December Monthly Update Dear RSU 71 Students, Families, Staff, School Board, and Community Partners, Today (12/19/22), tri-town parent Tambara Arnold died in a car accident. We grieve for her family, Kindergarten-aged son, friends, tri-town staff, and networks of relationships. In a season of joy and celebration, suffering still happens, a fact our teachers can attest to. Grief and joy exist side by side. As W.H. Auden wrote in his poem Musee des Beaux Arts: About suffering they were never wrong, The old Masters: how well they understood Its human position: how it takes place While someone else is eating or opening a window or just walking dully along.
In joy, we decorated our Christmas tree this past weekend to the soundtrack of a crackling fire and holiday music. The holiday concerts in our schools are joy-inducing; I saw two, which were terrific. I hope the season's grace and spirit of peace will touch all members of the RSU 71 family despite the concurrent complexities and suffering in this life.
I’ll take a break from sharing news about our RSU 71 Education Plan except to say this. We are doing great work, making solid gains, and confident that we have what it takes to do even better. Unfortunately, we still have too many students who are not meeting their potential. So, to help all our students succeed, to close the achievement gap, we’ll need to adapt our habitual ways of doing things. If we wish to realize our vision – “engaging students to become leaders who understand their strengths, explore their interests, and embark on pathways leading to fulfilling lives” – we need to change some things slowly, respectfully, and over time. Change can be challenging. The call to change recognizes that it is possible to do even better for our students than we currently are, a thought which sometimes stings, especially when we are already giving it our all. We are indeed giving the work of educating students the best we know now. However, a solid research base and testimonies show that a few high-leverage instructional strategies can get even better results. Engaging and motivating our students in the joys of learning and the satisfaction of hard work is possible in an active classroom in which students know the expectations and routines and are helped to create higher quality products and performances than they thought possible. There is still room for more people on the three superintendent advisory committees. One of my goals for 2023 is to bring the perspectives of students, staff, and parents more fully into my work as superintendent. We have students representing the elementary and high school levels on the advisory sign-up lists. We have a good team of parents representing K-5, 6-8, and 9 - 12 from Belmont, Belfast, Swanville, Northport, and Brooks. In addition, we have staff representing BAHS and THMS with room for more, especially educators serving K-5 schools. Please click on the link below if you are interested in serving. (or copy & paste this url if button doesn’t work >> https://forms.gle/9XNpdT1n8buX2SLz8 ) With warm wishes for joy, rest, strength, spirit, and good health this season, Mary Alice McLean, Superintendent mamclean@rsu71.org 1-207-338-1960 
Printable version of RSU 71 Education Plan
Good News, Reminders, Information BELFAST AREA HIGH SCHOOL
LIONS ON THE SHELF | Belfast National Honor Society chapter partners with local organization to provide presents to teens. Student members of Belfast Area High School’s National Honor Society chapter have partnered with Waldo Community Action Partners to provide holiday gifts for students in need. Read full article here >> https://waldo.villagesoup.com/2022/11/23/lions-on-the-shelf/ | 
Belfast National Honor Society chapter adviser Katie Naude works with students on a project with Waldo Community Action Partners.
Photo by Jim Leonard, The Republican Journal |
| CREATING THE GLOBAL CLASSROOM | 
Photo by Jim Leonard, The Republican Journal
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BAHS explores International Baccalaureate program. Read full article here >> https://waldo.villagesoup.com/2022/11/30/creating-the-global-classroom/ |
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| BELFAST AREA HIGH SCHOOL PROGRAM HITS THE WATER | Marine Institute program investigates shipwreck, preps for kelp transplant and receives a wet lab.
Read full article here >> https://waldo.villagesoup.com/2022/11/23/belfast-high-school-program-hits-the-water/
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Belfast Marine Institute students and staff work to set lines for seeding kelp in Belfast Harbor on November 13. Photo courtesy of Belfast Marine Institute
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| BELFAST AREA HIGH SCHOOL RECEIVES MELMAC GRANT | Belfast Area High School is pleased to announce an award of an 18-month, $20,000 grant from the Melmac Foundation. About ten years ago, BAHS was awarded a five-year Melmac grant that helped our high school rethink career and college planning and support of students and families. That grant round helped our school institute college visits to different types of college campuses in the state of Maine for all 10th grade students, in order to raise aspirations and help our students become aware of college and career options. The new grant round will allow our students and families to benefit from additional support in college and career planning. One aspect of the plan is to have our students visit college campuses in an urban setting, and to offer more financial literacy to seniors and their families. The grant will also help support seniors through their college application process, help families with planning for college costs, and support students with academic planning prior to heading off to community colleges. This short-term grant will end in June of 2024.
