June 2, 2023

SPS Families,

June marks the launch of Pride month across Salem and the Salem Public Schools. We are proud to celebrate our LGBTQ+ students, caregivers and staff throughout the month. The pride flag has been raised at each school and schools/classrooms will be facilitating events and discussions to highlight the importance of affirming the community. Additionally, next Friday, June 9th we will be asking all members of the SPS family to wear pride colors as a show of solidarity and allyship. Thank you in advance for your support! 

I also want to take a moment to invite any member of the community to share their interest in being a part of the School Building Committee (SBC) that will oversee the proposed new building project at the current Salem High School site. The purpose of the committee is to ensure that the City of Salem complies with the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA)’s regulations in monitoring and advising the Mayor during the application process and construction of an approved project.

The SBC will work with consultants to develop certain MSBA required plans for the project and will vote to authorize the Owner’s Project Manager (OPM) to submit those plans to the MSBA for approval. Other elements of the project are under the purview of other bodies. For example, Salem educators with input from this committee and the School Committee, decide the educational program.

This committee will meet approximately once a month during the duration of the project. We are looking for a diverse group of individuals who have backgrounds in education, finance/accounting, construction/contracting, building design and community organizing. If you are interested in participating, please send an email with a brief interest statement to my assistant, Mindy Marino, at mmarino@salemk12.org no later than June 14th. Thank you!

Enjoy the weekend,

Steve

At Salem Public Schools, we are recognizing one staff member a week who exemplifies our core values of celebrating differences, facilitating collaboration, fostering innovation, creating equity and access, growing all students, and upholding high standards for all. We are surprising a deserving SPS team member with a rock star trophy.

This week’s rockstar award goes to the members of our teacher advisory group: Kayla Benoit, Paige Covello, Susan Crimble, Nora Davis, Marta Garcia, Erika Griffin, Erin Harrington, Meeyoung Lee, Megan Martins, Sean McMahon, Laurie Mendoza, Brenda Perez-Goodrum, Martin Valdes and Katherine Visci who have given their time to meet with the superintendent monthly to offer feedback on district initiatives, ideas for making the profession more sustainable and serving as valued thought partners on solving complex situations. They are all strong leaders with the courage to advocate for their colleagues, students and the City of Salem. We are grateful for their commitment and proud to have them as employees in the Salem Public Schools. 

Art from our students that we showcased at the See Me exhibition will be featured this weekend at Salem Arts Fest! The fest also features SHS student Alexia Coleman’s For the Record project. Come see our students shine once again at the Salem Arts Fest

As we near the end of the school year, we wanted to let you know that we are now accepting applications for waitlist spots in a few of our SPS summer programs. If you are interested in registering your student in one of our programs, please contact your school’s City Connects Coordinator.

Hello from Food & Nutrition Services! Check out the menus for June 5th – June 16th: https://salemfoodservice.wixsite.com/spsk12menus 

Are you a high school student looking for a fun summer job? Salem Food and Nutrition Services has a great employment opportunity for students this summer! We will be running a variety of fun activities at our dinner site location at Mary Jane Lee Park. These activities will range from arts & crafts to sports and lawn games! Students will be hired to help from 4pm-6pm on weekday evenings (M-F). 

This is a great opportunity to gain leadership skills and spend summer working outside! If you are interested please scan the QR code in the image below or click here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScQtGCrUMAPiUZcCmilSdQBYARCLWXQX1tElxwklCl-Fll4AA/viewform

We will be in touch soon if your availability works for us! 

Transportation applications for the 2023-2024 school year opened on Monday, May 1, 2023, in the Aspen family portal. The Transportation Department sent information to families with instructions on how to apply, so please check your email, text messages, and ParentSquare notifications.

All students who wish to ride the bus for the 2023-2024 school year must submit an application, even if the student currently rides the bus or is considered a mandatory rider. A completed application must be submitted by Saturday, July 1, 2023. Applications received after July 1, 2023, will not be accepted except in extenuating circumstances to allow proper time for processing and routing.

If you have any questions, please call the Salem Public Schools Transportation Office at 

(978) 740-1240.

We are excited to announce that Angela’s Preschool and Daycare is now open at Salem High School! Our preschool and daycare facility is dedicated to providing a safe, nurturing, and stimulating environment for your child’s growth and development. Enroll your child now by contacting 978-335-1413

We understand the importance of quality care and education for your child, which is why our experienced staff is committed to providing personalized attention to each child in our care. Our curriculum focuses on social, emotional, physical, and cognitive development to ensure your child a well-rounded and ready for their next educational journey.

Welcome to the Virtual Backpack. This is a space where we will place items that in the past may have been a flyer in your student’s backpack from friends and partners to SPS.

A reminder that ParentSquare is the district platform for communication. You will receive communication from the district, your school, and your student’s classroom all in one space. You can communicate 1-to-1 with teachers, sign up for parent-teacher conferences, and more.

This is how our school and teachers communicate with families districtwide. Please be sure you are receiving messages from ParentSquare. If need support downloading the app or receiving messages, please contact your school’s front office. You can visit www.parentsquare.com for more information.