Tampa Catholic High School
January 5, 2024

Weekly Information for January 5th

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Dear Parker families, students and staff,


I hope that you had a great first week of the new year. Welcome back. We are all getting ready for the first meaningful snowstorm of the year. With the snow coming Saturday night and Sunday, we do not think it will impact school on Monday. We anticipate opening on time on Monday. Thank you to the Devens DPW and our custodial team of John, Greg and James for keeping the driveways and walkways clear around Parker. We appreciate their hard work this Sunday and every time it snows.


I wanted to provide a little context on how decisions on cancelations and delays are made. We try to assess the conditions around Devens as well as our neighboring communities. We communicate with DPW and area superintendents in the evening and early morning. If school is cancelled or delayed, Parker uses an automated phone calling service, the school’s website and voicemail, and local media outlets to inform families. We try to communicate by 6:00 am. On delayed openings, school starts at 10:30 am and all the classes are shortened.


There may be some cases where a storm impacts some communities more than others. Because Parker students come from over forty cities and towns throughout Central Massachusetts, it’s important for families to exercise independent critical judgement, based on observed local conditions, when deciding whether to travel to campus during inclement weather.


Have a great weekend. 


Brian

This week’s topics:
  • Café (Wednesday) New Year
  • COVID-19 Update
  • Yearbooks
  • Parker Annual Fund
  • Don’t Miss the Application Deadline (March 1st)!
Café (Wednesday) New Year

Happy New Year Parker Family! You’ll never guess what is happening on January 10th from 6:30-8:00 PM - that’s right, it’s Café (Wednesday) New Year! Whether it’s playing a musical instrument or singing baby shark over and over again, we are so excited to bring in the New Year with our talented community. Please join us for Café New Year! Questions? Contact [email protected]


Please Note: After-school supervision ends at 3:00 PM on Wednesdays, and students must vacate the building until 6:30 PM. Please plan accordingly


COVID-19 Update

COVID-19 Symptomatic testing will no longer be available at Parker as of today, January 5, 2024. As with other illnesses, if your student has a fever, they must stay home until they are without fever for 24 hours without fever-reducing medication. If they are presenting with symptoms that make it difficult for them to be in school, please keep your student home. If your student is presenting with COVID-19 symptoms, please test them before sending them to school. To help assist with COVID-19 testing, Parker was able to procure COVID-19 Rapid Antigen test kits through The Department of Education. These free kits will be distributed to each student to bring home in the next coming weeks. Lastly, we are requesting that staff, students, and families wear masks to protect others while they are ill at Parker. Please reach out to Nurse Lisa at [email protected] with any questions.


Yearbooks

Click here to order your yearbook from Jostens. Prices will increase by $5 after January 31st.


Make sure to scroll the page to find the correct version of the book you’d like to order. Yearbook ($55) is the hard cover book, while the soft cover ($35) and Division 1 ($15) books are listed lower on the page as Exclusive Offer. Division 1 books contain everything but sections for Division 2, Juniors, Seniors, and senior parent ad pages.

 

Parker Annual Fund

Happy New Year! Did you know that you can support The Parker Fund with a monthly gift? Start off 2024 by investing in Parker's faculty and program by making a recurring monthly gift to The Parker Fund. Recurring giving is an easy, convenient, and sustainable way to show your care and support for the teachers who nurture your students every day! Click here to make a one-time or recurring gift to Parker. Thank you for your support!

 

Don't Miss the Application Deadline (March 1st)!

Parker is currently accepting applications for students entering grades 7, 8 and 9. Siblings of current students planning to attend the Parker School for the 2024-2025 school year MUST complete an application and return it to Parker no later than March 1, 2024. Current students do not need to reapply. You are welcome to call our front office prior to March 1, 2024, to verify your application has been received. You may click here to sign up any of the remaining Information Sessions. The Lottery will be held on Thursday, March 7, at 4 PM. Please send interested friends to parker.school/enroll for more information.

Parents of Athletes

Do you know how to find your way to Parker’s playing locations? We have a GREAT feature on our website with interactive Google maps - just enter your address to receive directions to any of our game and meet locations. Find this feature by clicking HERE.

Upcoming Dates of Note:
Tue - Jan 9 Board of Trustees
Wed - Jan 10 Café Wednesday
Mon - Jan 15 MLK Jr., Day - No School
Thu-Fri - Jan 18-19 Gateways
Mon - Jan 22 Faculty Planning - No Classes
Tue - Jan 23 Second Semester Begins
Looking for help with or concerning: Please contact:
a specific class or assignment the teacher of that class (see Parker email list)
technical support email: [email protected]
your family's or student's health email: [email protected]
mental health/emotional support needs email: [email protected]
food insecurity/free and reduced school lunch needs email: [email protected]

The Francis W. Parker Charter Essential School is committed to equal employment and educational opportunity for all members of the school community and prohibits discrimination on the basis of the basis of race, color, gender, pregnancy or pregnancy status, religion, gender identity, age, national origin, sexual orientation, homelessness, or disability, in the operation of the educational programs, activities, or employment policies.