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| BAHS Newsletter – December 2, 2022 BAHS Newsletter – December 9, 2022 BAHS Newsletter – December 16, 2022 BAHS News Correction – December 19, 2022
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BELFAST AREA HIGH SCHOOL & TROY HOWARD MIDDLE SCHOOL
BROAD STRIPES AND BRIGHT STARS B.C.O.P.E. THE OTHER ALTERNATIVE TROY HOWARD MIDDLE SCHOOL TROY HOWARD GAZETTE 
| The tradition of making handmade holiday window displays for our community continues this year at The Green Store in downtown Belfast. Three classes of 8th graders, one class of 7th graders, and one class of 6th graders made the most of their time in art class last week to create a fun winter scene to kick off the holiday season. Classes used materials that could be reused or recycled. The art is made from egg cartons, bottle caps, scrap paper, cereal boxes, cardboard boxes, and more. Thanks to the Principal and Asst. Principal, Bruce Bailey and Alta Seekins for being the main subjects in our work! Great BIG thanks to the lovely folks at The Green Store for allowing the tradition to continue! Warm Wishes, THMS Art Students & Samantha Maheu |
RSU#71 STUDENTS SHINE AT THE FALL REGIONAL MIDDLE SCHOOL MATH MEET! On Thursday December 1, 2022, twenty-three students from Troy Howard Middle School and Captain Albert Stevens School, competed in the first regional Math Meet of this school year held at the China Lake Conference Center. Four other school districts from China, Winslow, Messalonskee, and Searsport participated. Awards are given to the top scoring students and top scoring teams at each grade level. Five RSU#71 teams went home with team ribbons and six students placed in the top 4 at their grade level. | 6th Grade Team Red: 1st Place Ella Chase (THMS - 6th) Regan Mitchell (THMS - 6th) 3rd place Individual Gabe Sagaas (THMS - 6th) Rose White (THMS - 6th) 6th Grade Team Blue: 3rd Place Avery Adams (THMS - 6th) 4th place Individual Soyoon Ahn (THMS - 6th) Lucas Canning (THMS - 6th) Yan Lozanov (THMS - 6th) 7th Grade Team Pink - Tied for 1st Place Avery Gobin (THMS - 7th) 4th place Individual Quintin Sorrentino (THMS - 7th) Rhiannon Larrabee (THMS - 7th) Maxton Sinagra (CASS - 5th) 1st Place Individual | 7th Grade Team Green - Tied for 1st Place Alex Miller (THMS - 7th) Miles Flemming (THMS - 7th) 2nd Place Individual Lucy Engstrum (THMS - 7th) Silas Oceipka (THMS - 7th) 8th Grade Team Yellow - 3rd Place Theo Fowler (THMS - 8th) Ian Beal (THMS - 7th) 1st Place Individual Gabe Wagner (THMS - 8th) 8th Grade Team Orange Bella Foley (THMS - 8th) Paisley Hayslip (THMS - 8th) Ibis Bird (THMS - 8th) Justin Massey (THMS - 8th) | 
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Math Team Coaches: Nicholas Hills (THMS) and Jessica Young (ELP)
Congratulations to all our RSU#71 Mathletes for a job well done! Special thanks goes to our parent volunteers who helped the organizers with scoring: Jake Fleming, Lisa Chase, and Jaquie Gage. There will be two more math meets this school year and students are looking forward to another day of intellectual fun! BOWL ‘EM OVER: SPECIAL OLYMPIANS ENJOY EVENT’S REBIRTH
THMS Newsletter – 12th Edition – December 2, 2022
TROY HOWARD MIDDLE SCHOOL & CASS
HOLIDAY LUNCH Before Thanksgiving break the TLC students at THMS held a Holiday lunch for the students in Mrs. Pooler’s class from CASS. The CASS students were treated to a feast of chicken nuggets, macaroni and cheese, rolls, green beans, and Jello. All cooked and prepared by TLC’s teacher, Mary Ward and her students and staff. Decorations and potatoes were brought and shared by Mrs. Pooler’s class. A great time was had by all!! | 
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| Charlee Dow shares, "When we made the moss Terrariums, Cloe Chun talked about the moss being friends, I agree. I think moss are organisms that have different “species,” like animals, and animals are our friends. I like to think the moss is life cycling around the world to see other life..." |
