Mattanawcook Jr. High School

This is the 8th grade September exploratory schedule. (There is a limit of four pictures for each post.

Other information that will be in the letter when you receive it is who the staff is for each grade, a bell schedule (which you really only need if your child is remote now or at some point because he/she will be staying in one room and the staff will be moving from room to room), and an exploratory calendar since there are now a different number of groups in each grade than days in the week. It's okay if your child doesn't have their sneakers for PE or a band instrument for the first day of school. Here is some of that information. 4th graders have Mrs. Gray or Mrs. Kotara for ELA and social studies classes and Mrs. Arnold or Ms. Marquis for math and science. They will all have Mrs. Pietras for ELA academic focus and Mrs. Wooley for math academic focus. These adults will be supervising their recess. They will also have Ms. Antes for art, Mr. Cox for PE, Ms. Kinkade for music, Mrs. Lujan for world language/spanish, and Mrs. Tilton for health. There is a calendar for these exploratory classes that shows which days each group has each class over the month of September. 5th graders will have Mrs. Albert or Mrs. Zaroff for math and science and they will all have Mr. Baker for ELA, Mrs. Whittier for social studies, Mrs. Paul for study hall and recess, Mrs. Sirois for ELA academic focus, and Mrs. Slike for math academic focus. These adults will supervise recess and study hall. They will also have Ms. Antes for art, Mr. Cox for PE, Ms. Kinkade for music, Mrs. Lujan for world language/spanish, and Mrs. Tilton for health. There is a calendar for these exploratory classes that shows which days each group has each class over the month of September. 6th graders will all have Mrs. Burns for social studies, Mrs. Carmichael for ELA, Ms. Lowell for math, and Mr. MacEachern for science, Ms. Arnold for math academic focus, and Mrs. Dickinson for ELA academic focus. These adults will supervise their study hall and recess. They will also have Ms. Antes for art, Mr. Cox for PE, Ms. Kinkade for band lessons if they play an instrument, Mrs. Lujan for world language/spanish, and Mrs. Tilton for health. There is a calendar for these exploratory classes that shows which days each group has each class over the month of September. 7th graders will have Mr. Fitch for social studies, Ms. Housum for ELA, Mrs. Jacques for math, and Mr. McPhetres for science. These adults will supervise their study hall. They will also have Ms. Antes for art, Mr. Cox for PE, Ms. Kinkade for band or chorus, Mrs. Lujan for world language/spanish, and Mrs. Tilton for health. There is a calendar for these exploratory classes that shows which days each group has each class over the month of September. 8th graders will have Mr. Brown for social studies, Mrs. Cole for math, Mr. Russell as a long-term sub for Ms. Ratledge in ELA, and Mr. White for science. These adults will supervise their study hall. They will also have Ms. Antes for art, Mr. Cox for PE, Ms. Kinkade for band and chorus, Mrs. Lujan for world language/spanish, and Mrs. Tilton for health. There is a calendar for these exploratory classes that shows which days each group has each class over the month of September.

I'm hearing that some families still have not received their classroom information letters after checking the mail today. We absolutely want you to have that information before the first day. Please email me at shainer@rsu67.org. To speed things up, please use the subject "classroom letter", include your name and your student's name and grade, and I will respond as promptly as I can with their classroom and group number as well as the entrance doors they should use. Thank you!

We can't wait to see our students on Tuesday! Our plan to open with an in-person model for those who didn't choose remote is still in place.

Student Pre-Screening Tool

RSU 67 Fall Sports Update The safety of all individuals involved in interscholastic athletics (student-athletes, coaches, athletic training staff, game day personnel, spectators) is the number one priority as RSU 67 considers the resumption of education-based interscholastic activities. The district’s administration team will continue to support all initiatives identified for mitigating the risks associated with COVID-19 and make decisions accordingly. The RSU 67 administrative team will utilize guidance from the following groups regarding how to most safely conduct education-based sport programs: 1. Office of the Governor of Maine 2. Maine Department of Education 3. Maine Center for Disease Control 4. Maine Principals’ Association 5. Penobscot Valley Conference principals 6. Penobscot Valley Conference superintendents of schools 7. Local school administrations 8. Best practices as identified in other states and athletic associations 9. National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) Sports Medicine Advisory Committee As many of you know the MPA has set September 8, 2020 as the date that school districts can officially begin fall athletics. As much as I would like to say that we have received the Ok to proceed, I cannot . We currently await the approval of the new guidelines that the MPA set last week. The DOE and CDC are currently reviewing those guidelines. I have been told that a decision is likely to be made before the week is over. Once they have been reviewed and approved, it will be up to individual districts to decide whether or not they will proceed with athletics. RSU 67 will base its decision on what is best for our athletes and the entire community. I do realize that this is a time sensitive issue, but ask that you remain patient as we sort through what has become a very difficult decision. We realize that the young people need athletics as an outlet and will continue to advocate for a return to play. Thank you all for supporting the young people of our community as we traverse these difficult times. I hope to have some positive news for you soon. Sincerely, Bill McCarthy Athletic Administrator RSU 67

