitigating risk, COVID safety steps, what it means to be a Charger and hear from your administrators and fellow students. There is also information on the new hallway redesign! Check it out here: https://youtu.be/VPPhPV18cAM


A Message from the New Assistant Principal

Dear Chariho Families,


As the newly appointed  assistant principal of Chariho High School, it is my sincere pleasure and honor to be part of such a respected school. I am looking forward to continuing the great work done to establish high expectations and a supportive environment for students and families. The varied and numerous opportunities that are provided for students is a hallmark of this district and I am fortunate to be a part of such a wonderful community.


I will be beginning my eighteenth year as an educator, previously working as an English teacher at Wheeler High School for nine years and as a Humanities Coordinator at Stonington High School for eight years leading and supporting the English, Social Studies, and World Language departments. I live in neighboring North Stonington, CT  with my husband who is also an educator and have eight year old twins, Emma and Thomas, who are about to start third grade. I have heard and learned about so many good things here at Chariho and am excited to work in a community that has created such a school of excellence. 


Sincerely,

Jean Bradanini         


IMPORTANT: Back to School Forms & Signatures Needed

Our back to school packets and forms are now electronic. We will be using PowerSchool for sign-off on our electronic forms. If you need a paper copy, please contact your school.

Parents will log into their Parent PowerSchool account at https://ps.chariho.k12.ri.us/public. Pleae know that FORMS ARE NOT SUPPORTED USING THE POWERSCHOOL APP, you must login using a browser.

Contact the school office if you are having difficulty accessing your Parent PowerSchool account. Students in grades 5-12 who need to sign an electronic form will log into their own PowerSchool account and follow the nstructions in the link below. Students will only be able to view the Back to School Handbook, Policy & Information form in their PowerSchool account.

Please click HERE and follow the provided steps to sign-off on important Back to School Forms, Policies and Documents.

Also, you will see a NEW COVID-19 Self Attestation Form. This is ONE-TIME ONLY sign-off form. New to this year, parents will no longer need to complete this form daily like they did last year, instead there will be a one-time sign-off.

Attendance Monitoring

Attention parents, if you would like notification of your child's attendance for each class throughout the school day (beyond Block 1), please follow the steps outlined HERE and go to the Detail Report of Attendance section. This will provide you with a notification if your child is not in attendance for each block of the school day.

Block Schedules & G/W Calendar

Our block schedule has been modified to allow us to run six lunches, seven-minute passing times, and eighty-eight minute blocks, with the exception of block three, which will be one-hundred and twenty minutes in length to accommodate our six lunches.  Our school day will run from 7:30am - 2:15pm.  Please see below for links to our block schedules, including our Early Release Bock Schedule as well as the link to our Green and White Calendar.


Hallway Redesign

Something else that will look a bit different this year is the location of teacher classroom assignments.  We have adjusted our classroom assignments so that our hallways are structured by department.  Much consultation and thought went into this decision.  Some of the benefits include: new room assignments based on student enrollment needs, ability to provide STEM and Humanities “wings”, ease of use for students to locate teachers, and departmental collaboration, to name a few.  Our classrooms are still labeled the same by letter and number (e.g., B7, D2).  So, when students get their schedules they are to report to the room letter/number listed on their schedule.  We are excited for this change to our building redesign and believe it is in the best interest of our students.

Personalized Building Tours & Walkthroughs

Mr. Auth, Ms. Bradanini, and I provided small-group building tours for our incoming 9th graders over the past couple of months.  It was a nice way for us to meet with our new students in a more personalized way and to share the various supports available to them.  Students had an opportunity to ask questions and to learn the new hallway redesign.  In addition to tours for incoming 9th graders, we offered building walkthroughs for any student who was distance learning this past year.  These walkthroughs provided our students with a chance to walk the building together, ask questions about returning to school in-person, and to discuss the various supports and ways to reconnect back to school.  Our walkthroughs made the local news!  Check it out HERE.


Title IX


The Chariho Regional School District is committed to maintaining and promoting an educational environment free from all forms of discrimination, including harassment and sexual harassment. The civil rights of all school community members are guaranteed by law, and the protection of those rights is important to Chariho. The Title IX Coordinator for the Chariho Regional School District is Kristen Merritt, kristen.merritt@chariho.k12.ri.us, 401-364-3260.  The Title IX Coordinator will coordinate and investigate any discrimination or harassment claims.  For additional information, please refer to the Title IX policy at: https://www.chariho.k12.ri.us/central_administration/human_resources/title_i_x

The School Committee’s policy on Harassment can be found at:

https://www.chariho.k12.ri.us/common/pages/DisplayFile.aspx?itemId=45481812


Free Meals for All Students

The USDA announced that schools may extend the free meals program that our district participated in through June 2022.  This announcement means that all students enrolled in Chariho Regional School District schools will receive free meals regardless of eligibility status through June 2022.  See additional information in the flyer below:


Canvas

Canvas is the learning management system teachers use to post daily agendas, class assignments, lessons, and any related class resources.  This is a go-to resource for our students and parents.


Students, please view these slides to learn how to access your Canvas courses.


Parents can have access to their children's courses through Canvas. See the steps below to get a Parent Observer account. 


How to become a Canvas observer:
  1. You will need the child's login and password to Canvas (same one they use for Powerschool and to log onto the laptop). You may ask your child for the login or call guidance to request the password be mailed to you. 
  2. Use any computer or device with internet connection.
  3. Go to chariho.instructure.com
  4. Click the ribbon that states "Click Here for an Account"
  5. Fill in the prompts and begin to navigate as an observer (your child will have to provide you his/her password).