CASS
THE WRIGHT 3 BY BLUE BALLIETT
The 4th grade Literature ELP group at CASS just finished reading the book The Wright 3 by Blue Balliett. This is a fictional mystery with 3 kids who work to solve a mystery and ultimately to save a Frank Lloyd Wright house that is going to be torn down. The house that is in the story is indeed a real Frank Lloyd Wright House. As a group we decided to do some research on Frank Lloyd Wright and to learn more about his style of Architecture. Each student researched one of FLW's designs and created a slide presentation. From here we designed our own houses on paper and then wanted to learn how to design houses in 3d so we took some tutorials in a program called Tinkercad. The students then used this program to transform their 2d paper house designs into 3d. Our next step is to print them on the 3d printer. The girls are excited to share their 3d designs with you.
CASS & NICKERSON
LITERARY BUFFET
The Elementary Libraries and FoodCorp hosted a literary buffet in the CASS (Grades 2-5) and Nickerson Libraries (Grades 3-5) in December. We paired delicious snacks with library books about that type of food in a buffet display. Students taste-tested kale chips, cranberry apple sauce, and other yummy foods. Some of the snacks students even helped to plant or harvest from their school's garden. We voted and gathered data about our favorite snacks from the buffet. We heard The Couch Potato as a read-aloud. Finally, students read books about food, gardening, and farming. It was a really fun event connected to our gardening and library learning.
EAST BELFAST & NICKERSON
STAFF GIFTS ORNAMENTS FOR CHILDREN
The staff at East Belfast and Nickerson schools created beautiful ornaments for all of our students. Each ornament has a student's name and will serve as temporary decoration, and then go home with them to keep. Lindsey LaChance, School Counselor | 
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AMES, CASS & NICKERSON
HAUNTED SOILS - BENEFICIAL SOIL DWELLERS
Larvae, Spiders and Fungi- Oh My! Haunted Soils Activity Delights Students The BRRRR Club ran a fun activity to conclude a study of insects, why insects are important and how we can help them. Students began by selecting a soil dweller to “become” and learned about their role in the soil. They then gathered with other soil dwellers to meet and talk about what they did underground. Our happy soil critters were “shrunk” to 1/100 of their human size and entered the soil- crawling through the soil which had glowing organisms thanks to a black light. Students discussed how critters need healthy soil free of pesticides to thrive. Students went through the soil again, this time adding another soil dweller to make the soil healthier. Nickerson 4th and 5th graders, Ames 5th graders and CASS students in the PRC Spark participated.
Nickerson 4th grade soil dwellers meeting and sharing about who they are.
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Nickerson 4th grader enjoys the soil. | 
Ames 5th grader adds new life to the soil. | 
CASS students relaxing in their healthy soil. |
TRI-TOWN
EVACUATION DRILLS, MAINE DESTINATION IMAGINATION (DI), MUSIC CLASSES & MORE Some highlights below of December’s letter from Mr. Widmer. Click this link for all the details and news >> Tri-Town December 2022 Letter to Families - Evacuation drills at both schools that were smooth and successful.
- Destination Imagination is looking for parents, caregivers and educators
- Searsmont Town Library is offering music classes at the Town Library during Jan-March 2023
- There is a Toys for Tots donation box in the entryway of the Ames School. Unwrapped toys can be dropped in the box, which will be distributed to local children.
- Holiday break!