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Weekly Information for February 14, 2025

By Cindy Johnson • February 16, 2025
Dear Parker Community: I am writing to introduce changes to the leadership structure at Parker, changes designed to ensure that we continue to provide an exceptional education for every student who is lucky enough to attend Parker. Please know that the Board of Trustees, school leadership, faculty and staff have all weighed in on the decision with their own perspectives. We generally agree on the need to invest in our long-term sustainability and growth. We look forward with excitement and confidence. Parker was founded 30 years ago on the belief that students need to be known, valued and challenged as learners and human beings. Students need to use their mind well, mastering a limited number of essential skills and areas of knowledge, in a culture of decency and trust. These Common Principles are as important today as ever. Looking forward to our next 30 years and beyond, we ask ourselves “who do we want to become.” We appreciate the Senior Class for crafting such an important and timely Essential Question this year. The preface to our Strategic Plan envisions the future of Parker this way… With students at the center of everything that we do - Parker will share its voice, partner with others, and grow as a celebrated leader in progressive education. To meet these lofty goals, the Parker Board of Trustees voted last night to approve the creation of a new leadership structure, with two major changes for the 2025-2026 school year. First, we are changing my role from Head of School to Executive Director, a leadership model employed by most charter public schools in the state. As the Executive Director, I will focus externally on the growth and long-term viability of Parker. I will establish partnerships to ensure healthy enrollment, philanthropic support, and business opportunities in progressive education. I will continue to lead the organization and be a regular presence on campus. Second, we are hiring a Principal to serve as the primary instructional leader for Parker and lead the day-to-day life of the school. The Principal will serve as the main contact for students, families and staff. While Deb Merriam already provides outstanding leadership and would be an excellent Principal, she is not interested in the new role. Deb will continue to serve as the Academic Dean and will mentor the new Principal. We imagine the new Principal will be someone with personal experience learning and/or working at Parker or a school like ours. We plan to post the position this week and start interviewing candidates in March. Please join us on Tuesday, March 4th for a discussion about the ideal qualities and characteristics of the new Principal and the evolution of leadership at Parker. The session will be hybrid, in-person and online, from 6:30-7:30 PM in Room 40. Please see the login information below. By the end of March, we hope to invite 2-3 finalists to visit Parker to meet students, families and staff. We welcome your feedback and appreciate your support throughout the process. Principal Discussion March 4 th , 6:30-7:30 PM, Hybrid, In-person and Online Remote: (see weekly email for link) Meeting ID: (see weekly email) Passcode: (see weekly email) In-person: Room 40 Brian

Weekly Information for February 7, 2025

By Cindy Johnson • February 8, 2025
Dear Parker students, families and members of the Parker community, I hope you enjoyed our first snow day of the year. With our busy lives and fast pace, snow days give us an unscheduled day off to hopefully unplug and enjoy time with family. I hope you went outside and played in the snow! Thank you to our custodians John, Greg and Ben for their hard work all year, particularly on snow events. We appreciate their early mornings to ensure a safe return to school. When there is snow in the forecast, John and I connect throughout the night and early morning to determine if it is safe to open. While we were able to make the call the evening before, that will not always be the case. We will try to communicate no later than 6:00 am. Closings and delays will be posted on the website, shared with local news outlets and communicated by an automated phone call. With students coming from 40 towns and cities, we recognize that your local conditions may vary. Please make the best decision for you and your family, including if that means staying home on a snowy day that we have school. We are very proud to be celebrating our 30th Anniversary this year. We are among the first five charter schools in the state to reach this milestone. It is a testament to hard work, community support and thousands of students, families and staff who wanted to do school differently and better. A lot has changed in the world over the last thirty years, but Parker’s commitment to putting students first, challenging them to use their minds well and supporting one another with a tone of decency and trust has not wavered. We all share this accomplishment. Please join us for our 30th Anniversary Gala and fundraiser on Saturday, April 5 th , at the Bull Run in Shirley. For more information and to buy tickets, please visit www.parker.school/gala . We are expecting over 200 attendees, with half of the tickets already sold. Thank you for joining us. Respectfully, Brian

Weekly Information for January 31, 2025

By Cindy Johnson • February 1, 2025
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Weekly Information for January 24, 2025

By Cindy Johnson • January 26, 2025
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Weekly Information for January 17, 2025

By Cindy Johnson • January 17, 2025
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Weekly Information for January 10, 2025

By Cindy Johnson • January 10, 2025
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