I just wanted to update you all on fall athletics at MJHS, as many of you know the start date for fall sports has been moved back to September 8th. At that time we will be able to begin practice with the first playable date being September 17th. As we gather more information I will reach out to you regarding fall sports at MJHS. In the meantime it is important to log onto the MJHS athletic page and register your son or daughter for fall sports. We are only accepting online registrations at this time. The process is easy and fast. If you need assistance or internet access you can call Dolly Phillips at 794-3309 or send her an e-mail at dphillips@rsu67.org and she will help you out. Stay safe and enjoy the rest of the summer!

Access to the MJHS PowerSchool portal will be closed to parents and students beginning Tuesday, July 7th, for summer maintenance. Thank you!

We have 10 hardcover ($22) and 1 softcover ($16) 2019-2020 yearbooks available for purchase. These are first-come, first-serve at the MJHS office from 6:00 AM to 2:00 PM through Friday, June 26th. Please pay with a check or cash in the correct amount.

The MJHS tennis courts will be made available to the public on Friday, June 19th. Please follow all CDC guidelines while using the courts.

There are labeled bins ready for your laptops, teacher books, library books, and a table for other items. Skis will be deposited by the back entrance of the building. Thank you!

The MJHS athletics on line registration has been set up for Fall sports, you can access the sight by visiting the RSU 67 webpage, click on sites, choose MJHS, once there hit the menu tab and choose MJHS athletics. You will be able to access the on line paperwork. Thank you! Winter sports will begin on August 17th.

I would like to provide an update regarding the use of the MJHS tennis courts. After conversation with RSU 67 administration it has been determined that opening up the tennis courts would jeopardize social distancing recommendations that have been passed down by Governor Janet Mills. I will keep you posted on any changes to this decision. Thanks for your patience.

This week (May 4 - 8) we are going to begin the process of helping 8th graders choose their classes for their Freshman year. Mrs. Cole will be running Zoom meetings Monday - Friday at 12:00 to share information about what courses are required and available for kids to take. It is very important that your student attend one of these meetings. She will be sending an email invitation to the meeting as well as a document called “Freshman Program of Studies” to your student’s Gmail account. You are welcome to sit in on the meeting. Once we get the initial work done, you will be contacted by an MA guidance counselor to finalize choices.

Just a reminder that now we we are back from April Vacation and we are requiring a once a week check in with your child’s teacher. Teachers have been spending the past few weeks calling homes and sending communication through your child’s school email. We also understand that connectivity may be a problem for some of you so we are offering the methods below for avenues of acceptable communication. Beginning April 27, 2020 and ending June 9, 2020 -Your child must check in once a week by using one of the following methods: 1. Attends a zoom meeting 2. Participates in google classroom OR responds to emails directly and emails questions as needed 3. Contacts the teacher by phone We are still waiting to hear from several students. There will be important information coming to eighth graders in regards to signing up for classes at MA. Please make sure you have your child contact their teacher by one of the following methods above so they can be ready when the time comes. Please call me at 794-8935 or at ccowing@rsu67.org if you have any questions. The link below will provide you with the letter that was sent home with all the packets at the last learning material distribution. https://5il.co/fq9k

Good Afternoon, This morning I received an e-mail from the DOE/MPA stating that all Spring sports pre-season activities have been postponed until April 27, 2020. The plan is to revise schedules in order to complete our seasons in a timely fashion. I will keep all of you informed regarding any additional changes. I have attached an abbreviated version of the e-mail that I received this morning. Good Morning, Because of this, the MPA Board of Directors and Interscholastic Management Committee voted today, March 13, 2020 to delay the start of the 2020 Spring sports pre-season practice until April 27, 2020. We will continue to monitor the situation and will make the appropriate changes as needed to ensure the safety of all students. Let me know if you have any questions. Thank you, Holly Couturier Mike Burnham Mike Bisson Thanks in advance for your patience regarding this matter. Bill McCarthy, RSU 67 Athletic Administrator.

Due to circumstance beyond our control, MJHS Wrestling has been cancelled for the remainder of the season. The team will gather on Monday for pictures at 2:30, once the pictures have concluded the team will meet to have their social and wrap up the season. The social/ fun practice will conclude at 4:15. The social is for team members only.

All after school activities scheduled for Thursday, February 13th have been cancelled.

An update practice schedule has been uploaded today, also an updated practice and meet schedule for wrestling has been added. Please be aware that this schedule may change, if it does a revised copy will be added and I will post the changes here on the athletic page. Enjoy your February vacation.

All the hard work and determination has paid off for the MJHS cheerleaders. Congratulations are in order as coach Laura King's squad earned a first place finish at Penquis League Championship on Wednesday night. Great job ladies!