ADULT ED
HISET® TESTING PROGRAM
| Adult Ed is pleased to announce that we have successfully completed the transfer of the HiSET® testing program! We are now ready to work with anyone wishing to complete their high school equivalency diploma. Visit Our Website: https://belfast.maineadulted.org/ |
SPRING BROCHURE MAINTENANCE
NEW MAINTENANCE DIRECTOR |
We would like to welcome Cory Eisenhour, our new Director of Maintenance. Cory comes to us with an impressive background in facilities management. He has extensive experience in facilities maintenance, project management and a plethora of hands-on experience in applicable trades. Welcome Cory! | 
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CURRICULUM
RSU 71 TITLE I ROCKS!!! | What is Title l?
Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) supports
reforms and innovations to improve educational opportunities for low-achieving students. Title I is designed to provide all children the opportunity to receive high-quality education and to close educational achievement gaps. To this end, Title I supports districts and schools in Maine to meet the educational needs of low-achieving students in schools with high concentrations of students from low-income families.
What is a Title l schoolwide program?
RSU #71 has 5 schools that are identified as Schoolwide Title l schools (Ames, Weymouth, CASS, East Belfast, and Nickerson). Title I funds may be used to upgrade the entire educational program in a school so all students may benefit. There is no student identification process. The program promotes improved instruction for all students. Activities must be a part of the approved schoolwide plan (school level Comprehensive Needs Assessments (CNA) and district Consolidated Plan) and support an identified academic need through the school’s CNA, usually, literacy and math-focused. Title I funds are used to provide professional development for all staff to support all students. A Title I schoolwide program is a comprehensive reform strategy designed to upgrade the entire educational program in a Title l school in order to improve the achievement of the lowest-achieving students. (ESEA section 1114(a)(1)). Under ESEA, a school may operate a schoolwide program if it meets any of the following conditions: - A Title I school with 40 percent or more of its students living in poverty, regardless of the grades it serves.
- A Title I school receives a waiver from a SEA to operate a schoolwide program without meeting the 40 percent poverty threshold.
- A Tier I or Tier II school in a State that requested and received a waiver through the School Improvement Grant (SIG) program receives funds to implement one of the SIG intervention models.
Benefits of Operating a Schoolwide Program
A school that operates a schoolwide program is able to take advantage of numerous benefits,
Including:
Serving all students. A school operating a schoolwide program does not need to identify particular students as eligible to participate. (ESEA section 1114(a)(2)(A)(i)). What does the Title l instruction look like? Two models are used to implement instruction in Title l. One is referred to as an inclusion model. Inclusion means that the Title l teacher/Interventionist goes into the classroom to provide supplemental instruction, supporting the students as they practice tasks in the classroom. This is referred to as the ‘push in’ model. When supplemental instruction takes place out of the classroom and in the Title l classroom, we refer to it as the ‘pull out’ model. We use the model that is best for each student’s learning needs.
Who are the Title l instructors?
Each of the 5 elementary schools in RSU #71 has a highly qualified teacher and/or ed techs who provide supplemental Title l services. They have completed the necessary education, and intensive training in Title l and they receive ongoing professional development. We are very fortunate to have these individuals working with our students and staff.
Captain Albert Stevens School | Nickerson School | Lisa Brita lbrita@rsu71.org | Sarah Mitchell smitchell@rsu71.org | Geri Winslow gwiinslow@rsu71.org | 338-3510 | 338-1858 | | | | East Belfast School | Ames School | Jo-Ann Nealey jnealey@rsu71.org | Kris Federle kfederle@rsu71.org | 338-4420 | 342-5100 | | | Weymouth School Title l Coordinator | | Sarah Bowen sbowen@rsu71.org | Laura Miller lmiller@rsu71.org | 342-5300 | 338-1960 |
Please reach out to your school's Title l teacher or Coordinator Laura Miller if you have any questions. DISTRICT
COVID-19 TESTS AVAILABLE |
The Maine Department of Education, in partnership with Maine Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, will provide a one-time allotment of at-home COVID-19 antigen test kits for ultimate distribution to students/families. These are the Siemens CLINITEST Rapid COVID-19 Antigen Self-Test. Please contact Gail Dudley at Belfast Area High School if you would like tests while supplies last. Also, people can continue to get free tests via the Maine state website here >> https://www.maine.gov/covid19/testing
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PDF Version of this update is available here for download RSU 71 Monthly Update - December 2022
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